And I prayed earnestly to the Lord God, pleading with him, fasting, wearing sackcloth, and sitting in ashes.

I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed the sins of my people. I said, "Lord God, you are great, and we honor you. You are faithful to your covenant and show constant love to those who love you and do what you command.

I went on praying, confessing my sins and the sins of my people Israel and pleading with the LORD my God to restore his holy Temple.

Cornelius said, "It was about this time three days ago that I was praying in my house at three o'clock in the afternoon. Suddenly a man dressed in shining clothes stood in front of me

"But your descendants will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors, who resisted me and rebelled against me,

and caused me to turn against them and send them into exile in the land of their enemies. At last, when your descendants are humbled and they have paid the penalty for their sin and rebellion,

Then I confessed my sins to you; I did not conceal my wrongdoings. I decided to confess them to you, and you forgave all my sins.

Return to the LORD, and let this prayer be your offering to him: "Forgive all our sins and accept our prayer, and we will praise you as we have promised.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and there is no truth in us.

If we say that we have not sinned, we make a liar out of God, and his word is not in us.

My tears pour down like a river, because people do not obey your law.

I wish my head were a well of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears, so that I could cry day and night for my people who have been killed.

If you will not listen, I will cry in secret because of your pride; I will cry bitterly, and my tears will flow because the LORD's people have been taken away as captives.

"I will fill the descendants of David and the other people of Jerusalem with the spirit of mercy and the spirit of prayer. They will look at the one whom they stabbed to death, and they will mourn for him like those who mourn for an only child. They will mourn bitterly, like those who have lost their first-born son.

He came closer to the city, and when he saw it, he wept over it,

when I say how great is my sorrow, how endless the pain in my heart

Hear my prayers and the prayers of your people when they face this place and pray. In your home in heaven hear us and forgive us.

The LORD said to him, "I have heard your prayer. I consecrate this Temple which you have built as the place where I shall be worshiped forever. I will watch over it and protect it for all time.

that if any disaster struck them to punish them---a war, an epidemic, or a famine---then they could come and stand in front of this Temple where you are worshiped. They could pray to you in their trouble, and you would hear them and rescue them.

Call together all the men, women, and children, and the foreigners who live in your towns, so that everyone may hear it and learn to honor the LORD your God and to obey his teachings faithfully.

All the men of Judah, with their wives and children, were standing there at the Temple.

We, the people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, the Temple guards, the Temple musicians, the Temple workers, and all others who in obedience to God's Law have separated themselves from the foreigners living in our land, we, together with our wives and all our children old enough to understand,

Gather the people together; prepare them for a sacred meeting; bring the old people; gather the children and the babies too. Even newly married couples must leave their homes and come.

Then the LORD showed concern for his land; he had mercy on his people.

But when our time with them was over, we left and went on our way. All of them, together with their wives and children, went with us out of the city to the beach, where we all knelt and prayed.

When the angel had said this, all the people of Israel began to cry,

and that is why the place is called Bochim. There they offered sacrifices to the LORD.

When the people heard what the Law required, they were so moved that they began to cry. So Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra, the priest and scholar of the Law, and the Levites who were explaining the Law told all the people, "This day is holy to the LORD your God, so you are not to mourn or cry.