3 So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting,v and in sackcloth and ashes.w

4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:x

“Lord, the great and awesome God,y who keeps his covenant of lovez with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinneda and done wrong.b We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned awayc from your commands and laws.d 6 We have not listenede to your servants the prophets,f who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors,g and to all the people of the land.

7 “Lord, you are righteous,h but this day we are covered with shamei—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scatteredj us because of our unfaithfulnessk to you.l 8 We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you.m 9 The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving,n even though we have rebelled against him;o 10 we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets.p 11 All Israel has transgressedq your lawr and turned away, refusing to obey you.

“Therefore the cursess and sworn judgmentst written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinnedu against you. 12 You have fulfilledv the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster.w Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done likex what has been done to Jerusalem.y 13 Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lordz our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth.a 14 The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disasterb on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does;c yet we have not obeyed him.d

15 “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hande and who made for yourself a namef that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. 16 Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts,g turn awayh your anger and your wrathi from Jerusalem,j your city, your holy hill.k Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scornl to all those around us.

17 “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favorm on your desolate sanctuary. 18 Give ear,n our God, and hear;o open your eyes and seep the desolation of the city that bears your Name.q We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.r 19 Lord, listen! Lord, forgive!s Lord, hear and act! For your sake,t my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

The Seventy “Sevens”

20 While I was speaking and praying, confessingu my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hillv—21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel,w the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.x