For he did not despise or detest the suffering ¹  of the oppressed; ²  he did not ignore him; ³  when he cried out to him, he responded. ⁴ 

My eyes grow weak because of oppression. I call out to you, O Lord, all day long; I spread out my hands in prayer to you. ¹ 

They drink wine from sacrificial bowls, ¹  and pour the very best oils on themselves. ²  Yet they are not concerned over ³  the ruin ⁴  of Joseph.

And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, when you received ¹  the message with joy that comes from the Holy Spirit, despite great affliction.

For in fact when we were with you, we were telling you in advance that we would suffer affliction, and so it has happened, as you well know. ¹ 

You must not eat any yeast with it; for seven days you must eat bread made without yeast, symbolic of affliction, for you came out of Egypt hurriedly. You must do this so you will remember for the rest of your life the day you came out of the land of Egypt.

You led us into a trap; ¹  you caused us to suffer. ² 

Yet he took notice of their distress, when he heard their cry for help.

As for their enemies, ¹  they decreased in number and were beaten down, because of painful distress ²  and suffering.

For messengers are coming, heralding disaster, from the city of Dan and from the hills of Ephraim. ¹ 

Nevertheless, you did well to share with me in my trouble.

Say, ‘This is what the king says: “Put this man in prison. Give him only a little bread and water ¹  until I return safely.”’”

Through all that they suffered, he suffered too. ¹  The messenger sent from his very presence ²  delivered them. In his love and mercy he protected ³  them; he lifted them up and carried them throughout ancient times. ⁴ 

For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, ¹  regarding the affliction that happened to us in the province of Asia, ²  that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of living.

ז (Zayin) Jerusalem ¹  remembers, ²  when ³  she became a poor homeless person, ⁴  all her treasures that she owned in days of old. ⁵  When her people fell into an enemy’s grip, ⁶  none of her allies came to her rescue. ⁷  Her enemies ⁸  gloated over ⁹  her; they sneered at her downfall.

Moreover, the Lord will bring upon you every kind of sickness and plague not mentioned in this scroll of commandments, ¹  until you have perished.

In his pain ¹  Manasseh ²  asked the Lord his God for mercy ³  and truly ⁴  humbled himself before the God of his ancestors. ⁵ 

Whatever ¹  you plot ²  against the Lord, he will completely destroy! ³  Distress ⁴  will not arise ⁵  a second time.

Then a famine occurred throughout ¹  Egypt and Canaan, causing ²  great suffering, and our ³  ancestors ⁴  could not find food.

I have great confidence in you; I take great pride ¹  on your behalf. I am filled with encouragement; ²  I am overflowing with joy in the midst of ³  all our suffering.