Ezra 9:6-7

9:6 I prayed, ¹ 

“O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift my face to you, my God! For our iniquities have climbed higher than our heads, and our guilt extends to the heavens. 9:7 From the days of our fathers until this very day our guilt has been great. Because of our iniquities we, along with our kings and ²  priests, have been delivered over by the local kings ³  to sword, captivity, plunder, and embarrassment – right up to the present time.

Ezra 9:11

9:11 which you commanded us through your servants the prophets with these words: ⁴  ‘The land that you are entering to possess is a land defiled by the impurities of the local residents! ⁵  With their abominations they have filled it from one end to the other with their filthiness.

Ezra 10:3

10:3 Therefore let us enact ⁶  a covenant with our God to send away all these women and their offspring, in keeping with your counsel, my lord, ⁷  and that of those who respect ⁸  the commandments of our God. And let it be done according to the law.

[9:6]  ¹ tn Heb “I said.”

[9:7]  ² tc The MT lacks “and” here, but see the LXX and Vulgate.

[9:7]  ³ tn Heb “the kings of the lands.”

[9:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “through your servants the prophets, saying.”

[9:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “the peoples of the lands.”

[10:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “cut.”

[10:3]  ⁷ tn The MT vocalizes this word as a plural, which could be understood as a reference to God. But the context seems to suggest that a human lord is intended. The apparatus of BHS suggests repointing the word as a singular (“my lord”), but this is unnecessary. The plural (“my lords”) can be understood in an honorific sense even when a human being is in view. Most English versions regard this as a reference to Ezra, so the present translation supplies “your” before “counsel” to make this clear.

[10:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “who tremble at”; NAB, NIV “who fear.”