Ezra 3:11

3:11 With antiphonal response they sang,¹ praising and glorifying the Lord:

“For he is good;

his loyal love toward Israel is forever.”

All the people gave a loud² shout as they praised the Lord when the temple of the Lord was established.

Ezra 8:18

8:18 Due to the fact that the good hand of our God was on us, they brought us a skilled man, from the descendants of Mahli the son of Levi son of Israel. This man was Sherebiah,³ who was accompanied by his sons and brothers,⁴ 18 men,

Ezra 8:22

8:22 I was embarrassed to request soldiers and horsemen from the king to protect us from the enemy⁵ along the way, because we had said to the king, “The good hand of our God is on everyone who is seeking him, but his great anger⁶ is against everyone who forsakes him.”

Ezra 9:12

9:12 Therefore do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons, and do not take their daughters in marriage for your sons. Do not ever seek their peace or welfare, so that you may be strong and may eat the good of the land and may leave it as an inheritance for your children⁷ forever.’

¹tn Heb “they answered.”

²tn Heb “great.”

³tn Heb “and Sherebiah.” The words “this man was” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

⁴tn Or “relatives” (so CEV; NRSV “kin”); also in v. 19.

⁵tn A number of modern translations regard this as a collective singular and translate “from enemies” (also in v. 31).

⁶tn Heb “his strength and his anger.” The expression is a hendiadys (one concept expressed through two terms).

⁷tn Heb “sons”; cf. KJV, NAB, NIV, NLT “children”; NCV, TEV “descendants.”