1
Now while Ezra was praying and makingconfession, weeping and prostrating himself before the house of God, a verylargeassembly, men, women and children, gathered to him from Israel; for the peopleweptbitterly*.
2
Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, said to Ezra, "We have beenunfaithful to our God and have marriedforeignwomen from the peoples of the land; yet nowthere is hope for Israel in spite of this.
3
"So now let us make a covenant with our God to putawayall 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.
6
Then Ezrarose from before* the house of God and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib. Although he wentthere, he did not eatbreadnordrinkwater, for he was mourningover the unfaithfulness of the exiles.
8
and that whoever* would not come within threedays, according to the counsel of the leaders and the elders, all his possessions should be forfeited and he himselfexcluded from the assembly of the exiles.
9
So all the men of Judah and Benjaminassembled at Jerusalem within the threedays. It was the ninthmonth on the twentieth of the month, and all the peoplesat in the opensquare before the house of God, tremblingbecause of this matter and the heavy rain.
11
"Now therefore, makeconfession to the LORDGod of your fathers and do His will; and separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreignwives."
13
"But there are manypeople; it is the rainyseason and we are not able to stand in the open. Nor can the task be done in one or twodays, for we have transgressedgreatly in thismatter.
14
"Let our leadersrepresent the wholeassembly and let all those in our cities who have marriedforeignwivescome at appointedtimes, together with the elders and judges of eachcity, until the fierceanger of our God on account of thismatter is turnedaway from us."
16
But the exiles*didso. And Ezra the priestselectedmen who were heads of fathers' households for each of their father'shouseholds, all of them by name. So they convened on the firstday of the tenthmonth to investigate the matter.
18
Among the sons of the priestswho had marriedforeignwives were found of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib and Gedaliah.