Devotionals: Ezra Archives - Page 2 of 3

The Temple Dedicated

By Andrew YoungDecember 28, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“Then the people of Israel… celebrated the dedication of the house of God with joy.” (Ezra 6:14) Bible Reading: Ezra 6:16-18 Work on the temple completed, the Jews didn’t simply “down tools,” walk off the job, and get on with their own lives. Rather, they “celebrated the dedication of the house of God with joy” (Ezra 6:16). There was a definite ceremony or event in which they formally devoted the building to God – they set it apart for him. And that ceremony was marked by joyful celebration. It entailed, first of all, the making of a number of freewill offerings to […]

The Work Completed

By Andrew YoungDecember 27, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“They finished building the temple…” (Ezra 6:14) Bible Reading: Ezra 6:13-15 The decree of King Darius had a powerful effect on Tattenai and the other Trans-Euphrates officials. Upon receiving it, “they carried it out with diligence” (Ezra 6:13) – presumably in all of its aspects. That meant leaving the Jews to their work, and ensuring they had all the provisions they needed both to complete building the temple and to carry out their regular worship activities (6:7-10). Under this new set of circumstances, “the elders of the Jews continued to build and prosper under the preaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, […]

A Royal Ally

By Andrew YoungDecember 26, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“Do not interfere with the work on this temple of God.” (Ezra 6:7) Bible Reading: Ezra 6:1-12 As suggested in the letter he had received from Tattenai and the other Trans-Euphrates officials, Darius, the Persian king, makes a search of the archives stored in the treasury of Babylon to see if his predecessor, Cyrus, had made a decree relating to the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. Sure enough, a scroll is found containing a memo detailing everything that Cyrus had commanded, just as the Jews in Jerusalem had said (Ezra 6:1-5). Darius doesn’t delay: he immediately issues a decree confirming the […]

Telling it as it Is

By Andrew YoungDecember 25, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“This is the answer they gave us… (Ezra 5:11) Bible Reading: Ezra 5:6-17 The Trans-Euphrates officials were concerned that the Jews had started rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem again and determined to write to Darius the king about the matter (Ezra 5:8). They tell him of the “diligence” of the builders and the fact that the work is “making rapid progress under their direction” (v. 8). They also report how they had questioned the Jews on who had had given them the authority to build, and asked for the names of their leaders for the king’s information (v. 9). They then […]

Helped by the Prophets

By Andrew YoungDecember 24, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“And the prophets of God were with them, helping them” (Ezra 5:2) Bible Reading: Ezra 5:1-5 Work on rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem remained at a standstill (Ezra 4:24) for some 15 years. During this time, the Jews busied themselves building their own houses and attending to their crops (Haggai 1:2, 3). They were so absorbed in this that they totally ignored the temple rebuilding work for which they had returned. God chastened them for this neglect with poor crops and wasted efforts (1:5-11), but in spite of that, temple construction remained at a halt – until, that is, God sent his […]

Brought to a Standstill

By Andrew YoungDecember 23, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“Thus, the work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.” (Ezra 4:24) Bible Reading: Ezra 4:17-24 The letter of accusation written by the Trans-Euphrates officials did reach the court of the king of Persia where it was read and translated in his presence (Ezra 4:18). More than that, it was acted upon. As the officials had suggested in the letter, the archives were searched and it was confirmed that Jerusalem had “a long history of revolt against kings” and had been “a place of rebellion and […]

Accused!

By Andrew YoungDecember 22, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“At the beginning of the reign of Xerxes, they lodged an accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.” (Ezra 4:6) Bible Reading: Ezra 4:6-16 We have seen that one of the ways in which the surrounding people tried to stop the Jews from rebuilding the temple was to hire counsellors to “work against them and frustrate their plans” (Ezra 4:5). This happened not just once or twice, but over a long period of time – during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia down to the reign of Darius king of Persia. In the verses before us now, we see […]

Opposition Aroused

By Andrew YoungDecember 21, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.” (Ezra 4:4) Bible Reading: Ezra 4:1-5 The first stages of rebuilding the temple didn’t go unnoticed by the “enemies of Judah and Benjamin” – that is, by the “people around them,” the people who had inhabited the land since “the time of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria” (Ezra 4:1, 2). They had no doubt seen the work in progress and heard the loud celebrations when the foundation of the temple was completed (3:13). And it concerned them deeply. These Jews were clearly […]

Worship along with Work

By Andrew YoungDecember 20, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests… and the Levites … sang to the Lord.” (Ezra 2:68, 69) Bible Reading: Ezra 3:7-13 It was a whole year after the return from captivity before work on the temple began. As a first step towards this, skilled workers were paid and needed materials – cedar logs from Lebanon – were accumulated (Ezra 3:7). Furthermore, Levites twenty years and older were assigned the task of supervising the work (vs. 8, 9). Rebuilding the temple of God was to proceed under the watchful eyes of the servants of God. […]

Worship before Work

By Andrew YoungDecember 19, 2015Devotionals: Ezra

“On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the LORD, though the foundation of the Lord’s temple had not yet been laid.” (Ezra 2:68, 69) Bible Reading: Ezra 3:1-6 The reason the Jews had returned to Jerusalem was to “rebuild the temple of the Lord” (Ezra 1:2). Having arrived and made contributions to the building work, they had resettled in their own towns (2:68-70). However, on the first day of the seventh month – an important celebratory month in the Jewish calendar – they assemble as “one man” in Jerusalem (3:1). There they lay the foundation of the […]