What does repentance look like in the life of a community? What will happen among the returned exiles after they have heard and understood God’s word (ch. 8) and prayed a penitential prayer (ch. 9)? Here in chapter 10 the community gathers once more to renew their covenant commitment. We see in the chapter that 1) a renewed community is the aggregate of individuals waking in repentance; 2) true repentance manifests in a sincere resolve to new obedience; and 3) new obedience, as a fruit of repentance, targets specific areas of struggle.
