“ The time will come when your people Israel are defeated by an enemy because they sinned against you. If they come back to you, renew their allegiance to you, and pray for your help in this temple,

“你的民以色列若得罪你，败在仇敌面前，又归向你，承认你的名，在这殿里祈求祷告，

“你的百姓以色列若得罪你，败在仇敌面前，却又归向你，宣认你的名，在这殿里向你祈求祷告，

“你的百姓以色列若得罪你，败在仇敌面前，却又归向你，宣认你的名，在这殿里向你祈求祷告，

“当你的以色列子民因得罪你而败在敌人手中时，如果他们回心转意归向你，承认你的名，在这殿里祈祷，

“你的子民以色列若是得罪了你，以致在仇敌面前被打败，又回转归向你，承认你的名，在这殿里向你祷告恳求的时候，

「你的民以色列若得罪你，敗在仇敵面前，又歸向你，承認你的名，在這殿裏祈求禱告，

「你的百姓以色列若得罪你，敗在仇敵面前，卻又歸向你，宣認你的名，在這殿裏向你祈求禱告，

「你的百姓以色列若得罪你，敗在仇敵面前，卻又歸向你，宣認你的名，在這殿裏向你祈求禱告，

「當你的以色列子民因得罪你而敗在敵人手中時，如果他們回心轉意歸向你，承認你的名，在這殿裡祈禱，

“你的子民以色列若是得罪了你，以致在仇敵面前被打敗，又回轉歸向你，承認你的名，在這殿裡向你禱告懇求的時候，

『你人民以色列若犯罪得罪了你，在仇敵面前被擊敗，又回轉過來歸向你，稱讚你的名，在這殿裏向你禱告懇求，

爾民以色列因獲罪爾、敗於敵前、若轉歸爾、而認爾名、在此室禱告祈求於爾、

如爾民以色列族、犯罪於爾、為敵所敗、厥後心歸乎爾、虔向此殿、以祈禱呼籲爾名、

如主之民以色列人、因獲罪於主、為敵所敗、厥後歸於主、認主之名、在此殿禱告祈求主、

“ When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you, and when they turn back to you and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple,

“ Suppose your people Israel have lost the battle against their enemies. And suppose they’ve sinned against you. But they turn back to you and praise your name. They pray to you in this temple. And they ask you to help them.

“ When your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have sinned against you, and if they turn again to you and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house,

“ If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn to you and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple,

When your people Israel are defeated before an enemy, because they have sinned against you, and they return to you and praise your name, and they pray and plead with you for mercy in this temple,

“ When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, if they turn to You again and confess Your name and pray and implore Your favor in this house,

“ When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and when they turn back to You and confess Your name, and pray and make supplication to You in this temple,

When thy people Israel are smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee; if they turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray and make supplication unto thee in this house:

When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy, because they have sinned against You, and they return to You and praise Your name, and they pray and plead with You for mercy in this temple,

When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house:

“ When your people Israel are struck down before the enemy, because they have sinned against you; if they turn again to you, and confess your name, and pray and make supplication to you in this house;

I will set my face against you. You will be struck down before your enemies, those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when there is no one pursuing you.

“ The LORD will allow you to be struck down before your enemies; you will attack them from one direction but flee from them in seven directions and will become an object of terror to all the kingdoms of the earth.

“‘ As for the ones who remain among you, they will rot away because of their iniquity in the lands of your enemies, and they will also rot away because of their ancestors’ iniquities which are with them.However, when they confess their iniquity and their ancestors’ iniquity which they committed by trespassing against me, by which they also walked in hostility against me( and I myself will walk in hostility against them and bring them into the land of their enemies), and then their uncircumcised hearts become humbled and they make up for their iniquity,I will remember my covenant with Jacob and also my covenant with Isaac and also my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land.

instead in hunger, thirst, nakedness, and poverty you will serve your enemies whom the LORD will send against you. They will place an iron yoke on your neck until they have destroyed you.

I will bring on you an avenging sword, a covenant vengeance. Although you will gather together into your cities, I will send pestilence among you and you will be given into enemy hands.

Look down from heaven and take notice, from your holy, majestic palace! Where are your zeal and power? Do not hold back your tender compassion!For you are our father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not recognize us. You, LORD, are our father; you have been called our protector from ancient times.Why, LORD, do you make us stray from your ways, and make our minds stubborn so that we do not obey you? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your inheritance!For a short time your special nation possessed a land, but then our adversaries knocked down your holy sanctuary.We existed from ancient times, but you did not rule over them, they were not your subjects.If only you would tear apart the sky and come down! The mountains would tremble before you!( 64: 1) As when fire ignites dry wood, or fire makes water boil, let your adversaries know who you are, and may the nations shake at your presence!When you performed awesome deeds that took us by surprise, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you.Since ancient times no one has heard or perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who intervenes for those who wait for him.You assist those who delight in doing what is right, who observe your commandments. Look, you were angry because we violated them continually. How then can we be saved?We are all like one who is unclean, all our so-called righteous acts are like a menstrual rag in your sight. We all wither like a leaf; our sins carry us away like the wind.No one invokes your name, or makes an effort to take hold of you. For you have rejected us and handed us over to our own sins.Yet, LORD, you are our father. We are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the product of your labor.LORD, do not be too angry! Do not hold our sins against us continually! Take a good look at your people, at all of us!Your chosen cities have become a desert; Zion has become a desert, Jerusalem is a desolate ruin.Our holy temple, our pride and joy, the place where our ancestors praised you, has been burned with fire; all our prized possessions have been destroyed.In light of all this, how can you still hold back, LORD? How can you be silent and continue to humiliate us?

If only we had been satisfied to live on the other side of the Jordan! O Lord, what can I say now that Israel has retreated before its enemies?

Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenantal commandment! They have taken some of the riches; they have stolen them and deceitfully put them among their own possessions.The Israelites are unable to stand before their enemies; they retreat because they have become subject to annihilation. I will no longer be with you, unless you destroy what has contaminated you.

“ If your people Israel are defeated by an enemy because they sinned against you, then if they come back to you, renew their allegiance to you, and pray for your help before you in this temple,then listen from heaven, forgive the sin of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to them and their ancestors.

When God saw their actions– they turned from their evil way of living!– God relented concerning the judgment he had threatened them with and he did not destroy them.

This happened because the Israelites sinned against the LORD their God, who brought them up from the land of Egypt and freed them from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped other gods;they observed the practices of the nations whom the LORD had driven out from before Israel, and followed the example of the kings of Israel.The Israelites said things about the LORD their God that were not right. They built high places in all their cities, from the watchtower to the fortress.They set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.They burned incense on all the high places just like the nations whom the LORD had driven away from before them. Their evil practices made the LORD angry.They worshiped the disgusting idols in blatant disregard of the LORD’s command.The LORD solemnly warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and all the seers,“ Turn back from your evil ways; obey my commandments and rules that are recorded in the law. I ordered your ancestors to keep this law and sent my servants the prophets to remind you of its demands.”But they did not pay attention and were as stubborn as their ancestors, who had not trusted the LORD their God.They rejected his rules, the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the laws he had commanded them to obey. They paid allegiance to worthless idols, and so became worthless to the LORD. They copied the practices of the surrounding nations in blatant disregard of the LORD’s command.They abandoned all the commandments of the LORD their God; they made two metal calves and an Asherah pole, bowed down to all the stars in the sky, and worshiped Baal.They passed their sons and daughters through the fire, and practiced divination and omen reading. They committed themselves to doing evil in the sight of the LORD and made him angry.So the LORD was furious with Israel and rejected them; only the tribe of Judah was left.

The king of Assyria deported the people of Israel to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, along the Habor( the river of Gozan), and in the cities of the Medes.This happened because they did not obey the LORD their God and broke his agreement with them. They did not pay attention to and obey all that Moses, the LORD’s servant, had commanded.

The Israelites did evil in the LORD’s sight, so the LORD turned them over to Midian for seven years.The Midianites overwhelmed Israel. Because of Midian the Israelites made shelters for themselves in the hills, as well as caves and strongholds.

At the time of the evening offering I got up from my self-abasement, with my tunic and robe torn, and then dropped to my knees and spread my hands to the LORD my God.I prayed,“ O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift my face to you, my God! For our iniquities have climbed higher than our heads, and our guilt extends to the heavens.From the days of our fathers until this very day our guilt has been great. Because of our iniquities we, along with our kings and priests, have been delivered over by the local kings to sword, captivity, plunder, and embarrassment– right up to the present time.“ But now briefly we have received mercy from the LORD our God, in that he has left us a remnant and has given us a secure position in his holy place. Thus our God has enlightened our eyes and has given us a little relief in our time of servitude.Although we are slaves, our God has not abandoned us in our servitude. He has extended kindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, in that he has revived us to restore the temple of our God and to raise up its ruins and to give us a protective wall in Judah and Jerusalem.“ And now what are we able to say after this, our God? For we have forsaken your commandmentswhich you commanded us through your servants the prophets with these words:‘ The land that you are entering to possess is a land defiled by the impurities of the local residents! With their abominations they have filled it from one end to the other with their filthiness.Therefore do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons, and do not take their daughters in marriage for your sons. Do not ever seek their peace or welfare, so that you may be strong and may eat the good of the land and may leave it as an inheritance for your children forever.’“ Everything that has happened to us has come about because of our wicked actions and our great guilt. Even so, our God, you have exercised restraint toward our iniquities and have given us a remnant such as this.Shall we once again break your commandments and intermarry with these abominable peoples? Would you not be so angered by us that you would wipe us out, with no survivor or remnant?O LORD God of Israel, you are righteous, for we are left as a remnant this day. Indeed, we stand before you in our guilt. However, because of this guilt no one can really stand before you.”

On the twenty-fourth day of this same month the Israelites assembled; they were fasting and wearing sackcloth, their heads covered with dust.Those truly of Israelite descent separated from all the foreigners, standing and confessing their sins and the iniquities of their ancestors.For one-fourth of the day they stood in their place and read from the book of the law of the LORD their God, and for another fourth they were confessing their sins and worshiping the LORD their God.Then the Levites– Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani– stood on the steps and called out loudly to the LORD their God.The Levites– Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah– said,“ Stand up and bless the LORD your God!”“ May you be blessed, O LORD our God, from age to age. May your glorious name be blessed; may it be lifted up above all blessing and praise.

Please recall the word you commanded your servant Moses:‘ If you act unfaithfully, I will scatter you among the nations.But if you repent and obey my commandments and do them, then even if your dispersed people are in the most remote location, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen for my name to reside.’

All the leaders of the priests and people became more unfaithful and committed the same horrible sins practiced by the nations. They defiled the LORD’s temple which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.The LORD God of their ancestors continually warned them through his messengers, for he felt compassion for his people and his dwelling place.But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his warnings, and ridiculed his prophets. Finally the LORD got very angry at his people and there was no one who could prevent his judgment.He brought against them the king of the Babylonians, who slaughtered their young men in their temple. He did not spare young men or women, or even the old and aging. God handed everyone over to him.

So I turned my attention to the Lord God to implore him by prayer and requests, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.I prayed to the LORD my God, confessing in this way:“ O Lord, great and awesome God who is faithful to his covenant with those who love him and keep his commandments,we have sinned! We have done what is wrong and wicked; we have rebelled by turning away from your commandments and standards.We have not paid attention to your servants the prophets, who spoke by your authority to our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors, and to all the inhabitants of the land as well.“ You are righteous, O Lord, but we are humiliated this day– the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far away in all the countries in which you have scattered them, because they have behaved unfaithfully toward you.O LORD, we have been humiliated– our kings, our leaders, and our ancestors– because we have sinned against you.Yet the Lord our God is compassionate and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him.We have not obeyed the LORD our God by living according to his laws that he set before us through his servants the prophets.“ All Israel has broken your law and turned away by not obeying you. Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatened in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you.He has carried out his threats against us and our rulers who were over us by bringing great calamity on us– what has happened to Jerusalem has never been equaled under all heaven!Just as it is written in the law of Moses, so all this calamity has come on us. Still we have not tried to pacify the LORD our God by turning back from our sin and by seeking wisdom from your reliable moral standards.The LORD was mindful of the calamity, and he brought it on us. For the LORD our God is just in all he has done, and we have not obeyed him.“ Now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with great power and made a name for yourself that is remembered to this day– we have sinned and behaved wickedly.O Lord, according to all your justice, please turn your raging anger away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. For due to our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors, Jerusalem and your people are mocked by all our neighbors.“ So now, our God, accept the prayer and requests of your servant, and show favor to your devastated sanctuary for your own sake.Listen attentively, my God, and hear! Open your eyes and look on our desolated ruins and the city called by your name. For it is not because of our own righteous deeds that we are praying to you, but because your compassion is abundant.O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, pay attention, and act! Don’t delay, for your own sake, O my God! For your city and your people are called by your name.”

You made us retreat from the enemy. Those who hate us take whatever they want from us.