Day #261

Sermon - Audio
Ezra 1-3 - Audio
Ezra 1-3 - Reading

Daily Insights - Please Comment

Ezra 1-3

Ch. 1 –

v. 1 -- God used selfish Cyrus for his purposes: Cyrus’ concern was to establish strong buffer states around his empire which would be loyal to him. Also by having his subject peoples resettled in their own countries he hoped to have the gods in various parts of his empire praying for him to his gods Bel and Nebo.

v. 4 -- Now God was effecting a new ”Exodus,“ again bringing His people who had been in bondage back into the land of promise, much as He had done under Moses and Joshua.

Ch. 2 –

v. 63 -- Such a long list of names and locations seems unnecessary to some modern readers, but it would have been of great encouragement to the original readers as they saw their own families and towns represented.

v. 67 -- The journey from Babylon to Israel was about 900 miles and took about four months, but Ezra did not state how long the return trip took. His focus was not on the people’s hardships but on their task of rebuilding the temple.

Ch. 3 –

v. 1 -- In years past, the seventh month had been a great month religiously for Israel. Offering sacrifices in accordance with what was written in the Law of Moses. It was important that those returning would come back to the Mosaic Covenant, because their forefathers had left the covenant.

v. 10-11 -- This song of praise is highly significant for by it the religious leaders were acknowledging that Yahweh had again established His loving protection over the nation. The word ”love“ (ḥeseḏ) is God’s covenantal loyal love/steadfast love which exists forever with His people Israel.

Other Thoughts --

Not everyone was eager to return to Judah. While many of the Jews had reexamined their values and made a fresh commitment to God, a great number of those who prospered in Babylon were again enmeshed in materialism.

Those who did return were spiritually motivated, and once there, quickly began work on the temple.

In the ancient world, deities were associated with particular locations, viewed either as the home or a favorite place of the god. Because of this belief, temples were constructed as residences for the god or goddess manifested there, and it was assumed that the deities found these residences acceptable. No wonder the pagan Cyrus referred to Jehovah as “the God who is in Jerusalem.”

--Bible Knowledge Commentary -- --The Teacher’s Commentary --