Nebuchadnezzar suppressed a failed Jewish rebellion, carrying off an additional ten thousand hostages, which included King Jehoiachim and the prophet Ezekiel. Nebuchadnezzar overcame King Jehoiakim of Judah and carried off several key Jewish hostages, including a young Daniel and his friends, to Babylon. Using King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon as His rod of discipline, God’s judgment would come to pass in the years to follow. The prophet Habakkuk had warned that God would soon use captivity from a foreign power (Babylon) to chastise His people for their apostasy and idolatry. Chronologically, though Ezra and Nehemiah are situated in the first third of the Bible, the events described in these books wrap up the history of the Old Testament, setting the stage for the arrival of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, in the New Testament roughly four hundred years later.Īt the time of Ezra’s return to the Jerusalem, the children of Israel had been living in exile for almost fifty years. He confronted problems in the community with boldness, listened to the wisdom and encouragement of contemporary prophets, and always looked to the Word of God for guidance, encouraging the people to focus their attention on God’s plan, God’s Word, and God’s authority, never his leadership.Įzra and Nehemiah is the direct sequel to the book of Chronicles and traces the history of the children of Israel from exile back to Jerusalem. It was Ezra’s extensive training, attention to detail, commitment to God’s standard of holiness, and passion for the Word of God that would prove instrumental in helping lead the hearts of the people back to God through the absolute, eternal truth found in His Word.Īs a leader, Ezra was passionate, purposeful, and direct. In fact, during his time in Persia, Ezra had been instrumental in helping modernize the language of the Torah, correcting irregularities, updating and standardizing common expressions and preserving the integrity of Israel’s sacred text. As it is written, “he had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel” ( Ezra 7:10). In his decree, Artaxerxes also added provisions for the exiles to refurbish the temple with treasure taken during the Babylonian invasion ( Ezra 7:11-26).ĭuring his time in exile, Ezra had received extensive training in the Books of the Law (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) and had spent a significant amount of time in the Word of God as it was his job to copy, interpret, and transmit the Book of the Law to the people. Given opposition faced by Zerubbabel and the first wave of exiles in rebuilding the temple ( Ezra 4), King Artaxerxes would send Ezra, years later, with a royal letter giving him both civil and religious authority to continue the work the first wave had begun. The caravan would set out the following year. and was responsible for rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls and outer defenses.Ī gifted scribe, teacher, and descendent of Aaron through Eleazar, Ezra had found favor in the Persian courts during the reign of Artaxerxes, so much so that the Persian king commissioned him specifically to lead the second Jewish return to Jerusalem around 458 B.C. Nehemiah, a cupbearer and trusted advisor to Artaxerxes I, led the third return in 444 B.C. Sixty years after the temple was completed, Ezra was commissioned by Cyrus’s successor, Artaxerxes, to lead the second Jewish return to Jerusalem in 457 B.C., focusing his efforts on rebuilding the community and returning the hearts of the people back to the Word of God.
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