What is the book of Ezra all about? 

“Though we are slaves, our God has not forsaken us in our bondage. He has shown us kindness in the sight of the kings of Persia: he has granted us new life to rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, and he has given us a wall of protection in Judah and Jerusalem.” (Ezra 9:9)


The book of Ezra picks up where 2 Chronicles leaves off (in fact many Bible scholars believe they were written by the same person). Remember how 2 Chronicles ends? After recounting Judah’s downward spiral and their exile to Babylon, the book ends on a positive note with the edict of Persian emperor Cyrus – inviting the exiles to return home and rebuild the temple of God. So what happens next?


What do we need to know to read Ezra?

The big storyline

Ezra is a book of two halves – the first half (chapters 1-6) focus on Zerubbabel; while the second half (chapters 7-10) focus on Ezra. Both of these leaders play a major part in overseeing the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem, and reinstituting worship of God according to the Torah (the Bible books of Genesis to Deuteronomy). But if we read on into Nehemiah (which could be regarded as the “sequel” to Ezra) we find that ultimately their attempts at reform don’t quite stick. Something deeper is needed – a heart change that can’t be changed by building projects or political and religious reform.

Zerubbabel (chapters 1-6)

Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, is a direct descendent from King David and the leader of the first wave of exiles who return from Babylon under Cyrus’ edict. Along with Joshua (leader of the priests), Zerubbabel sets about laying the foundations for the Jerusalem temple as a first priority when they return to Judah. This is a clear statement of intent to get people back into relationship with God; to start as they meant to go on in contrast to the religious decline of the nation before they were sent into exile. But the rebuilding includes note of anti-climax at the end of chapter 3, as some of the older religious leaders mourn that the temple simply isn’t as good as their recollections of Solomon’s temple. In particular there is no mention that God’s glory descends on the temple as it did in 2 Chronicles 5. (In fact, the book of Ezekiel features a vision of God’s glory departing the temple – Ezekiel 10:18-19 – and not returning until the vision turns to the heavenly temple in chapter 43). Chapters 4-6 tell the story of local opposition to the rebuilding of the temple. The “enemies of Judah and Benjamin” (4:1) do all they can to frustrate the building, including filing an official ‘cease and desist’ order with the Persian imperial government. This holds up the building for decades until Darius, the next emperor, uncovers Cyrus’ edict in the royal archives. But it turns around with great grace, as those provincial governors who had tried to block the building project are ordered to finance it (6:8-10)!

Ezra (chapters 7-10)

Ezra is a direct descendent of Aaron, Moses’ brother, and he is an expert in the Law of Moses. He arrives with the second wave of exiles returning from Babylon. He is sent by the Persian emperor Artaxerxes with the task of reinstituting good religious and political order in Judah. Once again God’s grace is evident as Artaxerxes arranges an eye-wateringly large ‘line of credit’ for Ezra’s work expenses out of the treasury of the local governors (7:21-24)!
Ezra is dismayed by the ungodliness he finds when he returns to Jerusalem – and especially the way that his people have intermarried with the surrounding peoples. The point is not that Ezra (or God) is racist(!), but that the other people living nearby engage in a variety of awful rituals of idol-worship. And the history of God’s people shows how susceptible they are to being led astray to copy the idolatry of others. Ezra’s primary concern is for their faithfulness to God. As such he prays a heartfelt prayer to God (chapter 9) and then institutes what we might feel is a surprisingly harsh edict that the Jews had to divorce their foreign wives and send them (and their children) away. The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are silent on whether God approves of this particular way of handling it, but we can’t fault Ezra’s motives, arising from his deep commitment for God and his desire that others share that commitment. Chapter 10 records that this reform was at least partially enacted, but the end of Nehemiah notes that it wasn’t enough to restrain the people’s idolatry (see Nehemiah 13:23-29). Nehemiah’s concern is that history will repeat itself: that the people will fall into terrible sin just like King Solomon did all those years before when he married all sorts of foreign women and ended up worshipping their idols with them.
 

What do we learn?

The book of Ezra reinforces in a variety of ways the goodness and provision of God, with the repeated emphasis on His financial provision and His political protection for His people. This is captured by Ezra’s prayer in 9:8-9. But at the same time the book (alongside the book of Nehemiah) notes the partial fulfilment of God’s promises. There is much more to come! More than can possibly be achieved by external means like rebuilding the temple and re-instituting observance of the Law of Moses. A deeper change is needed, a heart change like Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:31-34) and Ezekiel (Ezekiel 36:25-27) prophesy. Come, Holy Spirit!