Jeremiah 22:13-17

Good News Translation

¹³ Doomed is the one who builds his house by injustice
    and enlarges it by dishonesty;
who makes his people work for nothing
    and does not pay their wages.
¹⁴ Doomed is the one who says,
    “I will build myself a mansion
    with spacious rooms upstairs.”
So he puts windows in his house,
    panels it with cedar,
    and paints it red.
¹⁵ Does it make you a better king
    if you build houses of cedar,
    finer than those of others?
Your father enjoyed a full life.
    He was always just and fair,
    and he prospered in everything he did.
¹⁶ He gave the poor a fair trial,
    and all went well with him.
That is what it means to know the Lord.
¹⁷ But you can only see your selfish interests;
    you kill the innocent
    and violently oppress your people.
The Lord has spoken.