¹ And greet cry of the puple and of her wyues was maad ayens her britheren Jewis.

² And there weren that seiden, Oure sones and oure douytris ben ful manye; take we wheete for the prijs of hem, and ete we, and lyue.

³ And there weren that seiden, Sette we forth oure feeldis, and vyneris, and oure howsis, and take we wheete in hungur.

⁴ And othere men seiden, Take we money bi borewyng in to the tributis of the kyng, and yyue oure feeldis and vyneris.

⁵ And now as the fleischis of oure britheren ben, so and oure fleischis ben; and as ben the sones of hem, so and oure sones ben; lo! we han maad suget oure sones and oure douytris in to seruage, and seruauntissis ben of oure douytris, and we han not wherof thei moun be ayenbouyt; and othere men han in possessioun oure feeldis, and oure vyneris.

⁶ And Y was ful wrooth, whanne Y hadde herde the cry of hem bi these wordis.

⁷ And myn herte thouyte with me, and Y blamede the principal men and magistratis; and Y seide to hem, Axe ye not vsuris, `ech man of youre britheren. And Y gaderide togidire a greet cumpeny ayens hem,

⁸ and Y seide to hem, As ye witen, we bi oure power ayenbouyten oure britheren Jewis, that weren seeld to hethene men; and ye therfor sillen youre britheren, and schulen we ayenbie hem? And thei holden silence, and founden not what thei schulen answere.

⁹ And Y seide to hem, It is not good thing, which ye doon; whi goen ye not in the drede of oure God, and repreef be not seid to vs of hethene men, oure enemyes?

¹⁰ Bothe Y and my britheren, and my children, han lent to ful many men monei and wheete; in comyn axe we not this ayen; foryyue we alien money, which is due to vs.

¹¹ Yelde ye to hem to dai her feeldis, and her vyneris, her olyue places, and her housis; but rather yyue ye for hem bothe the hundrid part `of money of wheete, of wyn, and of oile, which we weren wont to take of hem.

¹² And thei seiden, We schulen yelde, and we schulen axe no thing of hem; and we schulen do so as thou spekist. And Y clepide the preestis, and Y made hem to swere, that thei schulden do aftir that, that Y hadde seid.

¹³ Ferthermore Y schook my bosum, and Y seide, So God schake awei ech man, `that fillith not this word fro his hows, and hise trauels; and be he schakun awei, and be he maad voide. And al the multitude seide, Amen; and thei herieden God. Therfor the puple dide, as it was seid.

¹⁴ Forsothe fro that dai in which the kyng hadde comaundid to me, that Y schulde be duyk in the lond of Juda, fro the twentithe yeer `til to the two and threttithe yeer of Artaxerses kyng, bi twelue yeer, Y and my britheren eeten not sustenauncis, that weren due to duykis.

¹⁵ But the firste duykis, that weren bifor me, greuyden the puple, and token of hem in breed, and in wiyn, and in monei, ech dai fourti siclis; but also her mynistris oppressiden the puple. Forsothe Y dide not so, for the drede of God;

¹⁶ but rather Y bildide in the werk of the wal, and Y bouyte no feeld, and alle my children weren gaderid to the werk.

¹⁷ Also `Jewis and the magistratis of hem, an hundrid and fifti men; and thei that camen to me fro hethene men, that ben in oure cumpas, weren in my table.

¹⁸ Forsothe bi ech dai oon oxe was maad redi to me, sixe chosun wetheris, outakun volatils, and withynne ten daies dyuerse wynes; and Y yaf many othere thingis; ferthermore and Y axide not the sustenauncis of my duchee; for the puple was maad ful pore.

¹⁹ My God, haue thou mynde of me in to good, bi alle thingis whiche Y dide to this puple.