Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezra 10:18
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.
18 22. Priests
18. that had taken strange wives ] R.V. that had married strange women: the R.V. puts a colon after ‘women’, and a comma after ‘brethren’. The ‘Jeshua the son of Jozadak’ here mentioned is clearly the High-priest, the contemporary of Zerubbabel. In chap. Ezr 2:36 we have mention of ‘the children of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred seventy and three’. It is to the house of Jedaiah that these four priests belonged; for in that passage as in this, the houses of Immer, Harim and Pashur are mentioned immediately afterwards. Whether Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib and Gedaliah were grandsons or only kinsmen of Jeshua the son of Jozadak we are not told.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
18 44. The List of those who ‘had married strange women’
The record of the names was probably one of the documents officially preserved. The publicity of such a list was in itself a punishment to the offenders and a warning to others.
As in chap. 2, the list falls into the three groups of Priests, Levites, and Israel (or Laity), i.e. 17 Priests, 10 Levites, 86 ‘of Israel’ 113 in all.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Compare with the list in Ezra 2.
Ezr 10:19
They gave their hands – i. e., solemnly pledged themselves (compare the marginal references).
Ezr 10:44
The guilty persons, it would seem, were 113 in number. They comprised 4 members of the high priests family, 13 other priests, 10 Levites, and 86 lay Israelites belonging to at least 10 distinct families. The fact noted in the second clause of the verse must have increased the difficulity of Ezras task.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Ezr 10:18-44
And among the sons of the priests there were found that had taken strange wives: namely, of the sons of Jeshua.
The list of offenders
For what purpose is this catalogue of names inserted here?
I. As a warning against sin. This catalogue shows us–
1. Sin extending to all classes.
2. Sin injuring the reputation.
3. Sin corrupting the influence.
II. As an example of genuine repentance.
1. They confessed their sin with sorrow.
2. They offered sacrifice on account of the sin.
3. They forsook the sin.
III. As an encouragement to genuine repentance.
1. Their sin was forgiven (Eze 33:14-16).
2. The Divine favour was vouchsafed. (William Jones.)
A ram of the flock for their trespass.
Cheap expiations
Oh, that poor, poor ram! What a humiliation for the ram! That ram is always being killed, and cannot understand the reason why. A ram cannot save you. You might kill all the flocks that browse on the hill and still your sin would stain the centre of your heart and the palm of your hand. There are some things for which you cannot make up. There are some actions which lie beyond apology. There are some deeds which almost go beyond the large boundary of penitence. Some of us have been in danger of sinning ourselves beyond Gods mercy. Beware of every method of getting out of moral obligation and moral penalty by cheap ways, by expiations that cost you nothing. Every man must have a true expiation, but the true expiation includes the offering of himself as well as the offering of the priest and the victim. It is so in the cram of the Christ. He tasted death for every man; He bore my sins in His own body on the tree; yet I must be crucified with Christ. There is the difference between the true expiation and the false. The true expiation involves self-immolation; it involves fellowship with the sufferings of Christ that we may be made partakers of His resurrection. Christ being crucified for us is an aggravation of our sin it we be not crucified with Christ. Thus there is absolute loneliness in the priesthood of Christ, and thus there is a mysterious fellowship with that loneliness. There is a work which none but Christ could do, and there is a complete work which the poorest, meanest sinner has to do. The sinner does not offer Christ; it he did so that would be what we mean by a cheap or poor expiation. Christ was not offered by man; by man Christ was murdered; by God Christ was offered. Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. The Christian expiation is not a buying off or a calculated substitution: the expiation of Christ means that we are to enter into it, in a sense share the agony. The offering is all Gods, the substitution is all divine; but man is called upon to enter mystically, spiritually, and really into the offering of Christ and to be offered as it were with Christ–the sinner and the Saviour united in one sublime sacrifice. Do not imagine that you can buy yourself off by offering a ram. Do not suppose that you can make up for your sin by doubling your pew rent. Do not imagine that you can be forgiven every outrage against reason, justice, and conscience by doling out something superfluous from your own table to the hunger of the needy. Expiation touches the soul with agony, or it is a worthless offering. (J. Parker, D. D)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
18. among the sons of thepriestsFrom the names of so many men of rank appearing in thefollowing list, some idea may be formed of the great and complicateddifficulties attending the reformatory work.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And among the sons of the priests there were found that had taken strange wives,…. So that it need not be wondered at that this evil should spread among the people, when those who understood the law, and should have instructed the people in it, set such an example: namely,
of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak; who was the high priest; and perhaps for this fault of his, in not restraining his sons from such unlawful marriages, is he represented in filthy garments, Zec 3:3,
and his brethren, Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah; these were the brethren of Jeshua.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Among the priests there stand first, four names of sons and brethren of the high priest Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, who returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel. , his (Jeshua’s) brethren. Judging by Ezr 2:36, these were among the descendants of Jedaiah, a section of the house of the high-priestly family (see rem. on Ezr 2:36), and were therefore distant cousins of the high priest. They gave their hands, i.e., bound themselves by shaking hands, to put away their wives, i.e., to dismiss them, and to sever them from the congregation of Israel, , “and guilty a ram for their trespass,” i.e., condemned to bring a ram as a trespass-offering. is to be regarded as the continuation of the infinitive clause . As elsewhere, infinitive clauses are continued without anything further in the verb. finit. (comp. Ewald, 350); so here also does the adjective follow, requiring that should be mentally supplied. , a ram of the flock, is, as an accusative of more exact definition, dependent on . This trespass-offering was imposed upon them according to the principle of the law, Lev 5:14, etc., because they had committed a against the Lord, which needed expiation; see on Lev 5:14. – In what follows, only the names of the individuals, and a statement of the families they belonged to, are given, without repeating that the same obligations, namely, the dismissal of their strange wives, and the bringing of a trespass-offering, were imposed on them also, this being self-evident from the context. – Among the sons of Immer were three, among the sons of Harim five, among the sons of Pashur six offenders; in all, eighteen priests. By comparing Ezr 2:36-39, we perceive that not one of the orders of priests who returned with Zerubbabel was free from participation in this transgression. Some of the names given, Ezr 10:20-22, reappear in the lists in Neh 8:4 and Neh 10:2-9, and may belong to the same individuals.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
The Repentant, Verses 18-44
Among those Jews who had transgressed by marrying the foreign wives were twenty-one priests, who are enumerated first among the guilty. This large number of the priests shows how lightly the people were taking the laws about intermarriage and how even the spiritual leaders were setting a bad example. People cannot be expected to rise higher than their leadership (Hos 4:9). Even four sons of the notable and pious high priest Jeshua, who returned with the original remnant under Zerubbabel, are the very first offenders named. These swore to put away their wives and to confess their sins by offering the ram for the trespass offering.
Among the Levites there was one of the singers and three of the porters who had intermarried. Of all the other Israelites of the returned captivity there was a total of eighty-six men who had to come for judgment concerning their marriage. All of these are enumerated by families according to the fathers who returned from the captivity with Zerubbabel and Jeshua. The family of Parosh had seven offenders; of Elam six; of Zattu six; of Bebai four; of Pahath-moab eight; of Harim eight; of Hashum seven; of Bani (another) twenty-seven, of Nebo seven.
The last verse records that these had all taken unlawful wives and that some had children by them. The implication here is, perhaps, that the number of children involved was minor. What disposition was made of the children is not specifically stated. However, according to the proposal of Shechaniah (verse 3) the men agreed to “make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them.” Once again the severity of the law is emphasized, stressing once more the desirability of mercy and grace. God always responded in mercy when His people called on Him, and had these turned to Him and confessed Him as their God, He would surely have tendered His mercy to them.
Lessons to emphasize: 1) sometimes the Lord has tasks for His children they did not suspect; 2) the guilty should recognize their wrongdoing and seek God’s mercy; 3) the law is strict and rigid, condemning men without mercy; 4) concern for sin should manifest itself by seeking to rectify the situation; 5) to serve the Lord aright requires the putting away of the lusts of the flesh.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(18-44) List of the transgressors.
(19) They gave their hands.The four members of the high priests family were peculiarly dealt with. They gave their distinct pledge, and offered each a special trespass offering. It is one among a multitude of similar tokens of authenticity in the history; and inventor would have given some reason for the peculiarity.
(22) Pashur.Comparing Ezr. 2:36-39, we find that all the priestly families that returned with Zerub-babel were implicated in the national offence.
(25) Of Israel.Of the laity eighty-six are mentioned, belonging to ten races which returned with Zerubbabel.
(34) Bani.Probably this should be some other name, as Bani occurs before. The peculiarly large number of the representatives of his race suggests that there is some confusion in the present text.
(44) All these had taken strange wives.Though the numbers are not summed up and distributed, it is evident that this closing sentence is emphatic. Ezra ends his history with a catalogue of the delinquentsstrong testimony to the importance he attached to the reformation. The last wordsliterally, and there were of them wives who had brought forth childrentend in the same direction. Not even this pathetic fact restrained the thoroughness of the excision. But the Book of Nehemiah (Neh. 13:23 seq.) will show that it was thorough only for a time.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
The Names Of Those Involved In Marrying Idolatrous Foreign Women ( Ezr 10:18-44 ).
Ezra then prepared for Artaxerxes, the king of Persia, a list of those with whom he had had to deal. We can compare how the king had asked for a list of those involved in building the Temple (Ezr 5:10). The list is divided up into priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers an Israel. All four houses of priests mentioned in Ezr 2:36-39 were involved. Although the promise to put away their idolatrous foreign wives and to offer sacrifices are only mentioned with respect to the first-named it is clear that the same would apply to all who were named. The king would be happy to learn that the God of Heaven had been made happy.
We do not know how often the body that was set up met. It met during the winter months, so that they would have to travel to and fro in difficult travel conditions, .and the heads of the fathers’ houses may well have had other pressing responsibilities And time would have to be given for men to prepare their defence, especially when they need to demonstrate that their wives were good Yahwists and not involved in idolatry. Furthermore some cases may have come before the body more than once. Nor do we now how long it took them to determine each case, or how many put up a good case and were declared innocent, and were therefore not listed. And time would be spent in the usual Easter courtesies. They would not want to have too many per day because of the uncertainties. Three months times 24 days (excluding Sabbaths) equals roughly 72 days available to them if they met every day. They found guilty one hundred and fifteen men. This hardly suggests dilatory progress. (If we assumed two examinations per day it would indicate one hundred and forty four cases, with twenty nine proving innocent).
As we would expect the names of clans are paralleled in the list in chapter 2. It was these who would have been involved in taking idolatrous foreign wives. Those who had arrived with Ezra would not have had enough time.
The Priests.
Ezr 10:18
‘And among the sons of the priests who were found who had married foreign women: (were) of the sons of Jeshua: Ben-Jozadak, and his brothers (kinsmen), Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah.’
In Ezr 2:36 these were the children of Jedaiah of the house of Jeshua. Five of them were involved.
Ezr 10:19
‘And they gave their hand that they would put away their wives, and being guilty, (they offered) a ram of the flock for their guilt.’
Having been found guilty ‘gave their hand’ that they would put away their wives, and because of their guilt each made a sacrifice of a ram of the flock. This punishment once stated would not need to be repeated. There is no need to think that it has later been omitted in other cases. Guilt offerings would be required in all cases.
Ezr 10:20
‘And of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Zebadiah.’
The sons of Immer are mentioned in Ezr 2:37. Three of them were found guilty.
Ezr 10:21
‘And of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah.’
The sons of Harim are mentioned in Ezr 2:39. Five were found guilty.
Ezr 10:22
‘And of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.’
The sons of Pashhur are mentioned in Ezr 2:38. Six were found guilty. Thus of the priests as a whole nineteen were found guilty.
The Levites.
Ezr 10:23
‘And of the Levites: Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah (the same is Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.’
See Ezr 2:40 where they were also listed as one clan. Six were found guilty.
Ezr 10:24
‘And of the singers: Eliashib.’
See Ezr 2:41 where they were listed as one clan. Only one was found guilty.
Ezr 10:24
‘And of the gatekeepers: Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.’
See Ezr 2:42 where they were computed as one clan. Three were found guilty. Thus in all ten of the Levites were found guilty. It is interesting but not surprising that the Temple servants are not mentioned. Once having been foreigners they would have had no land in Israel. They would probably live in Jerusalem and not have much contact with foreign women. Furthermore they would be of a class where their wives would be expected to conform to their husbands wishes.
The Rest Of Israel.
Ezr 10:25
‘And of Israel:’
Ten clans are listed as affected in Israel. The number has in fact been artificially achieved by including the sons of Bani twice because of their overwhelming numbers. We can compare the lists of ten patriarchs in Genesis 5, 11. 1 Esdras has more but is unreliable. As we have seen it seeks to remedy what it sees as errors.
Ezr 10:25
‘Of the sons of Parosh: Ramiah, and Izziah, and Malchijah, and Mijamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah.’
The sons of Parosh are mentioned in Ezr 2:3. Seven were found guilty.
Ezr 10:26
‘And of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Elijah.’
The sons of Elam are mentioned in Ezr 2:7. (Rather than Ezr 2:31 which may be the name of a town). Six were found guilty.
Ezr 10:27
‘And of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, and Aziza.’
The sons of Zattu are mentioned in Ezr 2:8. Six were found guilty.
Ezr 10:28
‘And of the sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, Athlai.’
The sons of Bebai are mentioned in Ezr 2:11. Four were found guilty.
Ezr 10:29
‘And of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, Jeremoth.’
The sons of Bani are mentioned in Ezr 2:10. Six were found guilty.
Ezr 10:30
‘And of the sons of Pahath-moab: Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, and Binnui, and Manasseh.’
The sons of Pahath-moab are mentioned in Ezr 2:6. Eight were found guilty.
Ezr 10:31-32
‘And the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Isshijah, Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, Benjamin, Malluch, Shemariah.’
The sons of Harim are mentioned in Ezr 2:32. Eight were found guilty. It will be noted that the ‘of’ is missing. Such occasional variations occur in lists. There is no need to amend it to fit in with our ideas of uniformity.
Ezr 10:33
‘Of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, Shimei.’
The sons of Hashum are mentioned in Ezr 2:19. Seven were found guilty.
Ezr 10:34-42
‘Of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, and Uel, Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi, Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasu, and Bani, and Binnui, Shimei, and Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah, Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, Azarel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, Shallum, Amariah, Joseph.’
This is the second mention of the sons of Bani, but apart from Adaiah they are different names. An occasional two people of the same name is not unusual. It would appear that the sons of Bani were particularly at fault in taking idolatrous foreign wives, possibly due to where they lived. It would have been surprising if at least one clan had not sinned above the norm. Real life is different from fiction. It was because of their large numbers that the writer divided them in order to make ten clans in the list. Twenty seven were found guilty (making thirty three sons of Bani in all)
Ezr 10:43
‘Of the sons of Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Iddo, and Joel, Benaiah.’
The sons of Nebo are mentioned in Ezr 2:29. Seven were found guilty. The total number of Israel who were found guilty was eighty six. In all, including priests and Levites one hundred and fifteen were found guilty.
Ezr 10:44
‘All these had taken foreign wives, and some of them had wives by whom they had had children.’
The Hebrew has difficulties but is not impossible. It confirms that all those mentioned were found guilty and adds that in some cases children were involved. They would not, of course, just be cast out. They would return to their family home, and compensation may well have been paid. And as they were probably mainly from the higher classes they would suffer no hardship (it would require some wealth for them to be able to maintain their religions separately). Being arranged marriages their love for each other may not have been deep. When we consider that other women may have been divorced in order to make room for them, sympathy for them may not have run high (see Mal 2:11; Mal 2:14).
As Ezra had been sent by the king to teach and enforce the Law this was important evidence in his first year report that he was fulfilling the king’s expectations. He was in fact merciful. The king had urged death, banishment, confiscation of goods and imprisonment (Ezr 7:26).
And so the book ends on what Ezra would have seen as a triumphant note. Idolatry has been rooted out from among God’s remnant, and the whole group of the returnees have expressed their commitment in future to avoid idolatrous associations. It was not Ezra’s fault, nor his failure (he had succeeded admirably) that a few of the next generation would slip back into the old ways (Neh 13:22-31). Nehemiah was able to stamp it out quickly, and much more ferociously, precisely because Ezra had laid the foundation.
Catalog of Men who had taken Strange Wives
v. 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.
v. 19. And they gave their hands that they would put away their wives, v. 20. And of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Zebadiah.
v. 21. And of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah.
v. 22. And of the sons of Pashur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethaneel, Jozabad, and Elasah.
v. 23. Also of the Levites: Jozabad, and Shimei, and Xelaiah, (the same is Kelita,) Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.
v. 24. of the singers also: Eliashib; and of the porters: Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.
v. 25. Moreover, of Israel, v. 26. And of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Eliah.
v. 27. And of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, and Aziza.
v. 28. of the sons also of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai.
v. 29. And of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, and Ramoth.
v. 30. And of the sons of Pahathmoab: Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh.
v. 31. And of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Ishljah, Malchiah, Shemalah, Shimeon, v. 32. Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah.
v. 33. of the Sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattathah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei.
v. 34. of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, and Uel, v. 35. Benaiah, Bedelah, Chelluh, v. 36. Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, v. 37. Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasau, V v. 39. and Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah, v. 40. Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, v. 41. Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, v. 42. Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph.
v. 43. of the sons of Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jadau, and Joel, Benaiah.
v. 44. All these had taken strange wives; and some of them had wives by whom they had children, Observe, Reader, how the names of the offenders are recorded. No doubt both in judgment and in mercy. How fully doth it show forth the covenant love of God in Christ, while it fully sets forth also his people’s sin and depravity. Oh! what could have atoned for this dreadful rebellion, but the blessed provision made for Israel’s sin in the redemption by Israel’s God. Here, blessed Jesus, as in every other case, we see the glorious resource in thy salvation. In every age, and upon every occasion, the precious truth is read and confirmed again and again; Where sin abounded grace did much more abound, that as sin hath reigned, and doth reign, unto death; so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. Rom 5:21 .
Ezr 10:18 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.
Ver. 18. And among the sons of the priests, &c. ] What a shame was this, and a stain to their cloth! These men’s white ephods covered foul sins; whereas they should have been careful to have kept all clean; as that Eleazar was of whom it is told, that he would not do anything that might seem to be sinful, because he would not spot his white head.
Of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Ezr 10:18-22
18Among the sons of the priests who had married foreign wives were found of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib and Gedaliah. 19They pledged to put away their wives, and being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock for their offense. 20Of the sons of Immer there were Hanani and Zebadiah; 21and of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel and Uzziah; 22and of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad and Elasah.
Ezr 10:18-43 If you are interested in a detailed discussion of the etymology of these Hebrew names, a good brief source is The Expositor’s Bible commentary, vol. 4, pp. 674-676.
Ezr 10:18 Among the sons of the priests The priests had been divided into divisions by David (cf. 1 Chronicles 23); only four of them returned (cf. Ezr 2:36-38). Those same four are named here.
the sons of Jeshua Even the family of the first returning High Priest with Zerubabbel was not exempt from this sin nor was their family’s sin covered up. 1Es 9:19 asserts that Jeshua himself was not involved.
Ezr 10:19 they pledged It literally says, gave their hand (BDB 678, KB 733, Qal IMPERFECT and 388 construct, cf. 2Ki 10:15; 1Ch 29:24; 2Ch 30:8; Eze 17:18; 1Es 9:20). This was a cultural gesture of sealing an agreement.
being guilty, they offered a lamb This refers to the guilt offering of Lev 5:14-19, which involves unintentional sin. It is not certain whether only the priest offered the sacrifice or if each of the offenders offered the sacrifice.
the sons Of Joshua. Who had come up with Zerubbabel (Ezr 2:2). There were 973 priests of that house (Ezr 2:36). There were found guilty seventeen priests, ten Levites singers and sorters, and eighty-six lay people, making 118 in all.
Ezr 10:18-44
Ezr 10:18-44
THESE ARE THE NAMES OF THOSE WITH FOREIGN WIVES
“And among the sons of the priests there were found that had married foreign women: namely, of the sons of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and his brethren, Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah. And they gave their hand that they would put away their wives; and being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock for their guilt. And of the sons of lmmer: Hanani and Zebadiah. And of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah. And of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nathanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.
“And of the Levites: Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah (the same is Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer. And of the singers: Eliashib. And of the porters, Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.
“And of Israel: of the sons of Parosh: Ramiah, and Izziah, and Malchijah, and Benaiah. And of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jerimoth, and Elijah. And of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jerimoth, and Zabad, and Aziza. And of the sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai. And of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, Jeremoth. And of the sons of Pahath-moab: Adna, and Cheial, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, and Bennui, and Manasseh. And of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Isshijah, Malchijah, Shemiah, Shimeon, Benjamin, Malluch, Shemariah. Of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, Shimei. Of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, and Uel. Benaiah, and Bedaiah, Cheluhi, Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasu, and Bani, and Binnui, Shimei, and Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah, Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, Azarel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, Shallum, Amariah, Joseph. Of the sons of Nebo: Jeiel, Matithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Iddo, and Joel, Benaiah. All these had taken foreign wives; and some of them had wives by whom they had children.”
Whitcomb’s count of all these violators found, “Seventeen priests, ten Levites, and eighty-six others; and each of these put away his foreign wife and offered a ram as a guilt-offering.’ Some of the versions support this count of 113 in all.
Drastic as this solution of the problem assuredly was, “A comparison of Neh 10:30 (12 years later) and of Neh 13:23 (30 years later) shows that the evil was not permanently eliminated. Long association with heathen neighbors made such a separation difficult.”
One thing that modern readers will wonder about is what provision, if any, was made for those wives and children which were expelled from the Jewish community. Jamieson has this: “Doubtless an adequate provision was made for the repudiated wives and children, according to the means and circumstances of the husbands.” Abraham had also made provision for Hagar when he put her and Ishmael away.
We conclude this study of Ezra with the following relevant comment of Williamson:
“Israel’s mission could make headway only if she maintained the servant identity that separated her from the nations to which she was commissioned to reveal God’s will. In exactly the same way, Christians individually, and as the Church, are called to be `light’ and `salt,’ elements that function effectively precisely because of their difference from the setting in which they are placed. `But if the salt has lost its savor …?’ (Mat 5:13-16).”
E.M. Zerr:
Ezr 10:18. As a rule, what is wrong for one man is wrong for another. A thing may be a greater wrong in one man, though, than in another, from the standpoint of his influence. For instance, a priest was more prominent in his position with the congregation, hence a wrong committed by him would be more outstanding. This is the reason this verse names certain men in the priestly group who had taken strange wives. The priests were expected to teach the people the law (Lev 10:11; Deu 17:9; Mal 2:7), therefore their sin was the less excusable.
Ezr 10:19. The priests gave their hands which is a phrase that means they made a solemn promise to correct their wrongs. That was done first by putting away their strange wives; but that did not clear them before God. The law of Moses made provision that certain sacrifices should be offered to atone for sins called trespass. (Lev 6:6.) This service was performed by these men because they were guilty.
Ezr 10:20-22. This paragraph is a continuation of the thoughts in Ezr 10:19. The same remarks would apply to these priests that were made at the preceding verse. But after having named a few of the priests and describing their actions regarding the strange wives, the inspired writer considered that to be a precedent for other like cases, hence the list making up this paragraph with nothing specified but their names.
Ezr 10:23. All priests were Levites, but not all Levites were priests. The preceding paragraphs listed the names of some Levites who were priests. The men named in this were Levites but not priests. It would be taken for granted they would follow the example of other Levites in the disposal of their wives, and in other duties.
Ezr 10:24. David had formulated a group of Israelites whose special part of the services was the singing. In 1Ch 6:31 a reference is made to certain men whom he had set over the service of song in the house of the Lord. Their exercises were accompanied with instrumental music generally. Among the units connected with this service were the sons of Asaph (1Ch 25:1), and the classification of singers finally became very distinct. The fact accounts for their being specifically mentioned in the list of men we are now considering. The porters composed another special group of servants about the buildings of the Lord. Their work was equivalent to gatekeepers or janitors. They were somewhat prominent and thus became entitled to special mention in the account of the irregular marriages.
Ezr 10:25-43. This long list of names has been grouped into one paragraph because nothing peculiar to any one of them is said. The list starts with the words of Israel. That means that after the mention of the special classes included in the preceding verses, all the rest to be named as being guilty were Israelites in general.
Ezr 10:44. One statement was made that was common to all of this long list; they had taken strange wives. The specification for some of them was that they had children by these wives. That, in fact, was one of the main objections to these unlawful marriages. God had promised to Abraham that he should have a numerous race of descendants, through whom a seed would be given to the world for a universal blessing. Also, these descendants were to compose a nation that was to possess the land to which he was being led. In order to accomplish the two promises to the patriarch, it was necessary to keep the blood line pure, unmixed with that of outside races. That is the special reason it was forbidden to beget children by wives of an alien nation.
the sons: Ezr 9:1, Lev 21:7, Lev 21:13-15, 1Sa 2:22-24, Neh 13:28, Jer 23:11, Jer 23:14, Eze 44:22, Mal 2:8, Mal 2:9, 1Ti 3:11
Jeshua: Ezr 2:2, Ezr 3:2, Ezr 5:2, 1Ch 6:14, 1Ch 6:15, Neh 12:10, Hag 1:1, Zec 3:1, Joshua
Maaseiah: Neh 8:4, Neh 8:7
Reciprocal: Lev 16:6 – for himself Ezr 9:2 – taken of their Ezr 10:13 – the people Ezr 10:25 – Moreover of Israel Mal 2:12 – the master and the scholar
Ezr 10:18-19. Among the sons of the priests there were found, &c. No wonder the people broke the law, when so many of those who were supposed to understand it best, namely, the priests, yea, some of the sons of the high-priest, set them such a foul example of lust and levity. And they gave their hands They covenanted or swore by giving their hands, which was the usual ceremony in such cases, to put away their strange wives, and avoid such offences in future. Offered a ram of the flock for their trespass Hereby confessing their guilt, and the desert of it, humbly suing for pardon, and taking the prescribed way of obtaining it, by bringing the trespass-offering appointed in the law, Lev 6:6. All those named to the end of Ezr 10:22, were priests, who, being deep in this guilt, and public persons, imboldened others to go fearlessly into the same sin.
Ezr 10:18-44. A List of those who had Married Foreign Wives.These include seventeen priests, together with Levites, singers, and doorkeepers, and also laymen.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible