Ezra: A Book about Revival

On Wednesdays, in 2024, on this blog I will be posting a series of surveys of O.T. books and answers to questions about the O.T.  

The Title and Purpose of the Books of Ezra

It took a period of 90 years for every Jew to return from captivity to Jerusalem. The 1^st group was led by Zerubbabel in 538 B.C.; and Ezra, the author of this book, came in the 2^nd group in 458 B.C.; finally, Nehemiah led the 3^rd group in 445 B.C. The Book of Ezra tells the story of the activity of that 2^nd group of Israelites in which they seek to rebuild the Temple and revitalize their faith after this captivity that really challenged their walk with God. Ezra is about the rebuilding of the Temple and Nehemiah is about rebuilding the walls and city of Jerusalem.

The name Ezra means “Jehovah helps” or just “help” and it was to be a constant reminder to it’s readers of God’s willingness to help His people return to their Promised Land.  In the Hebrew O.T., Ezra and Nehemiah form 1 book. Like Samuel, Kings and Chronicles, it was only divided into 2 books by the Septuagint (or LXX) in the 4^th century. Ezra and Nehemiah are really like the sequel to I and II Chronicles.

Our purpose for the Book of Ezra is to encourage a return to true worship and community.

The Author and Date of Writing of the Book of Ezra

Ezra is the most likely author of both Ezra and Nehemiah for 1 internal reason: he switches from writing in the 3^rd person to the 1^st person once Jerusalem becomes a part of the record (Ezra 7:27-9:15). It makes sense that he wrote I and II Chronicles since they logically flow into 1 another. Ezra had the privilege of access to the royal archives of the Persian Empire as a priest and scribe (Ezra 7:21). 

Ezra would write this after their return to Jerusalem, which gives us an approximate date of writing between 457-444 B.C.

 Surveying the Book of Ezra

The Return Under Zerubbabel (Ezra 1-6)

We start the way that II Chronicles ended – the decree of Cyrus for the Jews to return home. This decree that would send the Jews back home was a fulfillment of prophecy out of the Book of Jeremiah. Ezra is careful to give God the glory for this return; it was the Lord who stirred Cyrus to issue this decree (Ezra 1:1).

This 70-verse chapter is repeated in Nehemiah 2. It is a literal recounting of how many Jews came back from each tribe, and what they brought back with them.One of the 1^st items of priority in Jerusalem was to restore worship, which means they needed to rebuild the Temple and its altar (Ezra 3). Not everyone appreciated this re-building, as Ezra 4:1-6 shows us. Some outside of the land tried to approach this building project but were not allowed. The people of Judah wanted ownership over it all. Those who were not allowed spent about 16 years making their life “a living hell” by bribing the help, distracting the builders and just causing havoc.

During the events on Ezra 5, Haggai and Zechariah begin their prophetic ministry. Their sermons were about rebuilding the Temple and city despite the opposition. They came to be ministers of both encouragement and warning to the people for the project at hand.They would finally complete the Temple around 515 B.C. and the citizens of Judah were ecstatic.

The Return Under Ezra (Ezra 7-10)

It is during this section of Ezra that the 2^nd deportations occurs – about 30 years after the Temple is completed. As life began to settle down and return to normal, Ezra discovered a concerning occurrence among the people who were left behind while others were taken into captivity (Ezra 9). Those that were left behind did not use this time to grow closer to the Lord but closer to the pagan nations around them. The people were intermarrying about pagan nations and this was forbidden.

So, this occasion of sin led to a revival (Ezra 10) among the people – especially those who had been left behind and wrongfully intermarried with pagans.

Final Thoughts About the Book of Ezra

Revival is never easy. Revival is a popular theme amongst churches in 21^st-century America. We know we need it and, thus, it has become a favorite theme for conferences, prayer requests, books and blogs. A revival happens when a person or group of persons isolate themselves from the apathy around them and commit themselves under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to live differently in light of that recovered doctrine. Many people think of a revival as an evangelistic crusade, but a revival is more than that. Revival does not start in the world; revival starts with God’s people seeing their sin for what it is.

When revivals happen, the Spirit works fast, godliness multiplies, Christians mature, and converts appear.