Confession

 Ezra 10:2 ESV

And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, of the sons of Elam, addressed Ezra: “We have broken faith with our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land, but even now there is hope for Israel in spite of this. 

God's people were at a low ebb. Although they were restored to the promised land, they were still in thrall to their Persian occupiers. Instead of committing to God, they had adulterated themselves with the unbelieving people around them.

We might wonder what this has to do with us. Even in the new covenant era, we're commanded not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers. In other words, it's wrong for a Christian to marry a pagan.

Ezra had led his people in a powerful prayer of repentance. It seemed to have had the desired effect. The people reacted well, as this verse begins to reveal.

The people confessed their son, but they don't wallow in it. They don't nurse the hurt and indulge the misery. They were hopeful God would have mercy upon them.

'Lord our God, we're hopeful that you'll have mercy upon us, for we come to you in the name of Jesus, amen'.



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