Isaiah 5:23

Woes On The Wicked

²²
Woe (judgment is coming) to those who are heroes at drinking wine
And men of strength in mixing intoxicating drinks,
²³ 
Who justify the wicked and acquit the guilty for a bribe,
And take away the rights of those who are in the right! ²⁴
Therefore, as the tongue of fire consumes the stubble [from straw]
And the dry grass collapses into the flame,
So their root will become like rot and their blossom blow away like fine dust;
Because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts
And despised and discarded the word of the Holy One of Israel.

Pervert Justice

Righteous Man

Turn Aside

Psalm 94:21

They band themselves together against the life of the righteous
And condemn the innocent to death.

Isaiah 10:2

So as to deprive the needy of justice
And rob the poor of My people of rightful claims,
So that widows may be their spoil
And that they may plunder the fatherless.

James 5:6

You have condemned and have put to death the righteous man; he offers you no resistance.

Proverbs 17:15

He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the righteous
Are both repulsive to the Lord.

Isaiah 1:23

Your rulers are rebels
And companions of thieves;
Everyone loves bribes
And chases after gifts.
They do not defend the fatherless,
Nor does the widow’s cause come before them [instead they delay or turn a deaf ear].

Micah 3:11

Her leaders pronounce judgment for a bribe,
Her priests teach for a fee,
And her prophets foretell for money;
Yet they lean on the Lord, saying,
“Is not the Lord among us?
No tragedy or distress will come on us.”

Micah 7:3

Concerning evil, both of their hands pursue it and do it diligently and thoroughly;
The prince asks, also the judge, for a bribe,
And a great man speaks the [evil] desire of his soul.
So they twist the course of justice between them.

Exodus 23:6-9

“You shall not pervert (bend) the justice due to your poor in his dispute.

Deuteronomy 16:19

You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial, and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous.

1 Kings 21:13

Two worthless and unprincipled men came in and sat down opposite him; and they testified against Naboth before the people, saying, “Naboth cursed and renounced God and the king.” Then they brought him outside the city and stoned him to death.

2 Chronicles 19:7

So now let the fear (reverent awe) of the Lord be on you [to keep you from making unjust decisions]; be careful in what you do, for there is no injustice with the Lord our God, or partiality, or acceptance of a bribe.”

Proverbs 17:23

A wicked man receives a bribe from the [hidden] pocket
To pervert the ways of justice.

Proverbs 24:24

He who says to the wicked, “You are righteous,”
Peoples will curse him, nations will denounce him;

Proverbs 31:4-5

It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
It is not for kings to drink wine,
Or for rulers to desire strong drink,

Matthew 23:35

so that on you will come the guilt of all the blood of the righteous shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah [the priest], the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

Matthew 27:24-25

So when Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but rather that a riot was breaking out, he took water and washed his hands [to ceremonially cleanse himself of guilt] in the presence of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this [righteous] Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.”