GOD’S MIRACULOUS WORK

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EZRA 1 AND 2
Lesson #02
GOD’S MIRACULOUS WORK

• Memory Verse: Pro 21:1
• Read Ezr 1:1-11 The Word of God changes everything
  • The Israelites had been in captivity in Babylon almost 70 years. Then a prophecy by Jeremiah was discovered.
    • Read Jer 29:10
    • This prophecy said that after 70 years God would bring them back to the Promised Land. The 70 years are ending and the Israelites are still in Babylon.
  • King Cyrus becomes aware of the prophecy. How?
    • The prophet Daniel was a prime minister in the court of King Cyrus.
    • It was probably Daniel that revealed the Word of God to King Cyrus. But this was not the only prophecy of which King Cyrus was made aware.
      • Read Isa 44:28
      • Read Isa 45:1-4, 13
      • The miraculous thing to notice here is that Cyrus’ name appears in prophecy approximately 150 years before King Cyrus was born.
    • The name of the king, the timing of God for the Israelites in captivity, and the job that God wanted King Cyrus to do was placed in God’s Word.
  • King Cyrus of Persia, who was he?
    • He was one of the most enlightened rulers of the ancient world.
    • He was a Gentile king. He had been king over various smaller territories for 20 years before he became a co-regent of the Medo-Persian Empire. (550 BC)
    • The Medo-Persian Empire conquered the Babylonian Empire and inherited all the Israelite slaves in Babylon. (about 538 BC)
    • He was greatly influenced by Daniel though most commentaries agree that he never became a believer.
    • He realized that God raised him up to be the king of the Persian Empire. (2)
    • Cyrus is considered a prefigure of Jesus Christ even though he was not a believer.

Cyrus, King of Persia	Jesus Christ, King of kings
Called a shepherd	Called a Shepherd
Responsible for the work of laying a foundation for worship	Responsible for being the foundation of worship
An anointed king	The anointed King
Nations were subdued under him	Nations will be subdued under Him
Brought freedom to the captive Israelites	Brings freedom to those captive to sin
Possessed great treasures from many nations	Possesses the treasures of the Kingdom of God`
Obedient to the call and will of God	Obedient to the call and will of God, the Father

• • Cyrus’ Decree (536 BC)
    • Soon after King Cyrus became the sole ruler of the Persian Empire, he made the decree:
      • All of the Israelites in bondage in Babylonia were now free to return to Israel.
      • King Cyrus would rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.
    • Aside from the fact that this was God’s will and proclaimed in the Word of God, why would this king do this?
      • Cyrus knew history that large empires were not immune to being conquered by others. (Assyria, Babylon, Medes)
      • He thought that to create strong buffer states around the outer edges of his empire, it would be a better protection.
      • He thought it would be advantageous to have people settled in their own homeland praying to their own gods on his behalf.
        • “May all the gods whom I have resettled in their sacred cities daily ask Bel and Nebo for a long life for me.” – Cyrus
        • By letting the Israelites go, they would be indebted to pray for him and ask Jehovah to request a long life from King Cyrus’ gods, Bel and Nebo.
    • Notice that Cyrus says God commanded him to do this. (2) However, King Cyrus did not command all of the Jews to return to Israel. The decision to leave Babylon was left up to the people. However, the people that chose not to leave Babylon should give an offering so that those who went would have the funds to build the temple.
      • Each family had to make the decision to obey God’s command and go back to the Promised Land or to give to those who went.
      • The great majority of the people did not return to Israel. They chose to remain in Babylon.
        • Those people who remained in Babylon chose God’s permissive will.
        • God’s permissive will always brings problems into your life. For the Israelites that remained in the Persian capital, the problems in the book of Esther are the example.
    • The importance of this decree:
      • It marked the end of the Babylonian Captivity in fulfillment of prophecy.
      • It marked the beginning of a new nation of Israel united under Persian authority. There was no longer a divided kingdom of Israel.
      • It marked the restoration of temple worship and the priesthood.
  • Cyrus’ name for God (2)
    • Cyrus called Jehovah, the Lord God of Heaven.
    • We find this name for God in the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Daniel.
    • The significance:
      • Up to the time of the captivity, God dwelt in the temple in Jerusalem. He was the Lord God of Israel.
      • During the captivity, God was not dwelling in Jerusalem for the glorious shekinah presence of God had departed from the temple in the book of Ezekiel before the captivity began. Therefore, God’s presence at that time was in heaven.
  • “…the vessels of the house of the Lord…” (7)
    • When the temple was destroyed in Jerusalem by the Babylonians, they took countless numbers of golden vessels used in the temple for worship. These were taken to Babylon and placed in the treasury of the pagan temple.
    • The night that the Medes and Persians conquered the Babylonian Empire, King Belshazzar used some of these vessels for his drunken feast. (Dan 5:2-4)
    • King Cyrus decided to return all of these vessels with the returning Jews for use in their new temple.
    • There were 5,400 valuable items returned to Jerusalem. However, the Ark of the Covenant was not among them.
• Read Ezr 2:1-2
  • Ezra chapter 2 is a list of the names of those that returned to Jerusalem.
    • Zerubbabel was the leader of the returning remnant. Who was he?
      • His name means = seed of Babylon.
      • He was an ancestor of Jesus Christ. (Mat 1:12-13 Luk 3:27)
    • Read Ezr 2:40-41 More singers returned to the Promised Land than Levites.
    • Read Ezr 2:61-62 Proof of genealogy was required for priests. There were three families that could not prove their genealogies and were not permitted to be priests. Genealogies were usually kept in the temple. With the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem before the captivity, many genealogies were lost.
    • Read Ezr 2:64-65 The total number of Israelites that returned in this first group.
      • There were 42,360 in the congregation, 7,337 servants (male and female), and 200 singers (male and female).
      • The total was 49,897 Israelites. There were several million Israelites at that time. Therefore, nearly 50,000 persons returning to Israel was a very small amount.
    • Read Ezr 2:68-70
      • The people gave freely many things of value to the returning group so they would have the resources to build the new temple.
  • Even though we have not read in class all of chapter 2, these names are important to God. He remembers the faith, the testimony, and the offerings of every believer.
• Introduction to our Theme:
  • Read 1Cor 3:16-19 and 2Cor 6:16-19 and Eph 2:21-22
    • Seven times in the New Testament we are told that we are the temple of God.
    • The believer is the New Testament temple where the presence of God dwells.
      • As we study the Old Testament temples, we are going to see that the details of the construction of the temple tell us something about ourselves and our relationship with God.
      • As we will see, we can either build our Christian life like Solomon’s glorious temple or like the inadequate temple built by Zerubbabel in the book of Ezra.
    • Before we study Zerubbabel’s temple, in the book of Ezra let’s first look at Solomon’s temple and how it relates to God’s perfect will for the New Testament believer.
  • Solomon’s Temple (The First Temple)
    • In 1000 BC King David built an altar on or near the rock of the temple mount. This action decided the location of the first temple
    • In 960 BC King Solomon dedicated the first temple after 7 years of construction. The Ark of the Covenant was moved into the Hoy of Holies so as to invite God’s presence to dwell there.
    • In 586 BC King Neubhadnezzar of Babylon destroyed Jerusalem and the first temple. It was then that the Ark of the Covenant disappeared.
    • The timing and the events of the preparation for the temple;
      • The physical temple:
        • =1= God had to first set the boundaries of the Promised Land before He could bring into existence the temple. (Deu 12:10-18)
        • =2= The enemies of the people had to be subdued before they could build the temple.
        • =3= God chose a people who were just coming into national pride before they would be able to have the power to fulfill God’s plan.
        • =4= The people had to be ready to sacrifice and to work with determination to build the temple.
        • =5= David received the plan for the first temple but he was not permitted to build it because David was a warrior. (1Kin 5:3 1Kin 8:18-19 1Chr 28:3-4, 11-19)
        • =6= David bought the land for the temple: a threshing floor on Mt. Moriah where he built an altar for worship. (2Sam 24:18-25 2Chr 3:1 Eze 3:12 )
        • =7= King Solomon was permitted to be the one to build the first temple.
      • The spiritual temple (the believer):
        • In the same way as in our personal lives, God has ordained the point in time and circumstance when you personally would come to know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior.

=1= He put you in a specific geographical place where you would hear the gospel of Jesus Christ.

=2= God caused the defeat of other voices around you that would distract you from salvation.

=3= God crossed your path with people and circumstances that pointed to the time of your salvation.

=4= You needed to get to the point in your life where you were determined to change things

=5= The Holy Spirit revealed God’s plan to you.

=6= You experienced a desire and a need to worship God.

=7= Finally God permitted you to enter into a personal relationship with Him where He came to dwell inside of you.

• • • • • Your salvation was according to the timing and plan of God in the same way that the temple was in God’s timing and plan.

Homework
The Plan of Solomon’s Temple: The Blue Print of the Believer

• Application of God’s Miraculous Work,
  • Look back at your own life and make a brief list of the miraculous milestones where God did a miracle to direct your path in a new direction.
• Preparation for The Temple Blue Print of the Believer
  • Read 2Cor 6:15
    • Why do you think God calls believers a temple?
  • Read 2Chr 3 and 2Chr 4
    • What characteristics of Solomon’s temple stand out to you as something exceptional?
• Memory Verse: 1Cor 3:16