Romans 3:9-20

What then? Are we any better? Not at all. For we have already made the charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin. As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one. There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” “Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.” “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery lie in their wake, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be justified in His sight by works of the law. For the law merely brings awareness of sin.

Psalm 14:1-7

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their acts are vile. There is no one who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if any understand, if any seek God. All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. Will the workers of iniquity never learn? They devour my people like bread; they refuse to call upon the Lord. There they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is in the company of the righteous. You sinners frustrate the plans of the oppressed, yet the Lord is their shelter. Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come from Zion! When the Lord restores His captive people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad!

Psalm 10:1-18

Why, O Lord, do You stand far off? Why do You hide in times of trouble? In pride the wicked pursue the needy; let them be caught in the schemes they devise. For the wicked man boasts in the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord. In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his schemes there is no God. He is secure in his ways at all times; Your lofty judgments are far from him; he sneers at all his foes. He says to himself, “I will not be moved; from age to age I am free of distress.” His mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and violence; trouble and malice are under his tongue. He lies in wait near the villages; in ambush he slays the innocent; his eyes watch in stealth for the helpless. He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket; he lurks to seize the oppressed; he catches the lowly in his net. They are crushed and beaten down; the hapless fall prey to his strength. He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.” Arise, O Lord! Lift up Your hand, O God! Do not forget the helpless. Why has the wicked man renounced God? He says to himself, “You will never call me to account.” But You have regarded trouble and grief; You see to repay it by Your hand. The victim entrusts himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless. Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer; call him to account for his wickedness until none is left to be found. The Lord is King forever and ever; the nations perish from His land. You have heard, O Lord, the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. You will incline Your ear, to vindicate the fatherless and oppressed, that the men of the earth may strike terror no more.

Isaiah 59:1-21 

Surely the arm of Yahweh is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear. For your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters injustice. No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case honestly. They rely on empty pleas; they tell lies; they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity. They hatch the eggs of vipers and weave a spider’s web. Whoever eats their eggs will die; crack one open, and a viper is hatched. Their cobwebs cannot be made into clothing, and they cannot cover themselves with their works. Their deeds are sinful deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands. Their feet run to evil; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful thoughts; ruin and destruction lie in their wake. The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their tracks. They have turned them into crooked paths; no one who treads on them will know peace. Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We hope for light, but there is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom. Like the blind, we feel our way along the wall, groping like those without eyes. We stumble at midday as in the twilight; among the vigorous we are like the dead. We all growl like bears and moan like doves. We hope for justice, but find none, for salvation, but it is far from us. For our transgressions are multiplied before You, and our sins testify against us. Our transgressions are indeed with us, and we know our iniquities: rebelling and denying Yahweh, turning away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering lies from the heart. So justice is turned away, and righteousness stands at a distance. For truth has stumbled in the public square, and honesty cannot enter. Truth is missing, and whoever turns from evil becomes prey. Yahweh looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no man; He was amazed that there was no one to intercede. So His own arm brought salvation, and His own righteousness sustained Him. He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on His head; He put on garments of vengeance and wrapped Himself in a cloak of zeal. So He will repay according to their deeds: fury to His enemies, retribution to His foes, and recompense to the islands. So shall they fear the name of Yahweh where the sun sets, and His glory where it rises. For He will come like a raging flood, driven by the breath of Yahweh. “The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares Yahweh. “As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says Yahweh. “My Spirit will not depart from you, and My words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth or from the mouths of your children and grandchildren, from now on and forevermore,” says Yahweh.

Psalm 36:1-12 

An oracle is in my heart regarding the transgression of the wicked man: There is no fear of God before his eyes. For his eyes are too full of conceit to detect or hate his own sin. The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful; he has ceased to be wise and well-doing. Even on his bed he plots wickedness; he sets himself on a path that is not good; he fails to reject evil. Your loving devotion, O Yahweh, reaches to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains; Your judgments are like the deepest sea. O Yahweh, You preserve man and beast. How precious is Your loving devotion, O God, that the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings! They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from Your river of delights. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light. Extend Your loving devotion to those who know You, and Your righteousness to the upright in heart. Let not the foot of the proud come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away. There the evildoers lie fallen, thrown down and unable to rise.