Ezra 10:22
Of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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While this verse might seem like a dry list of names, it highlights the extensive, family-level involvement required for real reform. Notice how even descendants of priests, like Maaseiah, are listed among those who took foreign wives, showing that this wasn't just a problem for a few individuals but deeply embedded in the community's families. This detail emphasizes that God’s restoration work often involves confronting and confessing sin within our own households, not just among strangers.
Ezra is cataloging the men who confessed their sin of marrying foreign women and agreed to send them and their children away. This specific passage lists some of the families, including descendants of Pashhur, who were part of this difficult process of purifying the community. The names that follow represent individuals identified as needing to rectify their marriages to uphold the covenant.
In ancient Israel, names weren't just labels; they carried the weight of family, lineage, and even prophetic meaning. This list of names in Ezra holds more than just identification.
The chapter lists names of men who had married foreign women, a practice that threatened the purity of the Israelite community and their covenant relationship with God.
A Detailed Reckoning
Ezra 10:18-44 meticulously records the names of priests and other prominent men who had broken covenant. This detailed accounting wasn't just bureaucratic; it was crucial for the community's process of repentance and restoration.
Facing the Consequences
By listing these names, Ezra shows that the reform was personal and faced by specific individuals, not just a general societal shift. It highlights the courage required to confront sin within one's own family and leadership.
Reforming a community after exile isn't a simple task. This verse, embedded in a larger list, points to the intricate and challenging nature of restoring people to God's ways.
Leaders and the Law
The presence of priests and other leaders among those who had married foreign wives (Ezra 10:18) underscores a critical point: the struggle with sin often reaches into the highest levels of leadership. This wasn't just a problem for the average person; it involved those responsible for guiding the community.
A Difficult Task
Ezra and his companions faced immense difficulty in this reform. The list of names signifies the scope of the problem, revealing that many prominent families were involved. This complicated the process, requiring careful discernment and a firm commitment to God's law, even when it meant confronting respected members of the community.
The list of names in Ezra 10:22, including sons of Pashhur, highlights the widespread nature of the problem of intermarriage among prominent families in Jerusalem, complicating Ezra's reform efforts upon his return from Babylonian exile.
597 BC
First Deportation to Babylon
King Jehoiachin and many Judean nobles, craftsmen, and soldiers are exiled to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar II. This event marks the beginning of the Babylonian Captivity.
586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem and Destruction of the Temple
Nebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem and the First Temple, exiling most of the remaining population. This is a catastrophic event for the Judean people and their identity.
539 BC
Cyrus the Great Conquers Babylon
The Persian king Cyrus the Great defeats the Babylonian Empire. This victory leads to the eventual decree allowing the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem.
538 BC
Cyrus's Decree and the First Return
Cyrus issues a decree permitting the exiled Jews to return to their homeland and rebuild the Temple. Many return under the leadership of Zerubbabel.
This passage also lists descendants of Pashhur, reinforcing the historical context of this family within the post-exilic community and their involvement in civic and religious life.
Ezra 10:18This verse immediately preceding the list in Ezra highlights that priests were among those who had taken foreign wives, underscoring the severity of the problem Ezra was addressing and the widespread nature of the sin.
Ezra 10:15This verse mentions that some individuals were appointed to deal with the issue of foreign wives, suggesting that the families listed, including Pashhur's sons, were part of the broader community grappling with this significant reform.
1 Chronicles 9:12This verse names Azariah son of Jeroham as a priest who was chief of the house of Father (referring to Pashhur), connecting Pashhur's lineage to a position of leadership and responsibility within the temple service.
henryEzra 10:15-44: "Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the son of Tikvah were employed about this matter: and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them."
10:15-44 The best reformers can but do their endeavour; when the Redeemer himself shall come to Zion, he shall effectually turn away ungodliness from Jacob. And when sin is repented of and forsaken, God will forgive it; but the blood of Christ, our Sin-offering, is the only atonement which takes away our guilt. No seeming repentanc…
jfbEzra 10:18-44: "And among the sons of the priests there were found that had taken strange wives: namely, of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren; Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah."
Ezr 10:18-44. Those That Had Taken Strange Wives.18. among the sons of the priests—From the names of so many men of rank appearing in the following list, some idea may be formed of the great and complicated difficulties attending the reformatory work.
While this verse might seem like a dry list of names, it highlights the extensive, family-level involvement required for real reform. Notice how even descendants of priests, like Maaseiah, are listed among those who took foreign wives, showing that this wasn't just a problem for a few individuals but deeply embedded in the community's families. This detail emphasizes that God’s restoration work often involves confronting and confessing sin within our own households, not just among strangers.
Ezra is cataloging the men who confessed their sin of marrying foreign women and agreed to send them and their children away. This specific passage lists some of the families, including descendants of Pashhur, who were part of this difficult process of purifying the community. The names that follow represent individuals identified as needing to rectify their marriages to uphold the covenant.
Ezra is cataloging the men who confessed their sin of marrying foreign women and agreed to send them and their children away. This specific passage lists some of the families, including descendants of Pashhur, who were part of this difficult process of purifying the community. The names that follow represent individuals identified as needing to rectify their marriages to uphold the covenant.
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c. 458 BC— this verse
Ezra's Commission and Return to Jerusalem
Ezra, a scribe and priest, is given authority by the Persian king Artaxerxes I to lead a second group of exiles back to Jerusalem and to establish religious law.
c. 458 BC
Ezra Confronts Mixed Marriages
Upon arriving in Jerusalem, Ezra discovers that many returned exiles have married women from surrounding nations, violating Mosaic Law. He initiates a public assembly and repentance.
"Of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah." — While this verse might seem like a dry list of names, it highlights the extensive, family-level involvement required for real reform. Notice how even descendants of priests, like Maaseiah, are listed…
