But what of those for whom I prayed?: Ezra has not prayed for anyone so far, but the Latin phrase rendered for whom I prayed can easily be translated “about/concerning whom I asked” (Stone, Violet). The reference here may be then to the discussion in verses 17-18.

For who among the living is there that has not sinned, or who among men that has not transgressed thy covenant?: These two parallel questions are rhetorical, both expecting the answer “No one.” They may be rendered as a statement, for example, “There is no one on earth who has not sinned, no one who has not broken your [or, God’s] covenant” or “Everybody on earth has sinned, everyone has broken your [or, God’s] covenant.” Since these two questions have the same meaning, they may be combined, unless a translator wishes to preserve the repetition for emphasis. The conjunction For may be left implied (so Good News Bible). Once again the pronoun thy refers to God even though Ezra is speaking directly to Uriel (see the comments on the previous verse). For covenant see the comments on 2 Esd 2.5 even though a different Latin word is used there.

An alternative model for this verse is:

• But what about the people I asked about? There is no one on earth who has not sinned, not a living person who has not broken your [or, God’s] covenant.

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.