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Micah 6:5-8
New Catholic Bible
Micah 6:5-8
New Catholic Bible
5 My people, remember the plan
that Balak, the king of Moab, devised,
and what Balaam, the son of Beor, answered him.
Recall also your journey from Shittim[a] to Gilgal
so that you may know the saving justice of the Lord.
True Religion
6 With what will I come before the Lord
when I bow down before God on high?
Will I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Should I offer my firstborn son for my transgressions,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?[b]
8 The Lord has told you, O man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
Only this: to do what is right, to show mercy,
and to walk humbly with your God.[c]
Footnotes
- Micah 6:5 Balak wanted Balaam to curse the Israelites, but God made Balaam change the curse into a blessing (see Num 22–24). Shittim and Gilgal recall the entrance into the Promised Land (see Jos 3–4).
- Micah 6:7 Sacrifice of the firstborn seems to have been frequently practiced at this time, the idea being to obtain the divine favor by offering the firstfruits of human life. The Prophets protested strongly against this aberration of the religious sense (see 2 Ki 16:3; Jer 7:31; Ezek 20:26).
- Micah 6:8 Even if this magnificent verse were the only memorable passage in the Book of Micah, the Book would be worth reading and rereading; the verse is one of the richest summations of prophetic preaching (Isa 19:19; Hos 6:6; Am 5:21-22).
