| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1Now gather yourself in troops, O daughter of troops; He has laid siege against us; They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on 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. |
| 2“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are 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 He shall give them up, Until the time that she who is in labor has given birth; Then the remnant of His brethren Shall return to 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 His flock In the strength of the LORD, In the majesty of the name of the LORD His God; And they shall abide, For now He shall be great To 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 One shall be peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land, And when he treads in our palaces, Then we will raise against him Seven shepherds and eight princely 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. |
| 6They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria, And the land of Nimrod at its entrances; Thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian, When he comes into our land And when he treads 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. |
| 7Then the remnant of Jacob Shall be in the midst of many peoples, Like dew from the LORD, Like showers on the grass, That tarry for no man Nor wait 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 peoples, Like a lion among the beasts of the forest, Like a young lion among flocks of sheep, Who, if he passes through, Both treads down and tears 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. |
| 9Your hand shall be lifted against your adversaries, And all your enemies shall be cut off. | 9Lift your hand triumphantly against your adversaries; may all your enemies be destroyed! |
| 10“And it shall be in that day,” says the LORD, “That I will cut off your horses from your midst And destroy your chariots. | 10"In that day," says the LORD, "I will destroy your horses from your midst, and smash your chariots. |
| 11I will cut off the cities of your land And throw down all your strongholds. | 11I will destroy the cities of your land, and tear down all your fortresses. |
| 12I will cut off sorceries from your hand, And you shall have no soothsayers. | 12I will remove the sorcery that you practice, and you will no longer have omen readers living among you. |
| 13Your carved images I will also cut off, And your sacred pillars from your midst; You shall no more worship the work of your hands; | 13I will remove your idols and sacred pillars from your midst; you will no longer worship what your own hands made. |
| 14I will pluck your wooden images from your midst; Thus I will destroy your cities. | 14I will uproot your images of Asherah from your midst, and destroy your idols. |
| 15And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury On the nations that have not heard.” | 15I will angrily seek vengeance on the nations that do not obey me." |
|
