OfficiantScript

Funeral reading

Micah 6:6–8

King James Bible

“Micah 6:6–8” (King James Bible) is a scripture reading read at a funeral or memorial service. It takes about 45 seconds read aloud, usually by a guest reader. It is in the public domain, so the full text is printed on this page and goes straight into a ceremony script.

The full text

about 45 secondsguest
Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Public domain, so these words can be printed in a ceremony script or an order of service.

Where it comes from

The Book of Micah opens with “The word of the LORD that came to Micah the Morasthite”, naming the prophet by his home town.

What it says

What should I bring before the Lord? Burnt offerings? Thousands of rams, rivers of oil, my firstborn child? The prophet answers that God has already shown what is good: to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. It cuts through ceremony to how someone lived, which makes it a summary of a good life rather than a consolation.

For someone who lived it rather than talked about it. Read at a funeral or memorial service. Themes: do justly · love mercy · walk humbly · a life of service · a quiet decent person.

Who it suits

Funerals for people who worked for justice, served their community, volunteered, taught, or simply treated everyone fairly. It suits a humble person who would have hated fuss. Jewish and Christian families both know it, and its last line sits easily in an interfaith service.

Where it goes in the ceremony

Just before or after the eulogy, so the officiant can say that the person did justly and loved mercy. Often read by a colleague or someone from the person’s community work.

Reading it aloud

The text on this page is 96 words. At a ceremony pace of about 130 words a minute, which is slower than conversation, that comes to about 45 seconds of reading.

  • The questions about offerings build in size. Let them grow slightly more absurd as they go.
  • Pause after the last question. The answer needs silence before it.
  • Read the three parts of the answer slowly and evenly: do justly, love mercy, walk humbly.

Questions about reading it aloud

How long does “Micah 6:6–8” take to read aloud?

“Micah 6:6–8” takes about 45 seconds read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.

Who usually reads “Micah 6:6–8”?

Usually a guest reader rather than the officiant. “Micah 6:6–8” runs about 45 seconds, which is a manageable amount to hand to a friend or family member. Give them a printed copy of their own, in a size they can read without their glasses, and tell them where to stand and how you will introduce them.

Can “Micah 6:6–8” be printed in a ceremony script?

Yes. It is in the public domain, so the full text is on this page and can be printed in a script or an order of service.

Where this text was checked

gutenberg.org

Checked word for word against a full-text edition that is itself the authority — a Project Gutenberg or Wikisource transcription, a publisher’s own edition, or the issuing body’s page.

Checked

A reading is two minutes of the hour.

The rest is the welcome, the life, the remembrances, the committal — and knowing what comes next. Answer some questions about them and get the whole service, written out, with this reading in its place.

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