Ezra 9

After these things had been done, the leaders came to me and said, “The people of Israel, including the priests and the Levites, have not kept themselves separate from the neighboring peoples with their detestable practices, like those of the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians and Amorites.” Ezra 9:1

It took some time for Ezra to get settled in Jerusalem and to deliver the king’s orders to all the governors and satraps of Trans-Euphrates (8:36). Bible interpreters feel that the events of this verse happened about 4 ½ months after Ezra’s arrival (cf. 10:9). It was not Ezra who made this problem known but the other leaders. However, it was probably the teaching and preaching of Ezra that caused the problem to surface. [1]

The laws forbidding marriage with pagan peoples are found in several places such as Exodus 23:32; 34:11-16; Deuteronomy 7:1-4; 1 Kings 11:1-2. It is interesting that even the New Testament forbids marriage with pagans (2 Cor. 6:14). It appears that God was particularly concerned that his people not mix themselves with the people of the land that they were to inherit. That was precisely what the leaders were doing.

It is possible that there were not many Jewish women of marriageable age among the exiles who had returned. [2] We know that this same problem with pagans erupted with Nehemiah (Neh. 13:23-28) and with Malachi (Mal. 2:11) at later dates.

This situation of God’s leaders mixing with the pagans and with this pagan age is certainly applicable to the church today. It can happen when we marry our sacred Christian beliefs with the current pagan philosophies. [3] The Christian researcher, Nancy Pearcey says, “About two-thirds of Christian men watch pornography at least monthly, the same rate as men who do not claim to be Christian. In one survey, 54 percent of pastors said they viewed porn within the past year.” [4] Historian Paul Johnson says: “Implicit in the Bible is the holistic notion that one man’s sin however small, affects the entire world, however imperceptibly and vice versa.” [5]

“They have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, and have mingled the holy race with the peoples around them. And the leaders and officials have led the way in this unfaithfulness” (9:2). “Race” is a loaded word in our society today. Anders says that here, “The word race is better translated as ‘seed,’ carrying the idea of ffspring, or sprout. The concern of everyone was not ethnicity but holiness (Ezra 9:6-15).” [6] The expression is primarily a religious one rather than a racial one.

We will learn later in Malachi 2:10-16, that some of the leaders actually divorced their Jewish wives to marry pagan ones. Charles Colson reports on our situation today: “The divorce rate among clergy is increasing faster than in any other profession. Statistics show that one in ten have had an affair with a member of their congregation, and 25 percent have had some illicit sexual contact.” [7]

Spiritual leaders are in a special position and are expected to set a holy pattern for those who follow them and who are under their authority. Anders says, “Spiritual leaders stand between heaven and earth. While they represent God’s authority, they also identify with the needs and failings of the people.” [8]

Ezra’s Reaction

When I heard this, I tore my tunic and cloak, pulled hair from my head and beard and sat down appalled. Ezra 9:3

Since Bible times the act of tearing one’s clothing has continued to be an expression of overwhelming grief (cf. Josh. 7:6; Job 1:20). Today this practice of kriah still exists in the Jewish community. Jewish people rend their garments (making a small tear) as an expression of grief at the loss of a loved one. Ezra had such grief that he tore both his tunic and his cloak. These were both valuable items of clothing in that day. He did not stop with this but also began pulling out his hair and beard. While this was a very extreme action it was far more conservative than the actions of Nehemiah who later pulled out the hair of sinners (Neh. 13:25).

“Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel gathered around me because of this unfaithfulness of the exiles. And I sat there appalled until the evening sacrifice” (9:4). Those who trembled at the words of God were those who had a deep respect for the Bible. May we be found among the tremblers today. Pfeiffer and Harrison say, “A man’s attitude toward God’s Word is one of the ultimate criteria of his spirituality.” [9]

The exiles who had taken pagan wives probably felt no sin at this point. They would soon be feeling it. To marry pagan wives was in essence to unite with a pagan family. Soon pagan practices would creep in and the pure devotion to God would cease. It was the first step on the way to oblivion for the new Jewish community. Ezra’s action, however drastic, was appropriate. He sat silently and appalled until the evening offering which was around 3:00 o’clock in the afternoon (cf. Acts 3:1).

Ezra’s Prayer

Then, at the evening sacrifice, I rose from my self-abasement, with my tunic and cloak torn, and fell on my knees with my hands spread out to the LORD my God and prayed: “I am too ashamed and disgraced, my God, to lift up my face to you, because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens.” Ezra 9:5-6

“The normal stance for Jewish prayer was standing with hands and eyes uplifted. Whenever kneeling or prostration is mentioned in the Bible it signifies intensity (cf. 1 Kgs. 8:54; 2 Chr. 6:13; Ps. 95:6; Isa. 45:23; Dan. 6:10). [10] It is of note that Ezra here includes himself as also a sinner. Of course, biblically speaking all of us have sinned and have fallen short of God’s glory (Rom. 3:10, 23). Ezra was deeply ashamed and humiliated because of the failures of Israel. As Christians, we should surely feel some of this shame concerning our sinful generation today as well as the blatant sins in the church.

“From the days of our ancestors until now, our guilt has been great. Because of our sins, we and our kings and our priests have been subjected to the sword and captivity, to pillage and humiliation at the hand of foreign kings, as it is today” (9:7). Barnes comments: “The captivity had done its work by deeply convincing of sin the Jewish nation that had previously been so proud and self-righteous.” [11] Although Israel had the opportunity of resettlement in the land, they were acutely aware that they were subject to the foreign power of Persia.

“But now, for a brief moment, the LORD our God has been gracious in leaving us a remnant and giving us a firm place in his sanctuary, and so our God gives light to our eyes and a little relief in our bondage” (9:8). Here Ezra introduces the doctrine of the remnant as he will mention in verses 13, 14 and 15. The remnant doctrine is more fully developed in the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah. Isaiah says, “A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God.” (Isa. 10:21; cf. vs. 20 & 22). Even today as God gathers his chosen a second time it is only a surviving remnant that will return to the land (Isa. 11:11). We need to understand that God also works with a remnant in Christianity. Not all who call themselves “Christians” will be saved. Jesus once said, “For many are invited, but few are chosen” (Matt. 22:14). Therefore, we need to make our calling and election sure (2 Pet. 1:10).

The Jewish commentator Slotki makes a poignant observation: “A little grace had been granted by God to his people; a small remnant had found its weary way back to its home and driven a single peg into its soil; a solitary ray of light was shining; a faint breath of freedom lightened their slavery. How graphically Ezra epitomizes Jewish experience in these few words!” [12] The “firm place” mentioned here in the NIV is the Hebrew ya-ted and is translated in other versions as a nail, peg or stake. Barnes feels that this picture is likely drawn from the tent peg that makes the desert dwelling secure. [13]

“Though we are slaves, our God has not forsaken us in our bondage. He has shown us kindness in the sight of the kings of Persia: He has granted us new life to rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, and he has given us a wall of protection in Judah and Jerusalem” (9:9). Ezra was fully aware that Israel was no longer free but was a bondservant of the Persian Empire. Yet, God had shown them kindness in allowing the return and the rebuilding of their temple. Their past guilt of sin had brought their situation. McConville says, “Recognition of past guilt is of no value unless it issues in the determination to be different in the future.” [14] The wall mentioned here is not the one Nehemiah would build later. Rather it is more of a fence of protection like that around a vineyard. [15]

“But now, our God, what can we say after this? For we have forsaken the commands you gave through your servants the prophets when you said: ‘The land you are entering to possess is a land polluted by the corruption of its peoples. By their detestable practices they have filled it with their impurity from one end to the other’” (9:10-11). The Israelites did not receive the land in the first place because of their goodness but because of the wickedness of the people of Canaan (Deut. 9:5-6). God cast them out for their wickedness and now he could very well do the same thing for Israel because of its wickedness. Ezra realized that the nation was standing on the brink of disaster.

The Canaanites filled the land with corruption. The Hebrew word is ni-dah, that ceremonial impurity caused by a woman’s menstrual cycle. [16] Now the exiles have returned to the land to produce the same abominations once again.

“Therefore, do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters for your sons. Do not seek a treaty of friendship with them at any time, that you may be strong and eat the good things of the land and leave it to your children as an everlasting inheritance” (9:12). Ezra likely had reference to scriptures like Deuteronomy 7:3-4. God knew from the beginning that intermarriage with pagans would be fatal for his people. The women and their families would lure the Israelites into pagan worship. After all, pagan worship provided much food, revelry, celebration, and such things would draw like a magnet. In the ancient world, pagan shrines were the centers of food and entertainment.

“What has happened to us is a result of our evil deeds and our great guilt, and yet, our God, you have punished us less than our sins deserved and have given us a remnant like this” (9:13). The captivity of Israel was because of their sin. The remnant and the resettlement were because of God’s grace. Ezra felt that they were getting off light but he knew that God’s grace could not be tested. “He knew that God could easily destroy the remnant and start again with another people (Ex. 32:10; Num. 14:11-12).” [17]

“Shall we then break your commands again and intermarry with the peoples who commit such detestable practices? Would you not be angry enough with us to destroy us, leaving us no remnant or survivor?” (9:14). The sinners among the exiles had obviously not stopped to count the cost of their actions. If God could cast the nation into bondage once for this sin he could certainly do it again. Ezra knew that the judgment of God was close at hand.

“LORD, the God of Israel, you are righteous! We are left this day as a remnant. Here we are before you in our guilt, though because of it not one of us can stand in your presence” (9:15). Ezra was quick to confess the guilt of the people. We know today the promise of God’s word: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9).

Footnotes

1. Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, The New American Commentary, p. 147.

2. Pett, Commentary on Ezra, Peter Pett’s Commentary on the Bible, vs. 9:1-15.

3. McConville, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, pp. 60-61.

4. Nancy R. Pearcey, Love Thy Body, Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2018), p. 11.

5. Paul Johnson, A History of the Jews (NY: Harper & Roe, 1987), p.159.

6. Anders, g. ed. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Holman Old Testament Commentary, p. 105.

7. Charles Colson with Ellen Santilli Vaughn, The Body: being a light in the darkness (Dallas: Word Publishing, 1992), p. 304.

8. Anders, g. ed. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Holman Old Testament Commentary, p. 104.

9. Pfeiffer & Harrison, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, p. 431.

10. Utley, Free Bible Commentary, Ezra, v. 9:5.

11. Barnes, Commentary on Ezra, Barnes’ Notes on the Whole Bible, v. 9:7.

12. Quoted in Guzik, Enduring Word Commentary, Ezra, vs. 9:7-9.

13. Barnes, Commentary on Ezra, Barnes’ Notes on the Whole Bible, v. 9:8.

14. McConville, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, p. 64.

15. Coffman, Commentary on Ezra, Coffman Commentaries on the Bible, vs. 9:1-15.

16. Utley, Free Bible Commentary, Ezra, v. 9:11.

17. Wiersbe, The Wiersbe Bible Commentary, OT, p. 748.