^{1 Ref} Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackcloth, and earth upon them.

^{2 Ref} And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all foreigners, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.

^{3 Ref} And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of Jehovah their God a fourth part of the day; and `another' fourth part they confessed, and worshipped Jehovah their God.

^{4 Ref} Then stood up upon the stairs of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, `and' Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto Jehovah their God.

^{5 Ref} Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, `and' Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless Jehovah your God from everlasting to everlasting; and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.

^{6 Ref} Thou art Jehovah, even thou alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all things that are thereon, the seas and all that is in them, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.

^{7 Ref} Thou art Jehovah the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham,

^{8 Ref} and foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, to give it unto his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous.

^{9 Ref} And thou sawest the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red Sea,

^{10 Ref} and showedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land; for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them, and didst get thee a name, as it is this day.

^{11 Ref} And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their pursuers thou didst cast into the depths, as a stone into the mighty waters.

^{12 Ref} Moreover in a pillar of cloud thou leddest them by day; and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.

^{13 Ref} Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right ordinances and true laws, good statutes and commandments,

^{14 Ref} and madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them commandments, and statutes, and a law, by Moses thy servant,

^{15 Ref} and gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and commandedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.

^{16 Ref} But they and our fathers dealt proudly and hardened their neck, and hearkened not to thy commandments,

^{17 Ref} and refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them, but hardened their neck, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage. But thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness, and forsookest them not.

^{18 Ref} Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;

^{19 Ref} yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of cloud departed not from over them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to show them light, and the way wherein they should go.

^{20 Ref} Thou gavest also thy good Spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.

^{21 Ref} Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, `and' they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not.