This is what the Lord of Armies says: All the people of Israel and Judah are oppressed. All their enemies have captured them. They refuse to let them go.
I was angry with my people. I dishonored those who belong to me. I put them under your control. You showed them no mercy. You placed a heavy burden on old people.
I will put it in the hands of those who made you suffer. They said to you, “Lie down so that we can walk over you.” So you made your back like the ground and like a street for them to cross.
This is the kind of fasting I have chosen: Loosen the chains of wickedness, untie the straps of the yoke, let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke.
Everyone who finds them eats them. Their enemies say, ‘We’re not guilty. They have sinned against the Lord, their true pasture. They have sinned against the Lord, the hope of their ancestors.’