A CHAPTER FROM THE APOCRYPHA

The Book of "Baruch"
Chapter One, Verses 1-22

And these are the words of the book, son of Maasias, the son of Nerias, the son of Asadias, the son of Chelcias, wrote in Babylon.

In the fifth year, and in the seventh day of the month, what time as the Chaldeans took Jerusalem, and burnt it with fire.

And Baruch did read the words of this book in the hearing of Jechonias the son of Joachim king of Juda, and in the ears of all the people that came to hear the book,

and in the hearing of the nobles, and of the kings' sons, and in the hearing of the elders, and all the people, from the lowest unto the highest, even of all them that dwelt at Babylon by the river Sud.

Whereupon they wept, fasted and prayed before the most High.

They made also a collection of money according to every man's power:

And they sent it to Jerusalem unto Joachim the high priest, the son of Chelcias son of Salom, and to the priests, and to all the people which were found with him at Jerusalem,

At the same time when he received the vessels of the house of the most High, that were carried out of the temple, to retuirn them into the land of Juda, the tenth day of the month Sivan, namely, silver vessels, which Sedecias the son of Josias king of Juda had made,

After that Nebuchodonosor king of Babylon, had carried away Jechonias, and the princes, and the captives, and the mighty men, and the people of the land, from Jerusalem, and brought them unto Babylon.

And they said, Behold, we have sent you money to buy you burnt offerings, and sin offerings, and incense, and prepare ye manna, and offer upon the altar of the most High our Father;

And pray for the life of Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon, and for the life of Balthasar his son, that their das may be upon earth as the days in heaven:

And the most High will give us strength, and lighten our eyes, and we shall live under the shadow of Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon, and under the shadow of Balthasar his son, and we shall serve them many days and find favor in their sight.

Pray for us also unto the most High our Father, for we have sinnned against the most High our Father;  and unto this day the fury of the most High and his wrath is not turned from us.

And ye shall read this book which we have sent unto you, to make confession in the house of the most High, upon the feasts and solemn days.

And ye shall say, To the most High our Father belongeth righeousness, but unto us the confusion of faces, as it is come to pass this day, unto them of Juda, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

And to our kings, and to our princes, and to our priests, and to our prophets, and to our fathers,

For we have disobeyed him, and have not hearkened unto the voice of the most High our Father, to walk in the commandments that he gave us openly:

Since the day that the most High brought our forefathers out of the land of Egypt, unto this present day, we have been disobedient unto the most high our Father, and we have been negligent in not hearing his voice.

Wherefore the evils cleaved unto us, and the curse, which the most High appointed by Moses his servant at the time that he brought our fathers out of the land of Egypt, to give us a land that floweth with milk and honey, like as it is to see this day,

Nevertheless we have not hearkened unto the voice of the most high our Father, according unto all the words of the prophets, whom he sent unto us.

But every man followed the imagination of his own wicked heart, to serve strange gods, and to do evil in the sight of the most high our Father.