Table of Contents
From Confession to Action
Ezra chapter 10 is the dramatic and difficult conclusion to the crisis of intermarriage that was revealed in chapter 9. While the previous chapter was defined by Ezra’s prayer of confession, this chapter is defined by the people’s response of repentance and the painful actions they take to correct their sin. Ezra’s heartfelt grief and intercession sparked a nationwide movement of conviction. The chapter details the people’s decision to make a new covenant with God, the process of identifying those who had sinned, and the ultimate, drastic measure of sending away the foreign wives and their children. This chapter is challenging, raising difficult questions about the social and personal costs of corporate repentance. It underscores the seriousness with which the post-exilic community treated the sin of assimilation and their radical commitment to preserving their covenant identity as God’s holy people.
The People’s Repentance and Proposal
(Ezra 10:1-4) As Ezra was praying, weeping, and casting himself down before the house of God, a very large assembly of men, women, and children from Israel gathered around him. The people wept bitterly, sharing in Ezra’s grief. His authentic, public mourning had moved the heart of the community. Their weeping was a sign of genuine conviction and sorrow for their sin. In this emotionally charged atmosphere, a man named Shecaniah son of Jehiel spoke up. He acted as a spokesman for the repentant assembly.
Shecaniah’s speech is pivotal. He begins with a clear confession: “We have broken faith with our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land.” He does not make excuses or downplay the sin. However, he immediately follows this confession with a statement of hope: “but even now there is hope for Israel in spite of this.” He then proposes a course of action. He suggests that the people make a solemn covenant with God to put away all the foreign wives and their children. This proposal was to be done “according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God,” and it was to be done “according to the Law.” Shecaniah’s proposal was radical and would have immense personal and social consequences, breaking up families and displacing women and children. Yet, it was seen as the necessary step to deal with the sin that threatened their existence as a covenant people. He concludes by encouraging Ezra to “Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be strong and do it.” This was the assurance Ezra needed that the people were ready to follow his leadership in this difficult matter.
A National Assembly is Called
(Ezra 10:5-15) Strengthened by this support, Ezra arose and acted immediately. He made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel take a solemn oath to do what had been proposed. He then withdrew from the front of the temple to a chamber to continue his mourning, fasting from food and water because of the “faithlessness of the returned exiles.” Ezra then issued a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem. All the returned exiles were to assemble in Jerusalem within three days. The proclamation carried a severe penalty for non-compliance: anyone who failed to appear would have all their property confiscated and would themselves be excluded from the assembly of the exiles. This threat of excommunication and forfeiture of property ensured that the summons was taken seriously.
On the appointed day, the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered in the open square before the temple. It was the twentieth day of the ninth month, a time of cold winter rains. The people sat in the open, “trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain.” The miserable weather seemed to reflect the miserable state of their hearts. Ezra stood before the assembly and addressed them directly, confronting them with their sin of marrying foreign women and thereby increasing the guilt of Israel. He called them to confess their sin to the LORD and to separate themselves from the peoples of the land and from their foreign wives.
The whole assembly responded with a loud voice, “It is so; we must do as you have said.” They agreed to the plan in principle. However, they also raised a practical objection. They noted that the crowd was large, the rain was heavy, and the task of investigating each case was too great to be accomplished in just a day or two. They proposed a more orderly process. They suggested that the leaders of the community should represent the assembly. Then, anyone who had a foreign wife could come at an appointed time to their local elders and judges to have their case heard. This systematic approach would ensure that the matter was handled thoroughly and justly, turning “away the fierce wrath of our God from us.” This practical amendment was accepted, with only a few men opposing the plan.
Verse by Verse
(Ezra 10:1-4) Ezra’s prayer triggers a response. The people gather and weep. Shecaniah confesses the sin on behalf of the people but offers a message of hope. He proposes the radical solution: a covenant to send away the foreign wives and their children, according to the Law.
(Ezra 10:5-8) Ezra puts the leaders under oath to follow the plan. He calls for a national assembly in Jerusalem within three days, with a severe penalty for anyone who does not attend.
(Ezra 10:9-11) The people gather in Jerusalem in the pouring rain. They are miserable and trembling. Ezra confronts them with their sin and calls them to confess and separate.
(Ezra 10:12-15) The assembly agrees to Ezra’s demand. They propose a more orderly, decentralized system for investigating the cases, using local elders and judges. This practical plan is adopted.
The List of the Guilty
(Ezra 10:16-44) The returned exiles followed through with the plan. Ezra and the heads of the fathers’ houses were selected to oversee the investigation. They began their work on the first day of the tenth month and, over a period of three months, they examined all the cases. The chapter concludes with a list of the men who were found to have married foreign women. This list is a stark and sober document. It is organized by family groups, beginning with the priests, then the Levites and singers, and finally the rest of the people of Israel.
The inclusion of this list is significant for several reasons. First, it demonstrates the thoroughness of the reform. This was not a general, vague repentance but a specific accounting of sin. Second, it shows that the sin had permeated every level of society. The list begins with the family of Jeshua the high priest, showing that even the highest spiritual leadership was implicated. Third, the public recording of the names served as a powerful deterrent against future disobedience. It was a permanent record of their failure and their repentance. The priests who were listed not only had to send away their wives but also had to offer a ram from the flock as a guilt offering, acknowledging their specific defilement. The chapter, and the book of Ezra, ends abruptly with the completion of this list. There is no celebration, only the somber record of a difficult but necessary act of obedience to restore the purity of God’s people.
Cross References
Nehemiah 13:23-27: Years later, Nehemiah confronted the very same sin, which had reappeared in the community. His reaction was even more forceful than Ezra’s. He rebuked the men, cursed them, beat them, and pulled out their hair. He reminded them that it was this very sin that led King Solomon astray. This shows how persistent this temptation was for the post-exilic community.
1 Corinthians 5:1-7: In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul confronts the Corinthian church for tolerating blatant sexual immorality in their midst. He commands them to remove the unrepentant man from their fellowship, “that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.” Both Ezra 10 and 1 Corinthians 5 deal with the painful necessity of corporate discipline to preserve the purity and integrity of the community of faith.
Deuteronomy 24:1-4: The Law of Moses permitted divorce under certain circumstances, though it was never God’s ideal. The action taken in Ezra 10, however, is not presented as a typical divorce. It was a radical act of covenant renewal, treating the marriages as illegitimate from the start because they violated God’s specific command against religious intermarriage.
Matthew 19:8-9: Jesus taught that divorce was permitted by Moses only because of the “hardness of heart” of the people, but “from the beginning it was not so.” The situation in Ezra 10 is unique and extreme. The decision to dissolve these marriages was a desperate measure to prevent the complete assimilation of Israel into paganism and to preserve the “holy seed” from which the Messiah would come.
2 Corinthians 7:10: “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.” The weeping of the people in Ezra 10 is a perfect example of “godly grief.” It was not just sadness at being caught, but a genuine sorrow for their sin against God, and it produced a repentance that led to decisive, albeit painful, action.