Micah 5:1-3

Contemporary English Version

A Promised Ruler

5 Jerusalem, enemy troops
have surrounded you;^[a]
they have struck Israel's ruler
in the face with a stick.

²^(A) Bethlehem Ephrath,
you are one of the smallest towns
    in the nation of Judah.
But the Lord will choose
one of your people
    to rule the nation—
someone whose family
    goes back to ancient times.^[b]
³The Lord will abandon Israel
    only until this ruler is born,
and the rest of his family^[c]
    returns to Israel.

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Footnotes

5.1 Jerusalem … you: Or “Jerusalem, you are slashing yourself in sorrow, because of the enemy troops.”
5.2 family … times: Or “kingdom is eternal.”
5.3 family: Or “people.”