15
Priests, wearing their priestly robes, threw themselves face downward before the altar and begged God to keep the money safe, since he had given the laws designed to protect the money that people deposited in the Temple.
16
It was heartbreaking to see the High Priest. His face turned pale, revealing the agony of his soul,
17
and his body was trembling with fear, reflecting the pain in his heart.
18
People ran from their houses to join together in prayer that the Temple might not be defiled.
19
Women, wearing nothing but skirts of sackcloth, crowded the streets. Young girls whose parents had never allowed them to be seen in public ran to the gates or to the walls of the city, or just stared out of their windows.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.