2 Esdras 7:19-29

19 And he said to me, "You are not a better judge than God, or wiser than the Most High!
20 Let many perish who are now living, rather than that the law of God which is set before them be disregarded!
21 For God strictly commanded those who came into the world, when they came, what they should do to live, and what they should observe to avoid punishment.
22 Nevertheless they were not obedient, and spoke against him; they devised for themselves vain thoughts,
23 and proposed to themselves wicked frauds; they even declared that the Most High does not exist, and they ignored his ways!
24 They scorned his law, and denied his covenants; they have been unfaithful to his statutes, and have not performed his works.
25 "Therefore, Ezra, empty things are for the empty, and full things are for the full.
26 For behold, the time will come, when the signs which I have foretold to you will come to pass, that the city which now is not seen shall appear, and the land which now is hidden shall be disclosed.
27 And every one who has been delivered from the evils that I have foretold shall see my wonders.
28 For my son the Messiah shall be revealed with those who are with him, and those who remain shall rejoice four hundred years.
29 And after these years my son the Messiah shall die, and all who draw human breath.
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.