Background Information
Notable people:
1. Ezra
- A priest, a scribe, and a great leader of God’s people.
- His name actually means “help”, and that is exactly what he did. His whole life was dedicated to serving God and God’s people.
- It is believed that Ezra wrote most of 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Psalm 119 and that he led the council of 120 men who compiled the Old Testament canon.
- In the book of Ezra, we see him leading the second major migration back to Jerusalem.
2. Zerubbabel
- A descendant of David and leader of the first return of exiles from Persia.
- He helped to establish a spiritual foundation for the rebuilding efforts.
- Although a strong leader, he faltered in the rebuilding of the temple and needed some encouragement to continue the work.
3. King Cyrus of Persia
- Cyrus was the king of Persia from 559-530 BC. Under his rule, he united the ancient middle east by combining the Medes and Persians into a strong empire. He treated the inhabitants with mercy.
Destruction of the temple in Jerusalem
- Ezra opens in 538 BC, 48 years after king Nebuchadnezzar II of the Babylonian Empire destroyed Jerusalem (including the temple), defeated Judah, and carried the people away as captives.
- Babylon was overthrown by Persia in 539 BC, just prior to the events recorded in Ezra.
God can work through unlikely people (chapter 1, Cyrus king of Persia)
A royal decree:
Ezra 1:2-4 “2 This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them. 4 And in any locality where survivors may now be living, the people are to provide them with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.’”
God chose to work through a man, who was not of the Jewish people, to help guarantee the return of His people.
Fulfillment of prophecy:
- Jeremiah 25:12, Jeremiah 29:10, Daniel 5:17-30
Isaiah 44:28 “who (referring to the Lord) says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,” and of the temple, “Let its foundations be laid.”’
- This prophecy occurred almost 150 years before Cyrus even ruled! Isaiah prophesied from about 740 -681 BC, whereas Cyrus ruled from 559-530 BC!
- Interesting aside: In this prophecy, king Cyrus of Persia is referred to as a king “anointed” by God. He is the ONLY gentile king in the entire bible referred to as anointed. This should say quite a bit about his character and willingness to listen and obey what God was speaking.
- Not only does Cyrus allow the people to return to Israel, but he even gives them all of the furnishings that were stolen out of the previous temple by Nebuchadnezzar.
Scale of the return from Babylon/Persia (chapter 2)
- In total, there were 42,360 people of the tribes of Benjamin and Judah who returned to Jerusalem following their exile in Babylon.
- This return represents a change in the hearts of the people of Israel. After spending 48 years in captivity by the Babylonians, the arrogant people of Judah had been humbled and desired to return to the Lord and rebuild His temple.
- This return was likely an incredibly difficult experience. They had to come back to all of the destruction of what was once previously their home.
Sacrificial giving:
Ezra 2:68-69 “68 When they arrived at the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, some of the heads of the families gave freewill offerings toward the rebuilding of the house of God on its site. 69 According to their ability they gave to the treasury for this work 61,000 darics of gold (about 1100 pounds!), 5,000 minas of silver (about 3 tons!) And 100 priestly garments.”
This is a testament to the state of the hearts of the people of Judah at this time. They decided to give sacrificially to the rebuilding efforts to help ensure its success. It says “according to their ability”: some gave great sums and some gave a little, but everyone contributed what they were able. God asks us to give of ourselves (our time AND our possessions) according to ALL that we are able.
Rebuilding of the temple begins (chapter 3)
- The people started with the “foundation”, but not the physical one.
Ezra 3:2-3 “2 Then Joshua son of Jozadak and his fellow priests and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his associates began to build the altar of the God of Israel to sacrifice burnt offerings on it, in accordance with what is written in the Law of Moses the man of God. 3 Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening sacrifices.”
- Under the leadership of Zerubbabel, they rebuilt the altar FIRST. The altar represented God’s presence and protection. The people started by rebuilding their spiritual foundation first.
- Jerusalem was without a wall, without any defenses whatsoever. However, the people recognized that God was the nation’s protector and that they needed to get their spiritual lives in order before anything else.
- Rebuilding the physical foundation of the temple: It says ALL the people began the work to rebuild the temple. It took the efforts of everyone who had returned from captivity for this endeavor to be successful.
Response to God’s faithfulness:
Ezra 3:10-11 “10 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites (the sons of Asaph) with cymbals, took their places to praise the Lord, as prescribed by David king of Israel. 11 With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the Lord: ‘He is good; his love toward Israel endures forever.’ And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.”
- Here we see that the people gave credit to God after having built the foundation of the temple.
- Everything that we have comes from God: our talents, abilities, strength, and leadership. We need to give credit where credit is due.
