[Mikhayahu] said, *Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the army of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
*Because of the oppression of the weak and because of the groaning of the needy, I will now arise,* says the LORD; *I will set him in safety from those who malign him.*
In you have they taken bribes to shed blood; you have taken interest and increase, and you have greedily gained of your neighbors by oppression, and have forgotten me, says the Lord GOD.
Forasmuch therefore as you trample on the poor, and take taxes from him of wheat: You have built houses of hewn stone, but you will not dwell in them. You have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine.
For I know how many your offenses, and how great are your sins-- you who afflict the just, who take a bribe, and who turn aside the needy in the courts.
who also eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them, and break their bones, and chop them in pieces, as for the pot, and as flesh within the caldron.
*Woe to you, scribes and Perushim, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and as a pretense you make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.