1 On the twenty-fourth day of the seventh month, the people of Israel went without eating, and they dressed in sackcloth and threw dust on their heads to show their sorrow.
2 They refused to let foreigners join them, as they met to confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors.
3 For three hours they stood and listened to the Law of the Lord their God, and then for the next three hours they confessed their sins and worshipped the Lord.
4 Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani stood on the special platform for the Levites and prayed aloud to the Lord their God.
5 Then the Levites Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah said:“Stand and shout praisesto your Lord,the eternal God!Praise his wonderful name,though he is greaterthan words can express.”