The Daily Audio Bible

The community responds

10 While Ezra was praying and confessing, weeping and bowing down before God’s house, a very large crowd of men, women, and children of Israel gathered around him. The people also wept in distress. ² Then Shecaniah, Jehiel’s son, from the family of Elam, spoke up and said to Ezra, “We’ve been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the neighboring peoples.^[a] But even now, there is hope for Israel in spite of this. ³ Let’s now make a covenant with our God to send away all these wives and their children, according to the advice of my master and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God. Let it be done according to the Instruction. ⁴ Get up, for it is your duty to deal with this matter; we will support you. Be strong and act.” ⁵ So Ezra got up and made the leading priests, the Levites, and all Israel take a solemn pledge that they would do as had been said. So they took a solemn pledge.

The assembly decides

⁶ Then Ezra got up from the area in front of God’s house and went to the room of Jehohanan, Eliashib’s son, where he spent^[b] the night. He didn’t eat food or drink water, for he was mourning because of the unfaithfulness of the exiles.

⁷ An order was then circulated throughout Judah and Jerusalem that all the returned exiles should gather in Jerusalem. ⁸ All those who failed to appear within three days, as mandated by the officials and elders, would have all their property taken away. They would be separated from the congregation of the exiles. ⁹ So within three days, all the people of Judah and Benjamin gathered in Jerusalem. It was the twentieth day of the ninth month.^[c] All of the people sat in the area in front of God’s house, trembling because of this order and because of the heavy rain.

¹⁰ Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful by marrying foreign women and adding to Israel’s guilt. ¹¹ But now, make a confession to the Lord God of your ancestors and do his will. Separate yourselves from the neighboring peoples^[d] and from the foreign wives.”

¹² The whole assembly shouted in reply, “Yes. We must do as you have said. ¹³ But there are many people, and it’s the rainy season; we can’t continue to stand outside. Nor can this task be completed in a day or two because many of us have sinned in this matter. ¹⁴ Let our leaders represent the entire assembly. Let all in our towns who have taken foreign wives come at appointed times, along with the elders and judges of every town, until God’s great anger at us on account of this matter be averted.” ¹⁵ Only Jonathan, Asahel’s son, and Jahzeiah, Tikvah’s son, opposed this; Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levites supported them.

Resolving the issue

¹⁶ Then the returned exiles did so. Ezra the priest chose^[e] certain men, heads of families, each representing their family houses. Each of them was designated by name. On the first day of the tenth month^[f] they sat down to examine the matter. ¹⁷ By the first day of the first month,^[g] they had come to the end of all the men who had married foreign women.

Confronting lawsuits in the church

6 When someone in your assembly has a legal case against another member, do they dare to take it to court to be judged by people who aren’t just, instead of by God’s people? ² Or don’t you know that God’s people will judge the world? If the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to judge trivial cases? ³ Don’t you know that we will judge angels? Why not ordinary things? ⁴ So then if you have ordinary lawsuits, do you appoint people as judges who aren’t respected by the church? ⁵ I’m saying this because you should be ashamed of yourselves! Isn’t there one person among you who is wise enough to pass judgment between believers? ⁶ But instead, does a brother or sister have a lawsuit against another brother or sister, and do they do this in front of unbelievers? ⁷ The fact that you have lawsuits against each other means that you’ve already lost your case. Why not be wronged instead? Why not be cheated? ⁸ But instead you are doing wrong and cheating—and you’re doing it to your own brothers and sisters.

⁹ Don’t you know that people who are unjust won’t inherit God’s kingdom? Don’t be deceived. Those who are sexually immoral, those who worship false gods, adulterers, both participants in same-sex intercourse,^{[a] 10} thieves, the greedy, drunks, abusive people, and swindlers won’t inherit God’s kingdom. ¹¹ That is what some of you used to be! But you were washed clean, you were made holy to God, and you were made right with God in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

Avoid sexual immorality

¹² I have the freedom to do anything, but not everything is helpful. I have the freedom to do anything, but I won’t be controlled by anything. ¹³ Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, and yet God will do away with both. The body isn’t for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. ¹⁴ God has raised the Lord and will raise us through his power. ¹⁵ Don’t you know that your bodies are parts of Christ? So then, should I take parts of Christ and make them a part of someone who is sleeping around?^[b] No way! ¹⁶ Don’t you know that anyone who is joined to someone who is sleeping around is one body with that person? The scripture says, The two will become one flesh.^{[c] 17} The one who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. ¹⁸ Avoid sexual immorality! Every sin that a person can do is committed outside the body, except those who engage in sexual immorality commit sin against their own bodies. ¹⁹ Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you? Don’t you know that you have the Holy Spirit from God, and you don’t belong to yourselves? ²⁰ You have been bought and paid for, so honor God with your body.