Ezra 10:3
Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.
Shechaniah answered Ezra by affirming that his words were true, confessing that Israel had trespassed in taking strange wives from the people of the land, and declaring that hope still remained in Israel. The proposal arose from repentance, as the people wept while beginning to grasp the seriousness of their sin and the sacredness of God's law. It was a covenant with God to put away the foreign wives and the children born of them and to forsake sinful living, to be dealt with under the judgment of the law and according to the counsel of the leaders and of those who revere God's command. It called on Ezra to arise and take charge of the matter with courage and with the people's help, encouragement and assured support, and Ezra then secured the proposal by making the chief priests, the Levites and all Israel swear to act according to it.
The reform that followed was carried out with patience, tact and careful regard for each person's rights and welfare, as Ezra as a teacher of the law examined every individual case and led the repentant into right living by impressing on them the holiness of God's law and the blessings gained through obedience. Those who reverence God's commandment tremble at it, and this reverence is needed to uphold the binding claims of God's law and to turn transgressors toward obedience. This reverent fear of God's commandments must be restored in this age when Satan blinds minds against the binding claims of God's law. There is need for men like Ezra who cause many to tremble at God's commandment, meaning true reformers who point transgressors to the great Lawgiver and teach that the law of the Lord is perfect to convert the soul, who are mighty in the Scriptures, exalt the law in every word and act, labor amid apostasy and unbelief to strengthen faith in the law and the prophets, and inspire hearts with reverence and love for the Holy Scriptures.