And my mouth was opened, and was no longer closed: This verse clashes with the picture in verse 39 of Ezra opening his mouth. The open mouth is a figure of speech here. It means that Ezra began to recite Scripture. Of course, he had to open his mouth to do it, but that is not the point, and not what the author means by my mouth was opened. Good News Bible expresses the picture here fairly well, but we offer the following alternative model for this verse:

• God gave me words, and I started speaking.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Esdras. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.