7 1 On the fourth day of Chislev, the ninth month of the fourth year that Darius was king of Persia, the Lord again spoke to me. 2-3 It happened after the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer with Regem-Melech and his men to ask the priests in the Lord 's temple and the prophets to pray for them. So they prayed, “Should we mourn and go without eating during the fifth month, as we have done for many years?”

4-5 It was then that the Lord All-Powerful told me to say to everyone in the country, including the priests: 6 And when you eat and drink, isn't it for your own enjoyment? 7 My message today is the same one I commanded the earlier prophets 8-9 So once again, I, the Lord 10 Don't mistreat widows or orphans or foreigners or anyone who is poor, and stop making plans to hurt each other.” 11-12 But everyone who heard those prophets, stubbornly refused to obey. Instead, they turned their backs on everything my Spirit Lord 13 and said, “You people paid no attention when I called out to you, and now I'll pay no attention when you call out to me.” 14 That's why I came with a whirlwind and scattered them among foreign nations, leaving their lovely country empty of people and in ruins. Lord

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version ®. Copyright © 1995 American Bible Society. Used by permission.