The Meaning of Micah 2:2 Explained

Micah 2:2

KJV: And they covet fields, and take them by violence; and houses, and take them away: so they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.

YLT: And they have desired fields, And they have taken violently, And houses, and they have taken away, And have oppressed a man and his house, Even a man and his inheritance.

Darby: And they covet fields, and take them by violence; and houses, and take them away; and they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.

ASV: And they covet fields, and seize them; and houses, and take them away: and they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And they covet  fields,  and take [them] by violence;  and houses,  and take [them] away:  so they oppress  a man  and his house,  even a man  and his heritage. 

What does Micah 2:2 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The plotting in view involved robbing others of their fields, houses, and inheritances ( including lands) through deception (cf. 1 Kings 21:3; Isaiah 5:8). The wealthy not only violated the tenth commandment against coveting what belongs to a neighbor but also the eighth commandment against stealing ( Exodus 20:15; Exodus 20:17; Leviticus 19:13; Deuteronomy 5:19; Deuteronomy 5:21; Colossians 3:6-7). Furthermore they broke the second greatest commandment that said they should love their neighbors as themselves ( Leviticus 19:18; cf. Matthew 22:34-40).
"They practiced the world"s version of the Golden Rule: "Whoever has the gold makes the rules."" [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 2:2 mean?

And they covet fields and take [them] by violence and houses and seize [them] so they oppress a man and his house and a man and his inheritance -
וְחָמְד֤וּ שָׂדוֹת֙ וְגָזָ֔לוּ וּבָתִּ֖ים וְנָשָׂ֑אוּ וְעָֽשְׁקוּ֙ גֶּ֣בֶר וּבֵית֔וֹ וְאִ֖ישׁ וְנַחֲלָתֽוֹ פ

וְחָמְד֤וּ  And  they  covet 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: חָמַד 
Sense: to desire, covet, take pleasure in, delight in.
שָׂדוֹת֙  fields 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: שָׂדֶה 
Sense: field, land.
וְגָזָ֔לוּ  and  take  [them]  by  violence 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: גָּזַל  
Sense: to tear away, seize, plunder, tear off, pull off, rob, take away by force.
וּבָתִּ֖ים  and  houses 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
וְנָשָׂ֑אוּ  and  seize  [them] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: נָשָׂא  
Sense: to lift, bear up, carry, take.
וְעָֽשְׁקוּ֙  so  they  oppress 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: עָשַׁק  
Sense: to press upon, oppress, violate, defraud, do violence, get deceitfully, wrong, extort.
גֶּ֣בֶר  a  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: גֶּבֶר  
Sense: man, strong man, warrior (emphasising strength or ability to fight).
וּבֵית֔וֹ  and  his  house 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
וְאִ֖ישׁ  and  a  man 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
וְנַחֲלָתֽוֹ  and  his  inheritance 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: נַחֲלָה  
Sense: possession, property, inheritance, heritage.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation