Commentary - Ezra 10:1-17

Bird's-eye view

Ezra chapter 10 is the necessary and bitter fruit of the repentance we saw in chapter 9. True repentance is not simply feeling bad about your sin; it is a turning from that sin, a cutting off of the offending member. Here we see Israel, having returned from an exile that was the direct consequence of idolatry and covenant unfaithfulness, immediately falling back into the very sin that got them sent away. Their sin was marrying foreign women, which was not a matter of racial animosity but of religious fidelity. These were not women who had converted to Yahweh, but pagan women who brought their pagan ways into the heart of Israel. The issue was syncretism, the blending of true worship with idolatry, which God has always abhorred. This chapter details the corporate confession of the people, the covenant they make to deal with the sin, and the difficult process of carrying it out. It is a messy, painful, and absolutely necessary reformation.

The scene is one of profound public grief and conviction. Ezra's personal agony in the previous chapter becomes a corporate agony here. The people see his genuine sorrow, and the Spirit uses it to break their own hearts. A leader, Shecaniah, steps forward not to excuse the sin but to confess it and propose a radical solution: put away the foreign wives and their children. This was not a violation of God's law concerning marriage, but rather an application of the fundamental law of covenant purity. Under certain extreme circumstances, what is ordinarily forbidden becomes necessary. Their very existence as a covenant people was at stake. The chapter concludes with the practical outworking of this decision, a process that was orderly, thorough, and undertaken with the gravity the situation demanded.

Outline

Context In Ezra

Ezra 10 is the climax of the first major section of the book, which deals with the return under Zerubbabel and the rebuilding of the Temple, followed by the spiritual reformation under Ezra. Chapter 9 set the stage, with Ezra learning of the people's sin of intermarriage and entering into a period of intense prayer and confession. His prayer was not just for himself, but for the entire nation. This chapter is the direct result of that prayer. It moves from the private grief of a leader to the public repentance of a nation. This is how reformation works. It often begins with one man on his face before God, and the fire of that conviction spreads to the people. The problem of intermarriage was not a new one for Israel, but it was particularly egregious here. They had just returned from a 70-year object lesson on the consequences of idolatry, and yet they went right back to the source of that idolatry. This chapter shows that God, in His mercy, had not given up on them, and was willing to lead them through a painful but purifying process of restoration.

Key Issues

Commentary

Ezra 10:1 Now while Ezra was praying and making confession, weeping and prostrating himself before the house of God, a very large assembly, men, women and children, gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept bitterly.

The chapter opens with the overflow of the previous one. Ezra is not putting on a show. His grief is raw, public, and prostrate before God. He is identifying with the sin of his people, confessing it as his own. This is what true intercession looks like. And notice the effect: a very large assembly gathers. True spiritual leadership doesn't just issue directives; it bleeds. The people see Ezra's brokenness, and it breaks them. The Holy Spirit takes the genuine repentance of one man and uses it like a spark in a dry field. Men, women, and children are all caught up in this. Reformation must touch the family. The people wept bitterly, not because they were caught, but because they saw the ugliness of their sin in the light of God's holiness, reflected in the tears of their leader.

Ezra 10:2 And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope for Israel in spite of this.”

Out of the crowd of weepers, a leader steps forward. Shecaniah doesn't offer excuses or try to minimize the sin. He calls it what it is: unfaithfulness. The Hebrew word is ma'al, which means treachery or betrayal. They had betrayed their covenant God. He acknowledges the sin squarely, "We have...married foreign women." But then he says something remarkable: "yet now there is hope for Israel." This is the gospel note in the midst of judgment. Hope is not found in pretending the sin wasn't so bad. Hope is found in facing the sin and knowing that God is a forgiving God who makes a way back. Repentance is not despair. It is the only doorway to genuine hope.

Ezra 10:3 So now let us cut a covenant with our God to put away all the wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.

Here is the bitter medicine. Shecaniah proposes a new covenant, a solemn promise, to deal with the sin decisively. The solution is radical: put away the wives and their children. This is jarring to our modern sensibilities, and it should be. This is not a general principle for all marriages to unbelievers. This was a unique moment in redemptive history. Israel was the "holy seed" (Ezra 9:2), the line through which the Messiah would come. Their national identity was a theological identity. To mix with the pagans was to corrupt the covenant line and abandon their calling. The action proposed is to be done according to the law. This isn't mob justice; it's a return to covenantal order. The phrase "those who tremble at the commandment of our God" is key. This is not about being harsh, but about taking God's Word with the utmost seriousness.

Ezra 10:4 Arise! For this matter is your responsibility, but we will be with you; be strong and act.”

The people now turn to Ezra. They recognize his authority. Shecaniah says, in effect, "We see the problem, we know the solution, but we need you to lead us." This is a beautiful picture of the relationship between leaders and the congregation. The people affirm his responsibility and pledge their support. "We will be with you." Reformation is hard, and leaders cannot do it alone. They need the backing of a repentant people. The final exhortation is "be strong and act." This echoes God's charge to Joshua. The task is daunting, but God provides the strength for it.

Ezra 10:5 Then Ezra arose and made the leading priests, the Levites and all Israel, swear an oath that they would do according to this word; so they swore an oath.

Ezra acts immediately. He rises and puts the people to their word. He doesn't just take their emotional response as sufficient. He binds them with an oath. An oath before God is a serious thing; it formalizes the commitment. He starts with the leadership, the priests and Levites, and then includes all Israel. Reformation must begin in the house of God and with its leaders. They all swear the oath, locking themselves into this difficult course of action.

Ezra 10:6 Then Ezra arose from before the house of God and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib. He went there, but he did not eat bread nor drink water, for he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.

Even after the people have committed to repent, Ezra's mourning continues. This shows the depth of his grief. This wasn't just about getting a problem fixed; it was about the dishonor done to God. He continues to fast, identifying with the gravity of the sin. The unfaithfulness of God's people is a cause for deep and abiding sorrow in the hearts of godly leaders. He is not celebrating a political victory; he is mourning a spiritual tragedy.

Ezra 10:7-8 And they made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the exiles, that they should gather at Jerusalem, and that whoever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the prince and the elders, all his possessions should be devoted to destruction and he himself separated from the assembly of the exiles.

The oath is now put into action. A proclamation goes out for a national assembly. This is not a voluntary meeting. There are serious consequences for not showing up. Failure to appear within three days would result in the confiscation of property and excommunication. The property would be "devoted to destruction," a form of dedication to God through judgment. The person would be "separated from the assembly." This shows how seriously they took the covenant. To refuse to deal with this sin was to opt out of the covenant community altogether. Church discipline has teeth.

Ezra 10:9 So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month on the twentieth of the month, and all the people sat in the open square before the house of God, trembling because of this matter and the heavy rain.

The people obey. They gather in Jerusalem in the middle of winter, in the rainy season. The scene is miserable. They are sitting in a downpour, and they are trembling. The text says they trembled for two reasons: "because of this matter and the heavy rain." The physical discomfort of the rain mirrored the spiritual discomfort in their souls. God often uses the physical creation to amplify the spiritual point He is making. This was a somber, weighty, and fearful gathering. This is the fear of the Lord, the beginning of wisdom.

Ezra 10:10-11 Then Ezra the priest arose and said to them, “You have been unfaithful and have married foreign wives adding to the guilt of Israel. So now, make confession to Yahweh, the God of your fathers, and do His will; and separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.”

Ezra stands and delivers the charge. He doesn't soften the blow. "You have been unfaithful." You have added to the national guilt. Israel already had a great heap of guilt that led to the exile, and now they have piled more on top. The solution has two parts. First, vertical: "make confession to Yahweh." All true repentance begins with God. Second, horizontal: "do His will; and separate yourselves." Confession is not enough. It must be followed by obedience. The separation had to be from the pagan peoples generally and the foreign wives specifically. There could be no compromise.

Ezra 10:12-13 Then all the assembly answered and said with a loud voice, “This is so! As you have said, so it is our duty to do. But there are many people; it is the rainy season, and we are not able to stand outside. Nor can the task be done in one or two days, for we have transgressed greatly in this matter.”

The people's response is unanimous and loud. They agree completely. "It is our duty to do." They accept their responsibility. But they also raise a practical point. The logistics are overwhelming. There are too many cases to handle in a mass meeting, and the weather is impossible. Their transgression was great, so the cleanup will be extensive. This is not an excuse to avoid the duty, but a request for an orderly process to fulfill it. Wise repentance is practical.

Ezra 10:14 Let our princes stand in for the whole assembly, and let all those in our cities who have married foreign wives come at set times, together with the elders and judges of each city, until the burning anger of our God on account of this matter is turned away from us.”

They propose a plan. A committee of leaders will be established in Jerusalem to hear the cases. Those guilty of this sin will come from their cities at appointed times, accompanied by their local elders and judges who can testify to the facts of the case. This is a proposal for a traveling court, ensuring that each case is handled justly and with due process. Notice the goal: "until the burning anger of our God...is turned away." They understood that their sin had provoked God's wrath, and their obedience was the means of seeing that wrath averted.

Ezra 10:15 However, Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah stood against this, with Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helping them.

Even in a great reformation, there is almost always some opposition. Four men are named here who "stood against this." The text is a bit ambiguous. Were they opposing the entire project of separation, or just the logistical plan of using a committee? Given the overwhelming consensus, it is more likely they were objecting to the plan, perhaps wanting the matter dealt with immediately by the whole assembly, or perhaps wanting a different process. Whatever their reason, their opposition is noted but does not derail the work. Reformation requires pressing on in the face of some dissent.

Ezra 10:16-17 But the exiles did so. And Ezra the priest separated out men who were heads of fathers’ households for each of their father’s households, all of them by name. So they convened on the first day of the tenth month to investigate the matter. And they completed investigating all the men who had married foreign wives by the first day of the first month.

The opposition was overruled. The exiles proceeded with the agreed-upon plan. Ezra appoints the committee, selecting heads of households, ensuring representative authority. They began their work on the first day of the tenth month and finished three months later, on the first day of the first month of the new year. This was not a rushed, emotional purge. It was a careful, deliberate, judicial process that took time. They started the new year with a clean slate. True reformation is thorough. It takes the time to get things right, to deal with sin justly and completely, so that the people of God can move forward in holiness and hope.

Application

The church today is not in the same redemptive-historical situation as post-exilic Israel. We are not a nation-state, and the line of the Messiah has come in Jesus. Paul is clear in 1 Corinthians 7 that a believing spouse should not divorce an unbelieving spouse who consents to live with them. So we do not apply this passage by telling people in mixed marriages to get divorced. That would be to misread the text and the flow of salvation history.

However, the principles here are permanently relevant. The principle of covenant purity remains. The church is to be a holy people, set apart from the world. We are not to be "unequally yoked" with unbelievers (2 Cor. 6:14). This applies to marriage, to business partnerships, and to our deepest allegiances. We must constantly be on guard against the subtle syncretism that would blend the worship of God with the idolatries of our age.

We also see the pattern for true revival and reformation. It begins with leaders who are genuinely broken over sin. It spreads to a people who are cut to the heart. It results in a concrete, costly, and corporate decision to turn from that sin. And it is carried out in an orderly and just manner. We must pray for leaders like Ezra, who tremble at God's Word, and we must be a people like the assembly in the rain, willing to tremble with them and take the hard steps of obedience, no matter the cost.