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LXX Micah

Septuagint

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Chapter 4

1 And at the last days the mountain of the Lord shall be manifest, established on the tops of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and the peoples shall hasten to it. 2 And many nations shall go, and say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and they shall show us his way, and we will walk in his paths:⁠ for out of Zion shall go forth a law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 3 And he shall judge among many peoples, and shall rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into sickles; and nation shall no more lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn to war any more. 4 And every one shall rest under his vine, and every one under his fig tree; and there shall be none to alarm them: for the mouth of the Lord Almighty has spoken these words. 5 For all other nations shall walk everyone in his own way, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever. 6 In that day, says the Lord, I will gather her that is bruised, and will receive her that is cast out, and those whom I rejected. 7 And I will make her that was bruised a remnant, and her that was rejected a mighty nation: and the Lord shall reign over them in mount Zion from now on, even for ever. 8 And you, dark tower of the flock, daughter of Zion, on you the dominion shall come and enter in, even the first kingdom from Babylon to the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 And now, why have you known evil things? was there not a king to you? or has your counsel perished that pangs as of a woman in labor have seized upon you?⁠ 10 Be in pain, and strengthen yourself, and draw near, daughter of Zion, as a woman in labor: for now you shall go forth out of the city, and shall lodge in the plain, and shall reach even to Babylon: from there the Lord your God shall deliver you, and from there he shall redeem you out of the hand of your enemies. 11 And now have many nations gathered against you, saying, We will rejoice, and our eyes shall look upon Zion. 12 But they do not know the thought of the Lord, and have not understood his counsel: for he has gathered them as sheaves of the floor. 13 Arise, and thresh them, daughter of Zion: for I will make your horns iron, and I will make your hoofs brass: and you shall melt nations among them, and shall utterly destroy many peoples, and shall consecrate their abundance to the Lord, and their strength to the Lord of all the earth. 14 Now the daughter of Ephraim will be completely hedged in: he has laid siege against us: they shall strike the tribes of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.

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Compare Micah 4:2 and LXX Micah 4:2

Hebrew Bible · Septuagint

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Summary

Micah describes nations coming to learn from God, saying he will teach them his ways. The Greek Septuagint changes the subject so that the Jewish people, not God, will show the nations his way, avoiding the idea of God teaching foreigners.

Passages

Micah 4:2

Hebrew Bible
1 And in future days the Lord’s Temple Mount will be the most important mountain of all; it will be more prominent than other hills. People will stream to it. 2 Many nations will come, saying, “Come on! Let’s go up to the Lord’s mountain, to the temple of Jacob’s God, so he can teach us his ways and we can live by his laws.” For instruction will proceed from Zion, the Lord’s message from Jerusalem. 3 He will arbitrate between many peoples and settle disputes between many distant nations. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not use weapons against other nations, and they will no longer train for war.
600–501 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Micah

LXX Micah 4:2

Septuagint
1 And at the last days the mountain of the Lord shall be manifest, established on the tops of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and the peoples shall hasten to it. 2 And many nations shall go, and say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and they shall show us his way, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth a law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 3 And he shall judge among many peoples, and shall rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into sickles; and nation shall no more lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn to war any more.
100–1 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Micah

References

"… In Micah 4.2 the Masoretic Text has ‘so that he (God) may teach us (the peoples) his ways’, but the Septuagint renders ‘and they (the Jews) will show us (the peoples) his ways’. There may be a touch of ‘theological correctness’ here, avoiding the possibility that God will teach pagans directly, but perhaps also a celebration of the exalted role promised to Jews, in line with Zechariah 2.11; 8.20-23; 14.16. …"
Jennifer Dines, “The Minor Prophets,” in T&T Clark Companion to the Septuagint, ed. James K. Aitken, Bloomsbury Companions (London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2015), 446.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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