1 Esdras 8:78-88

78 And now in some measure mercy has come to us from thee, O Lord, to leave to us a root and a name in thy holy place,
79 and to uncover a light for us in the house of the Lord our God, and to give us food in the time of our servitude.
80 Even in our bondage we were not forsaken by our Lord, but he brought us into favor with the kings of the Persians, so that they have given us food
81 and glorified the temple of our Lord, and raised Zion from desolation, to give us a stronghold in Judea and Jerusalem.
82 "And now, O Lord, what shall we say, when we have these things? For we have transgressed thy commandments, which thou didst give by thy servants the prophets, saying,
83 `The land which you are entering to take possession of it is a land polluted with the pollution of the aliens of the land, and they have filled it with their uncleanness.
84 Therefore do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons, and do not take their daughters for your sons;
85 and do not seek ever to have peace with them, in order that you may be strong and eat the good things of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever.'
86 And all that has happened to us has come about because of our evil deeds and our great sins. For thou, O Lord, didst lift the burden of our sins
87 and give us such a root as this; but we turned back again to transgress thy law by mixing with the uncleanness of the peoples of the land.
88 Wast thou not angry enough with us to destroy us without leaving a root or seed or name?
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.