Ezra and Nehemiah

KEY VERSE: Neh 4:17 They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.

AUTHORS: Ezra and Nehemiah

TIME: The Events take place between 537BC and 433BC, and the books were written between 440BC (Ezra) and 430BC (Nehemiah)

THEMES: Ezra’s life theme was “The hand of the Lord my God was upon me” and the theme of Nehemiah’s mission was “The people had a mind to work”

CONTEXT: The Jews have spent 70 years in exile in Babylon, a period known as the “CAPTIVITY”. But the Babylonian Empire has been conquered by a storm descending upon it out of the East, a mighty tempest known as “Persia”. The Persians were a confederation of newly liberated states (once under the dominion of the Medes) centered in what is present-day PERSIA which were ruled by a King of military and administrative genius named Cyrus. About 120 years before Cyrus was born, the Prophet Isaiah predicted that a King named CYRUS would deliver God’s people (IS 45).

I. The Edict of Cyrus 537BC 1:1-11

A. God’s sovereign stirring 1:1-2 The Spirit of the Lord stirred the heart of this GENTILE King to restore His people to the Promised Land.

B. Any willing Jew was allowed to return to Jerusalem and given imperial treasures to finance the operation 1:3-6

C. The restoration of the Temple TREASURES 1:7-11

II. The Resettlers 2:1-70 This is a list of those who resettled Jerusalem from Babylon: 42,360 people.

III. The Laying of the Temple Foundation 535BC 3:1-13

A. The Altar built and Sacrifices made 3:1-3 The land was not EMPTY when the Jews returned – it was inhabited by people who had moved there with the permission of the Babylonian authorities and who were hostile to the recreation of a Jewish state. http://www.vimeo.com/thebible 1 of 5 http://sites.google.com/sites/thebiblein1yr B. The Feasts re-instituted 1:4-6. When the Jews and Israelites inhabited the Promised Land in the time of the Kings, the sacrifices were neglected and it seems that the solemn Feasts – even Passover – were ignored for long periods of time. However, after 70 years of exile in Babylon, the HEARTS of the Jewish people were forever changed, and the institutions which they disdained when they were free to observe them, they cherished when they were prevented from observing them.

C. A shout of remorse and JOY 1:7-13 Workmen accomplished a great feat in difficult circumstances in the midst of a ruined city – they rebuilt the foundation for a new Temple.

IV. The Wicked Triumph 522BC 4:1-24

A. An attempt to deceive 4:1-3

B. The anti-Temple campaign 4:4-16 The opponents of the new Temple launched a three-pronged attack: they discouraged the people, they BRIBED officials, and they wrote a letter to the current King of Persia.

C. The faithlessness of Ataxerxes 4:17-24

V. The Plan of God Revived 520BC (Temple finished in 516BC, ESTHER is Queen of Persia in 473BC) 5:1-6:22

A. The Prophets speak 5:1-2 Haggai and Zechariah encourage the people to begin building again and trust God for the proper paperwork to be in order again.

B. The Inspector Inspects 5:3-4 A provincial governor noticed the construction and asked the Jews by whose authority they were building the Temple. The Jews responded, and this governor sent a very fair letter to the new King, Darius, regarding the work.

C. The Letter 5:5-17 This governor sent a LETTER to Darius outlining his concerns and the response of the Jews, who claimed they built at the command of Cyrus, and the Jews humbly requested that Darius check the rolls of past laws to make sure this decree was correct, then instruct them on how to proceed.

http://www.vimeo.com/thebible 2 of 5 http://sites.google.com/sites/thebiblein1yr D. The Renewed Decree and Results 6:1-22 Darius found the construction to be legal, so issued a new decree commanding that the Temple be rebuilt forthwith and with no more delays.

VI. The Arrival of the Man of the Law – Ezra 458BC 7:1-8:36

A. Ezra 7:1-8

1. Ezra was descended from Seraiah, who was a High Priest whose son was carried into captivity.

2. “After these things” denotes an interval period of 57 years.

3. Hilkiah, Seraiah’s grandfather, was the High Priest at the time of Josiah who found the Book of the Law and read it to the astonished King.

4. Ezra was a favored scribe in Babylon, and the Persian King was willing to give him whatever he asked.

5. Many scholars believe that Ezra is the author of PSALM 119.

B. Ezra’s Commission 7:9-28

1. To bring word of new laws exempting the Levitical priesthood from Persian TAXES

2. To institute proper worship, bringing Levites and Priests with him

3. To purge Jerusalem of unholy practices

C. What Ezra brought with him 8:1-36

VII. Purity Enforced 9:1-10:44

A. Ezra learns of the IMPURITY of the Remnant Ch9

B. Jerusalem repents Ch10 – The Jews learned of Ezra’s distress and what it was about, and their hearts were broken over their sinfulness.

VIII. The King’s Cupbearer Arrives on a Mission 445BC – Neh1:1-7:73a

http://www.vimeo.com/thebible 3 of 5 http://sites.google.com/sites/thebiblein1yr A. Who is Nehemiah? He is a Jew, and the cupbearer of ATAXERXES LONGIMANUS.

B. Nehemiah is burdened for Jerusalem 1:1-11

C. The King notices a change in Nehemiah 2:1-6.

D. Nehemiah makes a JOURNEY to Jerusalem 2:7-20.

E. The Jews manage to REPAIR the Gates Ch3

F. Opposition Forms Ch4

G. Nehemiah ends corruption Ch5

H. Opposition tries to DISCOURAGE Nehemiah Ch6.

I. The walls are finished; and since he built it, the people came Ch7

IX. The Law Man reads the Law - Neh7:73b-8:18 EZRA read the Law of Moses in the hearing of all the people gathered at Jerusalem.

X. Nehemiah’s Reformation 433BC – Neh9:1-13:31

A. The Covenant Renewed Ch9 -10 The Levites read about the Mosaic covenant, and they reviewed the early history of Israel. Based upon this, they committed themselves as a nation to God, and promised to keep God’s commands.

B. A TITHE of the people is sent to live in Jerusalem Ch11

C. The Wall is dedicated Ch 12 – The worship team did a great job.

D. After a brief absence, Nehemiah returns to Jerusalem and has to evict an Ammonite, recall the laid-off Levites, close down Wal-Mart on the Sabbath, and shave GIANNI'S head for marrying a Moabite. Ch13 –

TEXTING ALTERNATIVE I: God strengthened the Jews under Nehemiah because the people had a mind to work.

http://www.vimeo.com/thebible 4 of 5 http://sites.google.com/sites/thebiblein1yr TEXTING ALTERNATIVE II: May the Church desire the things of God when it is free to do them, not just in the day when those things are forbidden

Small Group Questions

1. Can you imagine living in a society where taking communion is a capital offense? How would this change your attitude toward communion?

2. How easy is it to get discouraged when opponents ridicule you and get laws passed against the work of God? What should your response be, based on the response of the Jews in the Book of Ezra?

3. Nehemiah proved that a physical construction project had profound spiritual implications. Can you think of cases where Christians have looked down upon building projects as “unspiritual” and worked to discourage them?

http://www.vimeo.com/thebible 5 of 5 http://sites.google.com/sites/thebiblein1yr