Ezra or, Restoration from Babylon

He was the governor of the territory who oversaw the rebuilding of the temple Haggai 1: Other kings and officials show up according to their relevance to the rebuilding project. The temple is what the project was about, but it would be a mistake to think that God blesses craftsmanship and material work only when it is devoted to a religious purpose. We will discuss this point further when we come to Nehemiah, who actually undertook the work beyond the temple.

Ezra describes several efforts to squelch the construction Ezra 4: These were successful for a while, stopping the temple project for about two decades Ezra 4: Finally, God encouraged the Jews through the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah to resume and complete the job Ezra 5: Moreover, Darius, king of Persia, underwrote the building effort financially in the hope that the Lord might bless him and his sons Ezra 6: As this verse makes clear, the Jews actually did the work of rebuilding the temple.

Yet their labors were successful because of help from two pagan kings, one who inaugurated the project and the other who paid for its completion. Behind these human efforts loomed the overarching work of God, who moved in the hearts of the kings and encouraged his people through the prophets. As we have seen, God is at work far beyond what meets the eye of his people.

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We ask that you prayerfully consider joining us in this work! Daniel managed to walk the tightrope of partial cultural assimilation without religious or moral compromise. Christians working in the crafts and trades talk about their faith and work. Background from Mark 6: Every resource on our site was made possible through the financial support of people like you. If you like reading the Theology of Work Bible Commentary free online, you might enjoy it in print! Business, education, law, service industries, medicine, government--wherever you work, in whatever capacity, the Scriptures have something to say about it.

This edition is a one-volume hardcover version. Revised September 29, So they determined to cast themselves upon God and trust Him; thus the solemn fast. Ezra also appointed 12 leading priests and 12 leading Levites to care for the wealth being transported to repair and equip the Temple vv.

It included talents of silver about 28 tons and talents of gold about 3. The 1,mile journey across the Fertile Crescent went without incident, a fact Ezra attributed to God: But when Ezra arrived in Jerusalem he was horrified to discover that many of the Jews who had returned earlier, especially the leaders, had embraced the wickedness of the pagan nations around them. In fact, many had taken pagan wives 9: Ezra was devastated; this was precisely the sin the nation had committed shortly after it first entered the land under Joshua Ex. It was the sin that had plunged Israel into the dark ages known as the period of the judges Jud.

Ezra made his horror evident Ezra 9: His zeal impacted the city. Bold action was necessary; and at the suggestion of one of the citizens, Shechaniah, the decision was made to put away the pagan wives Courts were convened, justice and morality were honored, doubtless reparation was made, and difficult situations were resolved.

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Those who refused to submit to the Law were expelled from the community vv. This section of the record concludes with a catalog of those who submitted to the tribunal and thus contributed to the reformation and revival accomplished by God through Ezra vv. Instruction in Omission Miracles are conspicuously absent in this narrative, yet there is instruction in that omission. Yahweh had made Himself King in Israel at Mt. Sinai in B.

That departure signaled the end of the theocratic arrangement. This is not to say God abandoned His covenant with Israel; the covenant relationship is unilateral and thus eternally binding on God Gen. This is the grand message of the book of Esther. And it is a reality we see worked out in the most practical way in the restoration narrative recorded in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah.

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And what lies on the horizon may be more madness in the making. Surrounded by trouble and enemies, Nehemiah forged ahead to repair and rebuild Jerusalem. When Ezra the scribe returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, he led a mar- velous revival.