Micah 4:9

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

Jerusalem, why are you now shouting so loudly? Has your king disappeared? Has your wise leader been destroyed? Is this why pain grips you as if you were a woman in labor?

Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

  • Jer 8:19 : 19 I hear my dear people crying out throughout the length and breadth of the land. They are crying,‘Is the LORD no longer in Zion? Is her divine King no longer there?’” The LORD answers,“Why then do they provoke me to anger with their images, with their worthless foreign idols?”
  • Isa 13:8 : 8 They panic– cramps and pain seize hold of them like those of a woman who is straining to give birth. They look at one another in astonishment; their faces are flushed red.
  • Isa 21:3 : 3 For this reason my stomach churns; cramps overwhelm me like the contractions of a woman in labor. I am disturbed by what I hear, horrified by what I see.
  • Isa 26:17 : 17 As when a pregnant woman gets ready to deliver and strains and cries out because of her labor pains, so were we because of you, O LORD.
  • Jer 4:21 : 21 “How long must I see the enemy’s battle flags and hear the military signals of their bugles?”
  • Isa 3:1-7 : 1 A Coming Leadership Crisis Look, the Sovereign LORD of Heaven’s Armies is about to remove from Jerusalem and Judah every source of security, including all the food and water, 2 the mighty men and warriors, judges and prophets, omen readers and leaders, 3 captains of groups of fifty, the respected citizens, advisers and those skilled in magical arts, and those who know incantations. 4 The LORD says,“I will make youths their officials; malicious young men will rule over them. 5 The people will treat each other harshly; men will oppose each other; neighbors will fight. Youths will proudly defy the elderly and riffraff will challenge those who were once respected. 6 Indeed, a man will grab his brother right in his father’s house and say,‘You own a coat– you be our leader! This heap of ruins will be under your control.’ 7 At that time the brother will shout,‘I am no doctor, I have no food or coat in my house; don’t make me a leader of the people!’”
  • Jer 22:23 : 23 You may feel as secure as a bird nesting in the cedars of Lebanon. But oh how you will groan when the pains of judgment come on you. They will be like those of a woman giving birth to a baby.
  • Jer 30:6-7 : 6 Ask yourselves this and consider it carefully: Have you ever seen a man give birth to a baby? Why then do I see all these strong men grabbing their stomachs in pain like a woman giving birth? And why do their faces turn so deathly pale? 7 Alas, what a terrible time of trouble it is! There has never been any like it. It is a time of trouble for the descendants of Jacob, but some of them will be rescued out of it.
  • Jer 50:43 : 43 The king of Babylon will become paralyzed with fear when he hears news of their coming. Anguish will grip him, agony like that of a woman giving birth to a baby.
  • Lam 4:20 : 20 ר(Resh) Our very life breath– the LORD’s anointed king– was caught in their traps, of whom we thought,“Under his protection we will survive among the nations.”
  • Hos 3:4 : 4 For the Israelites must live many days without a king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred fertility pillar, without ephod or idols.
  • Hos 10:3 : 3 The Lord Will Punish Israel by Removing Its Kings Very soon they will say,“We have no king since we did not fear the LORD. But what can a king do for us anyway?”
  • Hos 13:10-11 : 10 Where then is your king, that he may save you in all your cities? Where are your rulers for whom you asked, saying,“Give me a king and princes”? 11 I granted you a king in my anger, and I will take him away in my wrath!

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

  • Mic 4:10-11
    2 verses
    85%

    10Twist and strain, Daughter Zion, as if you were in labor! For you will leave the city and live in the open field. You will go to Babylon, but there you will be rescued. There the LORD will deliver you from the power of your enemies.

    11Many nations have now assembled against you. They say,“Jerusalem must be desecrated, so we can gloat over Zion!”

  • Jer 4:31
    80%

    31In fact, I hear a cry like that of a woman in labor, a cry of anguish like that of a woman giving birth to her first baby. It is the cry of Daughter Zion gasping for breath, reaching out for help, saying,“I am done in! My life is ebbing away before these murderers!”

  • Jer 22:23
    79%

    23You may feel as secure as a bird nesting in the cedars of Lebanon. But oh how you will groan when the pains of judgment come on you. They will be like those of a woman giving birth to a baby.

  • Jer 13:21
    79%

    21What will you say when the LORD appoints as rulers over you those allies that you, yourself, had actually prepared as such? Then anguish and agony will grip you like that of a woman giving birth to a baby.

  • Isa 26:17-18
    2 verses
    78%

    17As when a pregnant woman gets ready to deliver and strains and cries out because of her labor pains, so were we because of you, O LORD.

    18We were pregnant, we strained, we gave birth, as it were, to wind. We cannot produce deliverance on the earth; people to populate the world are not born.

  • Jer 30:5-6
    2 verses
    77%

    5Yes, here is what he says:“You hear cries of panic and of terror; there is no peace in sight.

    6Ask yourselves this and consider it carefully: Have you ever seen a man give birth to a baby? Why then do I see all these strong men grabbing their stomachs in pain like a woman giving birth? And why do their faces turn so deathly pale?

  • Isa 51:18-19
    2 verses
    77%

    18There was no one to lead her among all the children she bore; there was no one to take her by the hand among all the children she raised.

    19These double disasters confronted you. But who feels sorry for you? Destruction and devastation, famine and sword. But who consoles you?

  • Lam 1:16-17
    2 verses
    75%

    16ע(Ayin) I weep because of these things; my eyes flow with tears. For there is no one in sight who can comfort me or encourage me. My children are desolated because an enemy has prevailed.

    17פ(Pe)The Prophet Speaks: Zion spread out her hands, but there is no one to comfort her. The LORD has issued a decree against Jacob; his neighbors have become his enemies. Jerusalem has become like filthy garbage in their midst.

  • Jer 6:24
    75%

    24The people cry out,“We have heard reports about them! We have become helpless with fear! Anguish grips us, agony like that of a woman giving birth to a baby!

  • Isa 21:3
    75%

    3For this reason my stomach churns; cramps overwhelm me like the contractions of a woman in labor. I am disturbed by what I hear, horrified by what I see.

  • Jer 8:19
    74%

    19I hear my dear people crying out throughout the length and breadth of the land. They are crying,‘Is the LORD no longer in Zion? Is her divine King no longer there?’” The LORD answers,“Why then do they provoke me to anger with their images, with their worthless foreign idols?”

  • Jer 30:15
    74%

    15Why do you complain about your injuries, that your pain is incurable? I have done all this to you because your wickedness is so great and your sin is so much.

  • Mic 4:8
    74%

    8As for you, watchtower for the flock, fortress of Daughter Zion– your former dominion will be restored, the sovereignty that belongs to Daughter Jerusalem.

  • Lam 2:12-13
    2 verses
    74%

    12ל(Lamed) Children say to their mothers,“Where are food and drink?” They faint like a wounded warrior in the city squares. They die slowly in their mothers’ arms.

    13מ(Mem) With what can I equate you? To what can I compare you, O Daughter Jerusalem? To what can I liken you so that I might comfort you, O Virgin Daughter Zion? Your wound is as deep as the sea. Who can heal you?

  • Lam 1:1-4
    4 verses
    74%

    1¶ The Prophet Speaks:א(Alef) Alas! The city once full of people now sits all alone! The prominent lady among the nations has become a widow! The princess who once ruled the provinces has become a forced laborer!

    2ב(Bet) She weeps bitterly at night; tears stream down her cheeks. She has no one to comfort her among all her lovers. All her friends have betrayed her; they have become her enemies.

    3ג(Gimel) Judah has departed into exile under affliction and harsh oppression. She lives among the nations; she has found no resting place. All who pursued her overtook her in narrow straits.

    4ד(Dalet) The roads to Zion mourn because no one travels to the festivals. All her city gates are deserted; her priests groan. Her virgins grieve; she is in bitter anguish!

  • Isa 22:4
    74%

    4So I say:“Don’t look at me! I am weeping bitterly. Don’t try to console me concerning the destruction of my defenseless people.”

  • Jer 9:19-20
    2 verses
    74%

    19For the sound of wailing is soon to be heard in Zion,‘We are utterly ruined! We are completely disgraced! For we have left our land! For our houses have been torn down!’”

    20I said,“So now, you wailing women, listen to the LORD’s message. Open your ears to the message from his mouth. Teach your daughters this mournful song, and let every woman teach her neighbor this lament.

  • Isa 42:14
    74%

    14“I have been inactive for a long time; I kept quiet and held back. Like a woman in labor I groan; I pant and gasp.

  • Isa 3:26
    73%

    26Her gates will mourn and lament; deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground.

  • Jer 50:43
    73%

    43The king of Babylon will become paralyzed with fear when he hears news of their coming. Anguish will grip him, agony like that of a woman giving birth to a baby.

  • Isa 66:7-9
    3 verses
    73%

    7Before she goes into labor, she gives birth! Before her contractions begin, she delivers a boy!

    8Who has ever heard of such a thing? Who has ever seen this? Can a country be brought forth in one day? Can a nation be born in a single moment? Yet as soon as Zion goes into labor she gives birth to sons!

    9“Do I bring a baby to the birth opening and then not deliver it?” asks the LORD.“Or do I bring a baby to the point of delivery and then hold it back?” asks your God.

  • Lam 1:12
    72%

    12ל(Lamed) Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by on the road? Look and see! Is there any pain like mine? The Lord has afflicted me, he has inflicted it on me when he burned with anger.

  • Jer 14:19
    72%

    19Then I said,“LORD, have you completely rejected the nation of Judah? Do you despise the city of Zion? Why have you struck us with such force that we are beyond recovery? We hope for peace, but nothing good has come of it. We hope for a time of relief from our troubles, but experience terror.

  • Hos 13:13
    72%

    13The labor pains of a woman will overtake him, but the baby will lack wisdom; when the time arrives, he will not come out of the womb!

  • Isa 54:1
    72%

    1Zion Will Be Secure“Shout for joy, O barren one who has not given birth! Give a joyful shout and cry out, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one are more numerous than the children of the married woman,” says the LORD.

  • Isa 47:5
    72%

    5“Sit silently! Go to a hiding place, O daughter of the Babylonians! Indeed, you will no longer be called‘Queen of kingdoms.’

  • Lam 1:9
    72%

    9ט(Tet) Her menstrual flow has soiled her clothing; she did not consider the consequences of her sin. Her demise was astonishing, and there was no one to comfort her. She cried,“Look, O LORD, on my affliction because my enemy boasts!”

  • Jer 15:5
    72%

    5The LORD cried out,“Who in the world will have pity on you, Jerusalem? Who will grieve over you? Who will stop long enough to inquire about how you are doing?

  • Isa 47:1
    72%

    1Babylon Will Fall“Fall down! Sit in the dirt, O virgin daughter Babylon! Sit on the ground, not on a throne, O daughter of the Babylonians! Indeed, you will no longer be called delicate and pampered.

  • Zech 2:7
    71%

    7“Escape, Zion, you who live among the Babylonians!”

  • Lam 2:20
    71%

    20ר(Resh)Jerusalem Speaks: Look, O LORD! Consider! Whom have you ever afflicted like this? Should women eat their offspring, their healthy infants? Should priest and prophet be killed in the Lord’s sanctuary?

  • Isa 30:19
    71%

    19For people will live in Zion; in Jerusalem you will weep no more. When he hears your cry of despair, he will indeed show you mercy; when he hears it, he will respond to you.

  • John 16:21
    71%

    21When a woman gives birth, she has distress because her time has come, but when her child is born, she no longer remembers the suffering because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world.

  • Gal 4:27
    71%

    27For it is written:“Rejoice, O barren woman who does not bear children; break forth and shout, you who have no birth pains, because the children of the desolate woman are more numerous than those of the woman who has a husband.”

  • Isa 49:21
    71%

    21Then you will think to yourself,‘Who bore these children for me? I was bereaved and barren, dismissed and divorced. Who raised these children? Look, I was left all alone; where did these children come from?’”

  • Jer 49:4
    71%

    4Why do you brag about your great power? Your power is ebbing away, you rebellious people of Ammon, who trust in your riches and say,‘Who would dare to attack us?’

  • Job 4:5
    71%

    5But now the same thing comes to you, and you are discouraged; it strikes you, and you are terrified.

  • Nah 2:10
    71%

    10Destruction, devastation, and desolation! Hearts faint; knees tremble; every stomach churns, all their faces have turned pale!