Ezra 2023

Ezra 9:1 Now when these things had been completed, the princes approached me, saying, "The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, according to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. The people and the priests and the Levites had not separated themselves from the pagan people according to their abominations. His people are to distinguish themselves from the other pagan nations and not share in their abominations whatsoever (Ex. 33:16, Num. 23:9, 2 Cor. 6:14-18). Ezra 9:2 "For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has intermingled with the peoples of the lands; indeed, the hands of the princes and the rulers have been foremost in this unfaithfulness." Ezra had been in Jerusalem about 4 1/2 months when the officials brought the problem of mixed marriages to his attention. This is forbidden in Torah (Deut. 7:3-4). This sin had plagued Israel in the past (Judg. 3:5-6). That sin also plagued them a few years later in the time of Nehemiah (Neh. 13:23-28).

Ezra 7:25 "And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God which is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges that they may judge all the people who are in the province beyond the River, even all those who know the laws of your God; and you may teach anyone who is ignorant of them. Ezra was to appoint judges who know the Torah to rule in the land. Deut. 16:18-20 “You shall appoint for yourself judges and officers in all your towns which the LORD your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment. 19“You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial, and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous. 20“Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue, that you may live and possess the land which the LORD your God is giving you. Ezra 7:26 "And whoever will not observe the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be executed upon him strictly, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of goods or for imprisonment."

Ezra 5:1 When the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them, These two prophets are the same two prophets that wrote the two books in the Tanakh. It will be profitable to compare them to the history we have here in Ezra (Hagg. 1:1-15, Zech 1:14-17). Ezra 6 – Darius not only confirmed Cyrus's previous decree, but added to it. 2023 Ezra 6:8 "Moreover, I issue a decree concerning what you are to do for these elders of Judah in the rebuilding of this house of God: the full cost is to be paid to these people from the royal treasury out of the taxes of the provinces beyond the River, and that without delay. Darius not only confirmed Cyrus's previous decree, but added to it. He stated that some of the taxes they collected be given to the Jews to fund the construction. This was certainly something that shocked Tattenai, since it cut into his share. Ezra 6:9 "And whatever is needed, both young bulls, rams, and lambs for a burnt offering to the God of heaven, and wheat, salt, wine, and anointing oil, as the priests in Jerusalem request, it is to be given to them daily without fail, Ezra 6:10 that they may offer acceptable sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons. Not only do they have to fund the construction, but they must provide the animals needed for all the sacrifices. Ezra 6:11 "And I issued a decree that any man who violates this edict, a timber shall be drawn from his house and he shall be impaled on it and his house shall be made a refuse heap on account of this. Anyone who violates the decree will be impaled or crucified on a timber taken from his own house.

Ezra 4:24 Then work on the house of God in Jerusalem ceased, and it was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia. The opposition caused construction to cease for about 16 years until "the second year of the reign of Darius." During this period, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah inspired the returned exiles to resume their work. Ezra 5:1-2). Ezra 5:1 When the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them, These two prophets are the same two prophets that wrote the two books in the Tanakh. It will be profitable to compare them to the history we have here in Ezra. (Hagg. 1:1-15, Zech. 1:14-17).

Ezra 1:1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying, King Cyrus was born about 600 BC and died at the age of 70. He reigned over the Persian Empire for 30 years. Cyrus is going to tell the Jewish people to return to their homeland if they will rebuild the Temple. The release of Judah coincides precisely with the seventy years of captivity for Judah spoken of in Jeremiah's prophecy Jer 25:11-12; 29:10). A number of inscriptions from the reign of Cyrus, most notably the famous Cyrus Cylinder, indicate that Cyrus was a clever politician who knew how to win the loyalty of conquered subjects. It shows that Elohim sovereignty used Cyrus to reestablish His people (Prov. 21:1). The ascension of Cyrus to power is a fulfillment of prophecy, delivered more than 200 years earlier, which called him Elohim's "anointed" Isa 44:28-45:4). Josephus states that the partiality he showed toward the Jewish people arose from the prophecies being shown to him, probably by Daniel. Ezra 1:2 "Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, 'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. It certainly does look as if someone showed King Cyrus the prophecies concerning himself. Keep in mind that the passages in Isaiah say that Cyrus does not "know" Elohim. While Cyrus acknowledges the prophecies and sees them as true, he does not follow Torah and therefore does not "know" Him. However, it was prophesied that Cyrus would do this and expect nothing in return. Isa 45:12-13).