We shall continue
the study of the book of Ezra of the Old Testament this week.
As the rebuilding effort was stalled shortly after the laying of the foundation of the temple in 538 B.C., God raised up prophets Haggai and Zechariah to prophesy and encourage the people to resume the work during the reign of Darius, likely around 519 and 518 B.C. Once again, the opposition reared its ugly head, but the people of God did not yield to their pressure, and work continued while a letter or report was sent to Darius by the governor of Trans-Euphrates and his associates:
(1) Presumably, they could not find any record in Babylon, but they continued the search in Ecbatana, the summer palace of the Persian king and found the original decree of Cyrus—such an effort was commendable, not because Darius was a worshipper of Yahweh, but a generous king who sought to honor the major gods worshipped among his populace (according to other historical accounts). In any case, God can use non-believing kings and rulers to achieve His purpose. Can you think of any other similar incidents in the Scriptures?
(2) Vv. 3-5 give more details on the contents of Cyrus’ decree. Compare this to 1:2-4 and see what additional information and insights you can gain from this decree.
(3) Compare the desired size as decreed by Cyrus to that of Solomon’s temple (in 1 Ki. 6:2). What might be the intent of Cyrus?
(4) What was the immediate verdict of Darius on the petition by the Trans-Euphrates officers in v. 7? Why would he consent with the Jews, apart from possible political expediency?
(5) In addition to allowing the continuation of the rebuilding of the temple, Darius gave further orders in vv. 8-10 to support their work. They included the expenses of “these men” which is further expanded as what was needed for burnt offerings and what was needed for daily offerings. What was his purpose of so doing, according to v.10?
(6) As was typical of a royal decree of the time, a curse was pronounced on any violators or offenders to the decree.
a. Do you think the Jewish leaders and their people expected such an outcome?
b. What might they be doing during this process of petition, as led by Haggai and Zechariah?
c. What lesson may we learn, as we face opposition in the world against the Lord and His people?
(7) Can you imagine how this petitioning governor and his associates felt upon receipt of this edict from the king? What did they do about it?
(8) Pause and reflect on the main message to you today. How may you apply it to your life?
This “second” temple was completed in the 6th year of the reign of King Darius which would be in B.C. 516.
(1) The Bible attributes this eventual completion of the project to the continuous preaching of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah by saying that, “So the elders of the Jews continued to build and prosper under the preaching of…” (6:14a):
a. In other words, without their preaching, what would have happened?
b. How then should we view preaching in terms of its importance to the life of individual believers and that of the church?
(2) The Bible also relates the completion of the temple to the “command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia” (6:14b):
a. What is the Bible trying to say to us?
b. How important is the sequence of this statement?
(3) Although the celebration of the dedication of the temple, in terms of emotion, was not as dramatic as the laying of the foundation in 3:13, still the Bible says, it was celebrated with joy (6:16). If you were Haggai or Zechariah, in what ways was this dedication an occasion of joy to you?
(4) Quite a number of bull, rams and lambs were used as sacrifices in the dedication of the temple. Just for the sake of interest, compare that to the sacrifices made at the dedication of the first temple in 1 Kings 8:63:
a. The sacrifices made in this second dedication could not even come close to Solomon’s. Does it matter? Why or why not?
b. There was also a lack of eloquent prayer like Solomon’s too (1 Ki. 8:22-53). Does it matter? Why or why not?
(5) Unlike the dedication of Solomon’s temple, because of timing, this particular dedication was followed by the celebration of Passover. What special significance might this celebration of Passover by the “exiles” be at this time?
(6) It is worth-noting that during these 21 years of stalling of the rebuilding project, some of the exiles had associated themselves with “unclean practices” of their neighbors already (6:21):
a. What lesson can we learn as a result?
b. How important is the presence of God’s temple and the restoration of worship to the spiritual well-being of God’s people?
(7) We know that the Feast of Unleavened Bread is celebrated as part of and immediately following the Passover. What lessons should these people of God learn from this particular celebration of Unleavened Bread?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
The first group of returnees came back at the decree of Cyrus in 538 B.C. and they laid the foundation of the temple; the work was stalled for some 20 years till 519 B.C. and the temple was eventually completed in 516 B.C. Now Ezra came back with a group of people under a decree by Artaxerxes in 458 B.C.:
(1) Scholars in general opine that Ezra was holding a respectable position, some kind of a secretary for the Persian king, to the point that the king “had granted him everything he asked” (presumably concerning the journey), and with his influence as a priest, he was able to recruit other priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers and temple servants to come along with him:
a. What do you think was the reason that God sent Ezra back at this time to Jerusalem some 58 years after the temple was completed?
b. What might have happened to the people in Jerusalem during these years?
(2) Of all people in this book, only Ezra’s genealogy was being spelled out in detail:
a. To which important ancestor was Ezra’s genealogy traced back to?
b. Was there a need to trace his ancestry in such detail?
(3) “Ezra had devoted himself” to the law is best and more literally translated as “Ezra had set his heart” on (three aspects related to) the law: a. the study, b. the observance, and c. the teaching.
a. What is the importance of the studying of the law?
b. What is the importance of the observing of the law?
c. What is the importance of the teaching of the law?
d. Which is worse: studying without observing, or teaching without observing?
e. Which is worse: teaching without studying or teaching without observing?
f. How important is it to do all three?
(4) How long did his journey take? (A direct route from Babylon to Jerusalem is said to be about 500 miles.)
(5) His safe arrival was marked by the words “for the gracious hand of his God was on him” (7:9). What does this particular remark mean?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Today’s passage is primarily a study of the contents of the letter written by King Artaxerxes and given to Ezra:
(1) How did the King address Ezra? What might be the importance of such an address?
(2) Whom did he specifically allow or encourage to go with Ezra? What might be its implication?
(3) The mention of the king plus his seven advisors, in the opinion of many scholars, serves to validate the authenticity of this letter, as it reflects a genuine historical knowledge of the Persian Empire. More importantly, what did the freewill offering of the king and the seven advisors signify?
(4) While the total amount of offerings was impressive (see 8:26-27), it is the different sources that would be even more meaningful. Who were the people listed by the king as having made an offering for the temple of God in Jerusalem?
(5) What was the main purpose of such offerings?
(6) The king specified that other needs for the temple might also be supplied from the royal treasury; do you think it was right for Ezra to do so?
(7) As we know, church ministers in some European countries, like Croatia, still derive their salaries from the government. Do you think it is proper to do so?
(8) While keeping a cap on the supply to the temple, the king explained his reasoning in v. 23 for his generous action towards the temple of God. What was it and what do you think about such a motive?
(9) By exempting the “ministers” of the house of God, the king was in essence sanctioning Judaism as one of the recognized religions in Persia. These days in North America, there is constant political pressure for the abolition of whatever tax exemptions that have been granted to the church ministers and the church. Should we fight to maintain such exemptions or not? Why?
(10) What did the letter from the king mean to Ezra? How did he view the provision that was coming from a secular king for God’s work?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Ezra now gave a list of the family heads who went up with him. While the list numbered the people that followed the head of the family, no number was given of the priestly families descended from Aaron and the royal family descended from David. So the list did not serve to count those who accompanied Ezra, but perhaps served to highlight the important influence of Ezra.
(1) Why was Ezra so concerned that there were no Levites (assistant to the priests)? What might this indicate concerning the condition back in Jerusalem?
(2) Ezra probably used his influence to make Iddo, likely the chief of these temple servant clans, select some 228 men to go back to Jerusalem with him. How would these temple servants feel being drafted involuntarily into going back to a less affluent land in Jerusalem? What do you think they were doing in Babylon?
(3) What was the purpose of the fasting proclaimed by Ezra? In what way was it an act of “humbling themselves”?
(4) Why was Ezra “ashamed” to ask for protection from the king?
(5) In proclaiming this fast, Ezra appeared to have chosen the occasion to teach his men a biblical principle in v. 22. What was it?
(6) What, according to Ezra, was the result of their fasting?
(7) What can we learn from Ezra in our reflection of the above questions?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) The offerings from the king and his court translated into 25 tons of silver, 3¾ tons of silver articles, 3¾ tons of gold, 20 bowls of gold etc. which were “enormous sums, worth millions of dollars" (Gaebelein, Ezra, 660). What did such enormous sums of offerings from the Persian leaders mean to the people of Israel at a time like this, politically and spiritually?
(2) Ezra was concerned that there were no Levites among his group of returnees. From this passage, what important function did these Levites serve?
(3) Do you agree that it was an important function? Why or why not?
(4) Ezra took the opportunity to remind the leading priests and the chosen Levite leaders that, “You as well as those articles are consecrated to the Lord” (8:28). What does it mean and what is the significance of such a reminder at this time of their journey back to Jerusalem? (Note that they were undoubtedly at least the second generation of exiles in Babylon.)
(5) The journey took some four months, and with the kind of wealth they carried but without military protection (which Ezra could have requested), their safe arrival in Jerusalem was indeed God’s protection. How does this example of Ezra speak to you personally? How may you apply it to your life or that of the church?
(6) “Everything was accounted for by number and weight, and the entire weight was recorded at that time” (8:34). What can we learn from the way Ezra handled these offerings, especially when it comes to the handling of money or property of the church?
(7) You may want to compare the sacrifices made here with those offered at the dedication of the temple (6:17). Can you single out one type of offering (and the animal) that was identical in both occasions? What is its significance?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
At the time of the return of the second group of Jews led by Ezra in 458 B.C., there was a lapse of 80 years since the return of the first group. It is obvious that Ezra is now regarded as the spiritual leader with his credential as a renowned teacher of the Law of Moses. One of the first things that was brought to his attention was that the local leaders and officials had led the way in marrying gentile women of the neighboring peoples:
(1) What did Ezra do when he heard of the situation?
(2) Was he overreacting or not? Why?
(3) Who else joined him?
(4) What happened to the rest of the people?
(5) What was Ezra up against?
(6) What did he do about it, apart from expressing signs of dismay and grief?
(7) It was not he who sinned. Why did he pray as if he was part of it? Was he?
(8) We can divide this great prayer into:
a. V. 6—Expression of shame: Have you ever felt such shame about your sins?
b. V. 7—Acknowledgement of sins of the fathers: They were still under foreign rule!
c. Vv. 8-9—God’s amazing mercy at present: How amazing was God’s mercy according to Ezra?
d. Vv. 10-12—Confession—breaking of God’s command: Why did God prohibit inter-marriages with their neighbors?
e. V. 13—Gravity of their sin: In what did Ezra see that God had punished them less than their sins deserved? Is it true in your case?
f. Vv. 14-15—Facing the consequences before the righteous God: What did Ezra see as the possible consequence of their sin now?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?