1. On October 31 the people assembled again, and this time they fasted and dressed in burlap and sprinkled dust on their heads.
2. Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners as they confessed their own sins and the sins of their ancestors.
3. They remained standing in place for three hours while the Book of the Law of the lord their God was read aloud to them. Then for three more hours they confessed their sins and worshiped the lord their God.
4. The Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani—stood on the stairway of the Levites and cried out to the lord their God with loud voices.