29
And testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again to thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not to thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, (which if a man doeth, he shall live in them:) and withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hear.
30
Yet many years didst thou forbear over them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore thou gavest them into the hand of the people of the lands.
31
Nevertheless, for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou [art] a gracious and merciful God.
32
Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria to this day.
33
But thou [art] just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly:
34
Neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened to thy commandments and thy testimonies, with which thou didst testify against them.
35
For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodness that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them, neither turned they from their wicked works.
36
Behold, we [are] servants this day, and [for] the land that thou gavest to our fathers to eat the fruit of it and the good of it, behold, we [are] servants in it:
37
And it yieldeth much increase to the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins: also they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we [are] in great distress.
38
And because of all this we make a sure [covenant], and write [it]; and our princes, Levites, [and] priests, set their seals [to it].