Shecaniah’s Encouragement

1Whiles Ezra prayed thus, and confessed himselfe weeping, and falling downe before the house of God, there assembled vnto him of Israel a very great Congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept with a great lamentation. 2Then Shechaniah the sonne of Iehiel one of the sonnes of Elam answered, & sayd to Ezra, We haue trespassed against our God, & haue taken strange wiues of the people of the land, yet nowe there is hope in Israel concerning this. 3Now therfore let vs make a couenant with our God, to put away all the wiues (and such as are borne of them) according to the counsell of the Lord, and of those that feare the commandements of our God, and let it be done according to the Lawe. 4Arise: for the matter belogeth vnto thee: we also wil be with thee: be of comfort and do it.

5Then arose Ezra, and caused the chiefe Priestes, the Leuites, and all Israel, to sweare that they would doe according to this worde. So they sware.

The People’s Confession of Sin

6And Ezra rose vp from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Iohanan the sonne of Eliashib: he went euen thither, but he did eate neither bread, nor drunke water: for he mourned, because of the transgression of them of the captiuitie. 7And they caused a proclamation to goe throughout Iudah and Ierusalem, vnto all them of the captiuitie, that they should assemble themselues vnto Ierusalem. 8And whosoeuer woulde not come within three dayes according to the counsel of the Princes & Elders, all his substance should be forfait, & he should be separate from the Congregation of them of the captiuitie.

9Then all the men of Iudah & Beniamin assembled theselues vnto Ierusalem within three dayes, which was the twentieth day of the ninth moneth, and all the people sate in the streete of the house of God, trembling for this matter, and for the raine. 10And Ezra the Priest stoode vp, & said vnto them, Ye haue transgressed, & haue taken strange wiues, to increase the trespasse of Israel. 11Now therefore giue praise vnto the Lord God of your fathers, and do his will, and separate your selues from the people of the land, and from the strange wiues. 12And all the Congregation answered, and sayd with a loude voyce, So will we do according to thy wordes vnto vs. 13But the people are many, and it is a raynie weather, and we are not able to stande without, neither is it the worke of one day or two: for we are many that haue offended in this thing. 14Let our rulers stand therefore before all the Congregation, & let all them which haue taken strange wiues in our cities, come at the time appoynted, & with them the Elders of euery citie and the Iudges thereof, til the fierce wrath of our God for this matter turne away from vs. 15Then were appoynted Ionathan the sonne of Asah-el, & Iahaziah the sonne of Tikuah ouer this matter, and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Leuites helped them.

16And they of the captiuitie did so, & departed, euen Ezra the Priest, & the men that were chiefe fathers to the familie of their fathers by name, and sate downe in the first day of the tenth moneth to examine the matter. 17And vntill the first day of the first moneth they were finishing the businesse with al the men that had taken strange wiues.

Those Guilty of Intermarriage

18And of the sonnes of the Priests there were men founde, that had taken strange wiues, to wit, of the sonnes of Ieshua, the sonne of Iozadak, & of his brethren, Maaseiah, Aeliezer, and Iarib and Gedaliah. 19And they gaue their hads, that they would put away their wiues, & they that had trespassed, gaue a ramme for their trespasse. 20And of the sonnes of Immer, Honani, and Zebadiah. 21And of the sonnes of Harim, Maaseiah, & Eliiah, and Shemaiah, and Iehiel, and Vzziah. 22And of ye sonnes of Pashur, Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethaneel, Iozabad, and Elasah.

23And of the Leuites, Iozabad and Shimei, and Kelaiah, (which is Kelitah) Pethahiah, Iudah and Eliezer.

24And of the singers, Eliashib; of the porters, Shallum, and Telem, and Vri.

25And of Israel: of the sonnes of Parosh, Ramiah, and Iesiah, and Malchiah, and Miamin, and Eleazar, and Malchiiah, and Benaiah. 26And of the sonnes of Elam, Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Iehiel, and Abdi, and Ieremoth, and Eliah. 27And of the sonnes of Zattu, Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Ierimoth, and Zabad, and Aziza. 28And of the sonnes of Bebai, Iehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, Athlai. 29And of the sonnes of Bani, Meshullam, Malluch, & Adaiah, Iashub, and Sheal, Ieramoth. 30And of the sonnes of Pahath Moab, Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh. 31And of the sonnes of Harim, Eliezer, Ishiiah, Malchiah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, 32Beniamin, Malluch, Shamariah. 33Of the sonnes of Hashum, Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Ieremai, Manasseh, Shimei. 34Of the sonnes of Bani, Maadai, Amram, and Vel, 35Banaiah, Bediah, Chelluh, 36Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, 37Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Iaasau, 38And Banni, and Bennui, Shimei, 39And Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah, 40Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42Shallum, Amariah, Ioseph. 43Of the sonnes of Nebo, Ieiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Iadau, and Ioel, Benaiah. 44All these had taken strange wiues: and among them were women that had children.