They answered me, “Those who are left from the captivity are back in Judah, but they are in much trouble and are full of shame. The wall around Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned.”
I prayed, “Hear us, our God. We are hated. Turn the insults of Sanballat and Tobiah back on their own heads. Let them be captured and stolen like valuables.
Jerusalem, I have put guards on the walls to watch. They must not be silent day or night. You people who remind the Lord of your needs in prayer should never be quiet.
Lord, you understand. Remember me and take care of me. Punish for me those who are hurting me. Don’t destroy me while you remain patient with them. Think about the shame I suffer for you.
“We people of Judah are disgraced, because we have been insulted. We have been shamed, because strangers have gone into the holy places of the Lord’s Temple!”
All of Jerusalem’s people groan, looking for bread. They are trading their precious things for food so they can stay alive. The city says, “Look, Lord, and see. I am hated.”
“Look at me, Lord. I am upset and greatly troubled. My heart is troubled, because I have been so stubborn. Out in the streets, the sword kills; inside the houses, death destroys.
She made herself dirty by her sins and did not think about what would happen to her. Her defeat was surprising, and no one could comfort her. She says, “Lord, see how I suffer, because the enemy has won.”
All who pass by on the road clap their hands at you; they make fun of Jerusalem and shake their heads. They ask, “Is this the city that people called the most beautiful city, the happiest place on earth?”
Jerusalem says: “Look, Lord, and see to whom you have done this. Women eat their own babies, the children they have cared for. Priests and prophets are killed in the Temple of the Lord.
Lord, I have heard the news about you; I am amazed at what you have done. Lord, do great things once again in our time; make those things happen again in our own days. Even when you are angry, remember to be kind.