-
Hosea 7:13
How terrible it will be for them! They have wandered away from me. So they will be destroyed. That’s because they have refused to obey me. I long to save them. But they tell lies about me.
-
Jeremiah 9:8
Their tongues are like deadly arrows. They tell lies. With their mouths all of them speak kindly to their neighbors. But in their hearts they set traps for them.
-
Isaiah 1:23
Your rulers refuse to obey the Lord. They join forces with robbers. All of them love to accept money from those who want special favors. They are always looking for gifts from other people. They don’t stand up in court for children whose fathers have died. They don’t do it for widows either.
-
Jeremiah 9:2-6
I wish I had somewhere to go in the desert where a traveler could stay! Then I could leave my people. I could get away from them. All of them commit adultery by worshiping other gods. They aren’t faithful to the Lord.“ They get ready to use their tongues like bows,” announces the Lord.“ Their mouths shoot out lies like arrows. They tell lies to gain power in the land. They go from one sin to another. They do not pay any attention to me.Be on guard against your friends. Do not trust the members of your own family. Every one of them cheats. Every friend tells lies.One friend cheats another. No one tells the truth. They have taught their tongues how to lie. They wear themselves out sinning.Jeremiah, you live among people who tell lies. When they lie, they refuse to pay any attention to me,” announces the Lord.
-
Isaiah 3:8
Jerusalem is about to fall. And so is Judah. They say and do things against the Lord. They dare to disobey him to his very face.
-
Micah 2:1-2
How terrible it will be for those who plan to harm others! How terrible for those who make evil plans before they even get out of bed! As soon as daylight comes, they carry out their plans. That’s because they have the power to do it.If they want fields or houses, they take them. They cheat people out of their homes. They rob them of their property.
-
Isaiah 5:7
The vineyard of the Lord who rules over all is the nation of Israel. The people of Judah are the vines he took delight in. He kept looking for them to do what is fair. But all he saw was blood being spilled. He kept looking for them to do what is right. But all he heard were cries of suffering.
-
Jeremiah 5:5-6
So I will go to the leaders. I’ll speak to them. They should know how the Lord wants them to live. They must know what their God requires of them.” But all of them had broken off the yoke the Lord had put on them. They had torn off the ropes he had tied them up with.So a lion from the forest will attack them. A wolf from the desert will destroy them. A leopard will hide and wait near their towns. It will tear to pieces anyone who dares to go out. Again and again they have refused to obey the Lord. They have turned away from him many times.
-
Isaiah 59:3-15
Your hands and fingers are stained with blood. You are guilty of committing murder. Your mouth has told lies. Your tongue says evil things.People aren’t fair when they present cases in court. They aren’t honest when they state their case. They depend on weak arguments. They tell lies. They plan to make trouble. Then they carry it out.The plans they make are like the eggs of poisonous snakes. Anyone who eats those eggs will die. When one of them is broken, a snake comes out.Those people weave their evil plans together like a spider’s web. But the webs they make can’t be used as clothes. They can’t cover themselves with what they make. Their acts are evil. They do things to harm others.They are always in a hurry to sin. They run quickly to murder those who aren’t guilty. They love to think up evil plans. They leave a trail of harmful actions.They don’t know how to live at peace with others. What they do isn’t fair. They lead twisted lives. No one who lives like that will enjoy peace and rest.We aren’t being treated fairly. We haven’t been set free yet. The God who always does what is right hasn’t come to help us. We look for light, but we see nothing but darkness. We look for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.Like blind people we feel our way along the wall. We are like those who can’t see. At noon we trip and fall as if the sun had already set. Compared to those who are healthy, we are like dead people.All of us growl like hungry bears. We sound like doves as we mourn. We want the Lord to do what is fair and save us. But he doesn’t do it. We long for him to set us free. But the time for that seems far away.That’s because we’ve done so many things he considers wrong. Our sins prove that we are guilty. The wrong things we’ve done are always troubling us. We admit that we have sinned.We’ve refused to obey the Lord. We’ve made evil plans against him. We’ve turned our backs on our God. We’ve stirred up conflict and refused to follow him. We’ve told lies that came from our own minds.So people stop others from doing what is fair. They keep them from doing what is right. No one tells the truth in court anymore. No one is honest there.In fact, truth can’t be found anywhere. Those who refuse to do evil are attacked. The Lord sees that people aren’t treating others fairly. That makes him unhappy.
-
Ezekiel 22:25-29
Ezekiel, the princes of the land are like a roaring lion that tears its food apart. They eat people up. They take treasures and other valuable things. They cause many women in the land to become widows.Its priests break my law. They treat things set apart to me as if they were not holy. They treat holy and common things as if they were the same. They teach that there is no difference between things that are‘ clean’ and things that are not. They refuse to keep my Sabbath days. So they treat me as if I were not holy.The officials in the land are like wolves that tear their food apart. They spill blood and kill people to get rich.The prophets cover up these acts for them. The visions of these prophets are false. They use magic to try to find out what is going to happen. But their magic tricks are lies. They say,‘ The Lord and King says.’ But I have not spoken to them.The people of the land get rich by cheating others. They steal. They crush those who are poor and in need. They treat outsiders badly. They refuse to be fair to them.
-
Jeremiah 5:26-29
“ Jeremiah, some of my people are evil. They hide and wait just as people hide to catch birds. They set traps for people.A hunter uses tricks to fill his cage with birds. And my people have filled their houses with a lot of goods. They have become rich and powerful.They have grown fat and heavy. There is no limit to the evil things they do. In court they do not seek justice. They don’t protect the rights of children whose fathers have died. They do not stand up for poor people.Shouldn’t I punish them for this?” announces the Lord.“ Shouldn’t I pay back the nation that does these things?
-
Amos 5:11-12
You make poor people pay tax on their straw. You also tax their grain. So, even though you have built stone houses, you won’t live in them. You have planted fruitful vineyards. But you won’t drink the wine they produce.I know how many crimes you have committed. You have sinned far too much. Among you are people who crush those who have done no wrong. They accept money from people who want special favors. They take away the rights of poor people in the courts.
-
Hosea 4:1-2
People of Israel, listen to the Lord’ s message. He is bringing charges against you who live in Israel. He says,“ There is no faithfulness or love in the land. No one recognizes me as God.People curse one another. They tell lies and commit murder. They steal and commit adultery. They break all my laws. They keep spilling the blood of other people.
-
Micah 3:9-11
Listen to me, you leaders of Jacob’s people! Pay attention, you rulers of Israel! You hate to do what is fair. You twist everything that is right.You build up Zion by spilling the blood of others. You build Jerusalem by doing what is evil.Your judges take money from people who want special favors. Your priests teach only if they get paid for it. Your prophets won’t tell fortunes unless they receive money. But you still look for the Lord’ s help. You say,“ The Lord is with us. No trouble will come on us.”
-
Zephaniah 3:3
Jerusalem’s officials are like roaring lions. Their rulers are like wolves that hunt in the evening. They don’t leave anything to eat in the morning.
-
Amos 6:1-3
How terrible it will be for you men who are so contented on Mount Zion! How terrible for you who feel secure on the hill of Samaria! You are famous men from the greatest nation. The people of Israel come to you for help and advice.Go and look at the city of Kalneh. Go from there to the great city of Hamath. Then go down to Gath in Philistia. Are those places better off than your two kingdoms? Is their land larger than yours?You are trying to avoid the time when trouble will come. But you are only bringing closer the Assyrian rule of terror.
-
Hosea 7:1
I would like to heal Israel. But when I try to, Ephraim’s sins are brought out into the open. The crimes of Samaria are made known to everyone. The people tell lies. They break into houses and steal. They rob others in the streets.
-
Micah 7:2-6
Faithful people have disappeared from the land. Those who are honest are gone. Everyone hides and waits to spill the blood of others. They use nets to try and trap one another.They are very good at doing what is evil. Rulers require gifts. Judges accept money from people who want special favors. Those who are powerful always get what they want. All of them make evil plans together.The best of these people are as harmful as thorns. The most honest of them are even worse. God has come to punish you. The time your prophets warned you about has come. Panic has taken hold of you.Don’t trust your neighbors. Don’t put your faith in your friends. Be careful what you say even to your own wife.Sons don’t honor their fathers. Daughters refuse to obey their mothers. Daughters- in- law are against their mothers- in- law. A man’s enemies are the members of his own family.
-
Ezekiel 22:6-13
“‘ “The princes of Israel are in your city. All of them use their power to spill blood.They have made fun of fathers and mothers alike. They have crushed outsiders. They have treated badly the children whose fathers have died. They have done the same thing to widows.You have looked down on the holy things that were set apart to me. You have misused my Sabbath days.You have spread lies about others so you can spill someone’s blood. You eat at the mountain temples. You commit impure acts.You bring shame on your fathers by having sex with their wives. You have sex with women during their monthly period. That is when they are‘ unclean.’One of you has sex with another man’s wife. I hate that sin. Another brings shame on his daughter- in- law by having sex with her. Still another has sex with his sister, even though she is his own father’s daughter.You accept money from people who want special favors. You do this to spill someone’s blood. You charge interest to poor people when you lend them money. You make money from them. You get rich by cheating your neighbors. And you have forgotten me,” announces the Lord and King.“‘ “I will clap my hands because I am so angry. You got rich by cheating others. You spilled blood inside the walls of your city.
-
Jeremiah 6:6-7
The Lord who rules over all speaks to the Babylonians. He says,“ Cut down some trees. Use the wood to build ramps against Jerusalem’s walls. I must punish that city. It is filled with people who treat others badly.Wells keep giving fresh water. And Jerusalem keeps on sinning. Its people are always fighting and causing trouble. When I look at them, I see nothing but sickness and wounds.
-
Micah 3:1-3
Then I said,“ Listen, you leaders of Jacob’s people! Pay attention, you rulers of Israel! You should want to judge others fairly.But you hate what is good. And you love what is evil. You are like someone who tears the skin off my people. You pull the meat off their bones.You eat my people’s bodies. You strip off their skin. You break their bones in pieces. You chop them up like meat. You put them in a cooking pot.”
-
Romans 3:13
“ Their throats are like open graves. With their tongues they tell lies.”( Psalm 5:9)“ The words from their lips are like the poison of a snake.”( Psalm 140:3)
