Verses 10-15 form a single paragraph in which the prophet speaks about removing everything evil from the nation of Israel and stopping all activities related to idol worship. Verses 10-13 are similar to one another in form, and each begins with “and I will cut off.” This is a single word in Hebrew, a form of the verb karath, which occurred in verse 9 and is a keyword in this section. In Hebrew, the word does mean “cut” in the literal sense, but it is also used in extended and figurative ways. In many languages it will not be possible to use the same word for each of the occurrences of karath here. However, translators may be able to find some other word that they can use several times in this paragraph, even if it is not always used to translate karath. Good News Translation has done something like this with its repetition of the word destroy. The first time it occurs (verse 10) it translates a different Hebrew verb, but in the other three occurrences it translates karath. If some repetition of this kind can be used in other languages, it may help to convey some of the rhythm of the Hebrew and some of its emotional impact.

The whole paragraph is the direct word of the Lord and is placed in quotation marks in Good News Translation. The Lord is speaking to the people of Israel here, and some translators may need to make this clear so that readers will know who you and your refer to in this quotation. The you is singular in Hebrew, but it will probably need to be translated by a plural in many languages.

The opening expression “in that day” (Revised Standard Version) refers to an indefinite point in the future, as in 4.6, and is translated At that time in Good News Translation. In the present context it follows verses 7 and 8, which speak of the time of the exile, and it probably refers to the same period also. Historically it was indeed during the exile that the people of Israel finally overcame the temptation to worship idols. This practice, though repeatedly condemned, had never been completely removed during the period of the kings.

However, before mentioning false religion specifically, this passage first deals with reliance on human military strength. The Lord declares that he will take away your horses and destroy your chariots. The prophets often condemned Israel for relying on such things, because this frequently involved military alliances with foreign powers, and such alliances could mean that a certain amount of recognition would have to be given to foreign gods. See for instance Isa 2.7-8; 30.15-16; 31.1; Hos 14.3. As has been mentioned already, the word translated here as take away is literally “cut off,” which means to destroy completely. Good News Translation used a different word here in order to use the word destroy with chariots. Some translators may prefer to use a single verb with both horses and chariots and say “I will destroy all your horses and chariots.” Horses were used only for war in Israel at that time, but modern readers who do not know this may wonder why all the horses should be destroyed. It may be clearer to state explicitly that these are “war-horses” or “horses used for war.” The horses pulled the chariots and sometimes were also ridden by soldiers. Chariots are discussed in the comments on 1.13.

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on Micah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .