[1] Then I said: Listen, you leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the nation of Israel. You should know justice. [2] You hate good and love evil. You strip the skin off my people and the flesh off their bones. [3] You eat my people's flesh. You strip off their skin. You break their bones to pieces. You chop them up like meat for a pot, like stew meat for a kettle. [4] Then you will cry to the LORD, but he will not answer you. He will hide his face from you at that time because you have done evil things. [5] This is what the LORD says about the prophets who mislead my people: When they have something to eat, they say, "All is well!" But they declare a holy war against those who don't feed them. [6] That is why you will have nights without visions. You will have darkness without revelations. The sun will set on the prophets, and the day will turn dark for them. [7] Seers will be put to shame. Those who practice witchcraft will be disgraced. All of them will cover their faces, because God won't answer them. [8] But I am filled with the power of the LORD's Spirit, with justice, and with strength. So I will tell the descendants of Jacob about their crimes and the nation of Israel about its sins. [9] Listen to this, you leaders of the descendants of Jacob, you rulers of the nation of Israel. You despise justice and pervert everything that is right. [10] You build Zion on bloodshed and Jerusalem on wickedness. [11] Your leaders exchange justice for bribes. Your priests teach for a price. Your prophets tell the future for money. But they rely on the LORD when they say, "After all, the LORD is with us. Nothing bad will happen to us." [12] Because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a pile of rubble, and the temple mountain will become a worship site covered with trees.
