But now what can I do for you?: This rhetorical question is an expression of despair. There is nothing that Jerusalem can do to help the people. In many languages it will be rendered as a strong statement, for example, “There is nothing more I can do for you.”

For I am a widow and forsaken: See 2Esdras 2.2. The connector For may be omitted (see the model below).

Go, my children: Once again Jerusalem tells her children to leave home (see verse 2).

And ask for mercy from the Lord: They must depend on the Lord for mercy.

This verse is the end of Jerusalem’s speech to the Israelites. Here is a possible model:

• There is nothing more I can do for you. I am only a lonely widow. Go away, my children. Ask the Lord to have mercy on you.’

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.