The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Esdras 10
1 “So it came to pass that when my son
was entered into his wedding chamber, he
fell down and died.
2 Then we all put out the lamps, and
all my †neighbors rose up to comfort me.
I remained quiet until the second day at
night.
3 It came to pass, when they had all
stopped consoling me, encouraging me to
be quiet, then rose I up by night, and fled,
and came here into this field, as you see.
4 Now I don’t intend to return into the
city, but to stay here, and not eat or drink,
but to continually mourn and fast until I die.”
5 Then Ileftthe reflections I was engaged
in, and answered her in anger,
6 “You mostfoolish woman, don’t you see
our mourning, and what has happened to us?
7 For Zion the mother of us all is full of
sorrow, and much humbled.
8 ‡It is right now to mourn deeply, since
we all mourn, and to be sorrowful, since
we are all in sorrow, but you are mourning
for one son.
9 Ask the earth, and she will tell you that
it is she which ought to mourn for so many
that grow upon her.
10 For out of her, all had their beginnings,
and others will come; and, behold, almost
all of them walk into destruction, and the
multitude of them is utterly doomed.
11 Who then should mourn more, §she
who has lost so great a multitude, or you,
who are grieved but for one?
12 But if yousay to me, ‘My lamentationis
not like the earth’s, for I have lost the fruit
of my womb, which I brought forth with
pains, and bare with sorrows;’
13 but it is with the earth after the
manner of the earth. The multitude present in
it has gone as it came.
14 Then say I to you, ‘Just as you have
brought forth with sorrow, even so the
earth also has given her fruit, namely,
people, ever since the beginning to him who
made her.’
15 Now therefore keep your sorrow to
yourself, and bear with a good courage the
adversities which have happened to you.
16 For if you will acknowledge the decree
of God to be just, you will both receive your
son in time, and will be praised among
women.
17 Go your way then into the city to your
husband.”
18 She said to me, “I won’t do that. I will
not go into the city, but I will die here.”
19 So I proceeded to speak further to her,
and said,
20 “Don’t do so, but allow yourself to be
persuaded by reason of the adversities of
Zion; and be comforted by reason of the
sorrow of Jerusalem.
21 For you see that our sanctuary has
been laid waste, our altar broken down,
our temple destroyed,
22 our lute has been brought low, our
song is put to silence, our rejoicing is at
an end, the light of our candlestick is put
out, the ark of our covenant is plundered,
our holy things are defiled, and the name
that we are called is profaned. Our free
men are despitefully treated, our priests
are burned, our Levites have gone into
captivity, our virgins are defiled and our
wives ravished, our righteous men carried
away, our little ones betrayed, our young
men are brought into bondage, and our
strong men have become weak.
23 What is more than all, the seal of Zion
has now lost the seal of her honor, and is
delivered into the hands of those who hate
us.
24 Therefore shake off your great heaviness,
and put away from yourself the multitude
of sorrows, that the Mighty One may
be merciful to you again, and the Most
High may give you rest, even ease from
your troubles.
25 It came to pass while I was talking with
her, behold, her face suddenly began to
shine exceedingly, and her countenance
glistered like lightning, so that I was very
afraid of her, and wondered what this
meant.
26 Behold, suddenly she made a great
and very fearful cry, so that the earth
shook at the noise.
27 I looked, and behold, the woman appeared
to me no more, but there was a city
built, and a place shown itself from large
foundations. Then I was afraid, and cried
with a loud voice,
28 “Where is Uriel the angel, who came
to me at the first? For he has caused me
to fall into this great trance, and my end
has turned into corruption, and my prayer
a reproach!”
29 As I was speaking these words, behold,
the angel who had come to me at first came
to me, and he looked at me.
30 Behold, I lay as one who had been
dead, and my understanding was taken
from me. He took me by the right hand,
and comforted me, and set me on my feet,
and said to me,
31 “What ails you? Why are you so troubled?
Why is your understanding and the
thoughts of your heart troubled?
32 I said, “Because you have forsaken
me; yet I did according to your words, and
went into the field, and, behold, I have
seen, and still see, that which I am not able
to explain.
33 He said to me, “Stand up like a man,
and I will instruct you.
34 Then I said, “Speak on, my Lord; only
don’t forsake me, lest I die before my time.
35 For I have seen what I didn’t know,
and hear what I don’t know.
36 Or is my sense deceived, or my soul in
a dream?
37 Now therefore I beg you to explain to
your servant what this vision means.”
38 He answered me, “Listen to me, and
I will inform you, and tell you about the
things you are afraid of, for the Most High
has revealed many secret things to you.
39 He has seenthat your way is righteous,
because you are continually sorry for your
people, and make great lamentation for Zion.
40 This therefore is the meaning of the
vision.
41 The woman who appeared to you a
little while ago, whom you saw mourning,
and began to comfort her,
42 but now you no longer see the likeness
of the woman, but a city under
construction appeared to you,
43 and she told you of the death of her
son, this is the interpretation:
44 This woman, whom you saw, is Zion,†
whom you now see as a city being built.
45 She told you that she had been barren
for thirty years because there were three
thousandyears inthe worldin whichthere
was no offering as yet offered in her.
46 And it came to pass after three thousand
years that Solomon built the city and
offered offerings. It was then that the
barren bore a son.
47 She told you that she nourished him
with great care. That was the dwelling in
Jerusalem.
48 When she said to you, ‘My son
died when he entered into his marriage
chamber, and that misfortune befell her,’
this was the destruction that came to
Jerusalem.
49 Behold, you saw her likeness, how she
mourned for her son, and you began to
comfort her for what has happened to her.
These were the things to be opened to you.
50 For now the Most High, seeing that you
are sincerely grieved and suffer from your
whole heart for her, has shown you the
brightness of her glory and the attractiveness
of her beauty.
51 Therefore I asked you to remain in the
field where no house was built,
52 for I knew that the Most High would
show this to you.
53 Therefore I commanded you to come
into the field, where no foundation
of any building was.
54 For no human construction could
stand in the place in which the city of the
Most High was to be shown.
55 Therefore don’t be afraid nor let your
heart be terrified, but go your way in and
see the beauty and greatness of the
building, as much as your eyes are able to see.
56 Then will you hear as much as your
ears may comprehend.
57 For you are more blessed than many,
and are called by name to be with the Most
High, like only a few.
58 But tomorrow at night you shall remain here,
59 and so the Most High will show you
those visions in dreams of what the Most
High will do to those who live on the earth
in the last days. So I slept that night
and another, as he commanded me.