1 Ezrá complaineth on the people that had turned them ſelues from God, and maryed with the Gentiles. 5 He prayeth vnto God.

1.WHen ^*as theſe things were done, y^e rulers came to me, ſaying, The people of Iſraél, and the Prieſts and the Leuites are not ^aſeparated from the people of the lands ( as touching their abominacions ) to wit, of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Iebuſites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.

2.For they haue taken their daughters to them ſelues, and to their ſonnes, and they haue mixed the holy ſede with the people of the lands, and the hād of the ^bprinces & rulers hathe bene chief in this treſpaſſe.

3.But when I heard this ſaying, I rent my clothes and my garment, and pluckt of the heere of mine head, and of my beard, & ſate downe ^caſtonied.

4.And there aſſembled vnto me all that feared the wordes of the God of Iſraél, becauſe of the tranſgreſſion of them of the captiuitie. And I ſate downe aſtonied vntil the ^*euening ſacrifice.

5.And at the euenīg ſacrifice I aroſe vp frō mine heauines, & when I had rent my clothes and my garment, I fel vpon my knees, and ſpred out mine hands vnto the Lord my God,

6.And ſaid, O my God, I am cōfounded & aſhamed, to lift vp mine eyes vnto thee my God: for our iniquities are increaſed ouer ^dour head, & our treſpaſſe is growen vp vnto ^ethe heauen.

7.From the dayes of our fathers haue we bene in a great treſpaſſe vnto this day, & for our iniquities haue we, our Kings, and our Prieſts bene deliuered into the hand of y^e Kings of the lands, vnto the ſworde, into captiuitie, into a ſpoyle, and into cōfuſion of face, as appeareth this day.

8.And now for a litle ſpace grace hathe bene ſhewed from the Lord our God, in cauſing a remnant to eſcape, & in giuing vs a ^fnayle in his holy place, that our God may light our eyes, & giue vs a litle reuiuing in our ſeruitude.

9.For thogh we were bōdemen, yet our God hathe not forſaken vs in our bondage, but hathe enclined mercie vnto vs in the ſight of the Kings of Perſia, to giue vs life, and to erect the houſe of our God, and to redreſſe the deſolate places thereof, and to giue vs a wall in Iudáh and in Ieruſalém.

10.And now, our God, what ſhal we ſay after this? for we haue forſaken thy commandements.

11.Which thou haſt commanded by thy ſeruants the Prophetes, ſaying, ^*The lād whereunto ye go to poſſeſſe it, is an vncleane land, becauſe of the filthines of the people of the lands, which by their abominaciōs, and by their vnclennes haue filled it from corner to corner.

12.Now therefore ſhal ye not giue your daughters vnto their ſonnes, nether ſhal ye take their daughters vnto your ſonnes, nor ſeke their ^*peace nor wealth for euer, that ye may be ſtrōg and eat the goodnes of the land, and leaue it for an inheritance to your ſonnes for euer.

13.And after all that is come vpon vs for our euil dedes, and for our great treſpaſſes (ſeing that thou our God haſt ſtaied vs from being benethe ^gfor our iniquities, & haſt giuen vs ſuche deliuerance)

14.Shulde we returne to breake thy cōmandements, and ioyne in affinitie with the people of ſuche abominaciōs? woldeſt not thou be angrie toward vs til thou haddeſt cōſumed vs, ſo that there ſhulde be no remnant nor anie eſcaping?

15.O Lord God of Iſraél, thou art iuſte, for we haue bene ^hreſerued to eſcape, as appeareth this day: beholde, we are before thee in our treſpaſſe: therefore we cannot ſtand before thee becauſe of it.

Ezra 9

Notes