Sending Away Foreign Wives

10 While Ezra prayed and confessed, weeping and falling facedown^(A) before the house of God, an extremely large assembly of Israelite men, women, and children gathered around him. The people also wept bitterly.^{(B) 2} Then Shecaniah son of Jehiel,^(C) an Elamite, responded to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the surrounding peoples,^(D) but there is still hope for Israel in spite of this. ³ Therefore, let’s make a covenant before our God^(E) to send away all the foreign wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the command of our God.^(F) Let it be done according to the law. ⁴ Get up, for this matter is your responsibility,^(G) and we support you. Be strong and take action!” ^(H)

⁵ Then Ezra got up and made the leading priests, Levites, and all Israel take an oath to do what had been said; so they took the oath.^{(I) 6} Ezra then went from the house of God and walked to the chamber of Jehohanan son of Eliashib, where he spent the night.^[a] He did not eat food or drink water, because he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.^(J)

⁷ They circulated a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem that all the exiles should gather at Jerusalem. ⁸ Whoever did not come within three days would forfeit all his possessions,^[b] according to the decision of the leaders and elders, and would be excluded^(K) from the assembly of the exiles.

⁹ So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered in Jerusalem within the three days. On the twentieth day of the ninth month, all the people sat in the square at the house of God,^(L) trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. ¹⁰ Then the priest Ezra stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful by marrying foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt.^{(M) 11} Therefore, make a confession to the Lord, the God of your ancestors, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the surrounding peoples and your foreign wives.”

¹² Then all the assembly responded loudly, “Yes, we will do as you say! ¹³ But there are many people, and it is the rainy season. We don’t have the stamina to stay out in the open. This isn’t something that can be done in a day or two, for we have rebelled terribly in this matter. ¹⁴ Let our leaders represent the entire assembly. Then let all those in our towns who have married foreign women come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of each town, in order to avert the fierce anger of our God^(N) concerning^[c] this matter.” ¹⁵ Only Jonathan son of Asahel and Jahzeiah son of Tikvah opposed this, with Meshullam^(O) and Shabbethai the Levite supporting them.

¹⁶ The exiles did what had been proposed. The priest Ezra selected men^[d] who were family heads, all identified by name, to represent^[e] their ancestral families.^[f] They convened on the first day of the tenth month to investigate the matter, ¹⁷ and by the first day of the first month they had dealt with all the men who had married foreign women.

Those Married to Foreign Wives

¹⁸ The following were found to have married foreign women from the descendants of the priests:

²³ The Levites:^(T)

²⁴ The singers:^(U)

The gatekeepers:^(V)

²⁵ The Israelites:^(W)

⁴⁴ All of these^(AH) had married foreign women, and some of the wives had given birth to children.^(AI)

The Covenant Renewal

¹⁴ “Therefore, fear the Lord and worship him in sincerity and truth.^(A) Get rid of the gods your ancestors worshiped^(B) beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and worship the Lord. ¹⁵ But if it doesn’t please you to worship the Lord, choose for yourselves today: Which will you worship—the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living?^(C) As for me and my family, we will worship the Lord.”

¹⁶ The people replied, “We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods! ¹⁷ For the Lord our God brought us and our ancestors out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery,^(D) and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us all along the way we went and among all the peoples whose lands we traveled through. ¹⁸ The Lord drove out before us all the peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will worship the Lord, because he is our God.”

¹⁹ But Joshua told the people, “You will not be able to worship the Lord, because he is a holy God. He is a jealous God;^(E) he will not forgive your transgressions and sins.^{(F) 20} If you abandon the Lord and worship foreign gods, he will turn against you, harm you, and completely destroy^(G) you, after he has been good to you.”

²¹ “No!” the people answered Joshua. “We will worship the Lord.”

²² Joshua then told the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you yourselves have chosen to worship the Lord.”

“We are witnesses,” they said.

²³ “Then get rid of the foreign gods that are among you and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.”

²⁴ So the people said to Joshua, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey him.”

²⁵ On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people at Shechem and established a statute and ordinance for them. ²⁶ Joshua recorded these things in the book of the law of God;^(H) he also took a large stone and set it up there under the oak at the sanctuary of the Lord. ²⁷ And Joshua said to all the people, “You see this stone—it will be a witness against us,^(I) for it has heard all the words the Lord said to us, and it will be a witness against you, so that you will not deny your God.” ²⁸ Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.

The Living Stone and a Holy People

2 Therefore, rid yourselves of^(A) all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander.^{(B) 2} Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the word,^[a](C) so that by it you may grow up into your salvation, ³ if you have tasted^(D) that the Lord is good.^{[b](E) 4} As you come to him, a living stone—rejected by people but chosen and honored by^[c] God— ⁵ you yourselves, as living stones, a spiritual house, are being built to be a holy priesthood^[d] to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God^(F) through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For it stands in Scripture:

⁷ So honor will come to you who believe; but for the unbelieving,

⁸ and

They stumble because they disobey the word; they were destined^(L) for this.

⁹ But you are a chosen race,^[i][j](M) a royal priesthood,^[k](N) a holy nation,^[l](O) a people for his possession,^[m](P) so that you may proclaim the praises^[n][o](Q) of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.^{(R) 10} Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy,^(S) but now you have received mercy.