2 Esdras 2:2-4

Revised Standard Version

² The mother who bore them says to them, ‘Go, my children, because I am a widow and forsaken. ³ I brought you up with gladness; but with mourning and sorrow I have lost you, because you have sinned before the Lord God and have done what is evil in my sight. ⁴ But now what can I do for you? For I am a widow and forsaken. Go, my children, and ask for mercy from the Lord.’