World English Bible

1 Esdras 8:72-82 World English Bible (WEB)

72. So all they that were moved at the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, assembled to me, while I mourned for the iniquity: but I sat still full of heaviness until the evening sacrifice.

73. Then rising up from the fast with my clothes and my holy garment tore, and bowing my knees, and stretching forth my hands to the Lord,

74. I said, O Lord, I am ashamed and confounded before your face;

75. for our sins are multiplied above our heads, and our errors have reached up to heaven,

76. ever since the time of our fathers; and we are in great sin, even to this day.

77. And for our sins and our fathers’ we with our brethren and our kings and our priests were given up to the kings of the earth, to the sword, and to captivity, and for a prey with shame, to this day.

78. And now in some measure has mercy been showed to us from you, O Lord, that there should be left us a root and a name in the place of your sanctuary;

79. and to discover to us a light in the house of the Lord our God, and to give us food in the time of our servitude.

80. Yes, when we were in bondage, we were not forsaken of our Lord; but he made us gracious before the kings of Persia, so that they gave us food,

81. and glorified the temple of our Lord, and raised up the desolate Sion, to give us a sure dwelling in Jewry and Jerusalem.

82. And now, O Lord, what shall we say, having these things? For we have transgressed your commandments, which you gave by the hand of your servants the prophets, saying,