I gathered you as a hen gathers her brood under her wings: Compare Matt 23.37; Luke 13.34. Just as a hen protects her chicks under her wings, so God protected his people from danger. This sentence may be rendered “I brought you together to protect you the way a hen protects her chicks under her wings.”

But now, what shall I do to you?: This question is rhetorical; it does not expect an answer. It pictures God as deciding how he will punish the Jewish people. It may be translated “But how shall I punish you now?” or “But now, this is how I will punish you.”

I will cast you out from my presence may be rendered “I will have nothing more to do with you.”

Here is a possible model for this verse:

• I brought you together to protect you the way a hen protects her chicks under her wings. But now, how must I punish you? I will have nothing more to do with 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.