Ezra 9
1 2
3 4 5
6 7 8
9 10
1 Now when these things were
done, the princes came to me, saying, The people of Israel, and the priests, and
the Levites, have not 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.
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.
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.
4 Then were assembled unto me every one
that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the transgression of
those that had been carried away; and I sat astonied until the evening
sacrifice.
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,
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.
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.
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.
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 Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our
God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and
in Jerusalem.
10 And now, O our God, what shall we say
after this? for we have forsaken thy commandments,
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.
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.
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?
15 O LORD God of Israel, thou art
righteous: for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are
before thee in our trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because of this.
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