The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the GNT. Switch to the GNT to read along with the audio.
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.
Lawsuits and Unrighteous Behavior
6 If any one of you has a case against another, does he dare to seek judgment before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is judged by you, are you not competent to deal with insignificant lawsuits? 3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the matters of this life! 4 So if you have lawsuits involving matters of this life, do you appoint those people as your judges whom the church considers of no account? 5 I say this to make you feel ashamed. Is it really the case that there is not one wise man among you who would be able to decide a dispute between his brothers? 6 Instead, brother sues brother, and that in front of unbelievers! 7 The fact that you have lawsuits with one another is already a complete failure on your part. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? 8 Instead, you yourselves do the wronging and defrauding, and you do it to your brothers!
9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor males who have sex with males,[a] 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor the verbally abusive, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And some of you were those types of people. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ[b] and by the Spirit of our God.
Flee From Sexual Immorality!
12 “All things are permitted for me”—but not all things are beneficial. “All things are permitted for me”—but I will not allow anything to control me. 13 “Foods are for the belly, and the belly is for foods, but God will do away with both of them.” However, the body is not for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. 14 God raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then remove the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Certainly not! 16 Or[c] do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute is one body with her? For it says, “The two will become one flesh.”[d] 17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him.
18 Flee from sexual immorality! Every sin that a person commits is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.
The Prayer for Delivery
9 Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress.
My eye grows weak with sorrow—
my soul and my body too.
10 Yes, my life is consumed by grief,
and my years by groaning.
My strength fails because of my guilt,
and my bones grow weak.
11 Because of all my foes,
I am a disgrace, especially to my neighbors.
I am dreaded by those who know me.
Those who see me on the street flee from me.
12 I have been forgotten like a dead man, gone from memory.[a]
I have become like a broken pot.
13 Yes, I hear the slander of many.
There is terror on every side.
When they conspire together against me,
they plot to take my life.
Confident Petition
14 But I—I trust in you, O Lord.
I say, “You are my God.”
15 My times are in your hand.
Deliver me from the hand of my enemies
and from those who pursue me.
16 Let your face shine on your servant.
Save me in your mercy.
17 Do not allow me to be put to shame, O Lord,
because I have cried out to you.
But let the wicked be put to shame.
Let them be silent in the grave.[b]
18 Let lying lips be silenced,
those who speak against the righteous
impudently with pride and contempt.
3 Practicing righteousness and justice
is more acceptable to the Lord than a sacrifice.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.