There I proclaimed a fast for the young men before our Lord: The adverb There refers to the location by the Theras Canal (see verse 41). Good News Bible says “There by the Theras River” to make the referent for this adverb explicit at the beginning of this new subsection. Contemporary English Version has simply “There beside the river,” which is sufficient. A fast is an act of refraining from eating food for a period of time. It is more than merely not eating. It is a deliberate act that is carried out in a particular need such as in times of danger. It may be a sign of sorrow and of distress. In the Old Testament it was often accompanied by gestures such as wearing sackcloth and sitting or lying in ashes and by prayer to God on behalf of someone, asking for protection and deliverance (see 2 Sam 12.16; Est 4.3; 9.31). Fasts were also held to commemorate important events such as the capture of Jerusalem (2 Kgs 25.3-4) and the destruction of the Temple (2 Kgs 25.8-9). The parallel passage of Ezra 8.21 does not mention the young men, but it does mention the river. The Hebrew words for “river” and “young man” resemble each other, and the author/translator has evidently mistaken one for the other. Translators of 1 Esdras must refer to the young men. For before our Lord, see the comments on 1 Esd 7.14. The pronoun our and the other first person pronouns in this verse refer to Ezra and his group of Jews returning to Judah. This whole clause may be rendered “There by the canal I asked [or, ordered] the young men to honor our Lord by fasting” or “There beside the river I told the young men to go without eating and to pray to the Lord” (Contemporary English Version).
To seek from him a prosperous journey for ourselves and for our children and the cattle that were with us: A prosperous journey refers to a trip from Babylonia to Jerusalem that is finished in good time and with no bad luck along the way. For the Greek word translated cattle, see the comments on 1 Esd 5.1. Here it is better rendered “animals” (Good News Bible). For this whole clause Contemporary English Version has “asking him to bring us and our children and our livestock safely to Jerusalem.”
An alternative model for this verse is:
• “There by the canal I asked [or, ordered] the young men to honor our Lord by fasting [or, going without eating], so that he would let our whole group, including our children and our animals, have a safe journey.
Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Esdras. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.