Ezra Prays About Intermarriage

Ezra 9

1 When these things were done, the leaders came to me, saying, "The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not a separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, b 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 c taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the d holy seed is e mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this 1 trespass." 3 So when I heard this thing, f I tore my garment and my robe, and plucked out some of the hair of my head and beard, and sat down g astonished. 4 Then everyone who h 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 i evening sacrifice. 5 At the evening sacrifice I arose from my fasting; and having torn my garment and my robe, I fell on my knees and j spread out my hands to the LORD my God.

6 And I said: "O my God, I am too k ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my God; for l our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has m grown up to the heavens. 7 "Since the days of our fathers to this day n we have been very guilty, and for our iniquities o we, our kings, and our priests have been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the p sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to q humiliation, 2 as it is this day. 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 r enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage. 9 s "For we were slaves. t Yet our God did not forsake us in our bondage; but u 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 v a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.

10 "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 w 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, x do not give your daughters as wives for their sons, nor take their daughters to your sons; and y never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land, and z leave it as an inheritance to your children forever.' 13 "And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, since You our God a have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us such deliverance as this, 14 "should we b again break Your commandments, and c join in marriage with the people committing these abominations? Would You not be d angry with us until You had 3 consumed us, so that there would be no remnant or survivor? 15 "O LORD God of Israel, e You are righteous, for we are left as a remnant, as it is this day. f Here we are before You, g in our guilt, though no one can stand before You because of this!"

  1. Cross References
    Ezra 6:21
    Then the children of Israel who had returned from the captivity ate together with all who had separated themselves from the filth of the nations of the land in order to seek the LORD God of Israel.
    Nehemiah 9:2
    Then those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.
  2. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 12:30
    "take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.'
    Deuteronomy 12:31
    You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.
  3. Cross References
    Exodus 34:16
    And you take of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters play the harlot with their gods and make your sons play the harlot with their gods.
    Deuteronomy 7:3
    Nor shall you make marriages with them. You shall not give your daughter to their son, nor take their daughter for your son.
    Ezra 10:2
    And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, spoke up and said to Ezra, "We have trespassed against our God, and have taken pagan wives from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope in Israel in spite of this.
    Nehemiah 13:23
    In those days I also saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.
  4. Cross References
    Exodus 22:31
    And you shall be holy men to Me: you shall not eat meat torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.
    Deuteronomy 7:6
    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.
  5. Cross References
    2 Corinthians 6:14
    Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?
  6. Cross References
    Job 1:20
    Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped.
  7. Cross References
    Psalms 143:4
    Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me; My heart within me is distressed.
  8. Cross References
    Ezra 10:3
    Now therefore, let us make a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and those who have been born to them, according to the advice of my master and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.
    Isaiah 66:2
    For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist," Says the LORD. "But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word.
  9. Cross References
    Exodus 29:39
    One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight.
  10. Cross References
    Exodus 9:29
    So Moses said to him, "As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD's.
  11. Cross References
    Daniel 9:7
    O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day - to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.
    Daniel 9:8
    O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.
  12. Cross References
    Psalms 38:4
    For my iniquities have gone over my head; Like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
  13. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 28:9
    But a prophet of the LORD was there, whose name was Oded; and he went out before the army that came to Samaria, and said to them: "Look, because the LORD God of your fathers was angry with Judah, He has delivered them into your hand; but you have killed them in a rage that reaches up to heaven.
    Ezra 9:13
    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.
    Ezra 9:15
    "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!"
    Revelation 18:5
    For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.
  14. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 36:14 - 17
    Moreover all the leaders of the priests and the people transgressed more and more, according to all the abominations of the nations, and defiled the house of the LORD which He had consecrated in Jerusalem.
    Psalms 106:6
    We have sinned with our fathers, We have committed iniquity, We have done wickedly.
    Daniel 9:5
    We have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.
    Daniel 9:6
    Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land.
  15. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 28:36
    The LORD will bring you and the king whom you set over you to a nation which neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods - wood and stone.
    Nehemiah 9:30
    Yet for many years You had patience with them, And testified against them by Your Spirit in Your prophets. Yet they would not listen; Therefore You gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.
  16. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 32:25
    The sword shall destroy outside; There shall be terror within For the young man and virgin, The nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
  17. Cross References
    Daniel 9:7
    O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day - to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.
    Daniel 9:8
    O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.
  18. Cross References
    Psalms 34:5
    They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed.
  19. Cross References
    Nehemiah 9:36
    Here we are, servants today! And the land that You gave to our fathers, To eat its fruit and its bounty, Here we are, servants in it!
    Esther 7:4
    "For we have been sold, my people and I, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. Had we been sold as male and female slaves, I would have held my tongue, although the enemy could never compensate for the king's loss."
  20. Cross References
    Nehemiah 9:17
    They refused to obey, And they were not mindful of Your wonders That You did among them. But they hardened their necks, And in their rebellion They appointed a leader To return to their bondage. But You are God, Ready to pardon, Gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, Abundant in kindness, And did not forsake them.
    Psalms 136:23
    Who remembered us in our lowly state, For His mercy endures forever.
  21. Cross References
    Ezra 7:28
    And has extended mercy to me before the king and his counselors, and before all the king's mighty princes. So I was encouraged, as the hand of the LORD my God was upon me; and I gathered leading men of Israel to go up with me.
  22. Cross References
    Isaiah 5:2
    He dug it up and cleared out its stones, And planted it with the choicest vine. He built a tower in its midst, And also made a winepress in it; So He expected it to bring forth good grapes, But it brought forth wild grapes.
  23. Cross References
    Ezra 6:21
    Then the children of Israel who had returned from the captivity ate together with all who had separated themselves from the filth of the nations of the land in order to seek the LORD God of Israel.
  24. Cross References
    Exodus 23:32
    You shall make no covenant with them, nor with ...
    Exodus 34:15
    Lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants o...
    Exodus 34:16
    And you take of his daughters for your sons, an...
    Deuteronomy 7:3
    Nor shall you make marriages with them. You sha...
    Deuteronomy 7:4
    For they will turn your sons away from followin...
    Ezra 9:2
    "For they have taken some of their daughters as...
  25. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 23:6
    You shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity all your days forever.
  26. Cross References
    Proverbs 13:22
    A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.
    Proverbs 20:7
    The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him.
  27. Cross References
    Psalms 103:10
    He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities.
  28. Cross References
    John 5:14
    Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.
    2 Peter 2:20
    For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning.
  29. Cross References
    Nehemiah 13:23
    In those days I also saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.
  30. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 9:8
    Also in Horeb you provoked the LORD to wrath, so that the LORD was angry enough with you to have destroyed you.
  31. Cross References
    Nehemiah 9:33
    However You are just in all that has befallen us; For You have dealt faithfully, But we have done wickedly.
    Daniel 9:14
    Therefore the LORD has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice.
  32. Cross References
    Romans 3:19
    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.
  33. Cross References
    1 Corinthians 15:17
    And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!
New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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