Chapter 14 "Ezra"

"Ezra" Judah returns home The fate of the exiles of Judah was different from that of the eelites.After the Israelites were taken captive by the Assyrians, they scattered among the various ethnic groups in ancient West Asia, and were gradually assimilated and disappeared; the Judahs were taken hostage to Babylon, where they had a relatively concentrated residence and maintained their own customs and beliefs. People with strong ethnic and religious feelings are eager to return to their homeland and rebuild their homes. The opportunity finally came, and a new political star rose on the eastern horizon. He was Cyrus the Great, who was destined to build a huge empire.In that year, Cyrus finally defeated the main opponent, the Neo-Babylonian dynasty, occupied Babylon, and established the Persian dynasty.

Far larger than the Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian dynasties, the Persian Empire ruled east from the Indus River. From the west to the vast area of ​​the Mediterranean Sea, within such a vast area, it is conceivable that the ethnic and religious situations are complicated. Cyrus the Great summed up the lessons of Assyria and New Babylon.He gave self-government to the conquered peoples, and restored to them all the idols that had been plundered to Babylon; he allowed those exiled peoples to return to their homes. In the first year of Cyrus of Persia, the king issued an edict to the whole country, "The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the world, and asked me to build him a temple in Jerusalem, Judah. ​​Those of you who are the people of the Lord may go to Rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. The remaining people need gold, silver, treasures and animals to support them."

The patriarchs of Judah and Benjamin, as well as the priests and Levites responded, and decided to leave for Jerusalem.Not all people are willing to leave Babylon. Those who have made a fortune in Babylon, are in high positions, and lack pious religious feelings are naturally unwilling to return to the dilapidated Judah to suffer. However, when it comes to rebuilding the Temple of Jehovah, people have unanimous position.The poor were willing to contribute, and the rich offered their gold, silver, livestock, and possessions as gifts to Jehovah’s temple.People donated 61,000 grams of gold, 5,000 minas of silver, and 100 pieces of priestly dress.King Cyrus even took out the utensils that Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, plundered from Jerusalem and placed in his temple, and returned them to Shebasar, the leader of Judah, including: 30 gold plates, 1,000 silver plates, 30 bowls, 410 silver bowls, 29 knives, and 1,000 other utensils.

In this way, the 42,360 Judahs and their descendants who were taken captive to Babylon returned to Jerusalem. They also brought back 7,337 servants and 200 male and female singers. They had 736 horses, 245 mules, 435 camels, and 6,724 donkeys.They elected Zelojib and Jeshua as leaders to lead them back to their country. In July, the Israelites gathered and began to build the altar.When the builders were laying the foundation of the temple, the priests wore their robes and blew their trumpets, and the Levites hammered the forging and sang praises to the Lord in unison. When the people of Jerusalem saw that the foundation of the temple had been laid, they cheered loudly.Many priests, Levites, patriarchs and some old people who had seen the old temple saw the rebuilding of the temple with their own eyes, and wept loudly.Cheers and wailing were intertwined and spread far away.

The enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that they had rebuilt the temple for the LORD. So they went to Zerubbabel and the chiefs of Israel and said, "Please let us participate in the construction of the temple, because we worship God like you. Since the king of Assyria brought us to this land, we have been offering sacrifices to God," Israel refused. A: "We have nothing to do with you to build the temple. Cyrus, king of Persia, told us to do it." So they became furious and devised various schemes to destroy the plans of the Jews.From the years of Cyrus to the years of Darius, the governors of the northern provinces continued to accuse the Israelites.During the reign of Artaxerxes, the king of Persia, Lihong, the governor of Samaria Province, impeached: The subjects of Hexi said: Your Majesty should know that the Judah who came back to us from your Majesty has rebuilt the rebellious city in Jerusalem and laid its foundation. Build walls.Now, His Majesty should know that if the people build the city well and repair the city wall, they will no longer pay tribute and taxes to His Majesty, and His Majesty will suffer a great loss.Since the ministers eat the emperor's food, they should think of the empire.Therefore, I would like to ask Your Majesty to look at the records of the previous dynasty. You will know that this is a city of rebellion.If the city is built again and the walls are completed, my king will have no part in the land west of Hexi.Hope to see the Holy Spirit.

Emperor Artaxerxes received the announcement, and immediately issued an order to Lihong: May you all be safe and sound like this: The book you wrote has been clearly read in front of me.I have ordered people to investigate, and learned that this city has really rebelled against the kings in ancient times, and there are often rebellious and rebellious things in it.You must issue a notice ordering this people to stop working, so that this city cannot be built, and then deal with it after I issue a decree. Be cautious, do not delay, do not allow the damage to be aggravated, so as to damage the king.

After Lihong received the order, he immediately complied and rushed to Jerusalem to force the work to stop. So the work on the temple of the LORD stopped until the second year of King Darius of Persia. In the year of Darius, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah mobilized the people of Judah to resume the reconstruction project again in the name of Jehovah.Someone reported this to Danai and Shetarbosnai, governors of Hexi in Persia. The governors sent people to investigate and asked, "Who ordered you to build this temple and complete this wall?" Zerubbabel and Jeshua replied wittily: "In the first year of Cyrus, the former king Cyrus the Great issued a decree to allow the construction of this temple of God, and the previous king returned all the utensils of this temple."

The governors heard that it was the edict of King Cyrus, and they did not tell them to stop working.They made a call to King Darius: May all be well, Your Majesty King Darius: The people of this land have begun to build this temple and this city, and the progress is rapid.Now if the king thinks it is beautiful, please check the treasury of Babylonian jade to see if Cyrus first issued a decree to allow the construction of the temple of God in Jerusalem, and what is the king's intention?Please let us know. Then, King Darius issued a decree to search the library of ancient books, and found a volume of documents in it, which reads: "In the first year of Cyrus, he decreed concerning the temple of God in Jerusalem, to build this temple as a place of sacrifice, Establish the foundation of the temple. Etc."

Therefore, King Darius ordered that the construction of the city should not be hindered, and special funds and building materials should be allocated from the treasury, and the sacrificed cattle and sheep should be distributed. After 4 years of construction, in the 6th year of Darius, the temple was finally completed. The priests and Levites of Israel, as well as the rest of the returned captives, held the inauguration ceremony of the temple with joy, and hundreds of animals were killed. sheep for burnt offerings. (pull 1 to 6) Recognize ancestors A few years after the completion of the Temple in Jerusalem, Artaxerxes II, king of Persia, ascended the throne.At this time, Ezra, a Jewish scholar, came out of Babylon.He was a descendant of the high priest Aaron, who was proficient in the book of the law of Moses and had served as a priest in Israel.Missing his homeland, he wrote to King Artaxerxes, requesting to return to Judah.The king granted all requests, and gave him a lot of gold and silver, and utensils used in the temple, allowing him to return to Jerusalem with more than 1,500 voluntary returnees.The king of Persia also issued a decree to all the treasury officers in Hexi Province, that whatever Ezra asked him to do, they should do it quickly: within 100 talents of silver, within 100 kor of wheat, and within 100 baths of wine. The oil is within 100 baht, and the salt is innumerable, all must be allocated to him.

He also decreed that the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and servants of the temple should be exempted from taxation and labor. Ezra set out from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month.After returning to Jerusalem, the situation there made him deeply disturbed. Intermarriage with foreigners had become very common among the Jews. They married Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites the daughters of the Egyptians, Egyptians, and Amorites, and the priests and leaders took the lead in doing so.The Jews faced the threat of assimilation.Ezra tore his clothes and robes, let loose his hair and beard, sat quietly before the Lord, prayed, confessed his sins, wept, and fell on his face to the ground.Many young men and women also gathered around him, confessing and repenting with him.He notified the Judah who had returned to their homeland to gather in Jerusalem, and anyone who did not come within three days would have his home confiscated and he would be expelled from the congregation.

On September 20, all the people gathered in the square outside the Temple of God in Jerusalem. It rained heavily and everyone was soaked. Everyone listened tremblingly to Ezra, "You are guilty because you married foreign women for wives, and increased the sins of Israel. Now confess your sins to the LORD, the God of your fathers, and do his will to separate the peoples of these nations and the daughters of the nations." After hearing this, the crowd swore: "We will act according to your words and forsake foreign wives!" Because of this command of Ezra, many Jews were separated from their wives and children. (pull 7-10)