6With what shall I come before the Lord

and bow down before the exalted God?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

7Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,

with ten thousand rivers of oil?

Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,

the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

8He has showed you, O man, what is good.

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God.

Israel’s Guilt and Punishment

9Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—

and to fear your name is wisdom—

“Heed the rod and the One who appointed it.^a

10Am I still to forget, O wicked house,

your ill-gotten treasures

and the short ephah,^b which is accursed?

11Shall I acquit a man with dishonest scales,

with a bag of false weights?

12Her rich men are violent;

her people are liars

and their tongues speak deceitfully.

13Therefore, I have begun to destroy you,

to ruin you because of your sins.

14You will eat but not be satisfied;

your stomach will still be empty.^c

You will store up but save nothing,

because what you save I will give to the sword.

15You will plant but not harvest;

you will press olives but not use the oil on yourselves,

you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.

16You have observed the statutes of Omri

and all the practices of Ahab’s house,

and you have followed their traditions.

Therefore I will give you over to ruin

and your people to derision;

you will bear the scorn of the nations.^d”