Wesley Corpus

Chapter X The people mourn, ver. 1. Shechaniah encourages Ezra to put away the strange wives, ver. 2 - 4. All Israel swear to do it, ver. 5. Ezra, mourning assembles the people, ver. 6 - 9 They all, on his exhortation, agree to the reformation, ver. 10 - 14. They perform it, ver. 15 - 17. The names of them that had married strange wives, ver. 18 - 44. There assembled - The account of his grief, and publick expressions thereof in the court before the temple, being in an instant dispersed over all the city, brought a great company together. See what an happy influence the example of great ones may have upon their inferiors! We - He saith, we, in the name of the people, and their several families, and his own amongst the rest. For this man's name is not in the following catalogue, but there we have his father, Jehiel, and his father's brethren, five other sons of his grandfather, Elam, ver.26. It was therefore an evidence of his great courage, and good conscience, that he durst so freely discharge his duty, whereby he shewed, that he honoured God more than his nearest and dearest relations. Hope - In case of our repentance, and reformation. Such as are born - These children were only cast out of the common - wealth of Israel, but were not utterly forsaken; probably care was taken by authority, that they should have provision made for them. Went - That with the princes and elders, he might consult about the execution of their resolution. Thither - 'Till he saw something done. Of Judah - Not only of these two tribes, as appears from the following catalogue, where there are priests and Levites; but all the Israelites, ver.25, who are thus described, because the greatest part of them were of these tribes, though others were mixed with them: and because they all now dwelt in that land, which formerly was appropriated to those tribes. The street - In that street of the city, which was next the temple, and within the view of it, that so they might be as in God's presence, whereby they might be awed to a more faithful and vigorous prosecution of their work.