| King James Bible | NET Bible |
| 1Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. | 1But now slash yourself, daughter surrounded by soldiers! We are besieged! With a scepter they strike Israel's ruler on the side of his face. |
| 2But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. | 2As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, seemingly insignificant among the clans of Judah--from you a king will emerge who will rule over Israel on my behalf, one whose origins are in the distant past. |
| 3Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel. | 3So the LORD will hand the people of Israel over to their enemies until the time when the woman in labor gives birth. Then the rest of the king's countrymen will return to be reunited with the people of Israel. |
| 4And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth. | 4He will assume his post and shepherd the people by the LORD's strength, by the sovereign authority of the LORD his God. They will live securely, for at that time he will be honored even in the distant regions of the earth. |
| 5And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men. | 5He will give us peace. Should the Assyrians try to invade our land and attempt to set foot in our fortresses, we will send against them seven shepherd-rulers, make that eight commanders. |
| 6And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our borders. | 6They will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, the land of Nimrod with a drawn sword. Our king will rescue us from the Assyrians should they attempt to invade our land and try to set foot in our territory. |
| 7And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the LORD, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. | 7Those survivors from Jacob will live in the midst of many nations. They will be like the dew the LORD sends, like the rain on the grass, that does not hope for men to come or wait around for humans to arrive. |
| 8And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. | 8Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations, in the midst of many peoples. They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which attacks when it passes through; it rips its prey and there is no one to stop it. |
| 9Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off. | 9Lift your hand triumphantly against your adversaries; may all your enemies be destroyed! |
| 10And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots: | 10"In that day," says the LORD, "I will destroy your horses from your midst, and smash your chariots. |
| 11And I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strong holds: | 11I will destroy the cities of your land, and tear down all your fortresses. |
| 12And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers: | 12I will remove the sorcery that you practice, and you will no longer have omen readers living among you. |
| 13Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands. | 13I will remove your idols and sacred pillars from your midst; you will no longer worship what your own hands made. |
| 14And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities. | 14I will uproot your images of Asherah from your midst, and destroy your idols. |
| 15And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard. | 15I will angrily seek vengeance on the nations that do not obey me." |
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