2 Esdras 9:18-20

Common English Bible

¹⁸ There was a time in this world—when I was preparing for those who now are, before the world in which they would dwell was made for them—no one opposed me, because no one existed yet. ¹⁹ Now, however, those who have been created in this world—a world furnished with both an inexhaustible table and an endless pasture^[a]—have become corrupt in their habits. ²⁰ I considered the earth—and, observe, it was ruined. I considered my world, and, observe, it was in danger because of the intrigues of those who had come into it.