¹⁴ Justice is turned back,
And righteousness stands afar off;
For truth is fallen in the street,
And equity cannot enter.

⁴ Therefore the law is powerless,
And justice never goes forth.
For the ^(A)wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore perverse judgment proceeds.

⁹ Now hear this,
You heads of the house of Jacob
And rulers of the house of Israel,
Who abhor justice
And ^[a]pervert all equity,
^10 (A)Who build up Zion with ^(B)bloodshed
And Jerusalem with iniquity:
^11 (C)Her heads judge for a bribe,
^(D)Her priests teach for pay,
And her prophets divine for ^[b]money.
^(E)Yet they lean on the Lord, and say,
“Is not the Lord among us?
No harm can come upon us.”

^11 (A)Therefore, because you ^[a]tread down the poor
And take grain ^[b]taxes from him,
Though ^(B)you have built houses of hewn stone,
Yet you shall not dwell in them;
You have planted ^[c]pleasant vineyards,
But you shall not drink wine from them.

³¹ The prophets prophesy ^(A)falsely,
And the priests rule by their own power;
And My people ^(B)love to have it so.
But what will you do in the end?

²⁷ As a cage is full of birds,
So their houses are full of deceit.
Therefore they have become great and grown rich.
²⁸ They have grown ^(A)fat, they are sleek;
Yes, they ^[a]surpass the deeds of the wicked;
They do not plead ^(B)the cause,
The cause of the fatherless;
^(C)Yet they prosper,
And the right of the needy they do not defend.

10 “Woe to those who ^(A)decree unrighteous decrees,
Who write misfortune,
Which they have prescribed
² To rob the needy of justice,
And to take what is right from the poor of My people,
That widows may be their prey,
And that they may rob the fatherless.

²³ Who ^(A)justify the wicked for a bribe,
And take away justice from the righteous man!

^21 (A)How the faithful city has become a ^[a]harlot!
It was full of justice;
Righteousness lodged in it,
But now ^(B)murderers.