16 He who oppresses the poor to increase his riches,
And he who gives to the rich, will surely come to poverty.

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22 Do not rob the (A)poor because he is poor,
Nor oppress the afflicted at the gate;
23 (B)For the Lord will plead their cause,
And plunder the soul of those who plunder them.

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13 For (A)judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown (B)no (C)mercy. (D)Mercy triumphs over judgment.

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Rich Oppressors Will Be Judged

Come now, you (A)rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! Your (B)riches [a]are corrupted, and (C)your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. (D)You have heaped up treasure in the last days. Indeed (E)the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and (F)the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of [b]Sabaoth. You have lived on the earth in pleasure and [c]luxury; you have [d]fattened your hearts [e]as in a day of slaughter.

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Footnotes

  1. James 5:2 have rotted
  2. James 5:4 Lit., in Heb., Hosts
  3. James 5:5 indulgence
  4. James 5:5 Lit. nourished
  5. James 5:5 NU omits as

“For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord;
“I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.”

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12 Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite (A)the poor, the [a]maimed, the lame, the blind. 14 And you will be (B)blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 14:13 crippled

33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 (A)And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. 35 But (B)love your enemies, (C)do good, and (D)lend, [a]hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and (E)you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 6:35 expecting

31 (A)He who oppresses the poor reproaches (B)his Maker,
But he who honors Him has mercy on the needy.

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24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and (A)cool my tongue; for I (B)am tormented in this flame.’

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“Thus says the Lord of hosts:

(A)‘Execute true justice,
Show [a]mercy and compassion
Everyone to his brother.
10 (B)Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless,
The alien or the poor.
(C)Let none of you plan evil in his heart
Against his brother.’

11 “But they refused to heed, (D)shrugged[b] their shoulders, and (E)stopped[c] their ears so that they could not hear. 12 Yes, they made their (F)hearts like flint, (G)refusing to hear the law and the words which the Lord of hosts had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets. (H)Thus great wrath came from the Lord of hosts. 13 Therefore it happened, that just as He proclaimed and they would not hear, so (I)they called out and I would not listen,” says the Lord of hosts. 14 “But (J)I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations which they had not known. Thus the land became desolate after them, so that no one passed through or returned; for they made the pleasant land desolate.”

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Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 7:9 Or lovingkindness
  2. Zechariah 7:11 Lit. gave a stubborn or rebellious shoulder
  3. Zechariah 7:11 Lit. made their ears heavy

They (A)covet fields and take them by violence,
Also houses, and seize them.
So they oppress a man and his house,
A man and his inheritance.

Therefore thus says the Lord:

“Behold, against this (B)family I am devising (C)disaster,
From which you cannot remove your necks;
Nor shall you walk haughtily,
For this is an evil time.

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22 A man with an evil eye hastens after riches,
And does not consider that (A)poverty will come upon him.

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(A)A poor man who oppresses the poor
Is like a driving rain [a]which leaves no food.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 28:3 Lit. and there is no bread

19 For he has [a]oppressed and forsaken the poor,
He has violently seized a house which he did not build.

20 “Because(A) he knows no quietness in his [b]heart,
He will not save anything he desires.
21 Nothing is left for him to eat;
Therefore his well-being will not last.
22 In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress;
Every hand of [c]misery will come against him.
23 When he is about to fill his stomach,
God will cast on him the fury of His wrath,
And will rain it on him while he is eating.
24 (B)He will flee from the iron weapon;
A bronze bow will pierce him through.
25 It is drawn, and comes out of the body;
Yes, (C)the glittering point comes out of his [d]gall.
(D)Terrors come upon him;
26 Total darkness is reserved for his treasures.
(E)An unfanned fire will consume him;
It shall go ill with him who is left in his tent.
27 The heavens will reveal his iniquity,
And the earth will rise up against him.
28 The increase of his house will depart,
And his goods will flow away in the day of His (F)wrath.
29 (G)This is the portion from God for a wicked man,
The heritage appointed to him by God.”

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Footnotes

  1. Job 20:19 crushed
  2. Job 20:20 Lit. belly
  3. Job 20:22 Or the wretched or sufferer
  4. Job 20:25 Gallbladder

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