2 We pray that God will be kind to you and remember the promise that he made to his faithful servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
3 May God make you willing and eager to worship and obey him with all your heart.
4 May he bless you with peace and with an understanding of his Law and its commands.
5 We ask him to answer your prayers and forgive your sins and never turn from you in times of trouble.
6 All of us here are now praying for you.
7 In the year 169 of the Syrian kingdom, when Demetrius was our ruler, we wrote you a letter in which we said:“We have had terrible troubles ever since Jason the high priest and his troops rebelled against our country and its leaders.
8 They destroyed the temple gate and killed innocent people. But we begged the Lord for help, and when he answered our prayers, we brought sacrifices and offerings of grain into the temple. We lit the lamps and put the sacred loaves of bread on the table.”