^3 (A)Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.

^3 (A)‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and ^[a]mighty things, which you do not know.’

^16 [a]Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. ^(A)The effective, ^[b]fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. ¹⁷ Elijah was a man ^(B)with a nature like ours, and ^(C)he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. ¹⁸ And he prayed ^(D)again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

⁴ So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

⁵ And I said: “I pray, ^(A)Lord God of heaven, O great and ^(B)awesome God, ^(C)You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love ^[a]You and observe ^[b]Your commandments, ⁶ please let Your ear be attentive and ^(D)Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and ^(E)confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. ^7 (F)We have acted very corruptly against You, and have ^(G)not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. ⁸ Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ^(H)‘If you ^[c]are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; ^9 (I)but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, ^(J)though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.’ ^10 (K)Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. ¹¹ O Lord, I pray, please ^(L)let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who ^(M)desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”

For I was the king’s ^(N)cupbearer.

¹⁶ “Go, gather all the Jews who are present in ^[a]Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for ^(A)three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; ^(B)and if I perish, I perish!”

⁵ At the evening sacrifice I arose from my fasting; and having torn my garment and my robe, I fell on my knees and ^(A)spread out my hands to the Lord my God.

^8 (A)Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. ^(B)Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and ^(C)purify your hearts, you double-minded. ^9 (D)Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ^10 (E)Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

⁶ Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib; and when he came there, he ^(A)ate no bread and drank no water, for he mourned because of the guilt of those from the captivity.