1 Judith put ashes on her head and removed her robe, uncovering the pieces of sackcloth she was wearing under her widow's clothes. She then bowed with her face to the ground. The time was early evening, exactly when the incense was being offered on the altar in the Jerusalem temple. Judith prayed in a loud voice:
2 Our Lord God, my ancestor Simeon worshiped you, and so you helped him take revenge on the evil foreigners who violently abused and disgraced Dinah. They ripped off her clothes and raped an innocent virgin, though you had said that sort of thing should never be done.
3 That's why you let their rulers be killed in the very bed where they raped Dinah. All the officials of those foreigners were destroyed, and even their servants.
4 Their wives were raped, and their children were carried off to become slaves. Dinah's relatives were furious and were eager to take revenge on the foreigners who had disgraced their family, and so they called on you for help. That's why you let the Israelites carry off the wealth of those foreigners.Lord God, I am a widow. Please listen to my prayer.