² For they have ^(A)taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the ^(B)holy seed is ^(C)mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this ^[a]trespass.”

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.

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. ¹⁹ And they ^(B)gave their promise that they would put away their wives; and being ^(C)guilty, they presented a ram of the flock as their ^(D)trespass offering.

²⁰ Also of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Zebadiah; ²¹ of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah; ²² of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.

²³ Also of the Levites: Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (the same is Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.

²⁴ Also of the singers: Eliashib; and of the gatekeepers: Shallum, Telem, and Uri.

²⁵ And others of Israel: of the ^(E)sons of Parosh: Ramiah, Jeziah, Malchiah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malchijah, and Benaiah; ²⁶ of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Eliah; ²⁷ of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza; ²⁸ of the ^(F)sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai; ²⁹ of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and ^[b]Ramoth; ³⁰ of the ^(G)sons of Pahath-Moab: Adna, Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh; ³¹ of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Ishijah, 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, ^[c]Cheluh, ³⁶ Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, ³⁷ Mattaniah, Mattenai, ^[d]Jaasai, 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 Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, ^[e]Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.

⁴⁴ All these had taken pagan wives, and some of them had wives by whom they had children.

⁶ “For you are a ^[a]holy people to the Lord your God; ^(A)the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth.

¹⁶ and you take of ^(A)his daughters for your sons, and his daughters ^(B)play the harlot with their gods and make your sons play the harlot with their gods.

² And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, spoke up and said to Ezra, “We have ^(A)trespassed^[a] against our God, and have taken pagan wives from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope in Israel in spite of this.

A Chosen People^(A)

7 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land which you go to ^(B)possess, and has cast out many ^(C)nations before you, ^(D)the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you, ² and when the Lord your God delivers ^(E)them over to you, you shall conquer them and utterly destroy them. ^(F)You shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them. ^3 (G)Nor shall you make marriages with them. You shall not give your daughter to their son, nor take their daughter for your son. ⁴ For they will turn your sons away from following Me, to serve other gods; ^(H)so the anger of the Lord will be aroused against you and destroy you suddenly.

¹⁴ For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; otherwise ^(A)your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.