Ecclesiastes 5:8

Powerful Bureaucrats Exploit The Helpless Poor

⁷ For in many dreams and in many words there is emptiness. Rather, fear God. ⁸ If you see oppression of the poor and denial of justice and righteousness in the province, do not be shocked at the sight; for one official watches over another official, and there are higher officials over them. ⁹ After all, a king who cultivates the field is an advantage to the land.

Justice and Righteousness

Most High

Oppression of the Poor

Judgment And Justice

Psalm 12:5

“Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will set him in the safety for which he longs.”

Ecclesiastes 4:1

Then I looked again at all the acts of oppression which were being done under the sun. And behold I saw the tears of the oppressed and that they had no one to comfort them; and on the side of their oppressors was power, but they had no one to comfort them.

Psalm 82:1

A Psalm of Asaph.
God takes His stand in His own congregation;
He judges in the midst of the rulers.

Ecclesiastes 3:16

Furthermore, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.

1 Kings 21:19-20

You shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Have you murdered and also taken possession?”’ And you shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth the dogs will lick up your blood, even yours.”’”

1 Chronicles 21:15-16

And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; but as he was about to destroy it, the Lord saw and was sorry over the calamity, and said to the destroying angel, “It is enough; now relax your hand.” And the angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

Job 20:19-29

“For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor;
He has seized a house which he has not built.

Job 27:8-23

“For what is the hope of the godless when he is cut off,
When God requires his life?

Psalm 10:17-18

O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble;
You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear

Psalm 55:9

Confuse, O Lord, divide their tongues,
For I have seen violence and strife in the city.

Psalm 58:10-11

The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance;
He will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

Psalm 83:18

That they may know that You alone, whose name is the Lord,
Are the Most High over all the earth.

Psalm 95:3

For the Lord is a great God
And a great King above all gods,

Psalm 140:11-12

“May a slanderer not be established in the earth;
May evil hunt the violent man speedily.”

Proverbs 8:17

“I love those who love me;
And those who diligently seek me will find me.

Isaiah 3:15

“What do you mean by crushing My people
And grinding the face of the poor?”
Declares the Lord God of hosts.

Isaiah 5:7

For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel
And the men of Judah His delightful plant.
Thus He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed;
For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.

Isaiah 10:5-7

Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger
And the staff in whose hands is My indignation,

Isaiah 10:12

So it will be that when the Lord has completed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the pomp of his haughtiness.”

Isaiah 37:36

Then the angel of the Lord went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, all of these were dead.

Isaiah 46:10-11

Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, ‘My purpose will be established,
And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’;

Isaiah 57:15

For thus says the high and exalted One
Who lives forever, whose name is Holy,
“I dwell on a high and holy place,
And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit
In order to revive the spirit of the lowly
And to revive the heart of the contrite.

Isaiah 59:13-16

Transgressing and denying the Lord,
And turning away from our God,
Speaking oppression and revolt,
Conceiving in and uttering from the heart lying words.

Jeremiah 22:17-19

“But your eyes and your heart
Are intent only upon your own dishonest gain,
And on shedding innocent blood
And on practicing oppression and extortion.”

Ezekiel 22:6-14

“Behold, the rulers of Israel, each according to his power, have been in you for the purpose of shedding blood.

Amos 5:12

For I know your transgressions are many and your sins are great,
You who distress the righteous and accept bribes
And turn aside the poor in the gate.

Amos 6:2-6

Go over to Calneh and look,
And go from there to Hamath the great,
Then go down to Gath of the Philistines.
Are they better than these kingdoms,
Or is their territory greater than yours?

Amos 6:12

Do horses run on rocks?
Or does one plow them with oxen?
Yet you have turned justice into poison
And the fruit of righteousness into wormwood,

Amos 8:4-7

Hear this, you who trample the needy, to do away with the humble of the land,

Micah 2:1-3

Woe to those who scheme iniquity,
Who work out evil on their beds!
When morning comes, they do it,
For it is in the power of their hands.

Micah 2:9

“The women of My people you evict,
Each one from her pleasant house.
From her children you take My splendor forever.

Micah 3:1-4

And I said,
“Hear now, heads of Jacob
And rulers of the house of Israel.
Is it not for you to know justice?

Micah 3:9-12

Now hear this, heads of the house of Jacob
And rulers of the house of Israel,
Who abhor justice
And twist everything that is straight,

Micah 6:10-13

“Is there yet a man in the wicked house,
Along with treasures of wickedness
And a short measure that is cursed?

Habakkuk 1:2-3

How long, O Lord, will I call for help,
And You will not hear?
I cry out to You, “Violence!”
Yet You do not save.

Habakkuk 1:12-13

Are You not from everlasting,
O Lord, my God, my Holy One?
We will not die.
You, O Lord, have appointed them to judge;
And You, O Rock, have established them to correct.

Zechariah 7:9-13

“Thus has the Lord of hosts said, ‘Dispense true justice and practice kindness and compassion each to his brother;

Zechariah 8:6

Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘If it is too difficult in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, will it also be too difficult in My sight?’ declares the Lord of hosts.

Malachi 3:5

“Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me,” says the Lord of hosts.

Matthew 13:41-42

The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness,

Luke 1:32

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;

Luke 1:35

The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.

Luke 1:76

“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;

Acts 4:27-28

For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,

Acts 12:7-10

And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands.

Acts 12:23

And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.

Romans 11:33

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!

James 2:13

For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.

James 5:2-7

Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten.

1 Peter 4:12

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you;

1 John 3:13

Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.

Revelation 17:6-7

And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered greatly.