Ezra 9
REFORMATION OF RELIGION ACCOMPLISHED BY
EZRA AT
In the interval between Zerubbabel’s
rule and the coming of Ezra from
Jews seem to have been left without any strong controlling
authority. The
civil administration devolved upon a certain number of chiefs or
“princes,”
who
maintained order in
to
the Persian crown, and held courts to decide all causes, criminal and
civil, in which only Jews were concerned. Tranquility and order
were
sufficiently maintained in this way; but the governing power was weak,
and
in
matters outside the range of the civil and criminal law men did pretty
nearly like as in the time of the Judges, “as it seemed good in their own
eyes.”
During this interval of governmental debility, it appears
that a fusion had begun
between the Jews and the neighboring nations. Although the law of Moses
distinctly forbade intermarriage between the people of God and the
idolatrous
nations whose land they had inherited, and by implication
forbade such unions
with any neighboring idolaters, the newly-returned Israelites, perhaps not fully
provided with women of their own nation and religion, had taken to
themselves wives freely from the idolatrous tribes and nations in their
vicinity. They had
intermarried with the Ammonites, the Moabites, the
Amorites, the Egyptians, and even with the
remnant of the Canaanites. Not
only had this been done by the common people, but “the hand of the
princes and rulers” had
been “chief
in this trespass” (v. 2). Nor had
even
the sacerdotal order kept itself pure. Priests and Levites, nay, the
actual sons and nephews of the high priest Jeshua
himself, were guilty in
the
matter (ch. 10:18),
had taken to themselves wives of the accursed
races, and “mingled themselves with the people of the
lands” (v. 2).
The danger to purity of religion was great. Those who
married
idolatrous wives were tempted, like Solomon, to connive at their
introducing unhallowed rites into the holy city; while the issue of
such
marriages, influenced by their mothers, were apt to prefer
heathenism to
Judaism, and to fall
away from the faith altogether. A fusion of the Jews
with
the Gentiles in
obliteration of the Jews, who would have been absorbed and swallowed up
in
the far larger mass of the heathen without materially affecting it. Thus
God’s purpose in singling out a “peculiar
people” would have been
frustrated, and the world left without a regenerating
element.
Considerations of this kind help us to understand the
horror of Ezra when
he
understood what had taken place (vs.3-6; ch.10:1), and enable us
to
estimate at its right value the zeal that he displayed in putting down the
existing practice and establishing a better order of things. His
task was
lightened to him by the fact that a large religious and patriotic
party rallied
to
him, and associated itself with his reforms; a party including many of the
princes and elders (v.1; ch.10:8), and no doubt a certain number of
the
priests. He effected his reform by means of a
commission of laymen
(ch.10:16), which in the space of little more than three
months
inquired into all the suspected cases, and compelled every person
who had
married an idolatrous wife to
divorce her, and send her back, with any
children that she had borne him, to her own people. Thus, for the time, the
corruption was effectually checked, the evil rooted out and removed.
We
shall find, however, in Nehemiah, that it recurred in Nehemiah
13:23),
in
combination with various other abuses, and had to be once more resisted
and
repressed by the civil power (ibid. v. 30). This section is divisible
into ten parts:
1. The complaint made
by the princes to Ezra concerning the mixed
marriages (vs. 1-2);
2. Ezra’s astonishment
and horror (vs. 3-4);
3. His confession and
prayer to God (vs. 5-15);
4. Repentance of the
people, and covenant sworn to, on the
recommendation of Shechaniah (ch. 10:1-5);
5. Ezra’s fast (ibid.
v. 6);
6. Proclamation
summoning all the Jews to
7. Address of Ezra,
and consent of the people to put away the strange
wives (ibid. vs. 10-14);
8. Opposition of
Jonathan and others (ibid. v. 15);
9. Accomplishment of
the work (ibid. vs. 16-17); and
10. Names of those who
had married strange wives (ibid. vs. 18-44).
COMPLAINT OF THE
PRINCES TO EZRA
(vs. 1-2)
It is remarkable that complaint on a matter of religious
transgression should
have come from the secular, and not from the ecclesiastical, authorities of
the
city. But there clearly appears about this time some
remissness and
connivance at evil, if not even participation in it, on the part of the
chief
ecclesiastics. On this particular
occasion, actual sons and nephews of
Jeshua the high priest were among those who had married
idolatrous wives
(ch.10:18), and afterwards, in Nehemiah’s time, not only
did the high
priest’s family indulge in similar alliances in Nehemiah 13:4, 28),
but
Eliashib actually assigned to one of the heathen, and one who was a
bitter
opponent of Nehemiah, a chamber in the temple itself (ibid. vs.
5, 9).
When the heads of the sacerdotal order were themselves
implicated in the
abuses prevalent, it was perhaps not unnatural, though highly
reprehensible, that the inferior
clergy should be silent and stand aloof. By
God’s good providence, however, it often happens that when things have
come to this pass, and the priestly order is hopelessly
corrupt, godly
princes are raised up to take in hand religious reforms and
carry them to a
successful issue.
1 “Now
when these things were done, the princes came to me, saying,
The people of
separated themselves from the people of the lands,
doing according
to their abominations, even of the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the
Perizzites, the Jebusites,
the Ammonites, the Moabites, the
Egyptians, and the Amorites.” When these things
were done.
It must have
been some considerable time afterwards. Ezra reached
day
of the
fifth month (ch.7:9), rested three days (ch.8:32), and on the
fourth day of the same month made over the vessels to the temple
authorities. It was not till the seventeenth day of the ninth month
that, on
Ezra’s motion, the matter of the mixed marriages was taken
in hand
(ch.10:8-9). Yet we cannot suppose that action was long
delayed
after the matter came to Ezra’s knowledge. The princes. The civil heads
of
the community, whom Ezra found at the head of affairs on his arrival,
and
whose authority he did not wholly supersede (see ch.10:14, 16).
The
people of the lands. The idolatrous nations inhabiting the districts
adjoining
Ammonites on the east; Canaanites probably towards the
north and the
northwest. Doing
according to their abominations. Rather, “in respect
of
their abominations.” The complaint was not so much that the Jews had
as
yet actually adopted idolatrous functions, as that they did
not keep
themselves wholly aloof from them. The foreign
wives would introduce
idolatrous rites into their very houses.
2 “For
they have taken of their daughters for themselves, and for their
sons: so that the holy seed have mingled
themselves with the
people of those lands: yea, the hand of the
princes and rulers hath
been chief in this trespass.” The holy seed. Compare Isaiah 6:13. The
“seed of
“holy” by profession,
by call, by obligation, by prophetic announcement.
They were “a kingdom of
priests, a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6);
bound to be
“separated from all the people
that were on the face of the earth”
(Ibid. ch.33:16), and to keep themselves
a “peculiar people.” When
they mingled themselves with the
people of the lands, they not only
broke
a positive command (Deuteronomy 7:3), but did their best to
frustrate God’s entire purpose in respect of them, and to render all
that He
had done for
them of no effect. The hand of the princes and rulers hath
been chief in the
trespass. “Princes and rulers” are here opposed to
people of the middle and lower ranks. The upper classes, whether
clerical
or
lay, had been the chief offenders (see ch.10:18); and compare the
similar defection of
Jews of the upper classes in
Nehemiah’s time
(Nehemiah 6:17-18; 13:4, 28).
EZRA’S
ASTONISHMENT AND HORROR
(vs. 3-4).
In
heathen had not, it would seem, shown itself. Exiles in a foreign
land
naturally cling to each other under their adverse circumstances,
and,
moreover, being despised by those among whom they sojourn, are not
readily accepted by them into social fellowship, much less into
affinity and
alliance. Thus the thing was to Ezra a new thing. His familiarity
with the
Law, and, perhaps we may add, his insight into the grounds
upon which the
Law upon this point was founded, caused him to view the matter as one of
the gravest
kind, and to feel shocked and
horror-struck at what was told
him
respecting it. He showed his feelings with the usual openness and
abandon of an Oriental: first
rending both his outer and his inner garments,
then tearing his hair and his beard, and finally “sitting down astonied,”
motionless and speechless, until the time of the evening sacrifice. Such a
manifestation of horror and amazement was well calculated to impress
and
affect the sympathetic and ardent people over whom
placed him.
3 “And
when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and
plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard,
and sat down
astonied.” I rent my garment and my mantle. Rending the
clothes was
always, and still is, one of the commonest Oriental modes of
showing grief.
Reuben rent his clothes when his brothers sold Joseph to
the Midianites,
and
Jacob did the same when he believed that Joseph was dead
(Genesis 37:29, 34). Job “rent his
mantle” on learning the death of his
sons and daughters (Job 1:20); and his friends
“rent every one his
mantle when they came to
mourn with him and comfort him” (Ibid.
ch.2:11-12).
Rent clothes indicated that a messenger was a messenger of
woe
(I Samuel 4:12; II Samuel 1:2), or that a man had heard
something
that had greatly shocked him, and of which he wished to express his horror
(II Kings 18:37; Matthew 26:65). Ezra’s action is of this
last kind,
expressive of horror more than of grief, but perhaps in some degree
of
grief also. And plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard. These
are
somewhat unusual signs of grief among the Orientals, who were wont
to
shave the head in great mourning, but seldom tore the hair out by the
roots. The practice is not elsewhere mentioned in Scripture,
excepting in
the
apocryphal books (I Esdras 8:71; II Esdras 1:8; Apocrypha of Esther 4:2).
And
sat down astonied. Compare Daniel 4:19;
8:27, where the same
verb is used in the same sense.
4 “Then
were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words
of the God of
been carried away; and I sat astonied until the evening sacrifice.”
Then
were assembled unto me. The open manifestation by
Ezra of his grief and horror produced an immediate effect.
A crowd
assembled around him, attracted by the unusual sight — partly
sympathizing, partly no doubt curious. Every one came that trembled at
the words of the God
of
fearing persons (see Isaiah 66:2) as all who were alarmed at the
transgression of the commands of God (ch.10:3), and at the threats
which the Law contained against transgressors (Deuteronomy 7:4).
Because of the
transgression of those that had been carried away. The
transgression of “the children of
the captivity” (ch.4:1) — of those
who
had been removed to
I sat astonied until the evening sacrifice. As morning is the
time for
business in the East, we may assume that the princes had waited
upon Ezra
tolerably early in the day — before noon, at any rate — to
communicate
their intelligence. The evening sacrifice took place at three in
the afternoon.
Ezra must, therefore, either from the intensity of his own
feelings or with
the
view of impressing the people, have “sat astonied” — speechless
and
motionless — for several hours.
Spiritual Separation (vs. 1-4)
SPIRITUAL LIFE.
The Israelites must separate themselves from the
people of the land (v. 1). This separation is not:
Ř
local. The Israelites
and Canaanites must live in the same world, in the
same town, and often in the same house.
Ř
political. Both the
Israelites and the Canaanites must act their part as
citizens of the same state.
Ř
commercial. The Israelites have
to do business with the Canaanites.
This separation is:
Ř
spiritual. The good man is
separate from the world by the moral
dispositions and aims which are cherished by him; so that while he is
in the same place, state, and business, he is of a different mind, temper,
and character. Why must the good man thus separate himself from the
world? True, he has
sympathy with his comrades; he shares their
manhood; he does not leave it in pride, or in sullenness;
o
That he may
maintain the dignity of the
Christian life. The
Israelites were the
followers of Jehovah, and could not place
themselves on the same platform with idolaters. There is a moral
dignity about religion which must not be sacrificed by undue
familiarity with the common things of the world. There is a
dignity in the Divine name, in the cross of Christ, in spiritual
devotion, in the truth of the gospel, in
the hopes of the believer,
which the good man must maintain, which is likely to be
forfeited in worldly companionships. THE SACRED THINGS
OF GOD must not be profaned
by worldly associations.
The rose must not cast in its
lot with the nettle.
o
That he may
exemplify the purity of the
Christian life. The
land of the people was unclean (v. 11).
contaminated by its abominations. The worldly life is sinful.
The Christian
life must be holy. Its commandments are holy.
Its SUPREME EXAMPLE
is sinless. Its duty is to manifest
the beauty of holiness, and to inculcate the pursuit of
piety.
In order to this it
must be SEPARATE FROM SINNERS!
o
That he may insure
the safety of the Christian
life. The
Israelites were exposed to
great danger by contact with the
heathen, and separation was their only safeguard. Piety
has no right to endanger itself by unholy associations;
separation is safety.
o
That he may
conserve the purposes of the
Christian life.
separation could it be accomplished;
separation
is
necessary to the moral design of the Church.
VIOLATED BY CHRISTIAN
MEN. It is difficult to separate
from
those amongst whom we live. It is not easy to avoid unholy
contact
with the people of the land who are so near to us. There are many
temptations which attract the
spiritual to the carnal. The people of
the land have daughters to give in marriage, they have oftentimes
prosperity and wealth; and these things are calculated to tempt the
godly into unholy alliance (v.
11). Great will be the condemnation
of those who yield to this solicitation.
TO THE PROSPERITY OF THE CHURCH. “That ye may be strong,
and eat the good of
the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your
children for ever” (v.
12); “But
their time should have endured for
ever.” Psalm 81:15).
EZRA’S CONFESSION AND PRAYER TO GOD
(vs. 5-15).
The most remarkable feature of Ezra’s confession is the
thoroughness with
which he identifies himself with his erring countrymen, blushes
for their
transgressions, and is ashamed for their misconduct. All their sins he
appears to consider as his sins, all their disobedience as his
disobedience,
all
their perils as his perils. Another striking feature is his sense of the
exceeding sinfulness of the particular sin of the time (see vs. 6-7, 10). He
views it as a “great trespass” — one that “is
grown up into the heavens” —
which is equivalent to a
complete forsaking of God’s commandments, and
on
account of which he and his people “cannot stand before” God. This
feeling seems based partly on the nature of the sin itself (v.
14), but also,
and
in an especial way, on a strong sense of the ingratitude shown by the
people in turning from God so soon after He had forgiven their
former sins
against Him, and allowed them to return from the captivity,
rebuild the
temple, and re-establish themselves as a nation. If after their
deliverance
they again fell away, the sin could not but be
unpardonable; and the
punishment to be expected was a final
uprooting and destruction from
which THERE
COULD BE NO RECOVERY! (vs. 13-14).
An Astounding Discovery (vs. 1-4)
The previous chapter ended with every appearance of peace.
The people
already at
one
mind. So far as the house and worship of Jehovah were concerned,
and,
therefore, so far as the welfare and prosperity of the returned remnant
were concerned, there did not appear to be a cloud in the sky. But we have
hardly begun this next chapter before we are in the midst of a
storm. On
the
one side we hear the language of
agitation and distress. On the other
we
see the silence of consternation and awe. Rightly to appreciate either
we
must dwell upon both. Let us ask:
(1) What was the origin of this cry of distress;
(2) what its exact nature;
(3) what its immediate results.
measure, to Ezra’s own arrival and influence. He had come to
avowedly (see ch.7:25) for the purpose of giving instruction, and,
where need was, of administering correction, in regard to that
Law of
Moses which he
had studied so well. As we read the
story, he had now
been something more than three months in the holy city (compare
ch.7:9, and
ch.10:8-9). During that time he
certainly had not been silent
as to the commands of that Law; but had doubtless both
explained and
inforced its
directions and warnings with a clearness and force that made it
in those comparatively bookless days almost a new thing in
Consider all that is implied in
this connection in Nehemiah 8:8. In the
case of many of the inhabitants of
effect. It would at once enlighten their understanding (Romans
3:20; 7:7)
and arouse their fears (II Chronicles 34:19-21). In
proportion,
also, as his work in these respects was made effectual by God’s
blessing, in
the same proportion would they be led to think and feel thus,
not only
about such open sins as Ezra might denounce by name, but also
about any
other offences which, from his position as a new-comer or other
causes,
might be known to themselves, but not to him. Violations of God’s law in
connection with the peculiar privacy of domestic life in the East would be
sins of this kind. It would be very difficult for Ezra, merely
by seeing the
heads of households in public, to know who might be found
connected
with them in the women’s apartments at home. Nor would he even
learn
this probably, in many cases, by seeing such men in their
homes, as he
would seldom, if ever, see the women themselves (see Genesis
18:9,
and compare “bring forth” in the margin of ch.
10:3). On the other hand,
amongst those who listened to him there would be many who, as
resident
in
Ezra was by position and
character, might be perfectly well aware of what
was thus unknown to himself. Such appears to have been the
case. Some of
his hearers knew of many marriages in
from his teaching, or else now felt more strongly than
previously, to be
contrary to God’s law. Such
men would naturally begin to speak of these
things to others like-minded, and afterwards would resolve with
them
unitedly on
bringing the subject before their teacher. It is thus, apparently,
that we find them speaking to him as in vs. 1-2 of this
chapter. Ezra had
influenced them to such an extent that they could not help informing
him
about all (compare Acts 19:18). That was clearly the first step.
What
steps should be taken afterwards they would learn from himself.
the facts of the case to Ezra there is much to be noticed. We
find, for
example, that in speaking of the sin of these mixed marriages they
acknowledge:
Ř
Its national bearing. “The people — the
priests and the Levites” —
the whole people, i.e., including even those who ought to have
been furthest from such a transgression, have been concerned in
this evil. Either by
example, in short, or else by connivance, we are
all guilty in this respect.
Ř
Its intrinsic wickedness. Wherein and why were
they bound to be
separated from the neighboring tribes? In respect of the
“abominations”
practiced by them, and because of the exceeding
danger to the Israelites themselves of pollution thereby. This may
be the reason why they make mention here of three other
nations
(viz.,
which are expressly mentioned in that part of the Law referred
to.
In their then present critical
and struggling condition there was
similar danger to them from these quarters as well. From all those
who “hated God” (see
II Chronicles 19:2) they rightly felt that
they ought to be separated in such times as theirs.
Ř
Its deadly character. Instead of being thus “separated”
from these
dangerous neighbors, they had
become united with them, in many
cases, in the most intimate possible way, viz., by admitting
the
daughters of these idolaters to be the mothers and teachers of the
Israel of the
future, to the utter
corruption in two ways of the
“holy seed” (see
Isaiah 6:13) of God’s people.
Ř
Its special aggravations. The very hands which “bare the sword”
(Romans 13:4), and ought to have
“restrained” and prevented this evil,
were those stained by it most. “The princes and rulers” have been
“chief in this trespass.”
These appear to have been even
more serious than the princes had expected.
Ř
On Ezra himself. What depth of grief
as evidenced by the violent
rending of both his outer and inner garment (vs. 3 and 5), more
even
than we read of in the case of Job (Job 1:20) after losing all
his
substance, and all his children as well. What depth of indignation
as
shown by the sudden injury done to himself, as it were, for being
identified with such a nation (compare somewhat similar case in
Nehemiah 13:25). What utter
bewilderment and terror, sitting down
in silence as one “stunned” and confounded, not
knowing, in such
circumstances, what to do or even to say. Nay, one had almost said,
what despair — so remaining, as in a kind of ecstasy, till all
who truly
sympathized with him in
to him.
Ř
On Ezra’s friends. What a picture of them is here presented to us. All
“trembling” like
Ezra himself. All silent, like Job’s friends, when first
they came to him and beheld his grief (Job 2:13). There are occasions
when silence says most.
It does so when it proclaims a sorrow to be too
overwhelming to allow of speech.
In such silence that afternoon passed,
till the hour for the evening sacrifice had arrived, and the
usual
preparations were being made for its solemn observance. But not till
that
sacrifice spoke to them, as it were, like a voice from heaven was
any
other voice heard. See,
in conclusion, from this passage:
o
How wide the grasp of God’s law. Even as given in a written
form, and with a peculiar minuteness of specification, in the
Pentateuch, we see that it
was rather a thing of principle than
precise enactment. Hence, in one way, its
“exceeding
breadth”
(Psalm 119:96), and its
applicability, as here, to analogous
cases as well as direct ones. Hence, also, the way in which we
read of it as being an object of “love” and “delight” (Psalm 1:2;
119:97, 113,
165, etc.). Those who love it ask not
how little,
but how much, it implies.
o
How subtle the infection of sin. There is danger even in being
witnesses of other men’s sins (Psalm 119:37). There is almost
certain contraction of guilt in anything like intimacy with evil
men. Observe on this
point the sixfold warning of Proverbs
4:14-16. No privileges, no
office, no rank secure exemption
from this peril.
o
How especially destructive the sins of
God’s people. What can be
said or done for those who “hold
the truth in unrighteousness”
(see
I Corinthians 5:11)? If it were not, in fact, for the voice of the
“sacrifice,” the “propitiation”
appointed even for such (I John
2:1-2), what must there be
for them but despair?
Spiritual Separation (vs. 1-4)
SPIRITUAL LIFE.
The Israelites must separate themselves from the
people of the land (v. 1). This separation is not:
Ř
local. The Israelites
and Canaanites must live in the same world, in the
same town, and often in the same house.
Ř
political. Both the
Israelites and the Canaanites must act their part as
citizens of the same state.
Ř
commercial. The Israelites have
to do business with the Canaanites.
This separation is:
Ř
spiritual. The good man is
separate from the world by the moral
dispositions and aims which are cherished by him; so that while he is
in the same place, state, and business, he is of a different mind, temper,
and character. Why must the good man thus separate himself from the
world? True, he has
sympathy with his comrades; he shares their
manhood; he does not leave it in pride, or in sullenness;
o
That he may
maintain the dignity of the Christian
life. The
Israelites were the
followers of Jehovah, and could not place
themselves on the same platform with idolaters. There is a moral
dignity about religion which must not be sacrificed by undue
familiarity with the common things of the world. There is a
dignity in the Divine name, in the cross of Christ, in spiritual
devotion, in the truth of the gospel, in
the hopes of the believer,
which the good man must maintain, which is likely to be
forfeited in worldly companionships. THE SACRED THINGS
OF GOD must not be profaned
by worldly associations.
The rose must not cast in its
lot with the nettle.
o
That he may
exemplify the purity of the
Christian life. The
land of the people was unclean (v. 11).
contaminated by its abominations. The worldly life is sinful.
The Christian
life must be holy. Its commandments are holy.
Its SUPREME
EXAMPLE is sinless. Its duty is to manifest
the beauty of holiness, and to inculcate the pursuit of
piety.
In order to this it
must be SEPARATE FROM SINNERS!
o
That he may insure
the safety of the Christian
life. The
Israelites were exposed to
great danger by contact with the
heathen, and separation was their only safeguard. Piety
has no right to endanger itself by unholy associations;
separation is safety.
o
That he may
conserve the purposes of the
Christian life.
separation could it be accomplished;
separation
is
necessary to the moral design of the Church.
VIOLATED BY CHRISTIAN
MEN. It is difficult to separate
from
those amongst whom we live. It is not easy to avoid unholy
contact
with the people of the land who are so near to us. There are many
temptations which attract the
spiritual to the carnal. The people of
the land have daughters to give in marriage, they have oftentimes
prosperity and wealth; and these things are calculated to tempt the
godly into unholy alliance (v.
11). Great will be the condemnation
of those who yield to this solicitation.
TO THE PROSPERITY OF THE CHURCH. “That ye may be strong,
and eat the good of
the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your
children for ever” (v.
12); “But
their time should have endured for
ever.” Psalm 81:15).
Ezra’s Grief (vs. 1-4)
“Now when these things were done,” viz., when the free-will offerings
were deposited in the temple, when the sacrifices had been offered, when
the
king’s commissions had been delivered to his lieutenants and the
governors of the provinces — when all things promised well, a new cause
of trouble arises. “The princes came,” etc. (vs. 1, 2).
Here we have:
Ř The law of God was violated.
o
The holy people had made
marriages with strangers.
God had separated the
people of
(Deuteronomy
14:1-2). For them to form such
affinities
was against the law (Ibid. ch.7:3). The marriage union of
children of God with children of
Satan is monstrous.
It is an outrage against
the spirit of the gospel (II
Corinthians 6:14).
o
They had in consequence been drawn into
their
abominations. This is just what
might have been
expected. This issue is constantly foreshown
(Exodus 34:15-17). (Unfortunately, the Word
of God has little affect on the
rebellious, the
hardheaded and the stubborn!
– CY - 2014)
The effect of these unequal
yokings upon
Christians is most melancholy.
Ř The violation of the law was general.
o
The rulers were
involved in it. The civil; the
ecclesiastical.
“The princes and
rulers have been chief in this trespass.”
Being in it, this could not
be otherwise. Position involves
responsibilities. Those who are conspicuous for station
should be conspicuous for goodness.
o
The people were in
it. (“…my people love to have it so!”
(Jeremiah 5:31) Crime is contagious. Witness too often
the tyranny and slavery of fashion. What absurdities are
endured because prescribed by the leaders of fashion!
How demoralizing
to a people is corruption in the court.
(The American Judicial System, even to the Supreme
Court, is not unscathed in
this! GOD,
THE JUDGE
OF ALL THE EARTH will either verify or absolve
this statement of mine! - CY – 2014) The rulers
could
not reprove the people when implicated themselves.
Ř The fact was incontestable.
o
It was reported to
Ezra by the princes. The representatives
of David and Solomon were the princes of
the rule over the people, and must be presumed to be well
informed.
o
But in this matter
they cannot be mistaken, for they are
themselves also in the transgression. They bear witness
against themselves. Note here the power of conscience.
Crime cannot be hidden for
ever. The great day of
judgment will bring all deeds of darkness to the light.
Consider now:
Ř He rent his
clothes.
o
In early times emotion
was commonly expressed in symbolical
acts. This action was
expressive of deep distress of soul (Genesis
37:29-30;
Leviticus 10:6; 11:44; Judges 11:35; Job 1:20). The
rending of the heart is the idea (Joel 2:13).
o
Ezra rent his garment.
The word here rendered “garment”
(dg,B, behged) is the common term for clothes. His rending
the vestments
personal to him would express his personal
grief.
The honor of God should
be PERSONAL TO EACH OF
US!
o
He also rent his mantle.
The term here employed (ly[im]m’il)
describes an official robe. It is used for the robe of the ephod
worn by the high priest; also for the kingly robe of David,
and that of Saul, the skirt of which was cut off by David
(I Samuel 24:4; I
Chronicles 15:27). The “mantle”
in which the ghost of Samuel was seen is described by
the same word (I Samuel 28:14). In Ezra’s case it might
be his official robe either as a priest or as a civil ruler,
or both.
In rending his mantle,
therefore, he expressed his distress as
representing the people. Religious men
are the truest patriots.
Ř He plucked off
his hair.
o
The hair of his head.
As the head is the symbol of rule, so
the hair of the head was regarded as a natural crown
(I
Corinthians 11:7). Righteousness is
the crown of our glory
(II Timothy 4:8). Sin plucks this crown from us, and
reduces us to the
deepest humiliation (Nehemiah 13:25).
This humiliation was
expressed by Ezra.
o
The hair of his beard.
This sign of manhood was regarded as
a symbol of honor, and a greater insult could scarcely be
given to an Oriental than to pluck or cut off his beard
(II Samuel 10:5). This
action of Ezra set forth how he
regarded the honor of his nation to be wounded in the
tenderest
place by this mingling of the holy seed with
the people of the land.
Ř He sat down astonied.
o
The state of silent,
awful desolation in which Ezra sat is
not inaptly expressed by this old English word, which
suggests the idea of being stunned
as by thunder. He was
awed by hearing as it were the rumbling of the approaching
thunder of God’s judgments upon a
guilty people.
o
Then were assembled to
him “every
one that trembled at
the words of the God of
common fear brought them together, as a terrified flock
would gather when the elements become sulphurous
for
the thunder-storm.
Good men love to meet in joy; so do
they love to meet in grief. Let
us admire and imitate
§
this zeal for God.
This grief for his honor being
outraged by sinners.
§
This purest patriotism
which repents vicariously
for our people.
Disappointment and Disobedience (vs. 1-4)
Ezra’s feeling as he first settled down in
could well be imagined as:
o
And now then for rest
and satisfaction!
o
now for spiritual enjoyment!
o
now for the continuous
exercise of the soul m sacred
privileges in the holy place!
o
now for the goodly
sight of a holy people walking in the
commandments of the Lord blameless!
It would have been natural and human for him to think thus;
but if he did thus
think he was mistaken. He was to be an instance of:
he established himself in the city of
experience, that it was an earthly
Zerubbabel was dead, and Haggai was no longer prophesying, and some
of
those who had the direction of public affairs — “princes”
they are called
(v. 1) — came to Ezra with a
very serious complaint. They came to tell
him that several of the Jews, including many of the Levites,
and even of the
priests, and also (and notoriously) some of the princes, had
broken the
clear and plain commandment of the Law by mingling and even
intermarrying with the people of surrounding lands, in fact with the
heathen
(see
Exodus 23. 32, and 34:12,15-16; Deuteronomy 7:3). It is not
quite certain that they had not gone further than this in the
way of laxity
and worldliness; but as far as this they had certainly gone,
and the fact that
the leaders, secular and spiritual, were setting the example (v. 2) made
the matter one of the greatest consequence. The soul of Ezra
was filled
with sadness; with extreme disappointment and dismay that there
should be
found so serious a blemish in the holy nation. When he was
thinking that
everything promised well, here was an evil
in the midst of them which
threatened to undo all that had been done, to bring down the wrath of God,
and to demolish the good work which he and others before and
beside him
had so laboriously built up. He “rent his garment and his
mantle;” he “sat
astonied until the evening sacrifice “ (vs. 3-4). Such is the common
experience of Christian workmen. When the Master Himself gathered
disciples, the scribes and the Pharisees sought to sow estrangement
and
separation in their hearts. When Paul, with untiring labor, had
founded
Churches in
and corrupting the truth he had preached. When we think that
all is going
well with the cause of God, and that we may rest in spiritual
enjoyment,
then we, too often, find that tares are among the wheat, that
dross is mixed
up with the gold, that error is falsifying and distorting
truth, that sin is in
the
to be certainly found, but when it comes we may remember that it has
been
an invariable ingredient in the Christian workman’s cup,
from the Master
down to the humblest teacher, from apostolic clays to our own. It is trying
in the last degree. It tries our patience, our trust in God,
our confidence in
His truth; but it leads us to
Him, as then it led Ezra, in humble, earnest,
united prayer. The Jewish people at this period afford an
instance of:
Church. Disobedience had seriously affected the Jews from the
highest
social rank to the lowest. Princes, priests, Levites, and the
common people
were all compromised to a greater or less degree. The
wrong-doing may
not seem so flagrant to us as it did to Ezra, for wide-spread
socializing,
national intermingling, is a marked feature of our times. But the
one special
virtue the Jewish Church was bound to exemplify was purity; its principal
duty was to maintain separateness from surrounding evil. It was
now
failing in that respect in which it was most urgently required to
be steadfast
and true. Hence the intensity of the feeling of Ezra and those
who
“trembled at the words of the God of
how sadly has the Christian Church disappointed its Lord by
disobedience
to His will by:
Ř
sinful alliances with
the secular power which have corrupted and
enfeebled it;
Ř
guilty conformity to
the
o
idolatrous, or
o
licentious, or
o
convivial, or
o
untruthful, or
o
dishonest
practices of an unrenewed, unpurified world;
Ř
culpable disregard to
His will respecting the equality of His disciples,
and our duty to the “little child,” the lowly and
helpless member of his
Church;
Ř
faulty negligence to
evangelize the surrounding and outlying world —
these are disobediences which:
o
disfigure the
beauty of the Church,
o
disappoint and
displease the Master, and
o
delay the conversion of the world.
5 “And at
the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness; and
having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon
my knees, and
spread out my hands unto the LORD my God,”
At the evening
sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness. The
time of sacrifice was the fittest time for prayer, especially for a prayer
in
which acknowledgment of sin was to form a large part. Sacrifice
symbolized expiation; and Ezra probably felt that his supplication
would be
helped by the expiatory rite which was being performed at the
time. He
rent his garment and
his mantle a second time, as a renewed indication
of sorrow, and with the view of impressing the people who “were
assembled unto him” (v. 4) the more, and stirring them up to penitence.
Here is a graphic scene. Behold Ezra, the chief man of his
nation, and a
prince of the
and
beard torn and disordered, bowed in silent grief, and surrounded by the
best men of his people, all trembling at the word of God. But lo! a ray of
hope from the fire of the altar kindles in his soul. “And at the evening
sacrifice,” etc. Here
learn: THAT THE ONE WAY TO GOD IS
THROUGH
THE BLOOD OF ATONEMENT. God has made His
ways known unto men. It was revealed soon after the fall (Genesis 3:15,
24; 4:4; 8:20-21). More formally
established in the Levitical law. This was
authenticated by all the miracles of the exodus and FULFILLED IN
THE SOLEMNITIES OF
6 “And
said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to
thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased
over our head, and
our trespass is grown up unto the heavens.” I am ashamed and blush.
Jeremiah had complained that in his day those
who “committed abominations
were not at all
ashamed, neither could they blush”
(Jeremiah 6:15; 8:12). Ezra,
with these words in his thoughts
possibly, begins his confession with a
protestation that he at any rate is
not open to this reproach — he blushes and
burns with shame for the sins of his people. Our iniquities are
increased over
our head. i.e. have kept
on rising like a flood; “gone over our
head”
(Psalm 38:4), and overwhelmed
us. And our trespass is grown up unto
the
heavens. Has grown
to such a height that it has attracted the notice of God,
and made
Him angry with us.
7 “Since
the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto
this day; and for our iniquities have we, our
kings, and our priests,
been delivered into the hand of the kings of
the lands, to the sword,
to captivity, and to a spoil, and to
confusion of face, as it is this
day.” Since the days of our fathers. The historical
sketches in
Nehemiah (Nehemiah 9:6-35) and the Acts (Acts 7:2-53) show
that
this phrase might be taken in a very wide sense, and be regarded as
including the “fathers” of
the nation who came out of
Ezra has rather in his mind the series of idolatries belonging
to the kingly
period, and extending from Solomon to Zedekiah. We, our kings, and our
priests, have been
delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands.
Menahem into the hand of Pul, Pekah of Tiglath-Pileser, Hoshea of
Shalmaneser or Sargon, Manasseh of Esarhaddon,
Josiah of PharaohNecho,
Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah, of Nebuchadnezzar. That the
priests had their full share in the calamities of the captivity
appears from
II Kings 25:18; Jeremiah 52:24; Ezekiel 1:1-3. And to confusion of face.
i.e.
To disgrace and shame (compare Psalm
44:13-15).
8 “And now
for a little space grace hath been shewed from the
LORD
our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and
to give us a nail in
His holy place, that our God may lighten
our eyes, and give us a
little reviving in our bondage.” And now for a little space grace
hath
been showed. The “little space” must be
understood relatively to the long
enjoyment of Divine favor from Abraham to Zedekiah. It was a space of
more than eighty years. A remnant to escape. The Hebrew has simply p’leythah,
“a remnant,” the “remnant” being that which had escaped the two dangers of
destruction and absorption, and had returned
from
To
give us a nail. “A nail” seems to mean here “a firm and sure abode,” as
our
translators note in the margin.
9 “For we
were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our
bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the
sight of the kings
of
to repair the desolations thereof, and to
give us a wall in
in
for we have forsaken thy commandments,” For we were bondsmen.
Rather, “we are.” The Jews had not recovered
their independence. They
continued to be the subjects of a despotic monarch, and were therefore
‘abddim,
“slaves.” All the favor shown them by the kings of
changed this fact. To give us a wall. That
is to say, “a shelter.” The city wall
still lay in ruins (see Nehemiah
1:3; 2:13, etc.).
11 “Which
thou hast commanded by thy servants the prophets, saying,
The land, unto which ye go to possess it,
is an unclean land with
the filthiness of the people of the lands,
with their abominations,
which have filled it from one end to another
with their uncleanness.”
The land, unto
which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land, etc.
These exact words do not occur elsewhere; but the “unclean”
and corrupt character of the Canaanitish
nations is constantly proclaimed in
the
Law, and was the sole reason why their land was taken
from them and
given to the
Israelites. On the special character
of their “filthiness” and
“abominations” see Deuteronomy 12:2-3; Leviticus 18:6-27.
12 “Now
therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take
their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their
peace or their wealth
for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the
good of the land, and
leave it for an inheritance to your children for
ever.”
Give not your
daughters, etc. Here Deuteronomy 7:3 is
plainly referred to, though not verbally quoted. This is the sole
place in the
Law where the double
injunction is given, Exodus 34:16
referring to
the
taking of wives only. Nor seek their
peace or their wealth for ever.
So Moses had enjoined with special reference to the
Moabites and
Ammonites (Deuteronomy 23:6). With regard to the other
idolatrous
nations, the exact command was “to
make no covenant with them”
(Exodus 23:32; 34:12), i.e. no
terms of peace. Much the same was
probably meant by both injunctions. That ye may be strong. See
Deuteronomy 11:8. And
eat the good of the land. These words are
taken from Isaiah 1:19. And
leave it for an inheritance, etc. No
single passage seems to be referred to here, but the clause
embodies the
idea found in Deuteronomy 11:9; Proverbs 10:27; Ezekiel 37:25, and
elsewhere.
13 “And
after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our
great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast
punished us less than
our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such
deliverance as this;
14 Should
we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity
with the people of these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry
with us till thou hadst
consumed us, so that there should be no
remnant nor escaping?” After all that is come upon us, etc. After the
punishments that we have suffered, the loss of our independence, of
our
temple, and our city, the long and weary period of captivity and
servitude
in
a foreign land, which should have bent our stubborn spirits to obedience;
and
after the
mercy shown us in the fact that thou hast punished us less
than our iniquities
deserved, and given us a deliverance, or rather a
residue, such as this,
which should have stirred us up to gratitude and
love, should we again break thy
commandments, and fall away, what
can
we expect but final abandonment, complete and entire destruction? If
neither severity nor kindness avail anything, what can God do
more? must
He not view our case as hopeless,
and so make an end of us altogether?
(Compare Isaiah 5:1-7; Luke 13:6-9).
15 “O LORD
God of
escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before
thee in our
trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because
of this.”
Thou art
righteous: for we remain yet escaped.
Righteousness, in its widest sense, includes mercy; and so
the meaning here
may
be, “Thou art good and gracious; of which thy having spared us is a
proof;” or tsaddik may
have its more usual sense of “just,” and Ezra may
mean to say, “Thou art just, and therefore hast brought us to the low estate
in
which we are today, and made us a mere remnant.” We are before thee
in our trespasses. We are here, in thy presence; here, before thy holy place;
sinners,
with all our sins upon us, confessing our guilt; for we cannot stand
before thee — we cannot boldly stand up and face thee
(“Who shall, stand in
thy sight when once Thou art angry? Psalm 76:7),
because of this our heinous
transgression, for which there is
no excuse.
Sensibility (vs. 4-15)
Ezra was a man not only of vigorous mind and strong will,
with whom
things soon took shape and form, but also of keen sensibility,
into whose
heart things cut deeply, and whose soul was stirred with strong
emotion.
Therefore he knew not only great joys, but great sorrows
also.
“Dearly
bought the hidden treasure
Finer
feelings can bestow;
Chords
that vibrate deepest pleasure
Thrill the
deepest notes of woe.”
When he learnt how the children of
the
mixed marriages, he was overwhelmed with strong and profound
feeling. There was:
until the evening sacrifice” (v. 4), having just given way to an Oriental
exhibition of extreme agitation (v. 3). This blow seems to have
stunned
him. He was simply dismayed, appalled. After a burst of grief
he sat
overwhelmed with a sense of the
exceeding great folly and iniquity of
the people.
in penitential attitude, he addressed himself to God, and
said, “O my God, I
am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee “(v. 6). He went on to
identify himself (though personally guiltless) with his people: “Our
iniquities,” etc. (v. 6). “We
are before thee in our trespasses” (v. 15).
And he concluded by saying, “We
cannot stand before thee because of
this” (v. 15). Such
was his intense fellow-feeling and sympathy with
those whom he was serving, that he felt overwhelmed with shame
under a
consciousness of their guilt. Sin, the
sin of our family, of our city, of our
country, of our race —
quite apart from our personal share in it — is a
shameful thing, something to humiliate us and cause us “confusion of
face.”
angry with us till thou hadst consumed
us,” etc. (v. 14). He lamented that
the brief sunshine they were enjoying would probably
disappear, in God’s
rekindled wrath, in utter darkness. God’s
mercy was for a space
encompassing them, and now they were
going to throw it, desperately and
wantonly, away. No sooner
were they out of bondage than they were
inviting the great Disposer, in His righteousness, to send them
back into
captivity. Sin had ruined them
before, and WOULD SURELY RUIN
THEM AGAIN and this time UTTERLY and COMPLETELY (vs. 7-9,
14). What
insensate folly!
We may look at sensibility in respect of sin as it relates
to:
Ř
Our Divine Lord Himself. He became man in
order that He might
suffer in our stead; in order that, as man, He might bear the
penalty we
must otherwise have borne. The
Sinless One was never conscious of
sin, nor yet of shame as we know it; but by becoming a
member of our
race, thus entering into perfect fellowship and intense
sympathy with
us, he could be affected, sorrowfully and sadly, by a sense
of human
sin. He did, in a way necessarily mysterious to us, thus
suffer for us.
(“He was in all points tempted
like as we are, yet without sin!”
(Hebrews 4:15) It was to His soul a dreadful, horrible,
shameful
thing that mankind — to whose family He belonged, and of which
He was a member — should
have sinned so grievously as it had.
Ř
Our own souls. It is well for us indeed when we have come to
feel the
shamefulness of our own sin. The
heart that, thus affected, can say,
“O my God, I am
ashamed and blush to lift up my face unto thee”
(v. 6), is in that state of
contrition, of poverty of spirit, “of which is
the kingdom of heaven”
(Matthew 5:3). Sin is shameful
because:
o
it is the act of those
who owe everything they are and have
to God, and
o
it is directed against
Him who has
§
multiplied His mercies
unto us in so many ways, and
§
borne so long with us,
and
§
done and suffered, in
Christ, so much to reclaim us;
and because
o
it is continued in
spite of our knowledge of what is right,
reasonable, and beneficial.
Ř
Our fellows. We may well be sympathetically affected by the sins of
others — our kindred, our fellow-citizens, our fellow-men. Rivers of
water should run down our eyes because men keep not His law.
(Psalm 119:136) We may well be ashamed and appalled, and pour
out our souls to God, under a sense of the guilt of the world.
(As an
intercessor to God for the world! – CY
– 2014)
A Flood of Tears (vs. 5-15)
As we noticed before, and as is here noticed again, the
approach of the
evening sacrifice seems to have been the first thing which opened
Ezra’s
lips. Speaking to him at last as he sat like a rock (compare Psalm 105:41),
it
was answered immediately by a mingled outburst of confession and tears.
Again by outward gesture expressing his sorrow, but not, as
before, his
indignation, he added now, by falling
on his knees and spreading out his
hands, the outward tokens of humiliation and prayer. And all that he says
we
find to be in exact accordance therewith:
In these words we have a sufficient key to the nature and
order of his thoughts.
to whom we have done wrong. How especially difficult if that
other is one
to whom we are especially bound to show honor. This was the
great trial
of the prodigal’s case. He had to say to his father, I
have sinned before thee
(see
Isaiah 1:2; Malachi 1:6). The same kind of feeling is traceable
here. “O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up
my face to thee, my
God.” As one of thy chosen people
are? My own countenance proclaims its shame, its burning
shame, if I do.
For, indeed, there is cause for
shame in this case. There is nothing else, in
fact, as things are. Like a man in the waters, when, being
above his head,
they destroy his life, so are we overwhelmed now with our
shame. Like
those who have nothing to say to thee because the proof of their
guilt is
before thee, so are we silenced now by our shame. “Our
guiltiness (margin)
is grown up into
the heavens” (compare Psalm 90:8).
Altogether this
opening confession is like that of Job (Job 40:4; 42:6). Behold,
I am
vile, and abhor myself;
or, like that of the prodigal, before referred to,
“I am not worthy
to be called thy son.” (Luke
15:21) My very privileges
having become my disgrace, what disgrace can be
worse?
God than to accuse ourselves
before Him without knowing why, such an
extreme confession as the above ought not to be made without
sufficient
proof. This we have in abundance in the words which come next
(vs. 7-
12). The
sin which Ezra had that day heard of, and which had led him to
make this confession, was in every way a reproach. It was so because
committed:
Ř
In defiance of God’s
judgments. For similar sin in
previous days on the
part of their fathers an almost unexampled visitation of
judgment had
come on them as a nation. Though a people sacred to Jehovah, He
had
handed them over in consequence, together with their “kings and priests,”
the most sacred classes among them (II Samuel 1:14,21; Psalm
106:16;
Lamentations
4:20), into the hands of their foes.
o
Loss of life,
o
or liberty,
o
or substance,
o
or in the best case
loss of respect
had been the result (see end v. 7). Even to that “day,”
in fact (ibid.),
this “confusion of face,” of which Daniel
had spoken so feelingly
some eighty years ago, after some seventy years’ trial of it,
remained
as part of their lot. Yet,
with all this in their memory and experience,
what had been their reply? To repeat again now the very offence
for which they had suffered so much!
Ř
In despite of God’s mercy. Notwithstanding this
heavy displeasure,
there had been compassion as well. For some little time back
(little
in the life-history of a nation, that is to say) various
signs of “grace’’
or favour had been vouchsafed to
them. The destruction of the people,
e.g., had not been total; a “remnant” had
“escaped” — a great token
of good in itself (Ezekiel 14:22-23). Nor had their
dispersion from the
home under God’s wing been for ever. On the contrary, a “nail,”
or
fixed habitation (Isaiah 22:23; 33:20), had been given them “in His
holy place.” There was
some cheerfulness also, or “lightening of the
eyes,” with all their “confusion
of face,” and some “reviving” in
their death-like bondage. Truly wonderful mercy, indeed, it was!
—
that restored house after such long desolation; that restored “wall”
or fence round such captives; how much it proved; how much it
promised; what an
undeserved mercy it was. How amazingly
wicked, therefore, how ungrateful, to despise it as they had
done.
Ř
In contempt of GOD’S EXPRESS WILL.
Most
clearly, most
strongly, most earnestly, and that from the very first, had God
declared His mind on this point.
o
He had done so by His
words, as here quoted.
o
He had done so by His
actions, as here referred to.
Why had He ever swept away
from
Why had He introduced the
Israelites in their place
What had He made their
inheritance of it to depend on?
The answers to these
various questions were clear and emphatic on
this subject, and made the conduct which Ezra was bewailing
like
that of soldiers ordered by their commander to charge the
enemy,
and drawing their swords instead against Himself. These were
the
three reasons why Ezra spoke as he did of their sin (compare
II Chronicles 28:22; Luke
12:47; Romans 2:4; Revelation 9:20-21).
they say or expect? After such experience, after such
deliverance, and in
the face of such knowledge, they had
begun again the old sin. Must not this
bring down again the old anger, and this time without bound (v.
14)?
Even as things were, would not
God be “righteous” (v. 15) if their whole
remnant were destroyed? So much so, that it does not seem to occur
to
Ezra even to
speak to God of any other course of proceeding. It is even a
marvel to him, in the circumstances, that they continue “escaped.”
Here we
are — do as thou willest — we cannot
stand before thee in our trespasses
(see
Psalm 130:3) — we can only place ourselves before thee
in the
dust — we have nothing to urge. This total absence of all plea
or entreaty
almost reminds one of Eli’s silence in I Samuel 3:18 (compare also 2:25),
knowing as he did the inexcusable guilt and impenitence of his
sons. Even
Daniel, in his deepest
humiliation on account of the sins of his people,
could take a different line (Daniel 9:19).
notice:
Ř
Its singular accuracy of judgment. Sin here, as with
David and Joseph
and all truly “God-conscious” men and minds, is an offence
against
God Himself (see Genesis 39:9; I
Samuel 12:23; Psalm 51:4;
Romans 4:15; I John 3:4).
Ř
Its unswerving loyalty. See the
acknowledgments here of God’s mercy
and justice in vs. 13, 15; and compare Psalm 51:4, also 1:4,
6;
Luke 7:29; Romans 3:4, 19. This
sin, at any rate, the sin which
renders amendment and forgiveness impossible, the sin of charging
God foolishly, the true penitent is free from.
Ř
Its unsparing sincerity. So far from denying,
hiding, or palliating the
evil it refers to, it seems anxious rather to bring to light
and exhibit
its very worst traits. We read of Elijah in one place (Romans
11:2) as
making “intercession against
case with that of
Could even the great
accuser (Revelation 12:10) with truth have said
very much worse? Contrast
Genesis 3:12-13; I Samuel 15:13-14, 20-21;
and compare perhaps the ἐκδίκησιν – ekdikaesin – vengeance
–
of II Corinthians 7:11.
A Good Man’s Sight of Sin (vs. 5-15)
SPIRIT OF EARNEST PRAYER. “I fell upon my knees, and spread out
my hands unto the Lord my God” (v. 5).
Ř
The humility of the prayer. Ezra fell upon his knees in deepest
self-abasement; he did not stand erect like the Pharisee in the temple,
but smote upon his breast like the publican (Luke 18:13).
Surely the
sin of God’s chosen people could not but inspire humility
within
the patriot.
Ř
The earnestness of the prayer. Ezra spread out his hands in earnest
entreaty before God; the solemnity of the circumstance awakened him
to holy fervor. At such a time a lifeless prayer could be of
no avail.
Ř
The direction of the prayer. Ezra directed his prayer to the Lord his
God; he felt the vanity of human
help, and that God only could avert
the consequence of their transgression. A sense of sin should lead to
God.
Ř
The personal claim of the prayer. “My God,” “O my God.”
(Contrast this with OMG,
[spoken, texted, tweeted, etc.] of the
common vernacular – the multitudinous taking of God’s name in
vain! See Exodus 20:7 –
CY – 2014)
MAN A SENSE OF SHAME. “I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face
to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our
head, and our
trespass is grown up unto the heavens (v. 6). He is ashamed:
Ř
Because he is morally sensitive to sin. Purity is sensitive to evil.
Ř
Because he understands
the true nature of sin. “Our
iniquities,”
“our trespass.”
Ř
Because he realises the magnitude of sin. “Our iniquities are
increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up to heaven.”
Sin brings shame; this the good man
feels.
MAN MEMORIES OF SORROW. “And for our iniquities have we, our
kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the
kings of the
lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil” (v. 7).
Ř
A memory of degradation. Sin will send kings
and priests into
degrading captivity.
Ř
A memory of cruelty. Sin delivers men
as to the sword.
Ř
A memory of bondage. Sin is slavery. (A term of amathana
to many in the world! – CY - 2014)
Ř
A memory of loss. Sin spoils men of their best treasures. The
history of sin is A HISTORY OF SORROW and the sight of sin
calls up to the mind of the good man sad memories. (Sadly,
I can attest to this! – CY – 2014)
MAN THE THOUGHT OF THE GOVERNMENT OF GOD.
Ř
Its mercy. “And now for a
little space grace hath been showed from the
Lord our God” (vs. 8-9).
Ř
Its fidelity. “Yet our God hath not
forsaken us in our bondage” (v. 9).
Ř
Its forbearance. “Seeing that thou
our God hast punished us less than
our iniquities deserve”
(v. 13). This life is not the scene of complete
punishment.
Ř
Its delay. “For we remain.”
Sin is not immediately punished in this life.
Ř
Its rectitude. “O Lord God of
Israel, thou art righteous” (v. 15).
Ř
Its retribution. “For we cannot
stand before thee because of this”
(v. 15).
Thus Ezra viewed the sin of
Ezra’s Prayer (vs. 6-15)
While the smoke of the altar rises to heaven from the
evening sacrifice, lo!
there is Ezra before the temple of the Lord with rent garments
and
disordered hair, bowed upon his knees, and with lifted hands, pouring
out
confession of sin in tones of plaintive grief and shame and terror. “O my
God, I am ashamed,” etc. In this prayer
we mark:
Ř Here were open violations
of the law of God.
o
The patriarchal law
was pronounced against the intermarriages
of the holy race of Seth, with whom was the promise of the
Holy
Seed, with the profane race of Cain
the excommunicate.
The infraction of this law
provoked the Deluge (Genesis 6:2-3).
Abraham, who, like Seth,
was the depositary of the Promise,
was averse to the intermarriage of his issue with the
daughters
of the accursed Cainan (Genesis
24:3-4; see also 28:1-2).
o
This patriarchal law
became incorporated in the Mosaic system
(Deuteronomy 7:3).
o
The prophets also
declared against these mixed alliances. In
particular, it would seem, Haggai and Zechariah (v. 11 with
6:21).
o
This law, in the spirit
of it, is still binding upon Christians
(I
Corinthians 7:39; II Corinthians 6:14).
Ř The reasons given
for this law are most weighty.
o
The holiness of
God’s people. This reason holds in all
ages.
o
The tendency to be
swayed from true worship to idolatry
(Exodus 23:32; 34:16).
o
These reasons were
vividly before the mind of Ezra. So
should they be ever present with Christians.
Ř Nothing should
induce men to commit this sin.
o
The wealth of
idolaters is dearly purchased by the imperiling
of the inheritance of the saints.
o
Peace with idolaters is
costly at the sacrificing of the peace of God.
people:
Ř That their
experiences in the captivity should have taught them
differently (v. 7).
o
Their humiliation
was deep. They suffered from the “sword,”
viz., of the Babylonians
who in the days of Nebuchadnezzar
invaded their land. From “captivity,”
for their Babylonish victor
carried them away. Who can estimate the
sufferings entailed by
that deportation? From
the “spoil”
which they suffered from the
invaders, and from those who removed them. And from
“confusion of face,”
viz., in the remembrance that all their
sufferings were on account of their sins. This shame they
felt in the presence of their Babylonish
lords (see Daniel
9:7-8). Also before their
Persian masters.
o
Their calamities
were sweeping. The people were
involved in
them. So were their “kings.” What a contrast between the
condition of David and Solomon and that of Jehoiachin
and
Zedekiah (II Kings 25:7)!
So were their “priests;” and in the
ruin of the priests the ruin of the temple also was involved.
o
They were also of
long continuance. There were the
initial
sufferings from the time of the first invasion of the Babylonians.
Then the interval of seventy
years from the date of the captivity
to the first year of Cyrus, when Zerubbabel
led back the larger
body of the restoration. Another period of seventy or eighty
years
had elapsed before this second contingent was led back by
Ezra.
What excuse then, after all
these sufferings, could be pleaded
for their sin?
Ř
The mercy of God should have been better requited (vs. 8-9). That
mercy was shown:
o
In His “leaving
a remnant to escape.” That was mercy not only
to the individuals spared, but also to the world, for the holy Seed
was among them, through whom the
blessings of an everlasting
salvation were to come.
o
In “giving
them a nail in his holy place.” The margin explains
this to be “a constant and sure abode,” and
refers to Isaiah 22:23
in support of this interpretation. The passage in Isaiah
points to
Christ; so may this point
to Him.
o
In this view there is
the greater force in what follows, “that our
God may lighten
our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our
bondage.” And how
the mercy of God in all this becomes
increased when the spiritual blessings of the gospel are seen
in it.
o
Even in their bondage God had not forsaken them. For He gave
them favor in the sight of the kings of
them to return, “gave them a reviving,” and to
repair the
desolations of the temple, of the holy city, and the wall. Such
mercy claimed gratitude, but
was requited with REBELLION!
Ezra is without apology (v. 10).
Ř Here he awaits
the judgment of the Lord.
o
He is ashamed to
look up. Who can bear to look into the
face of
an injured friend when we have nothing to plead in apology?
That
will be the position of the sinner in the great day of
judgment.
o
He is oppressed by the
growing weight of accumulating rebellion
and ingratitude. He is terrified by the cloud upon the face
of God.
o
He confesses that
wrath to the uttermost is deserved.
Ř Here is no formal
plea for mercy.
o
There is the silent
cry of misery and distress and blushing shame.
But who can trust in this?
It is only the consciousness of sin.
o
There is eloquence
in the evening sacrifice. The victim slain is a
vicarious sufferer. It is the shadow of A BETTER SACRIFICE!
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