Tag: Ezra (OT)

When their neighbors challenged the temple building Jews and tried to convince the Persian king that they were disloyal they invited the king to search the records and see that they had their errand by the command if the previous king. With this reminder from him own official records their neighbors were compelled to support…

As covenant followers we must be careful that we not forget that goodness cannot be confined to covenant keepers. There are good people asking all walks of life as shown by the king of Assyria unilaterally giving decree that the captive Jews could go up to h and rebuild and even supplied them with materials…

Ezra 10 I’m trying to figure out if “putt{ing} away {their} strange wives” meant divorce or if it meant ending conjugal relations. As for children of those wives it probably meant pledging no inheritance for them in either case. Divorce would probably be the best course in the case of those wives who were actively…

Ezra 9 I understand why the people were not to intermarry with the idolatrous people of the land. If the people had been righteous they may have blessed the other people of the land by showing a good example and having them begin to worship the God of Israel. Instead the Israelites, by acting no…

Ezra 7 – 8 I have been suspecting the Ezra and Daniel were contemporaries but I am now confident that they probably knew each other as both were Israelites trusted by the king of Assyria. Daniel was a chief counselor to both Cyrus and Darius while Ezra was clearly known and trusted by Artaxerxes who…

Ezra 6 The decree of Darius is explicit that the building of the temple had been authorized by Cyrus, that the costs were promised to come from the King’s treasury and that any who hindered the work would be slain. Armed with that decree the opposition gave way and the temple was finished in a…

Ezra 4 – 5 Was there a reason why the Jews were supposed to refuse help from the Samaritans? If not then the trouble between the Jews and the Samaritans started with the pride of the Jews. Either way, this is why the two groups disliked each other. It sounds a lot like the Jews…

Ezra 3 The people of Israel had the same feeling when the foundation of their new temple was laid as the early saints did when the foundation of the Salt Lake temple was laid. We should have that feeling each time a temple foundation is laid near us.

Ezra 1 – 2 What did the people in the court of Cyrus think of this decision to build the temple to the God of the Jews in Jerusalem? What else do we know about Cyrus historically? what kind of man was this who was moved by the Lord—in other words, was he clear about…