Shechaniah

Biblical Account

Shechaniah appears only in Ezra 10:2–4. He was the son of Jehiel, of the descendants of Elam. The descendants of Elam were one of the families that returned to Judah after the Babylonian exile; the family is also named in Ezra 2:7.

In Ezra 9, Ezra receives a report that many of the returned people, including priests and Levites, have married foreign women. Ezra tore his garments and offered a prayer of repentance, and a great assembly of the people gathered and wept bitterly with him (Ezra 10:1). At this point Shechaniah came forward and acknowledged the wrong: "We have trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the land: yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing" (Ezra 10:2, KJV). He then proposed that they make a covenant with God to put away the foreign wives and the children born to them, and to act according to the law. He urged Ezra to arise, since the matter was his responsibility, and to act with courage, assuring him of the people's support (10:3–4).

Ezra accepted the proposal and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel swear that they would do accordingly (10:5). After an assembly in Jerusalem and an inquiry, a list of those who had married foreign women is recorded (10:9–44). Scripture says nothing further about Shechaniah's life or later activities.

Significance Within Scripture

Shechaniah's speech marks the turning point at which the prayer of one man, Ezra, becomes the resolve of the whole community. The text gives him no title, identifying him only by his family and his father's name.

The New Testament does not mention Shechaniah. However, 1 Corinthians 7:12–16, which addresses marriage to a spouse of a different faith, is often compared with Ezra 10. In that passage Paul counsels that if an unbelieving spouse is willing to live with the believer, the believer should not leave the spouse.

Interpretation and Issues

• Purpose of the measure: Ezra 9:1–2 and Deuteronomy 7:3–4 warn that intermarriage with foreign peoples would lead to idolatry. On this basis, many interpreters regard the measure as an effort to preserve the religious identity of a small community newly returned from exile. Others regard it as a measure limited to its historical circumstances or read it critically. They point out that sending away the wives and children was harsh for those who were sent away, and that Scripture offers examples of foreigners being received among the people of God, such as Ruth the Moabitess.
• Application today: In general Protestant interpretation, this passage is not applied directly as a ground for divorce today. It is usually read together with 1 Corinthians 7 when addressing questions of divorce and remarriage.
• His father Jehiel: The name Jehiel appears in the list of the descendants of Elam in Ezra 10:26. On this basis some commentators suggest that this man may have been Shechaniah's father, but the text does not state that the two are the same person. Although Shechaniah himself does not appear in the list, he said, "We have trespassed." This is understood as a confession in which he identified himself with the sin of the whole community.
• Others of the same name: Several men named Shechaniah appear in Scripture and are distinct from the Shechaniah of this article.
• A descendant of the royal line of David (1 Chronicles 3:21–22)
• The head of the tenth priestly course (1 Chronicles 24:11)
• A Levite in the time of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 31:15)
• The father of Shemaiah, keeper of the east gate (Nehemiah 3:29)
• The son of Arah and father-in-law of Tobiah (Nehemiah 6:18)
• A priest who returned with Zerubbabel (Nehemiah 12:3)
• The "sons of Shechaniah" in Ezra 8:3, 5 refers to a separate family.

In the Korean Church

Ezra 9–10 is taken up in sermons on repentance and reform. Shechaniah's words, "yet now there is hope in Israel," are often quoted to convey that hope remains even after sin has been acknowledged. The passage is also sometimes cited in discussions of marriage between Christians and unbelievers. Nevertheless, Shechaniah is rarely treated on his own in hymns or Sunday school materials.