But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, ancient men who had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice. And many shouted aloud for joy

the letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

And when the copy of King Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they hurried to Jerusalem to the Jews, and made them stop by force and power.

Before all of this, you shall diligently buy with this money, bulls, rams, lambs, with their food offerings and their drink offerings, and offer them on the altar of the house of your God in Jerusalem.

Also the vessels which are given you for the service of the house of your God, deliver them before the God of Jerusalem.

and has extended mercy before the king and his counselors and before all the king's mighty princes. And I was made strong as the hand of Jehovah my God was on me, and I gathered out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

Then I called a fast there at the river Ahava, so that we might humble ourselves before our God, in order to seek from Him a right way for us and for our little ones, and for all our goods.

Watch and keep them until you weigh them before the chief of the priests and the Levites, and the chief of the fathers of Israel at Jerusalem in the rooms of the house of Jehovah.

O Jehovah, the God of Israel, You are righteous. For we are left a remnant that has escaped, as today. Behold, we are before You in our sins, for we cannot stand before You because of this.

And when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there gathered to him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children, for the people wept with a great weeping.

Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God and went into the room of Johanan the son of Eliashib. And he went there, and he ate no bread nor drank water. For he mourned because of the sin of those who had been exiled.