Jeremiah 5:1

The Lord challenged Jeremiah to search Jerusalem for a man who was just and sought the truth. [Note: According to later Greek literature, Diogenes similarly searched Athens for an honest man.] If he could find even one, on his "scavenger hunt," [Note: Dyer, "Jeremiah," p. 1137.] the Lord promised to pardon the city (cf. Genesis 18:23-32).

"Obviously some godly people like Josiah, Baruch, Zephaniah, and Jeremiah himself were living in Jerusalem. But the words certainly applied to the mass of the populace. In short, corruption was so widespread that exceptions were not significant (cf. Psalms 14)." [Note: Feinberg, p. 412.]

"Justice" and "truth" are two terms that often appear together in the prophetic literature of the Old Testament. They are covenant qualities that govern relations between people and God and between people and other people. [Note: Thompson, p. 236.]