Today is the 10th day of August.

Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian.

It's great to be here with you as we bring another one of these weeks and they go by. We only get 52 and we are so far into it.

Well that we're here all the way to the book of Ezra in the Old Testament.

So it's the 10th day of August.

It's fitting that we should read today.

Ezra chapter 10.

While Ezra was bowing in prayer in front of the temple, weeping and confessing these sins, a large group of

Israelites, and women and children gathered around him weeping bitterly. Then Shekanai, son of Jehiel of the clan of Islam, said to Ezra,

we have broken faith with God by marrying foreign women. But even so, there is still hope for Israel. Now we must

make a solemn promise to our God that we will send these women and their

children away. We will do what you and the others who honor God's

commands advise us to do. We will do what God's law demands. It is your

responsibility to act. We are behind you. So go ahead and get it done.

So Ezra began by making the leaders of the priests, of the Levites, and of the rest of the people

taken oath that they would do what Circanaia had proposed. Then he went from in front of

the temple into the living quarters of Jehoanan, son of Eliaship,

and spent the night there grieving over the unfaithfulness

of the exiles.

He did not eat or drink anything.

A message was sent throughout Jerusalem and Judah that all those who had returned from exile

were to meet in Jerusalem by order of the leaders of the people.

...