Ezra 9: A Prayer of Confession
Confronted with the people's unfaithful marriages, Ezra tears his clothes and pours out a humble, searching prayer of corporate confession.
Ezra 9 (WEB)
1 Now when these things were done, the princes drew near to me, saying, “The people of Israel, and the priests and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, following their abominations, even those 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 mixed themselves with the peoples of the lands. Yes, the hand of the princes and rulers has been chief in this trespass.”
3 When I heard this thing, I tore my garment and my robe, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down confounded.
4 Then were assembled to me everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of their trespass of the captivity; and I sat confounded until the evening offering.
5 At the evening offering I arose up from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn; and I fell on my knees, and spread out my hands to Yahweh my God;
6 and I said, “My God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to you, my God; for our iniquities have increased over our head, and our guiltiness has grown up to the heavens.
7 Since the days of our fathers we have been exceeding guilty to this day; and for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests, have been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to confusion of face, as it is this day.
8 Now for a little moment grace has been shown from Yahweh 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 are bondservants; yet our God has not forsaken us in our bondage, but has extended loving kindness to 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 its ruins, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.
10 “Now, our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments,
11 which you have commanded by your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land, to which you go to possess it, is an unclean land through the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, through their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their filthiness.
12 Now therefore don’t give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters to your sons, nor seek their peace or their prosperity forever; that you may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever.’
13 “After all that has come on us for our evil deeds, and for our great guilt, since you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us such a remnant,
14 shall we again break your commandments, and join in affinity with the peoples that do these abominations? Wouldn’t you be angry with us until you had consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor any to escape?
15 Yahweh, the God of Israel, you are righteous; for we are left a remnant that has escaped, as it is this day. Behold, we are before you in our guiltiness; for no one can stand before you because of this.”
Ezra 9 (KJV)
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.
Ezra 9 (ASV)
1 Now when these things were done, the princes drew near unto me, saying, The people of Israel, and the priests and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the peoples 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 peoples of the 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 robe, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down confounded.
4 Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the trespass of them of the captivity; and I sat confounded until the evening oblation.
5 And at the evening oblation I arose up from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe rent; and I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto Jehovah my God;
6 and I 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 guiltiness is grown up unto the heavens.
7 Since the days of our fathers we have been exceeding guilty 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 plunder, and to confusion of face, as it is this day.
8 And now for a little moment grace hath been showed from Jehovah 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 are bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended lovingkindness 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 ruins 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 through the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, through their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their filthiness:
12 now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their prosperity 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 guilt, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such a remnant,
14 shall we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity with the peoples that do these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor any to escape?
15 O Jehovah, the God of Israel, thou art righteous; for we are left a remnant that is escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before thee in our guiltiness; for none can stand before thee because of this.
Summary
Soon after Ezra's arrival, the leaders report a grievous problem: the people, including priests, Levites, and rulers, have not kept themselves separate from the surrounding nations and their abominations, intermarrying with them and mingling the holy seed with the peoples of the lands. When Ezra hears this, he tears his garment and robe, pulls hair from his head and beard, and sits appalled until the evening offering, joined by all who tremble at God's word. At the evening offering Ezra rises from his self-humbling and, falling on his knees with hands spread to the Lord, prays a remarkable confession. He is ashamed to lift his face to God because the people's iniquities have risen over their heads. He recalls how their fathers' sins led to exile and the sword, yet how God has now graciously left them a remnant and given them a little reviving in their bondage. He acknowledges that despite such grace they have again broken God's commandments by joining themselves to the very peoples whose practices brought judgment. He confesses that God is righteous and they stand guilty before him, with no ground on which to stand. The prayer is a model of honest, humble, corporate repentance.
Main Characters
- Ezra the scribe — The leader who, hearing of the people's unfaithfulness, mourns deeply and intercedes with a humble prayer of confession on their behalf.
- The princes and leaders — Those who bring the report to Ezra and who are themselves chief in the trespass of intermarriage with the nations.
- Those who trembled at God's word — The faithful who gather to Ezra in grief, sharing his concern over the people's sin.
- Yahweh (the LORD) — The righteous God whose grace had spared a remnant, and against whose commandments the people had sinned afresh.
Key Verse
Ezra 9:6 (WEB)
and I said, “My God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to you, my God; for our iniquities have increased over our head, and our guiltiness has grown up to the heavens.
Lessons Learned
- Sin among God's people, especially leaders, is a serious matter that calls for grief, not indifference.
- Faithful leaders identify with the people's sin rather than standing aloof from it.
- True confession owns the depth of guilt honestly, without minimizing or excusing it.
- Even in confessing sin, we can rest in God's righteousness and remember his grace.
- Sin should grieve us. Hearing the report, Ezra "tore my garment and my robe... and sat down confounded" (Ezra 9:3, WEB). God's people feel the weight of sin rather than shrugging at it.
- Confession is honest about guilt. "Our iniquities have increased over our head, and our guiltiness has grown up to the heavens" (Ezra 9:6, WEB). True repentance refuses to downplay sin.
- Grace makes sin more sobering, not less. After God gave "a little reviving in our bondage" (Ezra 9:8, WEB), to sin again is to despise mercy. Received grace heightens our responsibility.
- God remains righteous when we are guilty. "Yahweh, the God of Israel, you are righteous" (Ezra 9:15, WEB). Confession rests not on our worth but on God's just and merciful character.
- Why is intermarriage with the surrounding nations such a serious problem for the returned exiles?
- How does Ezra's physical reaction reveal the depth of his concern over the people's sin?
- Ezra prays "we" and "our" rather than "they" and "their." What does this teach about confession and leadership?
- How does Ezra hold together the people's guilt and God's grace in his prayer?
- When you become aware of sin, how do you respond, and what can you learn from Ezra's honest grief and confession?
- The danger was not ethnicity but idolatry; marrying into the nations' abominations threatened to draw the holy people back into the very sins that had caused the exile (9:1-2). The concern is covenant faithfulness and pure worship. Help the group see how compromise can quietly undo a restored people.
- Ezra tears his clothes, pulls his hair, and sits appalled until evening (9:3-4). His visible grief shows that he feels sin as God feels it, not as a trivial matter. Such sorrow is the soil in which genuine repentance grows.
- Though personally innocent, Ezra confesses as one of the people: "our iniquities," "our guiltiness" (9:6-7). He intercedes by identifying with them rather than condemning from above. This models humble, pastoral leadership that bears the people's burdens.
- Ezra confesses real guilt yet rehearses God's mercy in sparing a remnant and reviving them (9:8-9, 15). He neither excuses sin nor despairs of grace. True confession is brutally honest about sin and still anchored in God's righteous, merciful character.
- This is a personal-application question. Ezra neither ignored sin nor wallowed in despair but grieved honestly and turned to God. As leader, invite members to reflect on their own response to sin, encouraging both honesty about guilt and confidence in God's grace, and keeping the tone gentle and hopeful.