The Meaning of Micah 6:9 Explained

Micah 6:9

KJV: The LORD'S voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

YLT: A voice of Jehovah to the city calleth, And wisdom doth fear Thy name, Hear ye the rod, and Him who appointed it.

Darby: Jehovah's voice crieth unto the city, and wisdom looketh on thy name. Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

ASV: The voice of Jehovah crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom will see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The LORD'S  voice  crieth  unto the city,  and [the man of] wisdom  shall see  thy name:  hear  ye the rod,  and who hath appointed  it. 

What does Micah 6:9 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Micah announced that Yahweh would call to the city of Jerusalem; He would declare something important to the people of that town, Micah"s audience of Judeans. They would be wise to hear Him and to fear Him because of who He is (cf. Micah 6:1; Micah 3:1; Proverbs 1:7). The Lord summoned His people, the tribe of Judah, to hear Him because it was He who had sovereignly chosen them.

Context Summary

Micah 6:1-16 - "what Doth The Lord Require Of Thee?"
In Micah 6:1-4 the prophet returns from his vision of the future to the actual condition of his people, which was utterly desperate. The mountains, as the most enduring monuments of nature, are summoned as witnesses in the great trial between Jehovah and His people. Like Israel, we have been delivered from the house of bondage with infinite love, but how wayward and willful we have been! Micah 6:5-8 prove the impotence of a religion which is only external.
Few have known more sublime truth than Baalim, Micah 6:5, but he loved the wages of unrighteousness; and this eclipsed the divine radiance that became overcast and finally overwhelmed. Micah 6:9-11 reveal the fruitlessness of a life of sin. Sooner or later nature herself becomes unresponsive-sowing, but no harvest; the treading of the press, but no juice. The only path to real satisfaction and peace is in the love and faithful service of God. Why are we so slow to tread it? [source]

Chapter Summary: Micah 6

1  God's punishment for ingratitude;
6  for ignorance,
10  for injustice;
16  and for idolatry

What do the individual words in Micah 6:9 mean?

the voice of Yahweh to the city cries and Wisdom shall see Your name Hear the rod and who has appointed it
ק֤וֹל יְהוָה֙ לָעִ֣יר יִקְרָ֔א וְתוּשִׁיָּ֖ה יִרְאֶ֣ה שְׁמֶ֑ךָ שִׁמְע֥וּ מַטֶּ֖ה וּמִ֥י יְעָדָֽהּ

ק֤וֹל  the  voice 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: קֹול 
Sense: voice, sound, noise.
יְהוָה֙  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
לָעִ֣יר  to  the  city 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
יִקְרָ֔א  cries 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קָרָא  
Sense: to call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim.
וְתוּשִׁיָּ֖ה  and  Wisdom 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: תּוּשִׁיָּה  
Sense: wisdom, sound knowledge, success, sound or efficient wisdom, abiding success.
יִרְאֶ֣ה  shall  see 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָרֵא 
Sense: to fear, revere, be afraid.
שְׁמֶ֑ךָ  Your  name 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: שֵׁם  
Sense: name.
שִׁמְע֥וּ  Hear 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַע 
Sense: to hear, listen to, obey.
מַטֶּ֖ה  the  rod 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: מַטֶּה  
Sense: staff, branch, tribe.
וּמִ֥י  and  who 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Interrogative
Root: מִי  
Sense: who?, whose?, whom?, would that, whoever, whosoever.
יְעָדָֽהּ  has  appointed  it 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: יָעַד  
Sense: to fix, appoint, assemble, meet, set, betroth.