^1:3They said to me, “The remnant that remains from the exile there in the province are experiencing considerable⁸ adversity and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem lies breached, and its gates have been burned down!”⁹

^1:4When I heard these things I sat down abruptly,¹⁰ crying and mourning for several days. I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. ^1:5Then I said, “Please, O LORD God of heaven, great and awesome God, who keeps his loving covenant¹¹ with those who love him and obey¹² his commandments, ^1:6may your ear be attentive and your eyes be open to hear the prayer of your servant that I am praying to you today throughout both day and night on behalf of your servants the Israelites. I am confessing the sins of the Israelites that we have committed¹³ against you—both I myself and my family¹⁴ have sinned. ^1:7We have behaved corruptly against you, not obeying the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments that you commanded your servant Moses. ^1:8Please recall the word you commanded your servant Moses: ‘If you act unfaithfully, I will scatter you among the nations.¹⁵^1:9But if you repent¹⁶ and obey¹⁷ my commandments and do them, then even if your dispersed people are in the most remote location,¹⁸ I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen for my name to reside.’ ^1:10They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your mighty strength and by your powerful hand.

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Footnotes

8 Heb “great.”
9 Heb “have been burned with fire” (so also in Neh 2:17). The expression “burned with fire” is redundant in contemporary English; the translation uses “burned down” for stylistic reasons.
10 Heb “sat down.” Context suggests that this was a rather sudden action, resulting from the emotional shock of the unpleasant news, so “abruptly” has been supplied in the present translation.
11 Heb “the covenant and loyal love.” The phrase is a hendiadys: the first noun retains its full nominal sense, while the second noun functions adjectivally (“loyal love” = loving). Alternately, the first might function adjectivally and the second noun function as the noun: “covenant and loyal love” = covenant fidelity (see Neh 9:32).
12 Heb “keep.” The Hebrew verb שָׁמַר (shamar, “to observe; to keep”) is often used as an idiom that means “to obey” the commandments of God (e.g., Exod 20:6; Deut 5:16; 23:24; 29:8; Judg 2:22; 1 Kgs 2:43; 11:11; Ps 119:8, 17, 34; Jer 35:18; Ezek 17:14; Amos 2:4). See 1036 3.c.
13 Heb “have sinned.” For stylistic reasons—to avoid redundancy in English—this was translated as “committed.”
14 Heb “the house of my father.”
15 Heb “peoples.”
16 Heb “turn to me.”
17 Heb “keep.” See the note on the word “obey” in .
18 Heb “at the end of the heavens.”