What influences dominate our life? (Ezra 9:1-4)
Ezra 9:1-4
A few years ago, I visited Jim Thompson’s house in Bangkok, an American businessman who helped revitalise traditional Thai silk weaving. On the guided tour, I was struck by how Thai beliefs shaped so much in the structure and details of the house that affected everyday practices. For instance, most of the thresholds were raised due to a superstition that stepping on them was unlucky and one room that housed a statue of Buddha had a particularly low door, as well as the high threshold. Everyone who entered would have to stoop and bow to the Buddha opposite the doorway.
Religion in the ancient world – all-pervasive
I am reminded of this as I read of the exiles’ intermarriage with local peoples. In ancient cultures (as in many traditional ones today) marrying outside the faith would have had significant impact because religion was a public affair that permeated life. A pagan spouse would have meant personal altars and idols in one’s house. At celebrations, the extended family would have invoked pagan gods in public prayers and offered sacrifices to them. In public conversation various events would have been interpreted as the gods’ approval (prayers answered) or anger (disaster). Pagan beliefs and practices would thus have been a constant presence and hard to avoid in the life of a Jew.[1] Additionally, children would have been impacted when still developing and vulnerable.
The exiles repeat the past
For the exiles who saw their return to the land as a repetition of the exodus, it must have come as a shock to realise how they were also repeating the patterns of their ancestors who were told on entering the land not to intermarry with the Canaanites or create close alliances with them (Deut 7:1-3). In fact, the history of Israel shows that their ongoing interaction with the local populations led to persistent idolatry that, like tendrils of a tenacious weed entwined their lives and choked their faith in God (e.g. Judg 2:1-3, 11-12).
What the law taught and the exiles’ application
The peoples listed in Ezra 9:1 combine prohibitions from Deut 7:1 (various Canaanite groups), Deut 23:3-6 (Ammon, Moab) and Lev 18:1-3 (Egypt). Although most of these ethnicities no longer existed by the post-exilic period, the exiles used them as an analogy for the influences feared from non-Jewish groups locally and in neighbouring regions.
The sins in these laws are described in stereotypical terms as idolatry/worship of other gods, sexual immorality and animosity towards God’s people. The vocabulary of the exiles echo some of these (‘abominations’ in Ezra 9:2 is a shorthand for idolatry and sexual malpractices – Deut 7:25; Lev 18:26-27 – see the context of the chapter).
The exiles were not necessarily succumbing to the exact same sins but influences through their marriages threatened their relationship with God (expressed in the summary term ‘unfaithfulness’ in Ezra 9:2, most often used of sacrilege and breaking God’s covenant). What is at stake is Israel’s holiness and their commitment to God. We have already seen that this took the shape of compromise and delay in building the temple (Hag 1:2-4). Elsewhere in postexilic prophecy the Jews are accused of giving God second-best and finding His service tiresome (Mal 1:8, 13), as well as offering sacrifices at pagan shrines and eating unclean food (Isa 65:3-4).[2]
Having hearts shaped by God’s Word
The people’s understanding of God’s law (vv.1-2) probably reflects Ezra’s teaching, but importantly, they not only heard but took to heart and applied this to their lives. We, too, need to read and hear Scripture willing to be shaped by God’s message. It means shedding some of our busy-ness to sit quietly and listen to the Lord through His Word, as well as openness to change our views and attitudes as He teaches us.
At the root of the exiles’ inquiry are the influences that weaken commitment to the Lord. Today a marriage relationship with a non-Christian can still affect our walk with God and any children. There are also other influences that can be at times even more pervasive bombarding us with a materialistic worldview and shaping our thinking of right and wrong through TV, films and social media. While we cannot escape these unless we withdraw from the world, it is important that we dwell on God’s Word and keep re-adjusting our thinking and ways to His standards. What we are exposed to the most will shape us, what we feed in our souls will grow.
[To the question of racism I shall return in my next post.]
[1] Compare this to Western cultures where, for instance, praying over a meal in a restaurant is often done by Christians surreptitiously because of the unspoken norm that religion has no place in the public sphere. Likewise, speaking about God to strangers, or praying publicly in schools or at state celebrations can feel embarrassing or be seen as inappropriate, though in NZ it is acceptable if classed as a cultural act done by Māori or Pasifika.
[2] Although the dating of prophecies in the second part of Isaiah are debated, it is generally accepted that the context addressed from Isaiah 40-66 is the end of the exile and the postexilic period. Notice prophecies about the Persian king, Cyrus, the rebuilding of the temple and Jerusalem’s walls (Isa 44:28; 45:5), the call to leave Babylon and even a reference to the temple vessels (Isa 48:20; 52:11-12).
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