Baruch 2

¹“ ‘For this reason, the Lord our God has fulfilled his word, which he has spoken to us, and to our judges, who have judged Israel, and to our kings, and to our leaders, and to all Israel and Judah.

²And so the Lord has brought upon us great evils, such as never before happened under heaven, (but which have come to pass in Jerusalem according to what was written in the law of Moses)

³even that a man would eat the flesh of his son and the flesh of his daughter.

⁴And so he placed them under the hand of all the kings who surround us, in disgrace and desolation among all the people where the Lord has scattered us.

⁵And we were brought down low and were not raised up, because we sinned against the Lord our God, by not obeying his voice.

⁶To the Lord our God is justice, but to us and to our fathers is confusion of face, just as on this day.

⁷For the Lord has pronounced against us all these evils, which have overcome us.

⁸And we have not beseeched the face of the Lord our God, so that we might return, each one of us from our most sinful ways.

⁹And the Lord has watched over us for evil and has brought it upon us, because the Lord is just in all his works that he has commanded us,

¹⁰and we have not listened to his own voice, so as to walk according to the teachings of the Lord, which he has set before our face.

¹¹And now, O Lord God of Israel, who has led your people out of the land of Egypt with a strong hand, and with signs, and with wonders, and with your great power, and with an exalted arm, and has made a name for yourself, just as on this day,

¹²we have sinned, we have become impious, we have acted unjustly, O Lord our God, against all your principles.

¹³May your wrath be turned away from us because, having been forsaken, we are few among the irreligious where you have scattered us.

¹⁴Heed, O Lord, our petitions and our prayers, and deliver us for your own sake, and grant that we may find favor before the face of those who have led us away,

¹⁵so that all the earth may know that you are the Lord our God, and because your name has been invoked over Israel and over his posterity.

¹⁶Gaze upon us, O Lord, from your holy home, and incline your ear, and heed us.

¹⁷Open your eyes and see, because the dead, who are in the underworld, whose spirit has been taken away from their vital organs, will not give honor and justification to the Lord.

¹⁸But the soul that is sorrowful for the greatness of evil, approaches bowed down and weak, and the failing eyes and the hungering soul give glory and justice to you, the Lord.

¹⁹For it is not according to the righteousness of our fathers that we pour out our petitions and beg mercy in your sight, O Lord our God,

²⁰but because you have sent your wrath and your fury upon us, just as you have spoken by the hand of your children the prophets, saying:

²¹“Thus says the Lord, ‘Bow down your shoulder and your neck, and do work for the king of Babylon, and settle in the land which I gave to your fathers,

²²because, if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, to serve the king of Babylon, I will cause you to depart from the cities of Judah and from the gates of Jerusalem.

²³And I will take away from you the voice of cheerfulness and the voice of joy, and the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, and all the land will be without any trace of its inhabitants.’ ”

²⁴And they did not listen to your voice, that they should serve the king of Babylon, and so you have fulfilled your words, which you spoke by the hands of your children the prophets, so that the bones of our kings and the bones of our fathers would be carried away from their place.

²⁵And, behold, they have been cast out into the heat of the sun and the frost of the night, and they have died by means of grievous evils, by famine, and by the sword, and by banishment.

²⁶And you have set up the temple, in which your name itself was called upon, just as it is on this day, because of the iniquity of the house of Israel and the house of Judah.

²⁷And you have accomplished in us, O Lord our God, according to all your goodness and according to all your great mercy,

²⁸just as you spoke by the hand of your child Moses, in the day when you commanded him to write your law before the sons of Israel,

²⁹saying: “If you will not listen to my voice, this great multitude will be changed into the least among the peoples, where I will scatter them.

³⁰For I know that the people will not listen to me, for the people are stiff necked. But they will have a change of their heart in the land of their captivity,

³¹and they will know that I am the Lord their God. And I will give them a heart, and they will understand, ears, and they will hear.

³²And they will praise me in the land of their captivity, and will remember my name.

³³And they will turn themselves away from their stiff back, and from their wicked deeds, for they will call to mind the way of their fathers, who sinned against me.

³⁴And I will restore them to the land which I pledged to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and they will rule over it, and I will multiply them, and they will not be diminished.

³⁵And I will establish for them a new and everlasting covenant, so that I will be their God and they will be my people. And I will no longer move my people, the sons of Israel, out of the land which I have given them.”

Baruch 2

¹Wherefore the Lord our God hath made good his word, that he spoke to us, and to our judges that have judged Israel, and to our kings, and to our princes, and to all Israel and Juda:

²That the Lord would bring upon us great evils, such as never happened under heaven, as they have come to pass in Jerusalem, according to the things that are written in the law of Moses:

³That a man should eat the flesh of his own son, and the flesh of his own daughter.

⁴And he hath delivered them up to be under the hand of all the kings that are round about us, to be a reproach, and desolation among all the people, among whom the Lord hath scattered us.

⁵And we are brought under, and are not uppermost: because we have sinned against the Lord our God, by not obeying his voice.

⁶To the Lord our God belongeth justice: but to us, and to our fathers confusion of face, as at this day.

⁷For the Lord hath pronounced against us all these evils that are come upon us:

⁸And we have not entreated the face of the Lord our God, that we might return every one of us from our most wicked ways.

⁹And the Lord hath watched over us for evil, and hath brought it upon us: for the Lord is just in all his works which he hath commanded us:

¹⁰And we have not hearkened to his voice to walk in the commandments of the Lord which he hath set before us.

¹¹And now, O Lord God of Israel, who hast brought thy people out of the land of Egypt with a strong hand, and with signs, and with wonders, and with thy great power, and with a mighty arm, and hast made thee a name as at this day,

¹²We have sinned, we have done wickedly, we have acted unjustly, O Lord our God, against all thy justices.

¹³Let thy wrath be turned away from us: for we are left a few among the nations where thou hast scattered us.

¹⁴Hear, O Lord, our prayers, and our petitions, and deliver us for thy own sake: and grant that we may find favour in the sight of them that have led us away:

¹⁵That all the earth may know that thou art the Lord our God, and that thy name is called upon Israel, and upon his posterity.

¹⁶Look down upon us, O Lord, from thy holy house, and incline thy ear, and hear us.

¹⁷Open thy eyes, and behold: for the dead that are in hell, whose spirit is taken away from their bowels, shall not give glory and justice to the Lord:

¹⁸But the soul that is sorrowful for the greatness of evil she hath done, and goeth bowed down, and feeble, and the eyes that fail, and the hungry soul giveth glory and justice to thee the Lord.

¹⁹For it is not for the justices of our fathers that we pour out our prayers, and beg mercy in thy sight, O Lord our God:

²⁰But because thou hast sent out thy wrath, and thy indignation upon us, as thou hast spoken by the hand of thy servants the prophets, saying:

²¹Thus saith the Lord: Bow down your shoulder, and your neck, and serve the king of Babylon: and you shall remain in the land which I have given to your fathers.

²²But if you will not hearken to the voice of the Lord your God, to serve the king of Babylon: I will cause you to depart out of the cities of Juda, and from without Jerusalem.

²³And I will take away from you the voice of mirth, and the voice of joy, and the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, and all the land shall be without any footstep of inhabitants.

²⁴And they hearkened not to thy voice, to serve the king of Babylon: and thou hast made good thy words, which thou spokest by the hands of thy servants the prophets, that the bones of our kings, and the bones of our fathers should be removed out of their place:

²⁵And behold they are cast out to the heat of the sun, and to the frost of the night: and they have died in grievous pains, by famine, and by the sword, and in banishment.

²⁶And thou hast made the temple, in which thy name was called upon, as it is at this day, for the iniquity of the house of Israel, and the house of Juda.

²⁷And thou hast dealt with us, O Lord our God, according to all thy goodness, and according to all that great mercy of thine:

²⁸As thou spokest by the hand of thy servant Moses, in the day when thou didst command him to write thy law before the children of Israel,

²⁹Saying: If you will not hear my voice, this great multitude shall be turned into a very small number among the nations, where I will scatter them:

³⁰For I know that the people will not hear me, for they are a people of a stiff neck: but they shall turn to their heart in the land of their captivity:

³¹And they shall know that I am the Lord their God: and I will give them a heart, and they shall understand: and ears, and they shall hear.

³²And they shall praise me in the land of their captivity, and shall be mindful of my name.

³³And they shall turn away themselves from their stiff neck, and from their wicked deeds: for they shall remember the way of their fathers, that sinned against me.

³⁴And I will bring them back again into the land which I promised with an oath to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and they shall be masters thereof: and I will multiply them, and they shall not be diminished.

³⁵And I will make with them another covenant that shall be everlasting, to be their God, and they shall be my people: and I will no more remove my people, the children of Israel, out of the land that I have given them.