1 ¶ And I said, Hear, I pray you, O princes of Jacob, and ye heads of the house of Israel. Did it not pertain to you to know that which is right?

And I said, Hear, I pray you, you heads of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel! Is it not for you to know justice?—

2 W ho hate the good, and love the evil, who steal their skin from off them, and their flesh from off their bones;

You who hate the good and love the evil, who pluck and steal the skin from off and their flesh from off their bones;

3 a nd eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them; and they break their bones and chop them in pieces as for the pot and as flesh within the caldron.

Yes, you who eat the flesh of my people and strip their skin from off them, who break their bones and chop them in pieces as for the pot, like meat in a big kettle.

4 T hen they shall cry unto the LORD, but he will not respond to them: he will even hide his face from them at that time because of their evil doings.

Then will they cry to the Lord, but He will not answer them; He will even hide His face from them at that time, because they have made their deeds evil.

5 T hus hath the LORD said concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and he that does not give them something to eat, they even prepare war against him.

Thus says the Lord: Concerning the false prophets who make My people err, when they have anything good to bite with their teeth they cry, Peace; and whoever gives them nothing to chew, against him they declare a sanctified war.

6 T herefore the vision shall be made night unto you, and darkness unto those that divine, and the sun shall go down over the prophets, and the day shall be dark over them.

Therefore it shall be night to you, so that you shall have no vision; yes, it shall be dark to you without divination. And the sun shall go down over the false prophets, and the day shall be black over them.

7 T hen the prophets shall be ashamed, and the diviners confounded; and they shall all cover their lips because they shall have no answer from God.

And the seers shall be put to shame and the diviners shall blush and be confounded; yes, they shall all cover their lips, for there is no answer from God.

8 ¶ But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his rebellion, and to Israel his sin.

But truly I am full of power, of the Spirit of the Lord, and of justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.

9 N ow hear this, ye heads of the house of Jacob and captains of the house of Israel, that abhor judgment and pervert all equity;

Hear this, I pray you, you heads of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who abhor and reject justice and pervert all equity,

10 t hat build up Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity;

Who build up Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity.

11 t he heads thereof judge for bribes, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet they come near unto the LORD, and say, Is not the LORD among us? No evil can come upon us.

Its heads judge for reward and a bribe and its priests teach for hire and its prophets divine for money; yet they lean on the Lord and say, Is not the Lord among us? No evil can come upon us.

12 T herefore for your sake Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest.

Therefore shall Zion on your account be plowed like a field, Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house like a densely wooded height.