Ezra 10
Legacy Standard Bible
Ezra Makes Israel Swear an Oath
10 Now (A)while Ezra was praying and making confession, weeping and prostrating himself (B)before the house of God, a very large assembly, men, women, and children, gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept bitterly. 2 And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said to Ezra, “(C)We have been unfaithful to our God and have [a]married foreign women from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope for Israel in spite of this. 3 So now (D)let us cut a covenant with our God to put away all the wives and [b](E)their children, according to the counsel of [c]my lord and of (F)those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done (G)according to the law. 4 Arise! For this matter is [d]your responsibility, but we will be with you; (H)be strong and act.”
5 Then Ezra arose and (I)made the leading priests, the Levites and all Israel, swear an oath that they would do according to this word; so they swore an oath. 6 Then Ezra (J)arose from before the house of God and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib. He went there, but (K)he did not eat bread nor drink water, for he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles. 7 And they made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the exiles, that they should gather at Jerusalem, 8 and that whoever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the prince and the elders, all his possessions should be devoted to destruction and he himself separated from the assembly of the exiles.
9 So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month on the twentieth of the month, and all the people sat in the open square before the house of God, (L)trembling because of this matter and the heavy rain. 10 Then Ezra the priest arose and said to them, “You have been unfaithful and have married foreign wives adding to the guilt of Israel. 11 So now, (M)make confession to Yahweh, the God of your fathers, and (N)do His will; and (O)separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.” 12 Then all the assembly answered and said with a loud voice, “This is so! As you have said, so it is [e]our duty to do. 13 But there are many people; it is the rainy season, and we are not able to stand outside. Nor can the task be done in one or two days, for we have transgressed greatly in this matter. 14 Let our princes stand in for the whole assembly, and let all those in our cities who have married foreign wives come at set times, together with the elders and judges of each city, until the (P)burning anger of our God on account of this matter is turned away from us.” 15 However, Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah stood against this, with Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helping them.
16 But the exiles did so. And [f]Ezra the priest separated out men who were heads of fathers’ households for each of their father’s households, all of them by name. So they [g]convened on the first day of the tenth month to investigate the matter. 17 And they completed investigating all the men who had married foreign wives by the first day of the first month.
Those Who Married Foreign Wives
18 Among the sons of the priests who had married foreign wives were found of the sons of (Q)Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib and Gedaliah. 19 They gave their hand in pledge to put away their wives, and being guilty, (R)they offered a ram of the flock for their guilt.
20 Of the sons of Immer there were Hanani and Zebadiah;
21 and of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel and Uzziah;
22 and of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad and Elasah.
23 Of Levites there were Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (that is, Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah and Eliezer.
24 Of the singers there was Eliashib; and of the gatekeepers: Shallum, Telem and Uri.
25 Of Israel, of the sons of (S)Parosh there were Ramiah, Izziah, Malchijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malchijah and Benaiah;
26 and of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth and Elijah;
27 and of the sons of (T)Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad and Aziza;
28 and of the sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai and Athlai;
29 and of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch and Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal and Jeremoth;
30 and of the sons of Pahath-moab: Adna, Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui and Manasseh;
31 and of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Isshijah, (U)Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon,
32 Benjamin, Malluch and Shemariah;
33 of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh and Shimei;
34 of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, Uel,
35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi,
36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib,
37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, Jaasu,
38 Bani, Binnui, Shimei,
39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah,
40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai,
41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah,
42 Shallum, Amariah and Joseph.
43 Of the sons of (V)Nebo there were Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel and Benaiah.
44 All these had taken up (W)foreign women as wives, and some of them had wives by whom they had children.
Footnotes
- Ezra 10:2 Lit given dwelling to
- Ezra 10:3 Lit that which is born of them
- Ezra 10:3 Or the Lord
- Ezra 10:4 Lit upon you
- Ezra 10:12 Lit upon us
- Ezra 10:16 Heb there were set apart Ezra the priest, men...
- Ezra 10:16 Lit sat
Ezra 10
Evangelical Heritage Version
Confession Leads to a New Covenant
10 Now as Ezra prayed and confessed, weeping and throwing himself down in front of the house of God, a very large crowd from Israel gathered to him, including men, women, and children. The people also wept bitterly.
2 Then Shekaniah son of Jehiel from the descendants of Elam responded to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God and have married foreign wives from the peoples of the land. However, now there is hope for Israel in this matter. 3 So now let us make a covenant with our God to send away all our wives and the children born to them, according to the advice of my lord and of those who tremble at the command of our God. Let it be done according to the law. 4 Get up, because the matter is your concern, and we are with you. Be strong and take action.”
5 Then Ezra got up and required the officials among the priests, the Levites, and all Israel to take an oath that they would deal with this matter. So they took an oath.
6 Then Ezra got up and left the front of the house of God and went to the chamber of Jehohanan son of Eliashib and spent the night there.[a] He did not eat any food or drink any water, because he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.
7 Then a proclamation was made throughout Judah and Jerusalem for all the exiles to gather in Jerusalem. 8 According to the decision of the officials and the elders, anyone who would not come within three days would forfeit all his property, and he would be banished from the community of the exiles.
Investigating the Intermarriages
9 So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered in Jerusalem within three days. (It was in the ninth month,[b] on the twentieth day of the month.) All the people were sitting in the public square in front of the house of God, trembling[c] because of the situation and as a result of the rains.
10 Ezra the priest arose and said to them, “You have been unfaithful and have married foreign wives, thereby adding to the guilt of Israel. 11 So now, give praise to the Lord, the God of your fathers, and do his will—separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from your foreign wives.”
12 The entire assembly answered in a loud voice, “It is so! We must do as you have said. 13 However, there are many people, and it is the rainy season. We can’t stand around outdoors, and the business will take more than a day or two, since we have rebelled greatly in this matter. 14 Let our officers represent the entire assembly, and let everyone in our cities who has married foreign wives come at appointed times. The elders from every city and its judges should come with them, until the fierce anger of our God concerning this matter has been turned away from us.” 15 (Only Jonathan son of Asahel and Jahzeiah son of Tikvah opposed this, and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite supported them.)
16 So the exiles acted according to this decision. Ezra the priest and men who were the leading fathers of the fathers’ houses[d] were selected, all of them identified by name. They convened on the first day of the tenth month to investigate the matter. 17 On the first day of the first month, they finished dealing with all the men who had married foreign wives.
The Report of the Investigation
18 From the descendants of the priests who had married foreign wives,
these men were identified:
From the descendants of Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers they were Ma’aseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah. 19 They pledged to send away their wives and to offer guilt offerings: a ram from the flock for their guilt.
20 From the descendants of Immer they were Hanani and Zebadiah.
21 From the descendants of Harim they were Ma’aseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah.
22 From the descendants of Pashhur they were Elioenai, Ma’aseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.
23 From the Levites they identified Jozabad and Shimei and Kelaiah (that is, Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.
24 From the singers: Eliashib.
From the gatekeepers: Shallum, Telem, and Uri.
25 From the laypeople of Israel:
From the descendants of Parosh they were Ramiah, Izziah, Malkijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malkijah,[e] and Benaiah.
26 From the descendants of Elam they were Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Elijah.
27 From the descendants of Zattu they were Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza.
28 From the descendants of Bebai they were Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai.
29 From the descendants of Bani they were Meshullam, Malluk, and Adaiah, Jashub and Sheal and Jeremoth.
30 From the descendants of Pahath Moab they were Adna and Kelal,
Benaiah, Ma’aseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, and Binnui and Manasseh, 31 and from the citizens of Harim they were Eliezer, Isshijah, Malkijah, Shemaiah, Simeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluk, and Shemariah.
33 From the descendants of Hashum they were Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei.
34 From the descendants of Bani they were Ma’adai, Amram, and Uel, 35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Keluhu, 36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, 37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Ja’asai, 38 and Bani and Binnui, Shimei,[f] 39 and Shelemiah and Nathan and Adaiah, 40 Maknadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41 Azarel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah, Joseph.[g]
43 From the citizens of Nebo they were Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.
44 All these had taken foreign wives and had children with them.
Footnotes
- Ezra 10:6 The translation follows the Greek. The Hebrew reads and went there.
- Ezra 10:9 November/December, the start of the cold, rainy season
- Ezra 10:9 Or shivering
- Ezra 10:16 Fathers and fathers’ houses were common terms for the leaders of units of society in Israel.
- Ezra 10:25 The Greek Old Testament reads Hashabiah in place of the second Malkijah.
- Ezra 10:38 In the Greek Old Testament, verse 38 begins a new section: and from the sons of Binnui they were Shimei. . ..
- Ezra 10:42 In these lists, the word and is distributed in an irregular pattern throughout. It is uncertain if this has significance for distinguishing and marking groups within the larger group.
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