Calamities have been sent upon you, and who is there to drive them away?: The form of this verse is parallel to that of verses 3 and 4. A possible model is:

• God is sending disasters on you, and no one can stop them from happening.

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.