Malachi 3:5
“I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the false swearers; and against those who oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and who turn aside the foreigner, and don’t fear me,” says Yahweh of Armies.”
The prophet Malachi, writing to the Jewish community after their return from exile (likely 5th century BCE), challenges their spiritual apathy and unfaithfulness. Here, God speaks of bringing judgment, listing various offenses that have gone unchecked.
What does it mean for a community when justice for the vulnerable, like workers, is seen as directly connected to their relationship with the divine?