4. Then you will know that I have given you this command, so that my covenant with the priests, the descendants of Levi, will not be broken.
5. “In my covenant I promised them life and wellbeing, and this is what I gave them, so that they might respect me. In those days they did respect and fear me.
6. They taught what was right, not what was wrong. They lived in harmony with me; they not only did what was right themselves, but they also helped many others to stop doing evil.
7. It is the duty of priests to teach the true knowledge of God. People should go to them to learn my will, because they are the messengers of the Lord Almighty.
8. “But now you priests have turned away from the right path. Your teaching has led many to do wrong. You have broken the covenant I made with you.
9. So I, in turn, will make the people of Israel despise you because you do not obey my will, and when you teach my people, you do not treat everyone alike.”