7 After these events, during the reign of Artach’shashta king of Persia, ‘Ezra the son of S’rayah, the son of ‘Azaryah, the son of Hilkiyah, ² the son of Shalum, the son of Tzadok, the son of Achituv, ³ the son of Amaryah, the son of ‘Azaryah, the son of M’rayot, ⁴ the son of Z’rachyah, the son of ‘Uzi, the son of Buki, ⁵ the son of Avishua, the son of Pinchas, the son of Eli‘ezer, the son of Aharon the cohen hagadol — ⁶ this ‘Ezra went up from Bavel. He was a scribe, expert in the Torah of Moshe, which Adonai the God of Isra’el had given; and the king granted him everything he asked for, since the hand of Adonai his God was on him.

⁷ In the seventh year of Artach’shashta the king, some of the people of Isra’el, and some of the cohanim, L’vi’im, singers, gatekeepers and temple servants went up to Yerushalayim. ⁸ [‘Ezra] arrived at Yerushalayim in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king. ⁹ He began going up to Yerushalayim from Bavel on the first day of the first month and arrived on the first day of the fifth month, since the good hand of his God was on him. ¹⁰ For ‘Ezra had set his heart on studying and practicing the Torah of Adonai and teaching Isra’el the laws and rulings.

¹¹ Here is the letter that King Artach’shashta gave ‘Ezra the cohen and Torah-teacher, the student of matters relating to Adonai’s mitzvot and his laws for Isra’el:

“To: ‘Ezra the cohen, scribe of the law of the God of heaven, etc.:

“Herewith ¹³ I decree that everyone in my realm who belongs to the people of Isra’el, including their cohanim and L’vi’im, who, of his own free will, chooses to go with you to Yerushalayim, should go. ¹⁴ You are being sent by the king and his seven counselors to inquire how the law of your God, of which you have expert knowledge, is being applied in Y’hudah and Yerushalayim. ¹⁵ You are also to bring with you the silver and gold which the king and his counselors have voluntarily offered to the God of Isra’el, whose dwelling is in Yerushalayim; ¹⁶ together with all the silver and gold you receive throughout the province of Bavel and the voluntary offerings of the people and the cohanim that have been offered willingly for the house of their God in Yerushalayim.

²⁷ Blessed be Adonai, the God of our ancestors, who has put such a thing as this in the heart of the king, to restore the beauty of the house of Adonai in Yerushalayim, ²⁸ and has extended mercy to me before the king and his counselors, and before all the king’s most powerful officials.

So I took courage, since the hand of Adonai my God was on me, and I gathered together out of Isra’el key men to go up with me.

8 These are the heads of their fathers’ clans, and this is the genealogy of those who went up with me from Bavel during the reign of Artach’shashta the king:

¹⁵ I assembled them by the river that runs to Ahava, and we camped there three days. I reviewed the people and the cohanim but found no L’vi’im there. ¹⁶ So I sent for Eli‘ezer, Ari’el, Sh’ma‘yah, Elnatan, Yariv, Elnatan, Natan, Z’kharyah and Meshulam, who were leaders, and also for Yoyariv and Elnatan, who were men of discernment. ¹⁷ I gave them instructions for Iddo, the leading man in a place called Kasifya, and told them what to say to Iddo and his brother, who were in charge of Kasifya, so that they would bring us men to minister in the house of our God. ¹⁸ Since the good hand of our God was on us, they brought us Ish-Sekhel from the descendants of Machli the son of Levi, the son of Isra’el; Sherevyah with eighteen of his sons and kinsmen; ¹⁹ Hashavyah, with Yesha‘yah, from the descendants of M’rari, and twenty of his kinsmen and their sons; ²⁰ and from the temple servants, whom David and the princes had assigned to serve the L’vi’im, two hundred temple servants, all recorded by name.

²¹ Then, there at the Ahava River, I proclaimed a fast; so that we could humble ourselves before our God and ask a safe journey of him for ourselves, our little ones and all our possessions. ²² For I would have been ashamed to ask the king for a detachment of soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies along the road, since we had said to the king, “The hand of our God is on all who seek him, for good; but his power and fury is against all who abandon him.” ²³ So we fasted and asked our God for this, and he answered our prayer.

²⁴ Then I separated twelve of the chief cohanim, along with Sherevyah, Hashavyah and ten of their kinsmen. ²⁵ I weighed out to them the silver, the gold and the utensils for the house of our God contributed by the king, his counselors, his princes and all Isra’el present there. ²⁶ I weighed out and handed over to them twenty-one-and-a-half tons of silver, three-and-a-third tons of silver articles, three-and-a-third tons of gold, ²⁷ twenty gold bowls weighing twenty-one pounds, and two vessels of fine burnished bronze as precious as gold. ²⁸ Then I told them, “You are consecrated to Adonai, the articles are holy, and the silver and gold are a voluntary offering for Adonai the God of your ancestors. ²⁹ Guard them carefully, until you weigh them before the chief cohanim and L’vi’im and the leaders of the fathers’ clans in Yerushalayim, in the rooms of the house of Adonai.” ³⁰ So the cohanim and L’vi’im received the consignment of silver and gold and the articles to bring to Yerushalayim, to the house of our God.

³¹ On the twelfth day of the first month, we left the Ahava River to go to Yerushalayim. The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and surprise attacks along the road. ³² In time, we arrived at Yerushalayim, where we rested for three days. ³³ On the fourth day, the silver, gold and articles were weighed in the house of our God and handed over to M’remot the son of Uriyah the cohen; with him was El‘azar the son of Pinchas; and with them were Yozavad the son of Yeshua and No‘adyah the son of Binui, who were L’vi’im. ³⁴ The entire consignment was numbered and weighed, and at the same time the total weight was recorded.

³⁵ The exiles who had returned from captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Isra’el — twelve young bulls for all Isra’el, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and twelve male goats as a sin offering; all this was a burnt offering for Adonai.

³⁶ They also delivered the king’s orders to the king’s viceroys and governors beyond the [Euphrates] River; and these gave their support to the people and to the house of God.

9 After these things had been done, the leaders approached me and said, “The people of Isra’el, the cohanim and the L’vi’im have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands and their disgusting practices — the Kena‘ani, Hitti, P’rizi, Y’vusi, ‘Amoni, Mo’avi, Egyptians and Emori. ² They have taken some of the women from these nations as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed has assimilated to the peoples of the lands; moreover, the officials and leaders have been the main offenders in this treachery.” ³ When I heard this, I tore my robe and tunic, pulled hair from my head and beard, and sat down in shock. ⁴ All who trembled at the words of the God of Isra’el assembled around me when confronted with the treachery of these exiles; and I sat there in shock until the evening offering.

⁵ At the evening offering, with my cloak and tunic torn, I got up from afflicting myself, fell on my knees, spread out my hands to Adonai my God, ⁶ and said, “My God, I am ashamed. I blush to lift my face to you, my God! For our sins tower over our heads; our guilt reaches up to heaven. ⁷ Since the times of our ancestors, we have been deeply guilty; and because of our sins, we, our kings and our cohanim have been handed over to the kings of the lands, to the sword, to exile, to pillage and to disgrace, as is the case today. ⁸ Now, for a brief moment, Adonai our God has shown us the favor of allowing a remnant to escape and giving us a secure foothold in his holy place, in order for God to make things look brighter to us and revive us a little in our slavery. ⁹ For we are slaves. Yet our God has not abandoned us in our slavery, but has caused the kings of Persia to extend grace to us, reviving us, so that we can rebuild the house of our God, repair its ruins, and have a wall of defense in Y’hudah and Yerushalayim.

¹⁰ “But now, our God, what are we to say after this? For we have abandoned your mitzvot, ¹¹ which you gave us through your servants the prophets when they said, ‘The land which you are going to in order to take possession of it is a land defiled by the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, because of their disgusting practices, which have filled it with their filth from one end to the other. ¹² Therefore, you are not to give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons; and you are not to promote their peace or prosperity ever. Only in this way will you grow strong, enjoy the good things of the land and leave it as a lasting inheritance to your children.’ ¹³ Now, after all that has come upon us because of our evil deeds and our deep guilt — and even so, you, our God, have punished us less than our sins deserve and have given us a surviving remnant — ¹⁴ are we to break your mitzvot again by making marriages with the peoples who have these disgusting practices? Won’t you become so angry with us that you would destroy us completely, so that there would be no surviving remnant and no one who escapes? ¹⁵ Adonai, God of Isra’el! You are just; yet we have been left a surviving remnant that has escaped, as is the case today. Look, we are before you in our guilt; because of it, no one can stand in your presence.”

10 While ‘Ezra was praying and making confession, weeping and prostrated before the house of God, a huge crowd of Isra’el’s men, women and children gathered around him; and the people were weeping bitterly. ² Sh’khanyah the son of Yechi’el, one of the descendants of ‘Eilam, spoke up and said to ‘Ezra, “We have acted treacherously toward our God by marrying foreign women from the peoples of the land. But in spite of this, there is still hope for Isra’el. ³ We should make a covenant with our God to send away all these wives, along with their children, in obedience to the advice of Adonai and of those who tremble at the mitzvah of our God; let us act in accordance with the Torah. ⁴ Stand up, and do your duty, for we are with you; take courage, and do it!”

⁵ ‘Ezra stood up, and he made the chief cohanim, the L’vi’im and all Isra’el swear that they would act according to what had been said; and they took the oath. ⁶ ‘Ezra then left his place in front of the house of God and went to the room of Y’hochanan the son of Elyashiv. After going there, he neither ate food nor drank water; because he was mourning over the treachery of the exiles.

⁷ A proclamation was issued throughout Y’hudah and Yerushalayim that all the exiles were to assemble in Yerushalayim; ⁸ and that whoever didn’t come within three days, in answer to the summons from the officials and leaders, would forfeit all he owned and himself be banished from the community of the exiles. ⁹ All the men of Y’hudah and Binyamin assembled in Yerushalayim within the three days. It was the twentieth day of the ninth month. All the people sat in the open place in front of the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. ¹⁰ ‘Ezra the cohen stood up and addressed them: “You have acted treacherously by marrying foreign women and have thus increased Isra’el’s guilt. ¹¹ Now, therefore, make confession to Adonai, the God of your ancestors; and do what will please him by separating yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign women.” ¹² In response, the whole assembly cried aloud, “Yes, our duty is to do as you have said. ¹³ But there are many people, and it’s the rainy season — we can’t stay out here in the open. Also, it isn’t the work of a day or two; for there are many of us who have committed this crime. ¹⁴ Let our leaders represent the whole community; and let all those in our cities who have married foreign women appear at prearranged times, accompanied by the elders and judges of each city; until our God’s fierce anger over this has been turned away from us.” ¹⁵ Only Yonatan the son of ‘Asah’el and Yachz’yah the son of Tikvah, supported by Meshulam and Shabtai the Levi, opposed this.

¹⁶ The exiles did as agreed. ‘Ezra the cohen chose heads of fathers’ clans by name, and they began their sessions to look into the matter on the first day of the tenth month. ¹⁷ They finished dealing with all the men who had married foreign women by the first day of the first month.

¹⁸ Among the cohanim were found these who had married foreign women: of the sons of Yeshua the son of Yotzadak and his brothers: Ma‘aseiyah, Eli‘ezer, Yariv and G’dalyah. ¹⁹ They promised that they would send their wives away; and since they were guilty, they offered a ram from the flock for their guilt. ²⁰ Of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Z’vadyah; ²¹ of the sons of Harim: Ma‘aseiyah, Eliyah, Sh’ma‘yah, Yechi’el and ‘Uziyah; ²² of the sons of Pash’chur: Elyo‘einai, Ma‘aseiyah, Yishma‘el, N’tan’el, Yozavad and El‘asah.

²³ Of the L’vi’im: Yozavad, Shim‘i, K’layah (also known as K’lita), P’tachyah, Y’hudah and Eli‘ezer.

²⁴ Of the singers: Elyashiv.

Of the gatekeepers: Shalum, Telem and Uri.

²⁵ Of Isra’el: of the descendants of Par‘osh: Ramyah, Yizziyah, Malkiyah, Miyamin, El‘azar, Malkiyah and B’nayah; ²⁶ of the descendants of ‘Eilam: Mattanyah, Z’kharyah, Yechi’el, ‘Avdi, Yeremot and Eliyah; ²⁷ of the descendants of Zatu: Elyo‘einai, Elyashiv, Mattanyah, Yeremot, Zavad and ‘Aziza; ²⁸ of the descendants of B’vai: Y’hochanan, Hananyah, Zabai and ‘Atlai; ²⁹ of the descendants of Bani: Meshulam, Malukh, ‘Adayah, Yashuv, Sh’al and Ramot; ³⁰ of the descendants of Pachat-Mo’av: ‘Adna, K’lal, B’nayah, Ma‘aseiyah, Mattanyah, B’tzal’el, Binui and M’nasheh; ³¹ of the descendants of Harim: Eli‘ezer, Yishiyah, Malkiyah, Sh’ma‘yah, Shim‘on, ³² Binyamin, Malukh, and Sh’maryah; ³³ of the descendants of Hashum: Matnai, Matatah, Zavad, Elifelet, Yeremai, M’nasheh and Shim‘i; ³⁴ of the descendants of Bani: Ma‘adai, ‘Amram, U’el, ³⁵ B’nayah, Bedyah, K’luhu, ³⁶ Vanyah, M’remot, Elyashiv, ³⁷ Mattanyah, Matnai, Ya‘asai, ³⁸ Bani, Binui, Shim‘i, ³⁹ Shelemyah, Natan, ‘Adayah, ⁴⁰ Makhnavdai, Shashai, Sharai, ⁴¹ ‘Azar’el, Shelemyah, Sh’maryah, ⁴² Shalum, Amaryah and Yosef; and ⁴³ of the descendants of N’vo: Ye‘i’el, Mattityah, Zavad, Z’vina, Yadai, Yo’el and B’nayah.

⁴⁴ All these had taken foreign wives, and some of them had wives by whom they had had children.