Tag: gathered to Him

Ezra 10:1  While Ezra prayed and made confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men, women, and children, gathered to him out of Israel, for the people wept bitterly. And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, of the sons of Elam, addressed Ezra: “We have broken faith with our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land, but even now there is hope for Israel in spite of this. Therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God, and let it be done according to the Law. Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be strong and do it.” Then Ezra arose and made the leading priests and Levites and all Israel take an oath that they would do as had been said. So they took the oath.

Then Ezra withdrew from before the house of God and went to the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib, where he spent the night, neither eating bread nor drinking water, for he was mourning over the faithlessness of the exiles. And a proclamation was made throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the returned exiles that they should assemble at Jerusalem, and that if anyone did not come within three days, by order of the officials and the elders all his property should be forfeited, and he himself banned from the congregation of the exiles.

Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled at Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month. And all the people sat in the open square before the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. And Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have broken faith and married foreign women, and so increased the guilt of Israel. Now then make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.” Then all the assembly answered with a loud voice, “It is so; we must do as you have said. But the people are many, and it is a time of heavy rain; we cannot stand in the open. Nor is this a task for one day or for two, for we have greatly transgressed in this matter. Let our officials stand for the whole assembly. Let all in our cities who have taken foreign wives come at appointed times, and with them the elders and judges of every city, until the fierce wrath of our God over this matter is turned away from us.” Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah opposed this, and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite supported them.

Then the returned exiles did so. Ezra the priest selected men, heads of fathers’ houses, according to their fathers’ houses, each of them designated by name. On the first day of the tenth month they sat down to examine the matter; and by the first day of the first month they had come to the end of all the men who had married foreign women.

In Chapter 9 Ezra became aware of the sin and now, in chapter 10 he confronts it head-on with the people.  People wept bitterly when Ezra spoke of the sin.  Ezra called out the sin, the people were convicted, and he spoke of making it right. “We have broken faith with God but even now there is hope for us”.   This sin problem was not just with common folks but with the leaders who were in Jerusalem.  With hearts raw from Holy Spirit conviction and given hope the leaders called for a meeting of all the people within three days.  This was a mandatory meeting for all.  Note, if anyone did not show up they would forfeit their land and be banned.  People came and sat in the square trembling because of this and it was raining.  No rain delay, no rain check for another day.  It was rain or shine open-air mandatory meeting.  The sin issue was so big and personally complicated that, not to mention the rain, that a decision was made to meet with each city official 10 days later to fully assess the magnitude and take note of all who had taken the foreign woman as wives. Within two months they had reported that all the men who had married foreign women had taken care and followed through on their commitment to God.

Sin has a way to slide into our culture because we allow it.  It comes in with one person defending that it is right and ok to do and then more and more people just buy into it.  Sin feeds our self-centered interests and seems right in our own eyes.  Do you ever wonder how this happens?  Intentional commitment to God is not made.  Whole heart, mind, and soul and strength are given to self and that what pleases self.  Humbly serving, honoring, following, glorifying, trusting, and obeying God is nothing more than lip service as a result of neglecting God’s word.  These all happen when we become complacent and turn our back and close our eyes and ears to God.  It happens when things of this world are put in front of serving God with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength.  We do well to take inventory of where our heart, mind, and thoughts are spending their time. Be mindful of the pull this world has to try to draw you away from serving whole heartily committed to God.  We do well to make a covenant with our heart, mind, and soul to humbly serve, honor, trust, and obey God and to make serving Him the reason and purpose of every day.