Ezra 10

1 While I was kneeling down in front of the temple and praying and crying, I was confessing [the sins that the Israeli people had committed]. Many people, men and women and children, gathered around me and also cried very much.

And at Ezra’s praying, and at his making confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there have been gathered to him out of Israel a very great assembly—men and women and children—for the people have wept, multiplying weeping.

2 Then Shecaniah, the son of Jehiel from the clan of Elam, said this to me: “We have disobeyed God. [Some of] us have married women who are not Israelis. But we can still confidently expect [Yahweh to be merciful to] us Israeli people.

And Shechaniah son of Jehiel, of the sons of Elam, answers and says to Ezra, “We have trespassed against our God, and we settle strange women of the peoples of the land; and now there is hope for Israel concerning this,

3 We will do what you, and the others who have an awesome respect for what our God has commanded, tell us to do. We will do what God told us in his laws. We will make an agreement with our God, saying that we will divorce our wives who are not Israelis, and we will send them away with their children.

and now, let us make a covenant with our God, to cause all the women to go out, and that which is born of them, by the counsel of the Lord, and of those trembling at the command of our God, and according to law it is done;

4 (It is your responsibility to/Because you are our leader, you must) [tell us what to do]. So get up, and be courageous, and do [what is necessary]. We will (support you/tell people to do what you say).”

rise, for on you [is] the matter, and we [are] with you; be strong, and do.”

5 So I stood up and demanded that the leaders of the priests, the [other] descendants of Levi, and all [the other] Israeli people solemnly declare that they would do what Shecaniah said that they should do. So they all solemnly promised to do that.

And Ezra rises, and causes the heads of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear to do according to this word—and they swear.

6 Then I went away from the front of the temple and went to the room where Jehohanan lived. I stayed there that night, but I did not eat or drink anything. I was still sad because some of the Israelis who had returned [from Babylonia] had not faithfully obeyed [God’s laws].

And Ezra rises from before the house of God, and goes to the chamber of Jehohanan son of Eliashib; indeed, he goes there, bread he has not eaten, and water he has not drunk, for he is mourning because of the trespass of the expulsion.

7 Then we sent a message to all [the people in] Jerusalem and [in other towns in] Judah, saying that all those who had returned [from Babylonia] should come to Jerusalem immediately.

And they cause a voice to pass over into Judah and Jerusalem, to all sons of the expulsion, to be gathered to Jerusalem,

8 We said that if any of them did not arrive within three days, the leaders of the people would order that all the property of those people would be taken from them, and that they would no longer be considered to belong to the Israeli people; [they would be considered to be foreigners].

and everyone who does not come in by the third day, according to the counsel of the heads and the elderly, all his substance is devoted, and himself separated from the assembly of the expulsion.

9 So within three days, on December 19, all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin gathered in Jerusalem. They were there, sitting in the courtyard in front of the temple. They were trembling because it was raining hard and because they were worried [that they would be punished for what they had done].

And all the men of Judah and Benjamin are gathered to Jerusalem by the third day, it [is] the ninth month, on the twentieth of the month, and all the people sit in the broad place of the house of God, trembling on account of the matter and of the showers.

10 Then I stood up and said to them, “[Some of] you men have committed a very bad sin. You have married women who are not Israelis. By doing that, you have made us Israeli people more guilty [than we were before].

And Ezra the priest rises and says to them, “You have trespassed, and you settle strange women, to add to the guilt of Israel;

11 So now you must confess to Yahweh, the God whom your ancestors [worshiped/belonged to], the sin which you have committed, and you must do what he wants. Separate yourselves from the people of other nations and from the women from those nations whom you have married.”

and now, make confession to YHWH, God of your fathers, and do His good pleasure, and be separated from the peoples of the land, and from the strange women.”

12 The whole group answered, shouting loudly, “Yes, what you have said is right! We will do what you have said.”

And all the assembly answers and says [with] a great voice, “Right; according to your word—on us to do;

13 But then [one of] them said, “But we are a very large group, and it is raining hard. Also, there are many of us who have committed this bad sin. This is something that we cannot (take care of/handle) in one or two days, and we cannot stand here in this rain.

but the people [are] many, and [it is] the time of showers, and there is no power to stand outside, and the work [is] not for one day, nor for two, for we have multiplied to transgress in this thing.

14 So allow our leaders to decide for all of us what we should do. Tell everyone who has married a woman who is not Israeli to come at a time that you decide. They should come with the elders and judges from each city. If we do that, our God will stop being angry with us [because of what we have done].”

Please let our heads of all the assembly stand; and all who [are] in our cities, who have settled strange wives, come in at [the] appointed times, and with them [the] elderly of city and city, and judges in it, until the turning back of the fury of the wrath of our God from us, for this thing.”

15 Jonathan the son of Asahel, Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah, Meshullam, and Shabbethai, a descendant of Levi, were the only ones who objected to this.

Only Jonathan son of Asahel, and Jahaziah son of Tikvah, stood against this, and Meshullam, and Shabbethai the Levite, helped them.

16 All the others who had returned from Babylonia said that they would do it. So I chose leaders of each of the clans, and I wrote down their names. On December 29, these men came and sat down to investigate the matter.

And the sons of the expulsion do so, and Ezra the priest, [and] men, heads of the fathers, for the house of their fathers, are separated, even all of them by name, and they sit on the first day of the tenth month, to examine the matter;

17 By March 27 of the next year they finished determining which men had married women who were not Israelis.

and they finish with all the men who have settled strange women to the first day of the first month.

18 This is a list of the names of the priests who had married non-Israeli women, and the clans to which they belonged. From the clan of Jeshua and his brothers, who were sons of Jehozadak, there were Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah.

And there are found of the sons of the priests that have settled strange women: of the sons of Jeshua son of Jozadak, and his brothers, Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah;

19 They solemnly promised to divorce their wives, and they each sacrificed a ram to be an offering [to atone] for their sins.

and they give their hand to send out their wives, and being guilty, a ram of the flock for their guilt.

20 From the clan of Immer there were Hanani and Zebadiah.

And of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Zebadiah;

21 From the clan of Harim there were Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah.

and of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah;

22 From the clan of Pashhur there were Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.

and of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethaneel, Jozabad, and Elasah.

23 The [other] descendants of Levi [who had married non-Israeli women] were Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (whose other name was Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.

And of the Levites: Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah (he [is] Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.

24 There was Eliashib the musician. From the temple guards there were Shallum, Telem, and Uri.

And of the singers: Eliashib. And of the gatekeepers: Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.

25 This is a list of the names of the other Israelis who had married foreign wives: From the clan of Parosh there were Ramiah, Izziah, Malchijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Hashabiah, and Benaiah.

And of Israel: of the sons of Parosh: Ramiah, and Jeziah, and Malchijah, and Miamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah.

26 From the clan of Elam there were Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Elijah.

And of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Elijah.

27 From the clan of Zattu there were Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza.

And of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, and Aziza.

28 From the clan of Bebai there were Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai.

And of the sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, Athlai.

29 From the clan of Bani there were Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and Jeremoth.

And of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, and Ramoth.

30 From the clan of Pahath-Moab there were Adna, Kelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh.

And of the sons of Pahath-Moab: Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh.

31 From the clan of Harim there were Eliezer, Ishijah, Malkijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon,

And of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Ishijah, Malchiah, Shemaiah, Shimeon,

32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah.

Benjamin, Malluch, Shemariah.

33 From the clan of Hashum there were Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei.

Of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattathah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, Shimei.

34 From the clan of Bigvai there were Maadai, Amram, Uel,

Of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, and Uel,

35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Keluhi,

Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhu,

36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib,

Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib,

37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasu.

Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasau,

38 From the clan of Binnui there were Shimei,

and Bani, and Binnui, Shimei,

39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah,

and Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah,

40 Macnadebai, Shashai, Sharai,

Machnadbai, Shashai, Sharai,

41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah,

Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah,

42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph.

Shallum, Amariah, Joseph.

43 From the clan of Nebo there were Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.

Of the sons of Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jadau, and Joel, Benaiah;

44 Each of those men had married a woman who was not an Israeli. [But immediately] they divorced those women and sent them and their children away.

all these have taken strange women, and there are of them women who adopt sons.