Ezra 7:25 (WEB)

Passage

You, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people who are beyond the River, who all know the laws of your God; and teach him who doesn’t know them.

Nearby Context

Ezra 7:23 Whatever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be done exactly for the house of the God of heaven; for why should there be wrath against the realm of the king and his sons?

Ezra 7:24 Also we inform you that it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, custom, or toll, on any of the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants, or laborers of this house of God.

Ezra 7:25 You, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people who are beyond the River, who all know the laws of your God; and teach him who doesn’t know them.

Ezra 7:26 Whoever will not do the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be executed on him with all diligence, whether it is to death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprisonment.

Ezra 7:27 Blessed be Yahweh, the God of our fathers, who has put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to beautify Yahweh’s house which is in Jerusalem;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "ezra", "wisdom", "hand", "appoint", "magistrates", "judges", and "people". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "ezra" and "wisdom", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 24's "Also we inform you that it shall..." into verse 26's "Whoever will not do the law of...", so "ezra" and "wisdom" belong inside that flow. In Ezra context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "ezra" and "wisdom" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.