Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Micah 7:1:
Kupsabiny: “Oh, dear me, I am like a person who is hungry (famine is eating me) and I do not get anything to eat. The grapes and figs have been plucked/harvested until everything in the field is finished.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “what misery is mine! because I feel like a man who goes to pick fruit after the harvest. Who does not find anything to eat, Not even a cluster of grapes for his hunger nor an early fig to satisfy his hunger.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “Micas said, ‘Woe to me! I (am) like a hungry man looking for the leftover fruits of the grape or fig but he found nothing.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Two types of fig trees are mentioned in the Bible, the Common Fig Ficus carica (Hebrew te’enah) and the Sycomore Fig Ficus sycomorus (Hebrew shiqmah; see “Sycomore fig”). They are closely related. The common fig tree grows not only in Israel, but throughout the world in warm climates. In the Holy Land it was a common source of food; the fruit was eaten both fresh and dried. Sometimes the dried ones were pressed together to form flat “cakes” or blocks (Hebrew develah). But, just as important, the large leaves of the fig make it an excellent shade tree. However, the first use of the fig mentioned in the Bible (Genesis 3:7) was not for food or shade but for clothing; Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves for themselves to cover their nakedness.
The fig was probably domesticated in northwestern Turkey from a wild variety that grew there around 5000 years ago. Greek, Roman, and Egyptian records indicate that the fruits were popular. Figs are now grown especially in Israel, Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Portugal, as well as in the warm parts of the United States.
The fig is believed to be indigenous to western Asia and to have been distributed by humans and birds throughout the Mediterranean area. Remnants of figs have been found in excavations of sites traced to at least 5000 B.C.
The domesticated fig grows to about 5-8 meters (17-26 feet) and has a round crown and very deep and round roots. The trunk may grow to be more than 70 centimeters (2 feet) thick. Fig trees may grow to be several decades old, if they are well cared for. Figs are usually propagated by planting cuttings. The pollination of the flowers is an amazingly intricate process closely linked to the life cycle of a tiny wasp, and the fact that fig trees, like papayas and date palms, are male or female. (There are now some kinds of figs that produce fruit without pollination.) The fruits are about the size of a hen’s egg and can be green, yellow, purple, or brown depending on the type. They are sweet and soft and difficult to transport. For that reason most farmers dry the fruits before shipping them. The “fruit” of the fig is technically a strangely shaped flower. Noting the absence of a “real” flower, the ancient people of India called it a flowerless tree.
The common fig tree, along with the vine and the olive, is one of the three “top trees” for the Jews. The Bible refers to the fig over 270 times. The image of peace and happiness in Israel was “every man under his vine and under his fig tree” (1 Kings 4:25).
Wild figs are common throughout the tropical world; there are at least eight hundred species of Ficus, thirty-two in southern Africa alone. The banyan, peepul, and bo are all types of fig. The fruits of wild fig trees are not nearly as juicy or sweet as those of the domesticated ones. In many places people eat the fruit when they find it in the wild, but do not market it or cultivate the trees. Translators are urged to use the local word, and, if necessary, use a footnote to indicate the difference between the local one and the biblical one. Where it is not known at all, transliterations from a major language may be used in nonfigurative contexts.
The opening phrase is a standard exclamation of despair in Hebrew, as is the Revised Standard Version “Woe is me!” in English. It cannot be translated literally, but many translators will find some common expression in their language that will fit very well here. Others may have to use an ordinary sentence in much the same way as Good News Translation has done with It’s hopeless! Very few translators however will want to translate literally It’s hopeless!Hopeless means that there is no chance of succeeding. The whole sentence in Good News Translation then means “There is no chance of doing what I am trying to do.” Other ways of putting this may be “All my work is wasted” or “I feel very sad.”
The picture in the rest of the verse is derived from the farming practices of Israel. After the main harvest had been gathered, the farmer was forbidden by the Law to go back over the fields or orchards to gather any grain or fruit that had been missed the first time (Lev 19.9-10; Deut 24.21). Whatever remained was to be left for the poor to take, or glean, as Ruth did (Ruth 2). Once the fields or orchards had been gleaned in this way by the poor, there really would be nothing left. Here Micah says he feels as disappointed as a hungry man would be if he went out to glean, but found that he was too late, and that no fruit was left on the trees and no grapes on the vines. Because the gleaners have already been at work, All the grapes and all the tasty (Revised Standard Version “first-ripe”) figs have been picked. The Hebrew expression here is a rather difficult one, as seen in Revised Standard Version, “I have become as when the summer fruit has been gathered.” Note that Good News Translation‘s hungry is from the Hebrew phrase “which my soul desires,” but is applied to the person’s general desire for food rather than for “first-ripe figs” alone.
In some languages it may be necessary to say clearly that the man was looking for fruit and grapes but finds none, although the idea of looking for them has been left implicit in both the Hebrew and Good News Translation.
If the translator wishes to keep “which my soul desires” (Good News Translationhungry) as a description of the “first-ripe (tasty) figs,” he may say “… all the tasty figs that I would have liked so much have been picked.” In areas where grapes and figs are not known, it is usually better to use general terms for fruit and crops rather than to substitute particular fruits that are grown in the region but may not be known in Israel.
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 .
Micah lamented about the wickedness of God’s people
This section is a lament of Micah that expresses his sorrow about the lack of righteous people in the land. In 7:1–6, he talked about the wickedness of the people using a combination of figures of speech and direct speech. In 7:7, he concluded the lament by expressing his own hope in the LORD.
Some scholars and versions place 7:7 in the next section. However, expressions of both sorrow and hope are features in some other laments, such as in the Psalms. Also, both 7:1 and 7:7 have first-person pronouns and verbs that enclose third-person descriptions in 7:2–6. This change of word forms probably indicates the start and end of the lament.
Here are some other examples of section headings:
The Total Corruption of the People (New Revised Standard Version) -or-
Israel’s Misery (New International Version) -or-
Misery Turned to Hope (New Living Translation (2004))
Paragraph 7:1–7
7:1
This verse begins Micah’s lament. He uses similes to describe his disappointment that he cannot find any fruit at harvest time.
There are two main interpretations of the situation depicted by the similes:
(1) There was no fruit left to pick after the fruit and grapes were harvested. For example:
I am depressed! indeed, it is as if the summer fruit has been gathered, and the grapes have been harvested. There is no grape cluster to eat, no fresh figs that I crave so much. (NET Bible)
(2) There was no harvest of fruit and grapes. For example:
Woe is me! For I am like the fruit pickers, like the grape gatherers. There is not a cluster of grapes to eat, Or a first-ripe fig which I crave. (New American Standard Bible)
(God’s Word, New American Standard Bible)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). It has support from most commentators and versions.
7:1a
Woe is me!: This expression indicates despair. Here are some other ways to express the meaning:
I am depressed! (NET Bible) -or-
It’s hopeless! (Good News Translation) -or-
I feel very sad
7:1b–e
The English Standard Version has been used as the source line for 7:1b–c because it maintains both similes and follows the recommended interpretation.
Notice the two sets of parallel lines that follow the underlined part. The lines in bold have similar meaning and the lines in italics have similar meaning:
1b For I have becomeas when the summer fruit has been gathered, (English Standard Version)
1c as when the grapes have been gleaned : (English Standard Version)
1d there is no cluster to eat, (English Standard Version, Berean Standard Bible)
1e no early fig that I crave. (Berean Standard Bible)
There is an ellipsis (a deliberately omitted phrase) in 7:1c. In some languages, it may be necessary to supply the missing words from 7:1b. For example:
1c
⌊I have become⌋ as when the grapes have been gleaned :
There are two similes in 7:1b–e. The lines are arranged as a chiasm. Lines 7:1b and 7:1e are parts of a simile about summer fruit. Lines 7:1c and 7:1d are parts of a simile about grapes.
In each simile, Micah compares himself to a person who looks for fruit that is left behind after the fruit harvests are done. In the first simile he looks for summer fruit. In the second simile he looks for grapes.
Some versions combine the two similes into one. See the General Comment on 7:1 for examples.
7:1b
For: The word For introduces the reason why Micah is in despair. He explains the reason in the verses that follow, 7:1b–6.
(English Standard Version) I have become as…: In Hebrew, this phrase is more literally “I have become like harvests of summer fruit…” The implied meaning of the phrase is that Micah compared himself to a person who found no fruit to eat following a harvest. The way they are similar is that both feel despair.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
• Keep the simile. For example:
I am like the fruit pickers (New American Standard Bible) -or-
I am like a hungry person who… (Good News Translation) -or-
I am like those gathering… (God’s Word)
• Change the simile into a metaphor. For example:
How wretched I am, a harvester… (New Jerusalem Bible)
(English Standard Version) when the summer fruit has been gathered: This line describes the setting or situation of the simile. The harvest of summer fruit has already been completed.
The phrase summer fruit may refer to fruit that grew in the summer season or it may refer to ripe fruit in general. Some versions leave the word summer implied.
Here are some other ways to translate this line:
and all the summer fruit has been picked (New Century Version) -or-
when the fruit is gathered (New American Bible)
7:1c
(English Standard Version) as when the grapes have been gleaned: This line is more literally “like gleanings of [the] grape harvest.” It describes the setting or situation of the second simile. The harvest of grapes has already been completed.
The word gleaned means that the grapes have been picked a second time after the main harvest.
Here are some other ways to translate this line:
and the grapes have been harvested (NET Bible) -or-
as when the vines have been gleaned (New American Bible)
7:1d
there is no cluster to eat: This line is the final part of the simile about the grape harvest. The person looks for grapes to eat, but he does not find any.
The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as cluster means “a cluster/bunch of grapes.”
Here are some other ways to translate this line:
• Make the word “grapes” explicit along with cluster. For example:
not a cluster of grapes (New Living Translation (2004))
• Translate the word “grapes” instead of cluster. For example:
there are no grapes left to eat (New Century Version)
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