¹⁶ Surely you are still our Father!
    Even if Abraham and Jacob^[a] would disown us,
Lord, you would still be our Father.
    You are our Redeemer from ages past.

² The godly people have all disappeared;
    not one honest person is left on the earth.
They are all murderers,
    setting traps even for their own brothers.
³ Both their hands are equally skilled at doing evil!
    Officials and judges alike demand bribes.
The people with influence get what they want,
    and together they scheme to twist justice.
⁴ Even the best of them is like a brier;
    the most honest is as dangerous as a hedge of thorns.
But your judgment day is coming swiftly now.
    Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion.
⁵ Don’t trust anyone—
    not your best friend or even your wife!
⁶ For the son despises his father.
    The daughter defies her mother.
The daughter-in-law defies her mother-in-law.
    Your enemies are right in your own household!