Micah 1:5
“For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem?”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The cause of judgment is named plainly: the sin of Jacob, embodied in the capitals themselves, Samaria and Jerusalem.
What Does Micah 1:5 Mean?
Micah answers the obvious question. Why does the Lord come down in fire? Because of the transgression of Jacob. Then he sharpens it: the sin is not out in the villages but enthroned in the capitals, Samaria and Jerusalem, the centers of leadership and worship.
Corruption at the heart spreads to the whole body. When those who should set the pattern of faithfulness instead set the pattern of sin, the damage runs deep. The verse is a call to look honestly at the centers of our own lives, for that is where repentance must begin.
In the Original Language
pesha (פֶּשַׁע), 'transgression' -- rebellion, a willful breaking of trust with God.