The Lord Brings Charges Against Israel
1Israel, listen to the Lord’s message. He says to me,
“Stand up in court.
Let the mountains serve as witnesses.
Let the hills hear what you have to say.”
2Hear the Lord’s case, you mountains.
Listen, you age-old foundations of the earth.
The Lord has a case against his people Israel.
He is bringing charges against them.
3The Lord says,
“My people, what have I done to you?
Have I made things too hard for you? Answer me.
4I brought your people up out of Egypt.
I set them free from the land
where they were slaves.
I sent Moses to lead them.
Aaron and Miriam helped him.
5Remember how Balak, the king of Moab,
planned to put a curse on your people.
But Balaam, the son of Beor,
gave them a blessing instead.
Remember their journey from Shittim to Gilgal.
I want you to know
that I always do what is right.”
6The people of Israel say,
“What should we bring with us
when we go to worship the Lord?
What should we offer the God of heaven
when we bow down to him?
Should we take burnt offerings to him?
Should we sacrifice calves
that are a year old?
7Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams?
Will he take delight in 10,000 rivers of olive oil?
Should we offer our oldest sons
for the wrong things we’ve done?
Should we sacrifice our own children
to pay for our sins?”
8The Lord has shown you what is good.
He has told you what he requires of you.
You must act with justice.
You must love to show mercy.
And you must be humble as you live in the sight of your God.
The Lord Will Punish His Guilty People
9The Lord is calling out to Jerusalem.
And it would be wise to pay attention to him.
He says, “Listen, tribe of Judah
and you people who are gathered in the city.
10You sinful people, should I forget
that you got your treasures by stealing them?
You use dishonest measures to cheat others.
I have placed a curse on that practice.
11Should I forgive anyone who uses dishonest scales?
They use weights that weigh things heavier
or lighter than they really are.
12The rich people among you harm others.
You are always telling lies.
You try to fool others by what you say.
13So I have begun to strike you down.
I have begun to destroy you
because you have sinned so much.
14You will eat. But you will not be satisfied.
Your stomachs will still be empty.
You will try to save what you can.
But you will not be able to.
If you do save something,
it will be destroyed in battle.
15You will plant seeds.
But you will not harvest any crops.
You will press olives.
But you will not use the oil.
You will crush grapes.
But you will not drink the wine
that is made from them.
16You have followed the evil practices
of King Omri of Israel.
You have done what the family
of King Ahab did.
You have followed their bad example.
So I will let you be destroyed.
Others will make fun of you.
The nations will laugh at you.”
耶和華譴責以色列
1以色列人啊，
你們要聽耶和華的話：
「起來，你們要在高山面前申辯，
讓丘陵聽你們訴說。
2群山啊，大地永固的根基啊，
你們要聽耶和華的控告！
因為耶和華要控告祂的子民，
責備以色列人。
3「我的子民啊，
我做了什麼對不起你們的事？
我哪裡令你們厭煩？
回答我！
4我曾帶領你們離開埃及，
把你們從受奴役之地救贖出來，
又差遣摩西、亞倫和米利暗引領你們。
5我的子民啊，
你們要回想摩押王巴勒的陰謀以及比珥之子巴蘭給他的回答，
要回想你們從什亭到吉甲途中的遭遇，
以便認識耶和華公義的作為。」
6我要拿什麼朝見耶和華，
在天上的上帝面前叩拜呢？
要獻上一歲的牛犢作燔祭嗎？
7耶和華會喜愛成千的公羊和萬條油河嗎？
我要因過犯而獻上自己的長子，
因心中的罪惡而獻上親生的骨肉嗎？
8世人啊，
耶和華已經指示你們何為良善。
祂向你們所要的是什麼呢？
是要你們行公義，好憐憫，
謙卑地與你們的上帝同行。
9耶和華在向耶路撒冷呼喊，
智者必敬畏祂的名。祂說：
「聚在城裡的眾人啊，你們要聽！
10我豈會忘記惡人家中的不義之財和可惡的小升斗？
11我豈會放過使用不公道的秤和法碼的人？
12城中的富人殘暴成性，
居民謊話連篇，
滿口詭詐之言。
13所以，我要重重地擊打你，
因你的罪惡而毀滅你。
14你吃，卻吃不飽，仍然腹中空空。
你聚斂錢財，卻保不住。
你保住的，我要交給拿刀的。
15你撒種，卻不得收割；
你榨橄欖，卻無油抹身；
你踩葡萄，卻無酒可喝。
16因為你遵守暗利的惡規，
效法亞哈家的惡行，
隨從他們的計謀，
所以我要使你荒涼，
讓你的居民成為笑柄。
你們要蒙受列國的羞辱。」
