Ezra - 7:25



25 You, Ezra, after the wisdom of your God who is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people who are beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God; and teach him who doesn't know them.

Verse In-Depth

Explanation and meaning of Ezra 7:25.

Differing Translations

Compare verses for better understanding.
And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that is in thine hand, set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye them that know them not.
And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God that is in thy hand, appoint magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people that are beyond the River, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye him that knoweth them not.
And thou Esdras according to the wisdom of thy God, which is in thy hand, appoint judges and magistrates, that may judge all the people, that is beyond the river, that is, for them who know the law of thy God, yea and the ignorant teach ye freely.
And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, which is in thy hand, set magistrates and judges who may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye him that knows them not.
And thou, Ezra, according to the wisdom of thy God, that is in thy hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may be judges to all the people who are beyond the river, to all knowing the law of thy God, and he who hath not known ye cause to know;
And you, Ezra, by the wisdom of your God which is in you, are to put rulers and judges to have authority over all the people across the river who have knowledge of the laws of your God; and you are to give teaching to him who has no knowledge of them.
But as for you, Ezra, in accord with the wisdom of your God, which is in your hand, appoint judges and magistrates, so that they may judge the entire people, which is beyond the river, especially so that they may know the law of your God, but also so as to teach the ignorant freely.

*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.


Historical Commentaries

Scholarly Analysis and Interpretation.

And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that [is] in thine hand, (o) set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that [are] beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye them that know [them] not.
(o) He gave Ezra full authority to restore all things according to the word of God, and to punish them who resisted and would not obey.

And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that is in thine hand,.... Which he had a large share of from the Lord, and could readily make use of to good purpose; and this may be meant of the law of God made with the highest wisdom, and to know and observe which is an instance of wisdom in men, Deuteronomy 4:6,
set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; such as God, in his great wisdom, directed to in his wise law to be appointed over the people, to judge righteous judgment; to inform them in all matters of controversy that might arise among them, and decide them according to it; and lead them into a greater and better knowledge of it, Deuteronomy 16:18. Jarchi takes the word for "set" to be a comparative, and the sense to be, that the wisdom of Ezra was greater than the judges that judged the people, than them that knew the law:
and teach ye them that know them not; such people that were ignorant thereof; though the above writer interprets this of ignorant judges,"the judge that knows not to judge, make him know judgment to do it.''

Finally, Ezra is empowered to appoint over his whole people (all the Jews) on this side the river, judges who know the law of God, and to inflict severe penalties upon those who transgress it.
"Thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God which is in thy hand (בידך דּי like Ezra 7:14), set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are on this side the river, namely all such as know the laws of thy God, and teach ye them that know them not." The form מנּי is imper. Pael for מנּי, the A sound probably passing in rapid speech into the flatter E sound. "All the people on this side the river" is limited to Israelites or Jews by the further particulars, "who know the law of thy God," etc. These are to receive from Ezra judges, viz., such as are acquainted with the law, i.e., Israelite judges, and thus to be placed under the jurisdiction established at Jerusalem. The sentence, "and they who know it (the law) not, them teach ye, make them acquainted with it," does not refer to the heathen, but to born Israelites or Jews, who, living among the heathen, had not hitherto made the Mosaic law the rule of their lives. Such were the judges to constrain to the observance and obedience of the law.

The wisdom - Which God hath put into thy heart, and which appears in the works of thy hand. All that professed the Jewish religion, were to be under the jurisdiction of these judges.

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