Ezra 9
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In chapter 8 we have seen how the people were getting ready for their pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
We saw careful planning and preparation.
We saw them arriving in Jerusalem and this chapter now picks up from this point.
1-2 When these things were done, the leaders came to me, saying, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, with respect to the abominations of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. 2 For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed is mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this trespass.”
We are introduced to a topic/problem that will be addressed in this chapter and next one, and it is the issue of intermarriage!
This problem will plague them for a while for we saw even in Nehemiah, that he will have to deal with this as well.
This community of returnees has intermarried with the local pagans.
Why was this a problem?
prohibited intermarriage with the 7 nations who lived in Canaan prior to Israel’s coming into the Land under Joshua.
“When the Lord your God brings you into the land which you go to possess, and has cast out many nations before you, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you, and when the Lord your God delivers them over to you, you shall conquer them and utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them. Nor shall you make marriages with them. You shall not give your daughter to their son, nor take their daughter for your son. For they will turn your sons away from following Me, to serve other gods; so the anger of the Lord will be aroused against you and destroy you suddenly. But thus you shall deal with them: you shall destroy their altars, and break down their sacred pillars, and cut down their wooden images, and burn their carved images with fire.
“For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth.
These nations were Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.
In this list that we find here in we see 5 of these nations - Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites and Amorites.
On top of these 5 nations we find 3 other nations mentioned - Ammonites, Moabites and Egyptians.
Even though there is no explicit OT prohibition of intermarrying with these nations (Joseph was married to an Egyptian - , and Ruth was a Moabite), may imply disproval of marrying people from Ammon and Moab.
And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.
“An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord forever, because they did not meet you with bread and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. Nevertheless the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, but the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you. You shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity all your days forever.
Canaanites were descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham. And they lived along the eastern Mediterranean costal regions from Egypt to Lebanon - .
The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
Hittites were descendants from Heth, the son of Canaan. They settled in the hill country of Canaan near Hebron - ; .
And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. So the field and the cave that is in it were deeded to Abraham by the sons of Heth as property for a burial place.
The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
Notable Hittite in the Bible was Uriah, who was one of David’s mighty men . And whose wife Bathsheba, David stole.
Perizzites were a people group that first appears in where we see that they were dwelling in land of Canaan at the time of Abraham - .
And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. The Canaanites and the Perizzites then dwelt in the land.
So you shall dwell with us, and the land shall be before you. Dwell and trade in it, and acquire possessions for yourselves in it.”
During the period of judges, Perizzites lived in forested region near Mount Ephraim. This was the territory allotted to the tribes of Ephraim and West Manasseh - .
Now there was a man from the mountains of Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
Jebusites were a tribe that descended from Canaan, the son of Ham - .
the Jebusite, the Amorite, and the Girgashite;
They lived in a hill country and were the original inhabitants of Jerusalem - .
The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
Notable Jebusite is Araunah from whom David bought the threshing floor that would become the site for Solomon’s temple later on - ; .
And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
Then David spoke to the Lord when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Surely I have sinned, and I have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand, I pray, be against me and against my father’s house.”
And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” So David, according to the word of Gad, went up as the Lord commanded. Now Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming toward him. So Araunah went out and bowed before the king with his face to the ground.
Then Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”
And David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, to build an altar to the Lord, that the plague may be withdrawn from the people.”
Now Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up whatever seems good to him. Look, here are oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing implements and the yokes of the oxen for wood. All these, O king, Araunah has given to the king.”
And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God accept you.”
Then the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell. And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it. As he was destroying, the Lord looked and relented of the disaster, and said to the angel who was destroying, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the Lord stood by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
Then David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven, having in his hand a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem. So David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces. And David said to God, “Was it not I who commanded the people to be numbered? I am the one who has sinned and done evil indeed; but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand, I pray, O Lord my God, be against me and my father’s house, but not against Your people that they should be plagued.”
Therefore, the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say to David that David should go and erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. So David went up at the word of Gad, which he had spoken in the name of the Lord. Now Ornan turned and saw the angel; and his four sons who were with him hid themselves, but Ornan continued threshing wheat. So David came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David. And he went out from the threshing floor, and bowed before David with his face to the ground. Then David said to Ornan, “Grant me the place of this threshing floor, that I may build an altar on it to the Lord. You shall grant it to me at the full price, that the plague may be withdrawn from the people.”
But Ornan said to David, “Take it to yourself, and let my lord the king do what is good in his eyes. Look, I also give you the oxen for burnt offerings, the threshing implements for wood, and the wheat for the grain offering; I give it all.”
Then King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings with that which costs me nothing.” So David gave Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the place. And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called on the Lord; and He answered him from heaven by fire on the altar of burnt offering.
So the Lord commanded the angel, and he returned his sword to its sheath.
Ammonites were descendants from Ben-ammi, who was the son of Lot - .
Then Lot went up out of Zoar and dwelt in the mountains, and his two daughters were with him; for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar. And he and his two daughters dwelt in a cave. Now the firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man on the earth to come in to us as is the custom of all the earth. Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father.” So they made their father drink wine that night. And the firstborn went in and lay with her father, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
It happened on the next day that the firstborn said to the younger, “Indeed I lay with my father last night; let us make him drink wine tonight also, and you go in and lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father.” Then they made their father drink wine that night also. And the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father. The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab; he is the father of the Moabites to this day. And the younger, she also bore a son and called his name Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the people of Ammon to this day.
They inhabited the easter side of the Jordan River and its tributaries. That is why in the Bible border of Ammonite territory was often referred simply as Jabbok River - ; .
And to the Reubenites and the Gadites I gave from Gilead as far as the River Arnon, the middle of the river as the border, as far as the River Jabbok, the border of the people of Ammon;
and the eastern Jordan plain from the Sea of Chinneroth as far as the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea), the road to Beth Jeshimoth, and southward below the slopes of Pisgah.
Moabites were defendants of Moab, the son of Lot - .
They inhabited territory E of Jordan River and the Dead Sea.
Solomon’s marriage to Moabite women was one of the causes for turning his heart from the Lord. He build a high place for their god, Chemosh - .
But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites—from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
Egyptians were probably descendants of Ham, son of Noah. Egypt is at times identified in the OT as the land of Ham - ; , ; .
And destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt,
The first of their strength in the tents of Ham.
Israel also came into Egypt,
And Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham.
They performed His signs among them,
And wonders in the land of Ham.
Wondrous works in the land of Ham,
Awesome things by the Red Sea.
Amorites were descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham - .
the Jebusite, the Amorite, and the Girgashite;
They inhabited territory W of Mesopotamia, in the hill country on both sides of Jordan River, and were because of that called “westerners”.
Notable Amorites were kings Sihon and Og who were defeated by Israel on their way to the promised land - .
It is safe to say that the main reason for this prohibition was that these marriages would lead faithful people into idolatry!
We see this in , ; ; .
Now Israel remained in Acacia Grove, and the people began to commit harlotry with the women of Moab. They invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel was joined to Baal of Peor, and the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel.
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and hang the offenders before the Lord, out in the sun, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.”
So Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Every one of you kill his men who were joined to Baal of Peor.”
But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites—from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians; and he went and served Baal and worshiped him. Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
Have we not all one Father?
Has not one God created us?
Why do we deal treacherously with one another
By profaning the covenant of the fathers?
Judah has dealt treacherously,
And an abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem,
For Judah has profaned
The Lord’s holy institution which He loves:
He has married the daughter of a foreign god.
May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob
The man who does this, being awake and aware,
Yet who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts!
And this is the second thing you do:
You cover the altar of the Lord with tears,
With weeping and crying;
So He does not regard the offering anymore,
Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands.
Yet you say, “For what reason?”
Because the Lord has been witness
Between you and the wife of your youth,
With whom you have dealt treacherously;
Yet she is your companion
And your wife by covenant.
But did He not make them one,
Having a remnant of the Spirit?
And why one?
He seeks godly offspring.
“Therefore take heed to your spirit,
And let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.
“For the Lord God of Israel says
That He hates divorce,
For it covers one’s garment with violence,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
Therefore take heed to your spirit,
That you do not deal treacherously.”
So, considering that Ezra was coming to Jerusalem for the sake of spiritual reforms and establishment of a faithful community in Israel, this would be a massive blow to his plan and intention.
In we will see that this is all happening in the 9th month (Kislev, Nov-Dec).
So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth of the month; and all the people sat in the open square of the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of heavy rain.
Ezra left Babylon in the 1st month (Nisan or Abib, March-April) - ;
On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him.
Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. And the hand of our God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambush along the road.
Travel took several months and they arrived in Jerusalem in the 5th month (Ab, July-Aug) -
And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king.
So several months have passed and they had time to get to know what is going on with the community that was already there.
And saddest thing about this intermarrying was that the leaders and rulers have been leading the charge in this sin!
They were setting an example of compromise and corruption.
They were “holy seed” or holy people (as in ) set aside for God and His proposes and they were not living as those who are holy.
“For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth.
They were not setting themselves aside for God and His purposes and His will, but they were doing their own will.
They were living in the flesh, living to satisfy the desires of their flesh instead of God.
3-4 So when I heard this thing, I tore my garment and my robe, and plucked out some of the hair of my head and beard, and sat down astonished. 4 Then everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel assembled to me, because of the transgression of those who had been carried away captive, and I sat astonished until the evening sacrifice.
This is understandable reaction by Ezra.
Tearing garment and robe was a common reaction to mourning and distress.
We see this in , ; ; ; ; .
Then Reuben returned to the pit, and indeed Joseph was not in the pit; and he tore his clothes.
Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his waist, and mourned for his son many days.
Then they tore their clothes, and each man loaded his donkey and returned to the city.
But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes;
Then Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads.
And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low! You are among those who trouble me! For I have given my word to the Lord, and I cannot go back on it.”
Plucking some of the hair of head and beard is supposed to be sign of shame.
See ; ; ; .
‘They shall not make any bald place on their heads, nor shall they shave the edges of their beards nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
So I contended with them and cursed them, struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters as wives to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons or yourselves.
Cut off your hair and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on the desolate heights; for the Lord has rejected and forsaken the generation of His wrath.’
Make yourself bald and cut off your hair,
Because of your precious children;
Enlarge your baldness like an eagle,
For they shall go from you into captivity.
He is joined with likeminded God-fearing people who were shocked at all of this.
They were expressing their public sorrow and this was most likely done near the Temple so that all could see.
Hope was that people will see the distress on Ezra’s face and wonder why is he sad.
Ezra was in a shock until the evening sacrifice!
Sacrifice was still going on even though people were living in sin.
We can find justification for so many sins in our life and offer so many excuses for compromise that on the outside it would appear as if we are godly.
By the was this was part of that morning and evening daily sacrifice that they were to offer - .
One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. With the one lamb shall be one-tenth of an ephah of flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of pressed oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering. And the other lamb you shall offer at twilight; and you shall offer with it the grain offering and the drink offering, as in the morning, for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord.
5 At the evening sacrifice I arose from my fasting; and having torn my garment and my robe, I fell on my knees and spread out my hands to the Lord my God.
Ezra was in silence up to this point and now he is getting ready to publicly pray!
Spreading of hands to the Lord was a common prayer position - ; .
My eye wastes away because of affliction.
Lord, I have called daily upon You;
I have stretched out my hands to You.
When you spread out your hands,
I will hide My eyes from you;
Even though you make many prayers,
I will not hear.
Your hands are full of blood.
6 And I said: “O my God, I am too ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my God; for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has grown up to the heavens.
I like that Ezra is identifying himself with the people and is not saying “they have guilt” but rather he is saying our guilt!
7 Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been very guilty, and for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to humiliation, as it is this day.
This reference to the kings of the lands is to kings of Assyria and Babylon.
8 And now for a little while grace has been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage.
Ezra is deeply affected by this sin of the people and he rightfully fears that the same consequence that happened to their fathers will come upon them as well!
This “little while grace has been shown” is reference to this time from when Cyrus’ decree went and allowed first exiles to return up to this point, which is 80 years.
Short point to make on this:
Even though Ezra has communicated in his book about the trials and opposition that they’ve faced in this period, it was still period of grace and God’s blessing upon them.
And so it is for us as Christians today! We live in a period of grace for sure! Yet, we face trials, disappointments, sorrow, loss and opposition. But, these things don’t defy the reality which is God’s grace is upon us and we feel His goodness every day.
Ezra refers to the exiles as remnant.
He will use this phrase 4x in this prayer.
Ezra was anticipating great revival (that our God may enlighten our eyes...) yet this sin is an obstacle to it.
And sin will do that. You can’t expect revival in the society if there is sin in your life.
You can’t expect revival in the society if there is a sin in the church, a community of God.
For when people get saved where will they go? If you and I, if the church is in sin, we can’t be an example of where to go and how to be, how to live for the Lord.
9 For we were slaves. Yet our God did not forsake us in our bondage; but He extended mercy to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to revive us, to repair the house of our God, to rebuild its ruins, and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.
God can’t be blamed for any of this.
God has been good and faithful to them. There is nothing that they could point to and say that they needed or lacked from God.
10-12 And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken Your commandments, 11 which You commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land which you are entering to possess is an unclean land, with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations which have filled it from one end to another with their impurity. 12 Now therefore, do not give your daughters as wives for their sons, nor take their daughters to your sons; and never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land, and leave it as an inheritance to your children forever.’
We are guilty before You! We have no excuse. Nothing that we could say for ourselves!
And this is most likely referencing primarily and other examples from the Scripture that we have already seen where intermarriage has caused issues.
13-14 And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, since You our God have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us such deliverance as this, 14 should we again break Your commandments, and join in marriage with the people committing these abominations? Would You not be angry with us until You had consumed us, so that there would be no remnant or survivor?
Ezra is agreement with the Lord’s righteousness and justice!
Has has right to judge them for their sin.
Ezra is obviously not praying for judgment, but rather for mercy, but he is acknowledging that God would be right in judging them.
Mercy can only be expected when there is acknowledgement of sin and great guilt!
15 O Lord God of Israel, You are righteous, for we are left as a remnant, as it is this day. Here we are before You, in our guilt, though no one can stand before You because of this!”
This is the closing of Ezra’s prayer!
It seems so strange to end prayer like this. To have no sense of closure but it is a good way to end it.
Ezra has acknowledged God’s holiness and goodness and their sin and unfaithfulness.
They are guilty, and they can’t expect acquittal.
This “no one can stand” in Hebrew is legal term meaning “to be acquitted” - ; .
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
If You, Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
It is a confirmation that is so clearly and well presented in Romans, that there is no one righteous, no not one....
As it is written:
“There is none righteous, no, not one;
There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”
“Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;
“The poison of asps is under their lips”;
“Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
Destruction and misery are in their ways;
And the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.
