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

¹Therefore the Lord hath made good his word, which he pronounced against us, and against our judges that judged Israel, and against our kings, and against our princes, and against the men of Israel and Juda,

²To bring upon us great plagues, such as never happened under the whole heaven, as it came to pass in Jerusalem, according to the things that were written in the law of Moses;

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

⁴Moreover he hath delivered them to be in subjection to all the kingdoms that are round about us, to be as a reproach and desolation among all the people round about, where the Lord hath scattered them.

⁵Thus we were cast down, and not exalted, because we have sinned against the Lord our God, and have not been obedient unto his voice.

⁶To the Lord our God appertaineth righteousness: but unto us and to our fathers open shame, as appeareth this day.

⁷For all these plagues are come upon us, which the Lord hath pronounced against us

⁸Yet have we not prayed before the Lord, that we might turn every one from the imaginations of his wicked heart.

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

¹⁰Yet we have not hearkened unto his voice, to walk in the commandments of the Lord, that he hath set before us.

¹¹And now, O Lord God of Israel, that hast brought thy people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and high arm, and with signs, and with wonders, and with great power, and hast gotten thyself a name, as appeareth this day:

¹²O Lord our God, we have sinned, we have done ungodly, we have dealt unrighteously in all thine ordinances.

¹³Let thy wrath turn from us: for we are but a few left among the heathen, where thou hast scattered us.

¹⁴Hear our prayers, O Lord, and our petitions, and deliver us for thine own sake, and give us favour in the sight of them which have led us away:

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

¹⁶O Lord, look down from thine holy house, and consider us: bow down thine ear, O Lord, to hear us.

¹⁷Open thine eyes, and behold; for the dead that are in the graves, whose souls are taken from their bodies, will give unto the Lord neither praise nor righteousness:

¹⁸But the soul that is greatly vexed, which goeth stooping and feeble, and the eyes that fail, and the hungry soul, will give thee praise and righteousness, O Lord.

¹⁹Therefore we do not make our humble supplication before thee, O Lord our God, for the righteousness of our fathers, and of our kings.

²⁰For thou hast sent out thy wrath and indignation upon us, as thou hast spoken by thy servants the prophets, saying,

²¹Thus saith the Lord, Bow down your shoulders to serve the king of Babylon: so shall ye remain in the land that I gave unto your fathers.

²²But if ye will not hear the voice of the Lord, to serve the king of Babylon,

²³I will cause to cease out of the cites of Judah, and from without Jerusalem, the voice of mirth, and the voice of joy, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride: and the whole land shall be desolate of inhabitants.

²⁴But we would not hearken unto thy voice, to serve the king of Babylon: therefore hast thou made good the words that thou spakest by thy servants the prophets, namely, that the bones of our kings, and the bones of our fathers, should be taken out of their place.

²⁵And, lo, they are cast out to the heat of the day, and to the frost of the night, and they died in great miseries by famine, by sword, and by pestilence.

²⁶And the house which is called by thy name hast thou laid waste, as it is to be seen this day, for the wickedness of the house of Israel and the house of Juda.

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

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

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

³⁰For I knew that they would not hear me, because it is a stiffnecked people: but in the land of their captivities they shall remember themselves.

³¹And shall know that I am the Lord their God: for I will give them an heart, and ears to hear:

³²And they shall praise me in the land of their captivity, and think upon my name,

³³And return from their stiff neck, and from their wicked deeds: for they shall remember the way of their fathers, which sinned before the Lord.

³⁴And I will bring them again into the land which I promised with an oath unto their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and they shall be lords of it: and I will increase them, and they shall not be diminished.

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