²¹ Then I called for a fast there at the Ahava River so we could humble ourselves before our God and seek from him an appropriate way for us and our little ones to live, and how we should guard our personal wealth,^{[a] 22} because I was ashamed to ask the king for a contingent of soldiers and cavalry to protect us from enemies we might encounter^[b] on the way. After all, we had told the king, “The hand of our God seeks the good of all who seek him,^[c] but his power and anger are against everyone who forsakes him.” ²³ So we fasted and asked our God about this, and he listened to us.