Yahweh accuses his people

1Pay attention to what Yahweh says to you Israeli people: “Stand up in court and state what you are accusing me about. And allow the hills and mountains to hear what you will say.

2But then you mountains must also listen carefully [DOU] to what I, Yahweh, am complaining about my people. I have something to say about what [DOU] my Israeli people are doing that displeases me.

3My people, what have I done to cause trouble for you [RHQ]? What have I done to cause you to experience difficulties? Answer me!

4I did great things for your ancestors; I brought them out of Egypt;
I rescued them from that land where they were slaves. I sent Moses to lead them, and his older brother Aaron and his older sister Miriam.

5My people, think about when Balak, the king of Moab, requested Beor’s son Balaam to curse your ancestors, and think about what Balaam replied. Think about how your ancestors crossed the Jordan River miraculously while they were traveling from Acacia to Gilgal. Think about those things in order that you may know that I, Yahweh, do what is right.”

6The Israeli people ask, “What shall we bring to Yahweh who lives in heaven when we come to him and bow down before him? Should we bring calves that are a year-old that will be offerings that will be killed and completely burned on the altar?

7Will Yahweh be pleased if we offer to him 1,000 rams and 10,000 streams of olive oil? Should we offer our firstborn children to be sacrifices to pay for the sins that we have committed [DOU]?”

8No, because he has shown each of us what is good to do; he has shown [RHQ] us what he requires each of us to do: He wants us to do what is just/fair and to love and to be merciful to others, and he wants us to live humbly while we fellowship with him, our God.

The people of Israel are guilty and must be punished

9“I am Yahweh, so if you are wise, you should revere me. I am calling out to you people of Jerusalem, ‘The armies [MET] that will destroy your city are coming, so pay careful attention to me, the one who is causing them to punish you with my rod.

10Do you think that [RHQ] I should forget that you wicked people filled your homes with valuable things that you acquired by cheating others? Do you think that [RHQ] I should forget that you used false measures when you bought and sold things? Those are things that I hate.

11Do you think that [RHQ] I should say nothing about people who use scales that do not weigh correctly, and who use weights that are not accurate?

12The rich people among you always act violently to get money from poor people. All of the people in Jerusalem are liars,
and they [SYN] always deceive people.

13Therefore, I have already begun to get rid of you, to ruin you because of the sins that you have committed.

14Soon you will eat food, but you will not have enough to satisfy you; your stomachs will still feel as though they are empty. You will try to save up money, but you will not be able to save anything, because I will send your enemies to take it from you in wars [MTY].

15You will plant seeds, but you will not harvest anything. You will press olives, but others, not you, will use the olive oil. You will trample on grapes and make wine from the juice, but others, not you, will drink the wine.

16Those things will happen to you because you obey only the wicked laws of King Omri, and you do the terrible things that wicked King Ahab and his descendants commanded. So, I will destroy your country, and I will cause your people to be despised;
people of other nations will insult you.’”