The Meaning of Micah 2:13 Explained

Micah 2:13

KJV: The breaker is come up before them: they have broken up, and have passed through the gate, and are gone out by it: and their king shall pass before them, and the LORD on the head of them.

YLT: Gone up hath the breaker before them, They have broken through, Yea, they pass through the gate, Yea, they go out through it, And pass on doth their king before them, And Jehovah at their head!

Darby: One that breaketh through is gone up before them: they have broken forth, and have passed on to the gate, and are gone out by it; and their king passeth on before them, and Jehovah at the head of them.

ASV: The breaker is gone up before them: they have broken forth and passed on to the gate, and are gone out thereat; and their king is passed on before them, and Jehovah at the head of them.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The breaker  is come up  before  them: they have broken up,  and have passed through  the gate,  and are gone out  by it: and their king  shall pass  before  them, and the LORD  on the head  of them. 

What does Micah 2:13 Mean?

Verse Meaning

As a shepherd breaks through obstacles and barriers to lead his sheep into pleasant pastures, so Israel"s Good Shepherd will clear the way for His sheep to return to the land (cf. Psalm 78:52-53; Psalm 80:1). They will break out of their former habitations, pass through the way He opens for them, and leave all parts of the world to return to the Promised Land.
Yahweh would not only function as their Shepherd but also as their (Davidic) King (cf. Isaiah 6:5). He will lead them as a mighty conqueror and ruler (cf. Isaiah 33:22; Zephaniah 3:15; Zechariah 14:9).
"If studied in isolation from the total context of the prophecy, the passage may be understood simply as a prediction of the return from the Captivity. But this is inadequate in view of the broader background of Micah"s concept of the future." [1]

Context Summary

Micah 2:1-13 - The Harvest Of Greed And Injustice
Micah 1:1-16 dealt with sins against the first table of the law; this deals with those against the second. Evil must sooner or later befall those who devise evil against their neighbors, covet their goods, and oppress their persons. So absolute would be the destruction, that estates would no longer descend from father to son, or be measured by lot, Micah 2:5; and the people would become hard and callous to the prophet's voice, Micah 2:6. Yet through it all God's Spirit would yearn over His people, Micah 2:7-13; His words would still comfort humble souls. But the cruelty of men who despoiled their poor neighbors, not only of their ornaments but of the tunic next their skin, would bring disaster upon the entire nation. The guilty people must prepare to arise and depart, for Canaan could no longer be their home.
But even from captivity God would restore His people, breaking the way through walls of difficulty. Our Breaker is the Lord Jesus who broke the way for us from the prison-house of death. Let us follow Him as He passes on His way to victory. [source]

Chapter Summary: Micah 2

1  Against oppression
4  A lamentation
7  A reproof of injustice and idolatry
12  A promise to restore Jacob

What do the individual words in Micah 2:13 mean?

Will come up the one who breaks open before them they will break out and Pass through the gate and go out by it and will pass their king with Yahweh at their head -
עָלָ֤ה הַפֹּרֵץ֙ לִפְנֵיהֶ֔ם פָּֽרְצוּ֙ וַֽיַּעֲבֹ֔רוּ שַׁ֖עַר וַיֵּ֣צְאוּ ב֑וֹ וַיַּעֲבֹ֤ר מַלְכָּם֙ וַיהוָ֖ה בְּרֹאשָֽׁם פ

עָלָ֤ה  Will  come  up 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.
הַפֹּרֵץ֙  the  one  who  breaks  open 
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: פָּרַץ  
Sense: to break through or down or over, burst, breach.
לִפְנֵיהֶ֔ם  before  them 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
פָּֽרְצוּ֙  they  will  break  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: פָּרַץ  
Sense: to break through or down or over, burst, breach.
וַֽיַּעֲבֹ֔רוּ  and  Pass  through 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: עָבַר 
Sense: to pass over or by or through, alienate, bring, carry, do away, take, take away, transgress.
שַׁ֖עַר  the  gate 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: שַׁעַר  
Sense: gate.
וַיֵּ֣צְאוּ  and  go  out 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
ב֑וֹ  by  it 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
וַיַּעֲבֹ֤ר  and  will  pass 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָבַר 
Sense: to pass over or by or through, alienate, bring, carry, do away, take, take away, transgress.
מַלְכָּם֙  their  king 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
וַיהוָ֖ה  with  Yahweh 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
בְּרֹאשָֽׁם  at  their  head 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: רֹאשׁ 
Sense: head, top, summit, upper part, chief, total, sum, height, front, beginning.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation