August 3 Ezra 4-5 (ESV) Adversaries Oppose the Rebuilding 4:1 Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel,2 they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers’ houses and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as … More August 3 Ezra 4-5
And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the directions of David king of Israel. And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, … More Singing of God’s goodness
August 2 Ezra 3 (ESV) Rebuilding the Altar 3:1 When the seventh month came, and the children of Israel were in the towns, the people gathered as one man to Jerusalem. 2 Then arose Jeshua the son of Jozadak, with his fellow priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel with his kinsmen, and they built the altar … More August 2 Ezra 3
As we begin reading the book of Ezra in our Bible reading plan today, here is John Piper, in “A Hunger for God” p 166: Israel had been taken into Babylonian exile. They had been there for decades. Now the time had come, in God’s reckoning, for their restoration. But how could this happen? They were a tiny, … More Piper on Ezra: “Massively hope-giving”
August 1 Ezra 1-2 (ESV) The Proclamation of Cyrus 1:1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: … More August 1 Ezra 1-2
While Ezra prayed and made confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men, women, and children, gathered to him out of Israel, for the people wept bitterly. —Ezra 10:1 Steven J. Cole comments: Ezra was prostrating himself and praying “before the house of God” (10:1). Shecaniah … More Repenting and Confessing
Steven J. Cole comments on Ezra 9: Because we are so desensitized toward sin, we fail to have the proper response toward it, whether it is our own sin, or sin in others. We minimize it, justify it, or ignore it and go on our way unaffected by it. If we see someone reacting in … More What is the godly reaction to sin?
Ezra was ashamed to ask King Artaxerxes for an escort because he previously had told him, The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him. (Ezra 8:22) Almost as if Ezra knew Romans 8:28 says, And we know that for those … More Trusting God and His Goodness
Phillip Graham Ryken writes in Thermelios: Ezra was a great man—one of the all-time heroes of the faith. He had the will to lead; he had a heart for holiness; he had a mind for biblical truth. If we want to follow his example, we should ask what made him so great and so good. What … More “The hand of the Lord his God was on him”
Ray Stedman, in a 1965 sermon, “Ezra:The Way Back” comments on the events of Ezra 6: The minute the people began to turn back to God, he also turned the hearts of the kings, Darius and Artaxerxes, and they issued the decree that started the temple work again. Finally the work was finished. In chapter … More Celebrating fellowship with God
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