² “When someone sins and offends the Lord by deceiving^(A) his neighbor in regard to a deposit,^(B) a security,^[a] or a robbery;^(C) or defrauds^(D) his neighbor;

²⁷ “When he makes her drink the water, if she has defiled herself and been unfaithful to her husband, the water that brings a curse will enter her to cause bitter suffering; her belly will swell, and her womb will shrivel. She will become a curse among her people.

¹⁶ “Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam’s advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord’s community.^(A)

⁵¹ For both of you broke faith with me among the Israelites at the Waters of Meribath-kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin by failing to treat me as holy in their presence.

¹⁶ “This is what the Lord’s entire community says: ‘What is this treachery you have committed today against the God of Israel by turning away from the Lord and building an altar for yourselves, so that you are in rebellion against the Lord today?

² Indeed, the Israelite men^[a] have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed^(A) has become mixed with the surrounding peoples.^(B) The leaders^[b] and officials have taken the lead in this unfaithfulness!” ^{(C) 3} When I heard this report, I tore my tunic and robe, pulled out some of the hair from my head and beard, and sat down devastated.^(D)

Ezra’s Confession

⁴ Everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel^(E) gathered around me, because of the unfaithfulness of the exiles,^(F) while I sat devastated until the evening offering.^(G)