Thus the poor have hope, and iniquity ¹  shuts its mouth. ² 

When the godly see this, they rejoice, and every sinner ¹  shuts his mouth.

By the multitude of your iniquities, through the sinfulness of your trade, you desecrated your sanctuaries. So I drew fire out from within you; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth before the eyes of all who saw you.

He taught what was true; ¹  sinful words were not found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and integrity, and he turned many people away from sin.

And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by how you use worldly wealth, ¹  so that when it runs out you will be welcomed ²  into the eternal homes. ³ 

Who has prescribed his ways for him? Or said to him, ‘You have done what is wicked’?

By David. Do not fret ²  when wicked men seem to succeed! ³  Do not envy evildoers!

No! ¹  You plan how to do what is unjust; ²  you deal out violence in the earth. ³ 

“‘You ¹  must not deal unjustly in judgment: ²  you must neither show partiality to the poor nor honor the rich. ³  You must judge your fellow citizen fairly. ⁴ 

The womb ¹  forgets him, the worm feasts on him, no longer will he be remembered. Like a tree, wickedness will be broken down.

Do not become partners ¹  with those who do not believe, for what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship does light have with darkness?

and with every kind of evil deception directed against ¹  those who are perishing, because they found no place in their hearts for the truth ²  so as to be saved.

Respect the Lord and make careful decisions, for the Lord our God disapproves of injustice, partiality, and bribery.” ¹ 

This is what the Lord says: “What fault could your ancestors ¹  have possibly found in me that they strayed so far from me? ²  They paid allegiance to ³  worthless idols, and so became worthless to me. ⁴ 

O Israel, you have sinned since the time ¹  of Gibeah, and there you have remained. Did not war overtake the evildoers in Gibeah?

The just Lord resides ¹  within her; he commits no unjust acts. ²  Every morning he reveals ³  his justice. At dawn he appears without fail. ⁴  Yet the unjust know no shame.

The Israelites who remain ¹  will not act deceitfully. They will not lie, and a deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouth. Indeed, they will graze peacefully like sheep ²  and lie down; no one will terrify them.”

And the tongue is a fire! The tongue represents ¹  the world of wrongdoing among the parts of our bodies. It ²  pollutes the entire body and sets fire to the course of human existence – and is set on fire by hell. ³