1. Hear the word of the Lord, O children of Israel,for the Lord has a disputewith the inhabitants of the land:There is no truth or mercy,and no knowledge of God in the land.
2. Swearing, lying, and killing,and stealing and adulterybreak out,and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
3. Therefore the land dries up,and everyone who lives in it witherswith the beasts of the fieldand the birds of the sky;even the fish of the sea disappear.
4. Yet let no one contend,and let none reprove another,for your people are like thosethat contend with a priest.