The Family Leaders Who Returned to Jerusalem With Ezra

8 Many family leaders came up to Jerusalem with me from Babylon. So did others who were listed with them. It was during the time when Artaxerxes was king. Here is a list of those who came.

Ezra Leads Many Jews Back to Jerusalem

¹⁵ I gathered the people together at the canal that flows toward Ahava. We camped there for three days. I looked for Levites among the people and priests. But I didn’t find any. ¹⁶ So I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan and Jarib. I also sent for Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah and Meshullam. All of them were leaders. And I sent for Joiarib and Elnathan. They were very well educated. ¹⁷ I ordered all those men to go to Iddo. He was the leader in Kasiphia. He and his Levite relatives were temple servants there. I told my men what to say to them. I wanted Iddo and his Levite relatives to bring some attendants to us for the house of our God. ¹⁸ God was gracious to us and helped us. So they brought us Sherebiah, a very capable man. He came from the family line of Mahli. Mahli was the son of Levi. Levi was a son of Israel. They also brought us Sherebiah’s sons and brothers. The total number of men was 18. ¹⁹ And they brought Hashabiah and his brothers and nephews. They brought them together with Jeshaiah. He came from the family line of Merari. The total number of men was 20. ²⁰ They also brought 220 of the temple servants. That was a special group David and his officials had established. They were supposed to help the Levites. All of them were listed by name.

²¹ By the canal that flows toward Ahava, I announced a fast. I told the people not to eat any food. In that way, we made ourselves humble in God’s sight. We prayed that he would give us and our children a safe journey. We asked him to keep safe everything we owned. ²² I was ashamed to ask King Artaxerxes for soldiers and horsemen. They could have kept us safe from enemies on the road. But we had told the king that our God would keep us safe. We had said, “Our God is gracious and helps everyone who looks to him. But he becomes very angry with anyone who deserts him.” ²³ So we didn’t eat anything. We prayed to our God about all these matters. And he answered our prayers.

²⁴ Then I set apart 12 of the leading priests. They were Sherebiah, Hashabiah and ten of their relatives. ²⁵ I weighed out to them the offering of silver and gold and other things. They had been given for the house of our God. The king, his advisers and officials, and all the Israelites who were there had given them. ²⁶ I weighed out 24 tons of silver and gave it to those men. I weighed out almost four tons of silver things. I weighed out almost four tons of gold. ²⁷ I weighed out 20 gold bowls. They weighed 19 pounds. I also weighed out two fine objects. The bronze they were made out of was highly polished. They were as priceless as gold.

²⁸ I said to those men, “You are set apart to the Lord. So are these things. The silver and gold were offered to the Lord by those who chose to give them. He is the God of your people. ²⁹ Guard all these things carefully until you weigh them out. Weigh them in the special rooms of the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem. Do this in front of the leading priests and the Levites. Make sure the family leaders of Israel are watching.” ³⁰ Then the priests and Levites received the silver and gold and sacred objects. All of them had been weighed out. They were going to be taken to the house of our God in Jerusalem.

³¹ On the 12th day of the first month we started out. We left the canal that flows toward Ahava. And we headed for Jerusalem. Our God helped us. He kept us safe from enemies and robbers along the way. ³² So we arrived in Jerusalem. There we rested for three days.

³³ On the fourth day we weighed out the silver and gold. We also weighed out the sacred objects. We weighed everything in the house of our God. We handed all of it over to Meremoth the priest. He was the son of Uriah. Eleazar, Jozabad and Noadiah were with him. Eleazar was the son of Phinehas. Jozabad was the son of Jeshua. Noadiah was the son of Binnui. Jozabad and Noadiah were Levites. ³⁴ Everything was listed by number and weight. And the total weight was recorded at that time.

³⁵ Then the people sacrificed burnt offerings to the God of Israel. They had returned from Babylon. They offered 12 bulls for the whole nation of Israel. They offered 96 rams and 77 male lambs. All of that was a burnt offering to the Lord. They sacrificed 12 male goats as a sin offering. ³⁶ They also handed over the king’s orders. They gave them to the royal officials and governors who ruled over the land west of the Euphrates River. Then those men helped the people. They also did many things for the house of God.

Ezra Prays for the People

9 After all these things had been done, the leaders came to me. They said, “The people of Israel have committed sins. Even the priests and Levites have sinned. They haven’t kept themselves separate from the nations around them. The Lord hates the practices of those nations. He hates what the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites and Jebusites do. He also hates what the Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians and Amorites do. ² The men of Israel have married the daughters of some of those people. They’ve also taken some of those women for their sons to marry. So they’ve mixed our holy nation with the nations around us. We leaders and officials have also married women who don’t worship the Lord. By doing this, we have led the way in breaking our covenant with the Lord.”

³ When I heard that, I tore my inner robe and my coat. I pulled hair from my head and beard. I was so shocked I sat down. ⁴ Then everyone who trembled with fear at God’s words gathered around me. That’s because the people who had returned from Babylon had not been faithful. So I was very upset. I just sat there until the time of the evening sacrifice.

⁵ Then I got up. I had been very sad for quite a while. My inner robe and my coat were torn. I fell down on my knees. I spread my hands out to the Lord my God. ⁶ I prayed,

“I’m filled with shame and dishonor, my God. I can hardly look to you and pray. That’s because our sins are piled up above our heads. Our guilt reaches all the way to the heavens. ⁷ We are filled with it. It has been like that ever since the days of our people who lived long ago. Kings of other countries have killed many of us and our kings and priests with their swords. They’ve forced others to leave their own land. They’ve taken them away as prisoners. They’ve robbed others. They’ve made still others feel ashamed and dishonored. All these things have happened to us because we’ve committed so many sins. And that’s how things still are to this day.

⁸ “But you are the Lord our God. Now you have shown us your kindness for a short time. That’s because you have allowed a few of us to remain here. Your temple has given us new hope. So you have made things easier for us. You have given us a little rest from our slavery. ⁹ We are still slaves. But you are our God. You haven’t turned away from us. You haven’t left us in our slavery. You have been kind to us. The kings of Persia have seen it. You have given us new life to repair your temple and rebuild it. You have given us a place of safety in Judah and Jerusalem.

¹⁰ “You are our God. What can we say after the way you have blessed us? We have turned away from your commands. ¹¹ You gave us your commands through your servants the prophets. You said, ‘You are entering the land to take it as your own. The sinful practices of its people have made the land impure. They have filled it with their “unclean” acts from one end to the other. The Lord hates all their practices. ¹² So don’t let your daughters marry their sons. And don’t let their daughters marry your sons. Don’t make a peace treaty with them at any time. Then you will be strong. You will eat the good things the land produces. And you will leave all of it to your children as their share. They and their children after them will enjoy it forever.’

¹³ “Our evil acts and our terrible sins have brought about the things that have happened to us. You are our God. Because we sinned so much, you should have punished us even more than you have. But you have left many of your people alive. ¹⁴ Suppose we don’t obey your commands again. And suppose we continue to marry people who commit sins that you hate. If we do, you will be so angry with us that you will destroy us. You won’t leave us even a few people. You won’t leave anyone alive. ¹⁵ Lord, you are the God of Israel. You are holy. You always do what is right. Today you have left many of your people alive. Here we are with all our guilt. You see the guilt of our sin. Because we have sinned, not one of us can stand in front of you.”

The People Admit They Have Sinned

10 Ezra was praying and admitting to God that his people had sinned. He was weeping and throwing himself down in front of the house of God. Then a large crowd of Israelites gathered around him. Men, women and children were there. They too wept bitterly. ² Shekaniah spoke to Ezra. Shekaniah was the son of Jehiel. He belonged to the family line of Elam. Shekaniah said, “We haven’t been faithful to our God. We’ve married women from the nations around us. In spite of that, there is still hope for Israel. ³ So let’s make a covenant in front of our God. Let’s promise to send away all these women and their children. That’s what you have advised us to do. Those who respect our God’s commands have given us the same advice. We want to do what the Law says. ⁴ Get up, Ezra. This matter is in your hands. Do what you need to. We will be behind you all the way. Be brave and do it.”

⁵ So Ezra got up. He made the leading priests and Levites and all the Israelites make a promise. He made them promise they would do what Shekaniah had suggested. And they made that promise. ⁶ Then Ezra left the house of God. He went to Jehohanan’s room. Jehohanan was the son of Eliashib. While Ezra was there, he didn’t eat any food. He didn’t drink any water. That’s because he was filled with sadness. He mourned because the people weren’t faithful to the Lord’s commands. Those people were the ones who had returned from the land of Babylon.

⁷ Then an announcement was sent all through Judah and Jerusalem. All the people who had returned were told to gather together in Jerusalem. ⁸ They were supposed to come there before three days had passed. If they didn’t, they would lose all their property. They would also be removed from the community of those who had returned. That’s what the officials and elders had decided.

⁹ Before the three days were over, all the men of Judah and Benjamin had gathered together in Jerusalem. It was the 20th day of the ninth month. They were sitting in the open area in front of the house of God. They were very upset by what they knew would happen. And they were upset because it was raining. ¹⁰ Then Ezra the priest stood up. He said, “You haven’t been faithful to the Lord. You have married women from other lands. So you have added to Israel’s guilt. ¹¹ Now honor the Lord, the God of your people. Then do what he wants you to do. Separate yourselves from the nations around you. Send away your wives from other lands.”

¹² The whole community answered with a loud voice. They said, “You are right! We must do as you say. ¹³ But there are a lot of people here. And it’s the rainy season. So we can’t stand outside. Besides, this matter can’t be taken care of in just a day or two. That’s because we have sinned terribly by what we’ve done. ¹⁴ Our officials can act for the whole community. Have everyone in our towns who has married a woman from another land come at a certain time. Tell them to come together with the elders and judges of each town. Then our God will no longer be angry with us concerning this whole matter.” ¹⁵ Only a few men opposed that. They included Jonathan and Jahzeiah. Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite joined them. Jonathan was the son of Asahel. Jahzeiah was the son of Tikvah.

¹⁶ So those who had returned did what had been suggested. Ezra the priest chose some family leaders. There was one from each family group. All of them were chosen by name. They sat down to check out each case. They started on the first day of the tenth month. ¹⁷ By the first day of the first month they were finished. They had handled all the cases of the men who had married women from other lands.

A List of Those Who Had Married Women From Other Lands

¹⁸ Among the family lines of the priests, here are the men who had married women from other lands.

²³ Among the Levites, here are the men who had married women from other lands.

²⁵ Among the other Israelites, here are the men who had married women from other lands.

⁴⁴ All these men had married women from other lands. Some of them had even had children by those wives.