1: Now when these things were done, the princes came to me,
saying, The people of Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, have not
separated themselves from the people of the lands, doing according to
their abominations, even of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites,
the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the
Amorites. |
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2: For they have taken of their daughters for themselves, and for
their sons: so that the holy seed have mingled themselves with the
people of those lands: yea, the hand of the princes and rulers hath been
chief in this trespass. |
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3:
And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle,
and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down
astonied. |
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4: Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the
words of the God of Israel, because of the transgression of those that
had been carried away; and I sat astonied until the evening sacrifice.
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5: And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness; and
having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees, and spread
out my hands unto the LORD my God. |
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6: And said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face
to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our
trespass is grown up unto the heavens. |
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7: Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass
unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our
priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the
sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to confusion of face, as it is
this day. |
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8: And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the
LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in
his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little
reviving in our bondage. |
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9: For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our
bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of
Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to
repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in
Jerusalem. |
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10: And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? for we have
forsaken thy commandments, |
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11: Which thou hast commanded by thy servants the prophets,
saying, The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land
with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations,
which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleanness.
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12: Now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons,
neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or
their wealth for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the
land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever. |
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13: And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and
for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less
than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance as this;
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14: Should we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity
with the people of these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry with
us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor
escaping? |
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15: O LORD God of Israel, thou art righteous: for we remain yet
escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before thee in our
trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because of this. |