¹⁰ Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have ^[a]transgressed and ^[b]have taken pagan wives, adding to the guilt of Israel.

¹³ But there are many people; it is the season for heavy rain, and we are not able to stand outside. Nor is this the work of one or two days, for there are many of us who have transgressed in this matter.

¹⁴ Please, let the leaders of our entire assembly stand; and let all those in our cities who have taken pagan wives come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of their cities, until ^(A)the fierce wrath of our God is turned away from us in this matter.”

¹⁷ By the first day of the first month they finished questioning all the men who had taken pagan wives.

Pagan Wives Put Away

¹⁸ And among the sons of the priests who had taken pagan wives the following were found of the sons of ^(A)Jeshua the son of ^[a]Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah.

²³ In those days I also saw Jews who ^(A)had married women of ^(B)Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. ²⁴ And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and could not speak the language of Judah, but spoke according to the language of one or the other people.

²⁵ So I ^(C)contended with them and ^[a]cursed them, struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them ^(D)swear by God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters as wives to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons or yourselves. ^26 (E)Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him, ^(F)who was beloved of his God; and God made him king over all Israel. ^(G)Nevertheless pagan women caused even him to sin. ²⁷ Should we then hear of your doing all this great evil, ^(H)transgressing against our God by marrying pagan women?”