WEDNESDAY July 02, 2025 “Wall of Shame?” (Ezra 10:18-44 & Mal. 2:13-16)

Hello, my ‘Walking with Jesus” friends,

Have you ever stood before a ‘wall of honor’? In America there are many scattered all over our country, several huge ones in Washington DC. These are usually walls of granite and etched or engraved into the granite are the names of special people. They are heroes and people gather at these places to honor what they accomplished in life or death. Ezra chapter 10 is similar, but I call it a ‘wall of shame’ rather than a ‘wall of honor’ and it concludes the difficult situation we’ve been looking at in Jerusalem in about 457bc.

Ezra 10:18-44 closes the Ezra story, and is what I’m calling a ‘wall of shame’, listing the names of all those Jewish men of Jerusalem who were found guilty for violating God’s sacred laws of marriage. I note the ‘wall of shame’ begins with Priests, then Levites followed by Temple musicians and gatekeepers. (Ezra 10:18-24) Do you wonder why these men were listed first? These were those expected to provide spiritual leadership or were associated with worship at the Temple. There’s a higher standard of expectation for those engaged in spiritual leadership and worship of Holy God, isn’t there my friends?

Ezra’s closing statement is simple, powerful and painful: “All these had married foreign women, and some of them had children by these wives.” (Ezra 10:44) Regardless of what else any of these Jewish men had accomplished in their lives, their lasting legacy, even now, 2400 years later, is their violation of God’s sacred marriage laws and their names are forever etched on this ‘wall of shame’. Think about that for a moment my friends. Does that help us understand how vitally important God considers a marriage covenant in the human experience? Do you and I hold marriage in as much high, holy and sacred respect as God does?

History tells us Ezra remained in Jerusalem, probably for the remainder of his life, giving vital spiritual leadership, teaching and training to the people of Jerusalem. I find no record of exactly when or how Ezra died. Within a few short years, two more very significant men were raised up by God and they are the final two, God honoring voices of the Old Testament. Do you know who they are? The prophet Malachi and another emissary from King Artaxerxes, the wall builder and governor Nehemiah!

We know Nehemiah first came to Jerusalem, sent by King Artaxerxes, in the year 445bc, according to Nehemiah 1. That’s only 13 years after Ezra was sent by that very same king, to Jerusalem. So, it’s very likely Nehemiah and Ezra knew each other, either from their days in the royal courts of King Artaxerxes or they may have been in Jerusalem at the same time. Tomorrow, we’ll meet Mr. Nehemiah and journey with him on his exciting adventure. But in closing the story of Ezra today, I’d like us to consider these words written by the final Old Testament prophet Malachi who was moved by God to speak a message directed at the ongoing problem of marriages. Malachi’s message has a wider focus and application than the specific issue Ezra had been dealing with in Jerusalem.

In God’s evaluation of marriage wherever His people the Israelites were living, God saw a problem that had become widespread and it’s a major problem in our day. God gave Malachi this message to proclaim on HIS behalf: “You weep and wail because God no longer looks with favor on your offerings…You ask ‘why’? It is because the LORD is witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the LORD made them one? In flesh and spirit they are His. So, guard yourself and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.” (Malachi 2:13-15)

Yes, God watches marriages very carefully. The covenant of marriage is the ultimate commitment between two human beings and is a reflection of the life sustaining relationship God has with all human beings He creates and sustains with every breath. Have you considered the daily extreme of love which God extends to sustain the lives of wicked people who curse God, reject God, blaspheme God with the very breath God gives them? Israelites, once married, were to remain married to that spouse for a lifetime as a testimony to God’s faithfulness and sustaining love.

God continued with one more powerful statement through Malachi: “The man who hates and divorces his wife, does violence to the person he should protect.’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘So be on your guard and do not be unfaithful.” (Malachi 2:16) Oh this is so important my friends. For us men, our first priority in marriage should be PROTECTING the heart and soul of our dear wife from ANYTHING or ANYONE that might hurt her. This, of course, requires that we must know our dear wives intimately so we understand what offends or harms or frightens her. As a father protects his little girl when she is young, so should a God honoring husband protect his wife…physically, emotionally, spiritually. The ultimate desecration of parenting is when a father, who should protect his little girl, harms or violates his daughter; so, it is when a husband, who should protect his wife, criticizes or humiliates or in any way harms or violates his wife. God says, “I hate divorce”! (Malachi 2:16)

Do we understand WHY God hates divorce? Let me give you two reasons, and I’m sure there are many more.

1. Divorce breaks a Covenant, and Covenants are to be broken by only one thing…death.

God has made several covenants with our human race, did you know that? The rainbow in the sky is a tangible, visible reminder of the Covenant God made with Noah and all of us, after the great flood. God promised that He would never again destroy all living things with a flood! (Genesis 9:8-16) “God said to Noah, ‘This is the sign of the covenant I am making between Me and you and every living creature, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of this covenant… Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.” Marriage vows are a covenant of love and faithfulness between a man and a woman and God, only to be broken by the natural death of one spouse.

2. Divorce is the ultimate rejection of the person with whom a covenant of love and faithfulness was made before and with God!

This is especially true when the divorcer then proceeds to marry another person establishing a second covenant to love and be faithful to that person! While death leaves the widow or widower in grief, divorce is an even deeper grief knowing their spouse is alive and loving another person! That was God’s primary message through the prophets to His people Israel whom God viewed as having turned their back on God and His love, and gave their hearts of love and worship to false gods, idols.

Jeremiah is one of many of God’s prophets and he proclaimed many messages from God to Israel about this, including this one: “This is what the LORD says: I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved Me and followed Me… what fault did your ancestors find in Me that they strayed so far from me? They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves…” (Jer. 2:2-13)

As we’ve seen in our “Walking with Jesus” journey of the past several months, that is why God allowed both the northern kingdom Israel and southern kingdom Judah to be decimated by invading armies and the surviving Israelites taken away from their land into captivity. Oh, the painful price of rejecting God and breaking the holy covenant of marriage made before Him!

We’ll look at the rest of Malachi’s messages from God after we walk through the amazing, miraculous story of Nehemiah beginning tomorrow. For today let’s thank God that He’s ready to help any and every marriage honor Him greatly, and here’s a great song of worship.