Ezra 10 Study Notes
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10:1 The term confessed is from a Hebrew verb (yadah) that usually means “to praise, to give thanks.” But in this Hebrew form (hithpael), it has the connotation of “confessing” (see Lv 5:5), as God is praised when his people acknowledge their sin and guilt before him.
10:2-4 Shecaniah’s radical solution of sending away the foreign wives and their children was not an expression of ethnic prejudice but an act to insure the survival of God’s covenant people (9:14). The translation here follows most modern translations in reading “my lord” (Hb ’adoni) rather than the Masoretic Text “Lord” (Hb ’adonay). The context suggests that Shecaniah was referring to Ezra and not to God.
10:5-6 The term for unfaithfulness and the verb “have been unfaithful” in v. 2 are from the root m`l, which according to one Hebrew lexicon designates “breaking or violation of religious law as a conscious act of treachery.” According to Ezk 39:23 it was the cause of the exile.
10:7-8 Joseph Blenkinsopp suggests the size of the Persian province of Yehud (Judah) was “no more than about thirty-five miles north to south and twenty-five miles east to west.” Thus the three-day notice was sufficient time to notify the entire populace and for them to travel to Jerusalem. The term forfeit (Hb charam) is the word used in the OT to put something under the “ban,” as were cities during the time of Joshua that were totally destroyed. It can also refer to things that were totally consecrated to divine use, as in the case of Achan (Jos 6-7), who stole items under the ban.
10:9 The threats for noncompliance with the proclamation had their desired effect. All the men of Judah and Benjamin met on the twentieth day of the ninth month—December 458 BC.
10:10-11 Again (see note on 10:5-6) the act is described as unfaithfulness. Ezra calls them first to make a confession (see Jos 7:19), a phrase that usually means “give thanks.”
10:12-15 It is significant that the people asked that individual cases of foreign marriage be handled by leaders (Hb sar) and not by priests who would seem to be the most likely ones to deal with these decisions. Since many priests were some of the worst offenders (vv. 18-22; 9:1), this disqualified them in the eyes of the people, who preferred to have respected family leaders (10:16) deal with this issue.
nokri
| Hebrew pronunciation | [nok REE] |
| CSB translation | foreign |
| Uses in Ezra | 7 |
| Uses in the OT | 46 |
| Focus passage | Ezra 10:2,10-11,14,17-18,44 |
Nokri, from nakar (recognize, be foreign), is synonymous with zar (strange). The words occur together as nouns or adjectives (11x); nokri implies unfamiliar (Is 28:21), foreigners (Ob 11), wayward woman (Pr 2:16; 23:27), or stranger (Pr 27:2) where zar is, respectively, “strange,” “strangers,” “forbidden,” and “another.” Nokri connotes outsider (Gn 31:15). It usually indicates foreigners (Ru 2:10), such as Moabite, Edomite, and Hittite women whom Israelites improperly married (Ezr 10:2; 1Kg 11:1). Some foreigners worshiped God (2Ch 6:32), but most were idolaters (1Kg 11:8). They could be charged interest (Dt 23:20) and remained debtors after the year of remission (Dt 15:3). Related nekar (foreignness) occurs (36x) as foreigners, literally “sons of foreignness.” Foreigners could not celebrate Passover (Ex 12:43). Nekar as foreign had negative connotations (Neh 13:30), especially in the phrase foreign gods (2Ch 33:15). Nekar suggests pagan (2Ch 14:3).
10:16-17 The family heads selected by Ezra probably met from December 29, 458 to March 27, 457 BC.
10:18-44 The list of offenders, which concludes the book of Ezra, reflects a “top down” progression that begins with the high priest’s own family (vv. 18-19). If the population of Judah at that time was more than 30,000 people and only 113 people were identified as involved in the sin of intermarriage, this would be only one-third of one percent of the population. A number of suggestions have been offered for the surprising brevity of the list, among them: (1) only a partial list has been preserved, (2) only those found guilty of the charge of intermarriage are listed, and (3) only those who were found guilty and followed through by putting away their foreign wives and children are listed.
While there is no certainty on the exact nature of the list, it is clear that Ezra’s ministry did not end the problem of intermarriage. About thirty years later Nehemiah confronted it once again (Neh 13:23-29). The list in Ezr 10, like other OT lists, has variant names and variant spellings of some names.
10:18-19 The first four offenders were of the priestly family of Jedaiah (2:36). These priests vowed to put away their foreign wives and offered a ram from the flock for their guilt. While this action is recorded only here in reference to the priests, it is probable that this was the pattern for all who were found guilty.
10:20-22 Offenders from the three other priestly families (Immer, Pashhur, and Harim) represented in the return (2:37-39) are listed.
10:34 The second mention (v. 29) of the family name Bani is unusual since family names were usually unique and served as identifiers for their descendants. Some scholars suggest that the text originally read “Bigvai,” a person mentioned in the return (2:14) and later in 8:14. The name Uel does not occur anywhere else in the OT. A variant of “Uel” is Joel.
10:40 The name Machnadebai is probably not a Hebrew name and is found nowhere else in the OT. Its position in the verse may suggest that it originally designated a family group, possibly “Zaccai’s descendants” (2:9).
10:44 The abrupt ending of the book of Ezra, with no summations or conclusions, is attributable to the fact that Ezra was originally joined with Nehemiah. This was not originally a closing to a book, but merely a closing to the section on Ezra’s early ministry. The focus then shifted to Nehemiah, who, like Ezra, faithfully served God.