Micah 7:4 (YLT)

Passage

Their best one <FI>is<Fi> as a brier, The upright one--than a thorn-hedge, The day of thy watchmen--Thy visitation--hath come. Now is their perplexity.

Nearby Context

Micah 7:2 Perished hath the kind out of the land, And upright among men--there are none, All of them for blood lie in wait, Each his brother they hunt <FI>with<Fi> a net.

Micah 7:3 On the evil <FI>are<Fi> both hands to do <FI>it<Fi> well, The prince is asking--also the judge--for recompence, And the great--he is speaking the mischief of his soul, And they wrap it up.

Micah 7:4 Their best one <FI>is<Fi> as a brier, The upright one--than a thorn-hedge, The day of thy watchmen--Thy visitation--hath come. Now is their perplexity.

Micah 7:5 Believe not in a friend, trust not in a leader, From her who is lying in thy bosom keep the openings of thy mouth.

Micah 7:6 For a son is dishonouring a father, A daughter hath stood against her mother, A daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, The enemies of each <FI>are<Fi> the men of his house.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "best", "brier", "upright", "one--than", "thorn-hedge", "watchmen--thy", "visitation--hath", and "come". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "best" and "brier", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "On the evil FI are Fi both..." into verse 5's "Believe not in a friend trust not...", so "best" and "brier" belong inside that flow. In Micah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "best" and "brier" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.