| Chapter 10
|
| 1 | Now when Ezra
had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before
the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great
congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore. |
| 2 | And Shechaniah the son of
Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said unto Ezra, We have
trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the
land: yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing. |
| 3 | Now therefore let us make a covenant
with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according
to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of our
God; and let it be done according to the law. |
| 4 | Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we also will
be with thee: be of good courage, and do it. |
| 5 | Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites,
and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word. And they
sware. |
| 6 | Then Ezra rose
up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son
of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water:
for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried
away. |
| 7 | And they made
proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem unto all the children of the
captivity, that they should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem; |
| 8 | And that whosoever would not
come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes and the elders,
all his substance should be forfeited, and himself separated from the
congregation of those that had been carried away. |
|
9 | Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered
themselves together unto Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month,
on the twentieth day of the month; and all the people sat in the street of the
house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain. |
| 10 | And Ezra the priest stood
up, and said unto them, Ye have transgressed, and have taken strange wives, to
increase the trespass of Israel. |
|
11 | Now therefore make confession unto the LORD God of your fathers,
and do his pleasure: and separate yourselves from the people of the land, and
from the strange wives. |
| 12 |
Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice, As thou hast
said, so must we do. |
| 13 |
But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to
stand without, neither is this a work of one day or two: for we are many that
have transgressed in this thing. |
|
14 | Let now our rulers of all the congregation stand, and let all
them which have taken strange wives in our cities come at appointed times, and
with them the elders of every city, and the judges thereof, until the fierce
wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us. |
|
15 | Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the
son of Tikvah were employed about this matter: and Meshullam and Shabbethai the
Levite helped them. |
| 16 |
And the children of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain
chief of the fathers, after the house of their fathers, and all of them by
their names, were separated, and sat down in the first day of the tenth month
to examine the matter. |
| 17 |
And they made an end with all the men that had taken strange wives by the
first day of the first month. |
| 18
| And among the sons of the priests there were found that had taken
strange wives: namely, of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his
brethren; Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah. |
| 19 | And they gave their hands that they
would put away their wives; and being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock
for their trespass. |
| 20 |
And of the sons of Immer; Hanani, and Zebadiah. |
|
21 | And of the sons of Harim; Maaseiah, and Elijah, and
Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah. |
|
22 | And of the sons of Pashur; Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael,
Nethaneel, Jozabad, and Elasah. |
|
23 | Also of the Levites; Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah, (the same
is Kelita,) Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer. |
| 24 | Of the singers also; Eliashib: and of the porters;
Shallum, and Telem, and Uri. |
| 25
| Moreover of Israel: of the sons of Parosh; Ramiah, and Jeziah, and
Malchiah, and Miamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah. |
| 26 | And of the sons of Elam; Mattaniah,
Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Eliah. |
| 27 | And of the sons of Zattu; Elioenai,
Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, and Aziza. |
| 28 | Of the sons also of Bebai; Jehohanan,
Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai. |
| 29
| And of the sons of Bani; Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and
Sheal, and Ramoth. |
| 30 |
And of the sons of Pahathmoab; Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah,
Bezaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh. |
|
31 | And of the sons of Harim; Eliezer, Ishijah, Malchiah, Shemaiah,
Shimeon, |
| 32 | Benjamin,
Malluch, and Shemariah. |
| 33 |
Of the sons of Hashum; Mattenai, Mattathah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai,
Manasseh, and Shimei. |
| 34 |
Of the sons of Bani; Maadai, Amram, and Uel, |
| 35 | Benaiah, Bedeiah, Chelluh, |
|
36 | Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, |
| 37 | Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasau, |
| 38 | And Bani, and Binnui,
Shimei, |
| 39 | And
Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah, |
|
40 | Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, |
| 41 | Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, |
| 42 | Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph. |
| 43 | Of the sons of Nebo; Jeiel,
Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jadau, and Joel, Benaiah. |
| 44 | All these had taken strange wives: and
some of them had wives by whom they had children. |
