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 now, leaders of Jacob and rulers of the people of Israel! Should you not know what is fair?

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

Yet you hate good and love sin. You tear off the skin from my people and the flesh from 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.

You eat my people’s flesh, pull their skin off, break their bones, and cut them up like meat for the pot.”

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 they will cry to the Lord, but He will not answer them. He will hide His face from them at that time, because they have done sinful things.

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.

This is what the Lord says about the men who speak in God’s name and lead my people the wrong way. When they have something to eat, they speak of peace. But they make holy war against him who does not feed them.

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.

So night will come to you without a special dream. Darkness will come to you without any word about the future. The sun will go down on those who speak about special dreams, and the day will become dark 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.

Those who tell what is going to happen in the future will be ashamed. Those who learn about the future using their secret ways will be ashamed. They will all cover their mouths because 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 as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, with what is fair, and with strength. I am able to make known to Jacob his wrong-doing, 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;

Now listen to this, you leaders of Jacob and rulers of the people of Israel. You hate what is fair, and turn everything around that is right.

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

You built Zion with blood and Jerusalem with much wrong-doing.

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.

Her leaders take pay in secret for doing wrong. Her religious leaders teach for a price. Her men who tell what is going to happen in the future do it for money. Yet they rest upon the Lord and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No trouble will come to 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.

So because of you Zion will be plowed as a field. Jerusalem will be laid waste. And the mountain of the Lord’s house will be covered with trees.