1The word of the Lord came to Esdras, son of Chusi, in the days of King Nebuchadnezzar.
2And the Lord said: Go to my people and proclaim their transgressions, and to their children the iniquity they have committed against me.
3That they may tell their grandchildren, because the sins of their fathers have multiplied in them.
4Because they have forsaken me and offered sacrifices to strange gods.
5Was it not I who brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage?
6But they have provoked me to anger and despised my counsels.
7You, however, shake the hair of your head and cast upon them all calamities.
8Because they have not obeyed my law; they are a rebellious people.
9How long shall I bear with them, having shown them so great kindness?
10For their sake I overthrew kings, I struck Egypt with plagues and destroyed all their army.
11I burned Sodom and Gomorrah; their land became like rivers of pitch.
12For them I divided the sea and guided them through it like horses through the wilderness.
13I destroyed all their enemies and guided them with a mighty hand.
14But they have forsaken me, says the Lord Almighty.