When Ezra left Babylon at the request of King Artaxerxes to return to Jerusalem, he did not set out alone. Ezra 8:1-14 records the names and the genealogies of those who set out on the four month trek with him. While the text gives us little more than the names and numbers of these returnees, […]

After introducing us to the reformer Ezra, Ezra 7:11-28 explains how Ezra set out for Jerusalem bearing a letter of authority from King Artaxerxes of Persia. Although he was a relative ‘nobody’ in Jerusalem (depsite his important ancestry), this letter gave Ezra the authority to do his work. The letter from the King also sets […]

In Psalm 100, we have an invitation to come into God’s presence and serve him with gladness. We do this because of his good character and his care for us, his people, in so many ways. The returned exiles might not have always felt that joy in worship and we might struggle at times too. […]

There are lots of men in the Bible. 956 to be exact. Ezra is one of them though he is not as well known as some of the others. In Ezra 7:1-10 we are finally introduced to the man whose name is both the title and the author of the book. Ezra’s ancestral line is given to […]

Four months after the dedication of the Temple, the people of Israel gathered together for a special Passover celebration in Ezra 6:19-22. This was the first Passover to be held since the time of exile in Babylon (90 years earlier) and so it was a very special time. The meaning of the Passover was defined […]

After the work on the Temple of Israel had been completed under the good and sovereign hand of God, Ezra 6:16-18 tells how the people set about to dedicate their new place of worship. Although it was a great day of celebration and thanksgiving and was marked by great joy, the day was little comparison […]

After the Temple had been left unfinished for many years, the preaching of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah stirred the people of God into action. Ezra 6:1-15 tells us that despite the local governor’s attempt to get the building work to be stopped again, under God’s good hand and with the confirming signs of His […]

After 15 years of inactivity and with the Temple foundations laid but no building work begun, Ezra 5:1-17 tells of the way that God moved His people to get back to the task of rebuilding the Temple. God did this through His Word by sending the prophets Haggai and Zechariah with a message of encouragement. […]

In Habakkuk 1:1-11, the Old Testament prophet Habakkuk was unafraid to let God know of his complaint. The world of his day was full of evil, and what was God doing about it? His apparent inactivity was a concern to the prophet. However God had an answer for the prophet that he was not expecting. […]

Ezra 4:7-24 describes how the people who lived in Jerusalem not only opposed the work of rebuilding the Temple in the days of the returned exiles, but also how they continued to oppose this work and thwart God’s people for the next 70 years, right up until and during the days of Nehemiah. By spreading […]