So Ezra got up and made the leading priests, Levites, and all Israel take an oath to do what had been said. And they took the oath.
Parallel translations
- WEB Then Ezra arose, and made the chiefs of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they would do according to this word. So they swore.
- KJV Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word. And they sware.
- NKJV Then Ezra arose, and made the leaders of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel swear an oath that they would do according to this word. So they swore an oath.
- NASB Then Ezra stood and made the leading priests, the Levites, and all Israel take an oath that they would do according to this proposal; so they took the oath.
- NLT So Ezra stood up and demanded that the leaders of the priests and the Levites and all the people of Israel swear that they would do as Shecaniah had said. And they all swore a solemn oath.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Ezra rose and put the leaders and all Israel under oath to carry out the proposal. He bound the community by solemn vow to follow through on their repentance.
Overview
Ezra translated the people's words into a binding commitment, having priests, Levites, and all Israel swear to act. The oath ensured that repentance would not fade into mere emotion but issue in obedience. This insistence that confession be matched by committed action reflects the biblical truth that genuine faith and repentance bear fruit in changed conduct (James 2:17).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Neh 13:25I rebuked them and called down curses on them. I beat some of these men and pulled out their hair. Then I made them take an oath before God and said, “You must not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters as wives for your sons or for yourselves!
- Neh 5:12“We will restore it,” they replied, “and will require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.” So I summoned the priests and required of the nobles and officials an oath that they would do what they had promised.
- Prov 15:23A man takes joy in a fitting reply—and how good is a timely word!
- Prov 27:9Oil and incense bring joy to the heart, and the sweetness of a friend is counsel to the soul.
- Prov 25:11–12A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.
- Prov 1:5let the wise listen and gain instruction, and the discerning acquire wise counsel
- Prov 9:9Instruct a wise man, and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man, and he will increase his learning.
- Ezra 10:3So now let us make a covenant before our God to send away all the foreign wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the command of our God. Let it be done according to the Law.
- Matt 26:63But Jesus remained silent. Then the high priest said to Him, “I charge You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
- Neh 10:29hereby join with their noble brothers and commit themselves with a sworn oath to follow the Law of God given through His servant Moses and to carefully obey all the commandments, ordinances, and statutes of the LORD our Lord.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The return from exile and the rebuilt altar keep alive the hope of a greater restoration — the true return from our deeper exile of sin accomplished by Christ.
How Ezra 10:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.