"Whoever there is among you of all His people,may his God be with him!
Let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah,
and rebuild he house of the Lord, the God of Israel;
He is the God who is in Jerusalem." Ezra 1:5
This week we have left the Ezekiel Road that we have been traveling. We will return to it in a while, but for now we are going to journey back to Jerusalem and see the restoration of the Temple that Ezekiel saw burned and destroyed.
As we check our calendar, we find that it is the first year of Cyrus king of Persia's reign. This is the kingdom God showed Daniel when He gave him the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzer's dream. It was represented in the breast of silver. Silver has always been used in Israel as the redemptive quantity to buy back the first-born. The dynasty of the Medes and Persians lived up to God's word. It was under their reign that Israel was restored to her land.
We have already read this week how God stirred the heart of King Cyrus to send back all those in captivity who had a heart to return to Jerusalem. Cyrus had one goal in mind when he sent them. It was not to build a nation, but to build the Temple, the house of the Lord, the God of Israel. As we survey the progress of the Temple in our journey this week, we will discover some great clues that will help us understand the steps in building a habitation for God.
The first thing we discover is that it was to be built by people who are had a desire for God's residence in their midst. Some of the Israelites had become quite comfortable in their captivity and preferred to stay within their comfort zone. The shambles awaiting them in Jerusalem was greater than their excitement to see the work completed. If there is one thing the building of the Temple would require, it was total commitment!!!
We are given the list of those who returned with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Mordecai (Queen Esther's cousin) and the rest of the leaders. We are introduced to the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants and the descendants of the servants of Solomon. These six categories played and important part in the work that lay ahead. We will continue to hear them mentioned over the next couple of weeks. What do we know about each of these categories and why are they so important to the building of the Temple? Perhaps it would serve us well to get familiar with them before we move on.
Priests - (Kohanim) This priestly order was made up of direct descendants of Aaron. They were the ones who served God in the giving of the sacrifices. The High Priest was always chosen from this order. Only a high priest could enter the Holy of Holies. Although they were descendants of Levi, they held a chosen position among the Levites.
Levites - The Levites were also priests, but were of a lower order than the Kohanim. Their duties were to serve the priests in their work in the Temple. They also were teachers of the Law and had been scattered among the nation before it went into captivity.
Singers - This division of Levites were chosen and appointed to sing praises to God as the sacrifices in the Temple were offered.
Gatekeepers - The gatekeepers were also from the priestly order of Levites. They were to open the Temple gates in the morning and close them in the evening. They also stood guard over the Temple treasury where the gifts an offerings of the people were kept.
Temple Servants - This group of people were the descendants of the Gibeonites. You may remember their story from the time of Joshua. They were the ones who tricked Joshua and the elders of Israel into making a friendship covenant with them when the children of Israel were coming in to take their promised land. They had captured Jericho and Ai, and the people of Gibeon, who were from Hivite descent, knew they were on the short list of cities to be taken. When it was discovered who they really were, Joshua made them hewers of wood and carriers of water. We hear of them again in David's lifetime, but David had made them servants of the Temple to cut the wood needed for the daily sacrifices and to carry the needed water for the cleansing of the priests as well as the sacrifices. These servants became well respected and their descendants were considered with honor. (Joshua 9:7)
Descendants of Solomon's Servants - These servants were from the descendants of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites. Each of these were nations that the Israelites had been told to conquer, and yet they failed to drive them out. Instead, Solomon made them servants. Like the Temple servants, once again we see a group who had once been despised, now mentioned with honor. (I Kings (:20-21)
Throughout our journey this week, we see that the job of restoring the fallen Temple is not easy. Jealousy and opposition will do everything it can to stop progress. But each time the enemy tries to stop the work, God turns their attack on them and it works out for the good of those laboring to build.
We see the power of the Word of God, the Torah, and also of the word of the prophets working together to bring the building to completion. Ezra's job was to educate the people, giving them understanding of the Law, while Haggai and Zechariah encouraged them to finish what they had started.
Ezra 7:9b-10 give us clear understanding of Ezra's great success.
and on the first of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, because the good hand of his God was upon him. For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord, and to practice it, and to teach His statues and ordinances in Israel.
Why was God's hand on him? Because he not only wanted to know the word; he wanted to do what it said. He was not asking the people to do anything that he, himself, was not willing to do. In other words, he practiced what he preached!
There are so many lessons to be learned along the way. We could stop and camp in so many wonderful places. I hope you are finding your place and discovering your building project so that God's presence may reign in our lives.
Let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah,
and rebuild he house of the Lord, the God of Israel;
He is the God who is in Jerusalem." Ezra 1:5
This week we have left the Ezekiel Road that we have been traveling. We will return to it in a while, but for now we are going to journey back to Jerusalem and see the restoration of the Temple that Ezekiel saw burned and destroyed.
As we check our calendar, we find that it is the first year of Cyrus king of Persia's reign. This is the kingdom God showed Daniel when He gave him the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzer's dream. It was represented in the breast of silver. Silver has always been used in Israel as the redemptive quantity to buy back the first-born. The dynasty of the Medes and Persians lived up to God's word. It was under their reign that Israel was restored to her land.
We have already read this week how God stirred the heart of King Cyrus to send back all those in captivity who had a heart to return to Jerusalem. Cyrus had one goal in mind when he sent them. It was not to build a nation, but to build the Temple, the house of the Lord, the God of Israel. As we survey the progress of the Temple in our journey this week, we will discover some great clues that will help us understand the steps in building a habitation for God.
The first thing we discover is that it was to be built by people who are had a desire for God's residence in their midst. Some of the Israelites had become quite comfortable in their captivity and preferred to stay within their comfort zone. The shambles awaiting them in Jerusalem was greater than their excitement to see the work completed. If there is one thing the building of the Temple would require, it was total commitment!!!
We are given the list of those who returned with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Mordecai (Queen Esther's cousin) and the rest of the leaders. We are introduced to the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants and the descendants of the servants of Solomon. These six categories played and important part in the work that lay ahead. We will continue to hear them mentioned over the next couple of weeks. What do we know about each of these categories and why are they so important to the building of the Temple? Perhaps it would serve us well to get familiar with them before we move on.
Priests - (Kohanim) This priestly order was made up of direct descendants of Aaron. They were the ones who served God in the giving of the sacrifices. The High Priest was always chosen from this order. Only a high priest could enter the Holy of Holies. Although they were descendants of Levi, they held a chosen position among the Levites.
Levites - The Levites were also priests, but were of a lower order than the Kohanim. Their duties were to serve the priests in their work in the Temple. They also were teachers of the Law and had been scattered among the nation before it went into captivity.
Singers - This division of Levites were chosen and appointed to sing praises to God as the sacrifices in the Temple were offered.
Gatekeepers - The gatekeepers were also from the priestly order of Levites. They were to open the Temple gates in the morning and close them in the evening. They also stood guard over the Temple treasury where the gifts an offerings of the people were kept.
Temple Servants - This group of people were the descendants of the Gibeonites. You may remember their story from the time of Joshua. They were the ones who tricked Joshua and the elders of Israel into making a friendship covenant with them when the children of Israel were coming in to take their promised land. They had captured Jericho and Ai, and the people of Gibeon, who were from Hivite descent, knew they were on the short list of cities to be taken. When it was discovered who they really were, Joshua made them hewers of wood and carriers of water. We hear of them again in David's lifetime, but David had made them servants of the Temple to cut the wood needed for the daily sacrifices and to carry the needed water for the cleansing of the priests as well as the sacrifices. These servants became well respected and their descendants were considered with honor. (Joshua 9:7)
Descendants of Solomon's Servants - These servants were from the descendants of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites. Each of these were nations that the Israelites had been told to conquer, and yet they failed to drive them out. Instead, Solomon made them servants. Like the Temple servants, once again we see a group who had once been despised, now mentioned with honor. (I Kings (:20-21)
Throughout our journey this week, we see that the job of restoring the fallen Temple is not easy. Jealousy and opposition will do everything it can to stop progress. But each time the enemy tries to stop the work, God turns their attack on them and it works out for the good of those laboring to build.
We see the power of the Word of God, the Torah, and also of the word of the prophets working together to bring the building to completion. Ezra's job was to educate the people, giving them understanding of the Law, while Haggai and Zechariah encouraged them to finish what they had started.
Ezra 7:9b-10 give us clear understanding of Ezra's great success.
and on the first of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, because the good hand of his God was upon him. For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord, and to practice it, and to teach His statues and ordinances in Israel.
Why was God's hand on him? Because he not only wanted to know the word; he wanted to do what it said. He was not asking the people to do anything that he, himself, was not willing to do. In other words, he practiced what he preached!
There are so many lessons to be learned along the way. We could stop and camp in so many wonderful places. I hope you are finding your place and discovering your building project so that God's presence may reign in our lives.
