Injustice

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.

"The tents of the destroyers prosper, And those who provoke God are secure, Whom God brings into their power.

"Why do the wicked still live, Continue on, also become very powerful?

For I have been stricken all day long And chastened every morning.

I have seen everything during my lifetime of futility; there is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his wickedness.

"You shall not pervert the justice due an alien or an orphan, nor take a widow's garment in pledge.

"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.

How long will you judge unjustly And show partiality to the wicked? Selah.

An unjust man is abominable to the righteous, And he who is upright in the way is abominable to the wicked.

It is not for kings, O Lemuel, It is not for kings to drink wine, Or for rulers to desire strong drink, For they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the rights of all the afflicted.

Then the two worthless men came in and sat before him; and the worthless men testified against him, even against Naboth, before the people, saying, "Naboth cursed God and the king." So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones.

The high priest Ananias commanded those standing beside him to strike him on the mouth.

"For I was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the dungeon."

His sons, however, did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after dishonest gain and took bribes and perverted justice.

So Joseph's master took him and put him into the jail, the place where the king's prisoners were confined; and he was there in the jail.

saying, "When will the new moon be over, So that we may sell grain, And the sabbath, that we may open the wheat market, To make the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger, And to cheat with dishonest scales,

He who increases his wealth by interest and usury Gathers it for him who is gracious to the poor.

Therefore because you impose heavy rent on the poor And exact a tribute of grain from them, Though you have built houses of well-hewn stone, Yet you will not live in them; You have planted pleasant vineyards, yet you will not drink their wine.

When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, And the hope of strong men perishes.

"Because of this will not the land quake And everyone who dwells in it mourn? Indeed, all of it will rise up like the Nile, And it will be tossed about And subside like the Nile of Egypt.

Do not rob the poor because he is poor, Or crush the afflicted at the gate; For the LORD will plead their case And take the life of those who rob them.

He who oppresses the poor to make more for himself Or who gives to the rich, will only come to poverty.

"You shall not pervert the justice due to your needy brother in his dispute.

How long will you judge unjustly And show partiality to the wicked? Selah.

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.

Therefore the law is ignored And justice is never upheld For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore justice comes out perverted.

"In you they have taken bribes to shed blood; you have taken interest and profits, and you have injured your neighbors for gain by oppression, and you have forgotten Me," declares the Lord GOD.

They covet fields and then seize them, And houses, and take them away They rob a man and his house, A man and his inheritance.

"For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely.

'Cursed is he who distorts the justice due an alien, orphan, and widow.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'Cursed is he who moves his neighbor's boundary mark.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

'You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.

'You shall do no wrong in judgment, in measurement of weight, or capacity.

Differing weights and differing measures, Both of them are abominable to the LORD.

He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD.

"Were they ashamed because of the abomination they have done? They were not even ashamed at all; They did not even know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time that I punish them, They shall be cast down," says the LORD.

"For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely.

To deprive a man of justice In the presence of the Most High, To defraud a man in his lawsuit-- Of these things the Lord does not approve.

Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?

When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, "I am innocent of this Man's blood; see to that yourselves." And all the people said, "His blood shall be on us and on our children!" Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

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.

"You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. "You shall not afflict any widow or orphan.

An unjust man is abominable to the righteous, And he who is upright in the way is abominable to the wicked.

For they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the rights of all the afflicted.

So Joseph's master took him and put him into the jail, the place where the king's prisoners were confined; and he was there in the jail.

His sons, however, did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after dishonest gain and took bribes and perverted justice.

"If I have despised the claim of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me, What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, what will I answer Him?

"But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.

Do you indeed speak righteousness, O gods? Do you judge uprightly, O sons of men? No, in heart you work unrighteousness; On earth you weigh out the violence of your hands.

saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood." But they said, "What is that to us? See to that yourself!"

Justice is turned back, And righteousness stands far away; For truth has stumbled in the street, And uprightness cannot enter.

Though the wicked is shown favor, He does not learn righteousness; He deals unjustly in the land of uprightness, And does not perceive the majesty of the LORD.

"You shall not follow the masses in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after a multitude in order to pervert justice;

But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned.

"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."

"He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.

Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.

Why do You make me see iniquity, And cause me to look on wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before me; Strife exists and contention arises. Therefore the law is ignored And justice is never upheld For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore justice comes out perverted.