God Allows

• Why did God let “allow” to enter the picture when He had the ability to control everything… and still does?
• Free will
• When did God “allow”?
• Somewhere before Genesis 2
• I cannot understand the sovereignty of God.
• But I do know that God is love.

1 John 4
8 The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice, for our sins. 11 Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God remains in us and his love is made complete in us. 13 This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and we testify that the Father has sent his Son as the world’s Savior. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God—God remains in him and he in God. 16 And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us.[1]
 
The Book of Job

• This book, like many others in the Old Testament, got its name from the central character in it rather than from its writer.
• Concerning the time the events recorded took place, there have been many views, ranging from the patriarchal age of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (beginning about 2100 B.C.) to the second century B.C.
• While Job may have written it, there is no concrete evidence that he did.
• The name "Job" means "hated" or "much persecuted."
• Perhaps Job was a nickname that his friends gave him during his suffering.
• Job is the title of the book in the Hebrew, Greek (Septuagint), Latin (Vulgate), and English Bibles.
• The book does not identify its writer. Furthermore, the ancient Hebrews could not agree on who wrote it.

 
It is quite clear from this book that God inspired it to reveal answers to questions that arise from God's nature and His dealings with human beings.

• Specifically, it answers the question: What is the basis on which God deals with people?
• Elsewhere in the Old Testament, we find God typically repaying good with good and evil with evil, but that is not how He dealt with Job.
• The book of Job places the stress on God's ways, not Job's suffering.

 
God blesses people for two reasons.

• These are: first, His sovereign choice to bless; second, people's response of trust and obedience to Him.
• Because we cannot control God's sovereign choice to bless some people more than others, we tend to forget that.
• We tend to focus on what we can control to some extent, namely, securing His blessing by trusting and obeying Him.
• This is understandable and legitimate, but it leads to a potential problem.
• The problem is that we may conclude that we can control God.
• Since God blesses those who trust and obey Him, and He curses those who do not, we may conclude that if we trust and obey God, He owes us blessing in this life.

 
JOB AND HIS FAMILY
JOB 1
1 There was a man in the country of Uz named Job.

•  Uz was probably located southeast of the Dead Sea.
• Show Map

He was a man of complete integrity, who feared God and turned away from evil.

• The fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom, was the hallmark of Job.
• Wisdom is to know that there is a God and He created us to love Him and others.

2 He had seven sons and three daughters. 3 His estate included seven thousand sheep and goats, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and a very large number of servants. Job was the greatest man among all the people of the east.

• Evidently there were several other great (wealthy) men in that part of the world in his day, but Job surpassed them all.

4 His sons used to take turns having banquets at their homes. They would send an invitation to their three sisters to eat and drink with them.

• Seven sons, a banquet for each night of the week.

5 Whenever a round of banqueting was over, Job would send for his children and purify them, rising early in the morning to offer burnt offerings for all of them.

• Evidently, he offered sacrifices each week for his children in case they had committed sins in their merriment.
• There were ten whole sacrifices offered by Job on each opening day of the weekly round, at the dawn of the Sunday; and one has therefore to imagine this round of entertainment as beginning with the first-born on the first day of the week."
• The author uses the numbers three, seven, and ten, all symbolic of completeness, to demonstrate that Job's wealth was staggering.

For Job thought, “Perhaps my children have sinned, having cursed God in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular practice.
 
SATAN’S FIRST TEST OF JOB
6 One day the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them.

• The term "sons of God" elsewhere refers to angels (38:7), though it usually refers to human beings.
• These verses reveal that angels, including Satan, periodically report to God on their activities.

7 The Lord asked Satan, “Where have you come from?”
“From roaming through the earth,” Satan answered him, “and walking around on it.”

• Did God need to ask Satan where he was?
• Similar to asking Adam & Eve, “Where are you?”

8 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil.”

• Rather than offering up Job as a suggestion.
• Possibly another rhetorical question.

9 Satan answered the Lord, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Haven’t you placed a hedge around him, his household, and everything he owns? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.

• Satan is implying that God has paid Job to love Him.

11 But stretch out your hand and strike everything he owns, and he will surely curse you to your face.”

• The Satan believes nothing to be genuinely good—neither Job in his disinterested piety nor God in His disinterested generosity.

12 “Very well,” the Lord told Satan, “everything he owns is in your power. However, do not lay a hand on Job himself.” So Satan left the Lord’s presence.

• This is just a reminder to Satan of what already was.
• Satan is also called the “prince of the power of the air” in Ephesians 2:2.
• He is the “ruler of this world” in John 12:31.
• These titles and many more signify Satan’s capabilities.
• He wields a certain amount of authority and power in this world.
• He is not a king, but a prince, a ruler of some sort.
• In some way he rules over the world and the people in it: “The whole world is under the control of the evil one” (1 John 5:19).


• This is not to say that Satan rules the world completely; God is still sovereign.
• God, in His infinite, inscrutable wisdom, has allowed Satan to operate in this world within the boundaries God has set for him.
• Satan’s limits are clearly seen in Job.
• Satan must give an account of himself to God, and it seems he must have God’s “allowance” to carry out his plans.
• At no time can Satan do all he wants, for God restricts his actions.

13 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and reported, “While the oxen were plowing and the donkeys grazing nearby, 15 the Sabeans swooped down and took them away. They struck down the servants with the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you!”
16 He was still speaking when another messenger came and reported, “God’s fire fell from heaven. It burned the sheep and the servants and devoured them, and I alone have escaped to tell you!”
17 That messenger was still speaking when yet another came and reported, “The Chaldeans formed three bands, made a raid on the camels, and took them away. They struck down the servants with the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you!”
18 He was still speaking when another messenger came and reported, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house. 19 Suddenly a powerful wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on the young people so that they died, and I alone have escaped to tell you!”
20 Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head.

• Tearing one's robe typically expressed great grief in the ancient Near East.
• It symbolized the rending of one's heart.
• Shaving the head evidently symbolized the loss of personal glory.
• When a person mourned, he or she put off all personal adornments, including what nature provided.
• Hair in the ancient world was a symbol of one's glory.

He fell to the ground and worshiped, 21 saying:
Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
and naked I will leave this life.

• Mother’s womb is another term for earth.

The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away.
Blessed be the name of the Lord.
22 Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything.[2]

• A man may stand before God stripped of everything that life has given him, and still lack nothing.

 
SATAN’S SECOND TEST OF JOB
JOB 2
1 One day the sons of God came again to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them to present himself before the Lord. 2 The Lord asked Satan, “Where have you come from?”
“From roaming through the earth,” Satan answered him, “and walking around on it.”
3 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil. He still retains his integrity, even though you incited me against him, to destroy him for no good reason.”
4 “Skin for skin!” Satan answered the Lord. “A man will give up everything he owns in exchange for his life. 5 But stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face.”
6 “Very well,” the Lord told Satan, “he is in your power; only spare his life.” 7 So Satan left the Lord’s presence and infected Job with terrible boils from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. 8 Then Job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape himself while he sat among the ashes.[3]

• Job's illness resulted in an unclean condition that made him a social outcast (cf. Exod. 9:9-11).
• He had to take up residence near the city dump where beggars and other social rejects stayed.
• He had formerly sat at the city gate and enjoyed social prestige as a town judge (29:7).

The change in his location, from the best to the worst of places, reflects the change in his circumstances, from the best to the worst of conditions.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 1 Jn 4:8–16.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Job 1:1–22.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Job 2:1–8.

Nehemiah

• Cup Bearer to the King
  • The years of history that this book covers are 445-431 B.C., or perhaps a few years after that.

 
REBUILDING THE WALLS
NEHEMIAH 3
1 The high priest Eliashib and his fellow priests began rebuilding the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and installed its doors. After building the wall to the Tower of the Hundred and the Tower of Hananel, they dedicated it. 2 The men of Jericho built next to Eliashib, and next to them Zaccur son of Imri built.
 
FISH GATE
3 The sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate. They built it with beams and installed its doors, bolts, and bars. 4 Next to them Meremoth son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz, made repairs. Beside them Meshullam son of Berechiah, son of Meshezabel, made repairs. Next to them Zadok son of Baana made repairs. 5 Beside them the Tekoites made repairs, but their nobles did not lift a finger to help their supervisors.
 
OLD GATE, BROAD WALL, AND TOWER OF THE OVENS
6 Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah repaired the Old Gate. They built it with beams and installed its doors, bolts, and bars. 7 Next to them the repairs were done by Melatiah the Gibeonite, Jadon the Meronothite, and the men of Gibeon and Mizpah, who were under the authority, of the governor of the region west of the Euphrates River. 8 After him Uzziel son of Harhaiah, the goldsmith, made repairs, and next to him Hananiah son of the perfumer made repairs. They restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall.
9 Next to them Rephaiah son of Hur, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. 10 After them Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs across from his house. Next to him Hattush the son of Hashabneiah made repairs. 11 Malchijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab made repairs to another section, as well as to the Tower of the Ovens. 12 Beside him Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs—he and his daughters.
 
VALLEY GATE, DUNG GATE, AND FOUNTAIN GATE
13 Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired the Valley Gate. They rebuilt it and installed its doors, bolts, and bars, and repaired five hundred yards of the wall to the Dung Gate. 14 Malchijah son of Rechab, ruler of the district of Beth-haccherem, repaired the Dung Gate. He rebuilt it and installed its doors, bolts, and bars.
15 Shallun son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah, repaired the Fountain Gate. He rebuilt it and roofed it. Then he installed its doors, bolts, and bars. He also made repairs to the wall of the Pool of Shelah near the king’s garden, as far as the stairs that descend from the city of David.
16 After him Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of half the district of Beth-zur, made repairs up to a point opposite the tombs of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the Warriors. 17 Next to him the Levites made repairs under Rehum son of Bani. Beside him Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah, made repairs for his district. 18 After him their fellow Levites made repairs under Binnui son of Henadad, ruler of half the district of Keilah. 19 Next to him Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, made repairs to another section opposite the ascent to the armory at the Angle.
 
THE ANGLE, WATER GATE, AND TOWER ON OPHEL
20 After him Baruch son of Zabbai diligently repaired another section, from the Angle to the door of the house of the high priest Eliashib. 21 Beside him Meremoth son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz, made repairs to another section, from the door of Eliashib’s house to the end of his house. 22 And next to him the priests from the surrounding area made repairs.
23 After them Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs opposite their house. Beside them Azariah son of Maaseiah, son of Ananiah, made repairs beside his house. 24 After him Binnui son of Henadad made repairs to another section, from the house of Azariah to the Angle and the corner. 25 Palal son of Uzai made repairs opposite the Angle and tower that juts out from the king’s upper palace,, by the courtyard of the guard. Beside him Pedaiah son of Parosh 26 and the temple servants living on Ophel made repairs opposite the Water Gate toward the east and the tower that juts out. 27 Next to him the Tekoites made repairs to another section from a point opposite the great tower that juts out, as far as the wall of Ophel.
 
HORSE GATE, INSPECTION GATE, AND SHEEP GATE
28 Each of the priests made repairs above the Horse Gate, each opposite his own house. 29 After them Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite his house. And beside him Shemaiah son of Shecaniah, guard of the East Gate, made repairs. 30 Next to him Hananiah son of Shelemiah and Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph made repairs to another section.
After them Meshullam son of Berechiah made repairs opposite his room. 31 Next to him Malchijah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs to the house of the temple servants and the merchants, opposite the Inspection Gate, and as far as the upstairs room on the corner. 32 The goldsmiths and merchants made repairs between the upstairs room on the corner and the Sheep Gate.[1]
 
PROGRESS IN SPITE OF OPPOSITION
NEHEMIAH 4
1 When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious. He mocked the Jews 2 before his colleagues and the powerful men of Samaria and said, “What are these pathetic Jews doing? Can they restore it by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they ever finish it? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?” 3 Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “Indeed, even if a fox climbed up what they are building, he would break down their stone wall!”

• This is precisely what I told the campers would happen to them as soon as they got home last night.
• They could be attacked by their parents, siblings, friends, and others.
• The evil one doesn’t matter who he uses.

4 Listen, our God, for we are despised. Make their insults return on their own heads and let them be taken as plunder to a land of captivity. 5 Do not cover their guilt or let their sin be erased from your sight, because they have angered the builders.

• This was Nehemiah’s prayer.

6 So we rebuilt the wall until the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had the will to keep working.

• This is the process we go through every year with students.
• Take them to camp and spend the first few days clearing their heads from the past year.
• Now start building the wall for the upcoming year.

7 When Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed, they became furious. 8 They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw it into confusion. 9 So we prayed to our God and stationed a guard because of them day and night.

• Prayer was important once again.

10 In Judah, it was said:
The strength of the laborer fails,
since there is so much rubble.
We will never be able
to rebuild the wall.

• Doubt will always be waiting to pounce.

11 And our enemies said, “They won’t realize it until we’re among them and can kill them and stop the work.” 12 When the Jews who lived nearby arrived, they said to us time and again, “Everywhere you turn, they attack us.” 13 So I stationed people behind the lowest sections of the wall, at the vulnerable areas. I stationed them by families with their swords, spears, and bows. 14 After I made an inspection, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the great and awe-inspiring Lord, and fight for your countrymen, your sons and daughters, your wives and homes.”

• Nehemiah responded to these threats by increasing security, focusing the workers' attention again on God, and reminding them of their duty to protect their families and property.
• We need to be constantly reminded of our identity in Jesus.
• Realize that it is impossible to lead without facing opposition.
• It is essential that your first response to opposition be prayer.
• Prayer may not be all that is necessary if opposition intensifies.

 
SWORD AND TROWEL
15 When our enemies heard that we knew their scheme and that God had frustrated it, every one of us returned to his own work on the wall. 16 From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers supported all the people of Judah, 17 who were rebuilding the wall.

• Each person had their assignment based on skill and abilities.

The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other. 18 Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me. 19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, “The work is enormous and spread out, and we are separated far from one another along the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us!”

• Nehemiah continued to encourage the workers. He made arrangements so that, if the enemy attacked any portion of the wall, trumpeters would announce it and summon the other workers to help those who were being attacked.
• This is basically what our Sunday Gatherings are… the sounding of the trumpets for war.

21 So we continued the work, while half of the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came out. 22 At that time, I also said to the people, “Let everyone and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they can stand guard by night and work by day.” 23 And I, my brothers, my servants, and the men of the guard with me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.[2]
 
Nehemiah 5 highlights the importance of justice, compassion, and leadership in addressing social issues.

• Nehemiah's actions demonstrate his commitment to God's principles and his care for the well-being of the community, setting a standard for righteous leadership.

 
ATTEMPTS TO DISCOURAGE THE BUILDERS
NEHEMIAH 6
1 When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and that no gap was left in it—though at that time I had not installed the doors in the city gates—2 Sanballat and Geshem sent me a message: “Come, let’s meet together in the villages of the Ono Valley.” They were planning to harm me.

• The plain of Ono, to which Nehemiah's adversaries invited him for a meeting, probably lay about 25 miles west and a little north of Jerusalem, near the town of Ashdod and Judah's border with Samaria.
• Israel's present international airport at Lod, just east of Tel Aviv on the Mediterranean coast, is very close to this site.
• It was in a kind of no-man's land between Judah and Samaria.
• If Nehemiah had accepted this invitation, he would have been many miles from Jerusalem for at least two days.
• This would have given the people of the land an opportunity to attack the Jewish workmen.

3 So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing important work and cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?” 4 Four times they sent me the same proposal, and I gave them the same reply.

• The evil one is relentless.
• Stay focused.

5 Sanballat sent me this same message a fifth time by his aide, who had an open letter in his hand. 6 In it was written:
It is reported among the nations—and Geshem agrees—that you and the Jews plan to rebel. This is the reason you are building the wall. According to these reports, you are to become their king 7 and have even set up the prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim on your behalf, “There is a king in Judah.” These rumors will be heard by the king. So come, let’s confer together.
8 Then I replied to him, “There is nothing to these rumors you are spreading; you are inventing them in your own mind.”

• Another tactic of the evil one.

9 For they were all trying to intimidate us, saying, “They will drop their hands from the work, and it will never be finished.”
But now, my God, strengthen my hands.

• Return to prayer

 
ATTEMPTS TO INTIMIDATE NEHEMIAH
10 I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was restricted to his house. He said:
Let’s meet at the house of God,
inside the temple.
Let’s shut the temple doors
because they’re coming to kill you.
They’re coming to kill you tonight!
11 But I said, “Should a man like me run away? How can someone like me enter the temple and live? I will not go.” 12 I realized that God had not sent him, because of the prophecy he spoke against me. Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. 13 He was hired, so that I would be intimidated, do as he suggested, sin, and get a bad reputation, in order that they could discredit me.
14 My God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat for what they have done, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the other prophets who wanted to intimidate me.

• Prayer for the fourth time.

 
THE WALL COMPLETED
15 The wall was completed in fifty-two days, on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul. 16 When all our enemies heard this, all the surrounding nations were intimidated and lost their confidence, for they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God.

• It was a God-Sized task accomplished through men and women.

17 During those days, the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them. 18 For many in Judah were bound by oath to him, since he was a son-in-law of Shecaniah son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam son of Berechiah. 19 These nobles kept mentioning Tobiah’s good deeds to me, and they reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to intimidate me.[3]

• Even after the spectacular accomplishment of rebuilding the wall, Nehemiah was still being attacked.
• Any attempt to fulfill God's desires will almost certainly draw opposition from God's enemies.
• "If you start building, you will soon be battling; so, be prepared!"
• "Whenever the saints say, 'Let us arise and build,' the enemy says, 'Let us arise and oppose.'
• There is no triumph without trouble.

 
Note the following lessons in leadership from Nehemiah 1 through 6:

• A leader must be a person of prayer (ch. 1)
• Have a vision (2:1-3), and be a wise planner (2:4-8).
• He must inspire his followers (2:11-20), organize his task (ch. 3), and combine faith and common sense (ch. 4).

He needs to be compassionate (5:1-13), possess personal integrity (5:14-19), be absolutely impartial (ch. 5), and display a sense of mission (ch. 6).

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ne 3:1–32.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ne 4:1–23.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ne 6:1–19.

Nehemiah

• Cup Bearer to the King
• Rusty’s DISC
• Current situation between Israel & Iran

 
586 BC – King Nebuchadnezzar came in, destroyed the Temple at Jerusalem, and took the Israelites into Babylonian captivity.
 
Artaxerxes I (465-424 BCE): Artaxerxes is the king mentioned in the Book of Ezra who allows Ezra to return to Jerusalem to teach the Law and implement reforms (Ezra 7:1-28).

• He is also the king during Nehemiah's time, who permits Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city's walls (Nehemiah 2:1-8).
• In Judah, the Jews did not continue to fortify Jerusalem.
• The years of history that this book covers are 445-431 B.C., or perhaps a few years after that.

 
NEHEMIAH 1
1 The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah:
 
NEWS FROM JERUSALEM
During the month of Chislev in the twentieth year, when I was in the fortress city of Susa, 2 Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived with men from Judah, and I questioned them about Jerusalem and the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile. 3 They said to me, “The remnant in the province, who survived the exile, are in great trouble and disgrace. Jerusalem’s wall has been broken down, and its gates have been burned.”
 
NEHEMIAH’S PRAYER
4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of the heavens. 5 I said,
Lord, the God of the heavens, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant with those who love him and keep his commands, 6 let your eyes be open and your ears be attentive to hear your servant’s prayer that I now pray to you day and night for your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins we have committed against you. Both I and my father’s family have sinned. 7 We have acted corruptly toward you and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances you gave your servant Moses. 8 Please remember what you commanded your servant Moses: “If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples. 9 But if you return to me and carefully observe my commands, even though your exiles were banished to the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place where I chose to have my name dwell.” 10 They are your servants and your people. You redeemed them by your great power and strong hand. 11 Please, Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant and to that of your servants who delight to revere your name. Give your servant success today, and grant him compassion in the presence of this man.
At the time, I was the king’s cupbearer.
 
NEHEMIAH SENT TO JERUSALEM
NEHEMIAH 2
1 During the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was set before him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had never been sad in his presence, 2 so the king said to me, “Why do you look so sad, when you aren’t sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart.”
I was overwhelmed with fear 3 and replied to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
4 Then the king asked me, “What is your request?”
So I prayed to the God of the heavens 5 and answered the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, send me to Judah and to the city where my ancestors are buried, so that I may rebuild it.”
6 The king, with the queen seated beside him, asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you return?” So I gave him a definite time, and it pleased the king to send me.
7 I also said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let me have letters written to the governors of the region west of the Euphrates River, so that they will grant me safe passage until I reach Judah. 8 And let me have a letter written to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to rebuild the gates of the temple’s fortress, the city wall, and the home where I will live.”, The king granted my requests, for the gracious hand of my God was on me.
9 I went to the governors of the region west of the Euphrates and gave them the king’s letters. The king had also sent officers of the infantry and cavalry with me. 10 When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard that someone had come to pursue the prosperity of the Israelites, they were greatly displeased.
 
PREPARING TO REBUILD THE WALLS
11 After I arrived in Jerusalem and had been there three days, 12 I got up at night and took a few men with me. I didn’t tell anyone what my God had laid on my heart to do for Jerusalem. The only animal I took was the one I was riding. 13 I went out at night through the Valley Gate toward the Serpent’s Well and the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that had been broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire. 14 I went on to the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but farther down it became too narrow for my animal to go through. 15 So I went up at night by way of the valley and inspected the wall. Then heading back, I entered through the Valley Gate and returned.

• Perhaps Nehemiah only surveyed the southern parts of Jerusalem's wall because those were the only sections still standing.

16 The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, for I had not yet told the Jews, priests, nobles, officials, or the rest of those who would be doing the work. 17 So I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins and its gates have been burned. Come, let’s rebuild Jerusalem’s wall, so that we will no longer be a disgrace.” 18 I told them how the gracious hand of my God had been on me, and what the king had said to me.
They said, “Let’s start rebuilding,” and their hands were strengthened to do this good work.
19 When Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard about this, they mocked and despised us, and said, “What is this you’re doing? Are you rebelling against the king?”
20 I gave them this reply, “The God of the heavens is the one who will grant us success. We, his servants, will start building, but you have no share, right, or historic claim in Jerusalem.”[1]
 
[1] He established a reasonable and attainable goal.
[2] He had a sense of mission.
[3] He was willing to get involved.
[4] He rearranged his priorities in order to accomplish his goal.
[5] He patiently waited for God's timing.
[6] He showed respect to his superior.
[7] He prayed at crucial times.
[8] He made his request with tact and graciousness.
[9] He was well prepared and thought of his needs in advance.
[10] He went through proper channels.
[11] He took time (three days) to rest, pray, and plan.
[12] He investigated the situation firsthand.
[13] He informed others only after he knew the size of the problem.
[14] He identified himself as one with the people.
[15] He set before them a reasonable and attainable goal.
[16] He assured them God was in the project.
[17] He displayed self-confidence in facing obstacles.
[18] He displayed God's confidence in facing obstacles.
[19] He did not argue with opponents.
[20] He was not discouraged by opposition.
[21] He courageously used the authority of his position.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ne 1–2:20.

586 BC – King Nebuchadnezzar came in, destroyed the Temple at Jerusalem, and took the Israelites into Babylonian captivity.
 
Artaxerxes I (465-424 BCE): Artaxerxes is the king mentioned in the Book of Ezra who allows Ezra to return to Jerusalem to teach the Law and implement reforms (Ezra 7:1-28).

• He is also the king during Nehemiah's time, who permits Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city's walls (Nehemiah 2:1-8).

 

• A period of 58 years separates Ezra 6 from Ezra 7 (515-458 B.C.). During this time, the events in the Book of Esther took place in Persia and, specifically, in Susa, one of the Persian capitals.
• In Judah, the Jews did not continue to fortify Jerusalem.
• They were content to worship at the temple.
• Their earlier zeal to return to the Mosaic Law, which included separation from non-Jews, waned.
• Over this 58-year period, some of them intermarried with unbelieving Gentiles (9:1-2).
• Evidently, the Levites neglected the teaching of the Law (7:25; cf. Neh. 8:1-12), and temple worship became more formal than heartfelt (7:23).

 
EZRA’S ARRIVAL
EZRA 7
1 After these events, during the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia, Ezra—

• In Jerusalem, Ezra's ministry consisted primarily of leading the people to return to observance of their Law.
• Since his time, the Jews have regarded Ezra as a second Moses, because he re-established Israel on the Mosaic Law.

Seraiah’s son, Azariah’s son,
Hilkiah’s son, 2 Shallum’s son,
Zadok’s son, Ahitub’s son,
3 Amariah’s son, Azariah’s son,
Meraioth’s son, 4 Zerahiah’s son,
Uzzi’s son, Bukki’s son,
5 Abishua’s son, Phinehas’s son,
Eleazar’s son, the chief priest Aaron’s son
6 —came up from Babylon. He was a scribe skilled in the law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted him everything he requested because the hand of the Lord his God was on him. 7 Some of the Israelites, priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and temple servants accompanied him to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes.
8 Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, during the seventh year of the king. 9 He began the journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month and arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month since the gracious hand of his God was on him.

• Ezra and his companions left Babylon in the spring of 458 B.C.
• Ezra and his fellow travelers completed their 900-mile journey exactly four months later because of God's enablement.[

10 Now Ezra had determined in his heart to study the law of the Lord, obey it, and teach its statutes and ordinances in Israel.

• Ezra's resolve provides an excellent example for every believer.
• He first proposed to study the Law of God, then to apply that teaching to his own life, and then to teach others the revealed will of God.
• This was the key to Ezra's impact.
• He is a model reformer in that what he taught he had first lived, and what he lived he had first made sure of in the Scriptures.

 
LETTER FROM ARTAXERXES
11 This is the text of the letter King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest and scribe, an expert in matters of the Lord’s commands and statutes for Israel:

•  Ezra held a position in the Persian court equivalent to Secretary of State for Jewish Affairs.
• Artaxerxes gave any of the Jews in his kingdom permission to return to the Promised Land, if they chose to do so.

12 Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, an expert in the law of the God of the heavens:
Greetings.
13 I issue a decree that any of the Israelites in my kingdom, including their priests and Levites, who want to go to Jerusalem, may go with you. 14 You are sent by the king and his seven counselors to evaluate Judah and Jerusalem according to the law of your God, which is in your possession. 15 You are also to bring the silver and gold the king and his counselors have willingly given to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem, 16 and all the silver and gold you receive throughout the province of Babylon, together with the freewill offerings given by the people and the priests to the house of their God in Jerusalem. 17 Then you are to be diligent to buy with this money bulls, rams, and lambs, along with their grain and drink offerings, and offer them on the altar at the house of your God in Jerusalem. 18 You may do whatever seems best to you and your brothers with the rest of the silver and gold, according to the will of your God. 19 Deliver to the God of Jerusalem all the articles given to you for the service of the house of your God. 20 You may use the royal treasury to pay for anything else needed for the house of your God.
21 I, King Artaxerxes, issue a decree to all the treasurers in the region west of the Euphrates River:
Whatever Ezra the priest, an expert in the law of the God of the heavens, asks of you must be provided in full, 22 up to 7,500 pounds of silver, 500 bushels of wheat, 550 gallons of wine, 550 gallons of oil, and salt without limit. 23 Whatever is commanded by the God of the heavens must be done diligently for the house of the God of the heavens, so that wrath will not fall on the realm of the king and his sons. 24 Be advised that you do not have authority to impose tribute, duty, and land tax on any priests, Levites, singers, doorkeepers, temple servants, or other servants of this house of God.

• And he allowed the temple personnel to be tax-free.
• All this was to be done "diligently" and "with zeal".

25 And you, Ezra, according to God’s wisdom that you possess, appoint magistrates and judges to judge all the people in the region west of the Euphrates who know the laws of your God and to teach anyone who does not know them. 26 Anyone who does not keep the law of your God and the law of the king, let the appropriate judgment be executed against him, whether death, banishment, confiscation of property, or imprisonment.
27 Blessed be the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s mind to glorify the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, 28 and who has shown favor to me before the king, his counselors, and all his powerful officers. So I took courage because I was strengthened by the hand of the Lord my God, and I gathered Israelite leaders to return with me.[1]
 

• Artaxerxes' decisions were influenced by a combination of respect for the Jewish people's religious traditions, the desire for political stability, and trust in the leadership abilities of Ezra and Nehemiah.

 
THOSE RETURNING WITH EZRA
EZRA 8
1 These are the family heads and the genealogical records of those who returned with me from Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes:

• 2-14 lists all the people and their descendants who returned to Israel with Ezra.
• Seems as if Ezra is writing in first person now.

15 I gathered them at the river that flows to Ahava, and we camped there for three days. I searched among the people and priests, but found no Levites there.

• No Levites had volunteered to return to Judah.
• In view of his plans for the restoration, Ezra needed more Levites than those already in Judah.
• Ezra gathered leaders and sent them to Casiphia where he knew there were temple servants.
• 250+ Levite men came to Ezra.

 
PREPARING TO RETURN
21 I proclaimed a fast by the Ahava River, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us, our dependents, and all our possessions.

• Fasting in the New Covenant is a personal decision that can be used to refocus on Christ and His grace.
• It is not a requirement or a means to gain spiritual merit, but rather an opportunity to remember and celebrate the freedom and blessings we have in Jesus.

22 I did this because I was ashamed to ask the king for infantry and cavalry to protect us from enemies during the journey, since we had told him, “The hand of our God is gracious to all who seek him, but his fierce anger is against all who abandon him.” 23 So we fasted and pleaded with our God about this, and he was receptive to our prayer.
24 I selected twelve of the leading priests, along with Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brothers. 25 I weighed out to them the silver, the gold, and the articles—the contribution for the house of our God that the king, his counselors, his leaders, and all the Israelites who were present had offered. 26 I weighed out to them 24 tons of silver, silver articles weighing 7,500 pounds, 7,500 pounds of gold, 27 twenty gold bowls worth a thousand gold coins, and two articles of fine gleaming bronze, as valuable as gold. 28 Then I said to them, “You are holy to the Lord, and the articles are holy. The silver and gold are a freewill offering to the Lord God of your ancestors. 29 Guard them carefully until you weigh them out in the chambers of the Lord’s house before the leading priests, Levites, and heads of the Israelite families in Jerusalem.” 30 So the priests and Levites took charge of the silver, the gold, and the articles that had been weighed out, to bring them to the house of our God in Jerusalem.
 
ARRIVAL IN JERUSALEM
31 We set out from the Ahava River on the twelfth day of the first month to go to Jerusalem. We were strengthened by our God, and he kept us from the grasp of the enemy and from ambush along the way. 32 So we arrived at Jerusalem and rested there for three days. 33 On the fourth day the silver, the gold, and the articles were weighed out in the house of our God into the care of the priest Meremoth son of Uriah. Eleazar son of Phinehas was with him. The Levites Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui were also with them. 34 Everything was verified by number and weight, and the total weight was recorded at that time.
35 The exiles who had returned from the captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, and seventy-seven lambs, along with twelve male goats as a sin offering. All this was a burnt offering for the Lord. 36 They also delivered the king’s edicts to the royal satraps and governors of the region west of the Euphrates, so that they would support the people and the house of God.[2]
 
ISRAEL’S INTERMARRIAGE
EZRA 9
1 After these things had been done, the leaders approached me and said, “The people of Israel, the priests, and the Levites have not separated themselves from the surrounding peoples whose detestable practices are like those of the Canaanites, Hethites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and Amorites. 2 Indeed, the Israelite men have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed has become mixed with the surrounding peoples. The leaders and officials have taken the lead in this unfaithfulness!”

• The Mosaic Law strictly forbade intermarriage with the native Canaanites (Exod. 34:11-16; Deut. 7:1-5; cf. Lev. 18:3).

3 When I heard this report, I tore my tunic and robe, pulled out some of the hair from my head and beard, and sat down devastated.
 
EZRA’S CONFESSION
4 Everyone who trembled at the words of the God of Israel gathered around me, because of the unfaithfulness of the exiles, while I sat devastated until the evening offering. 5 At the evening offering, I got up from my time of humiliation, with my tunic and robe torn. Then I fell on my knees and spread out my hands to the Lord my God. 6 And I said:
My God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift my face toward you, my God, because our iniquities are higher than our heads and our guilt is as high as the heavens. 7 Our guilt has been terrible from the days of our ancestors until the present. Because of our iniquities we have been handed over, along with our kings and priests, to the surrounding kings, and to the sword, captivity, plundering, and open shame, as it is today. 8 But now, for a brief moment, grace has come from the Lord our God to preserve a remnant for us and give us a stake in his holy place. Even in our slavery, God has given us a little relief and light to our eyes. 9 Though we are slaves, our God has not abandoned us in our slavery. He has extended grace to us in the presence of the Persian kings, giving us relief, so that we can rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.
10 Now, our God, what can we say in light of this? For we have abandoned the commands 11 you gave through your servants the prophets, saying, “The land you are entering to possess is an impure land. The surrounding peoples have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness by their impurity and detestable practices. 12 So do not give your daughters to their sons in marriage or take their daughters for your sons. Never pursue their welfare or prosperity, so that you will be strong, eat the good things of the land, and leave it as an inheritance to your sons forever.” 13 After all that has happened to us because of our evil deeds and terrible guilt—though you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserve and have allowed us to survive,—14 should we break your commands again and intermarry with the peoples who commit these detestable practices? Wouldn’t you become so angry with us that you would destroy us, leaving neither remnant nor survivor? 15 Lord God of Israel, you are righteous, for we survive as a remnant today. Here we are before you with our guilt, though no one can stand in your presence because of this.[3]

• Ezra's prayer contains four primary characteristics: solidarity, confession, readiness to change, and faith in God's mercy.

 
SENDING AWAY FOREIGN WIVES
EZRA 10
1 While Ezra prayed and confessed, weeping and falling facedown before the house of God, an extremely large assembly of Israelite men, women, and children gathered around him. The people also wept bitterly. 2 Then Shecaniah son of Jehiel, an Elamite, responded to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the surrounding peoples, but there is still hope for Israel in spite of this. 3 Therefore, let’s make a covenant before our God to send away all the foreign wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the command of our God. Let it be done according to the law. 4 Get up, for this matter is your responsibility, and we support you. Be strong and take action!”

• Even today, some Jewish leaders view intermarriage with non-Jews as the significant threat to the continuation of Judaism:
• Therefore, the greatest danger to Jewish survival outside Israel today is not anti-Semitism but assimilation, epitomized by the threat of intermarriage.

5 Then Ezra got up and made the leading priests, Levites, and all Israel take an oath to do what had been said; so they took the oath. 6 Ezra then went from the house of God and walked to the chamber of Jehohanan son of Eliashib, where he spent the night. He did not eat food or drink water, because he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.
7 They circulated a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem that all the exiles should gather at Jerusalem. 8 Whoever did not come within three days would forfeit all his possessions, according to the decision of the leaders and elders, and would be excluded from the assembly of the exiles.
9 So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered in Jerusalem within the three days. On the twentieth day of the ninth month, all the people sat in the square at the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. 10 Then the priest Ezra stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful by marrying foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt. 11 Therefore, make a confession to the Lord, the God of your ancestors, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the surrounding peoples and your foreign wives.”
12 Then all the assembly responded loudly, “Yes, we will do as you say! 13 But there are many people, and it is the rainy season. We don’t have the stamina to stay out in the open. This isn’t something that can be done in a day or two, for we have rebelled terribly in this matter. 14 Let our leaders represent the entire assembly. Then let all those in our towns who have married foreign women come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of each town, in order to avert the fierce anger of our God concerning this matter.” 15 Only Jonathan son of Asahel and Jahzeiah son of Tikvah opposed this, with Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite supporting them.
16 The exiles did what had been proposed. The priest Ezra selected men who were family heads, all identified by name, to represent their ancestral families. They convened on the first day of the tenth month to investigate the matter, 17 and by the first day of the first month they had dealt with all the men who had married foreign women.
 
THOSE MARRIED TO FOREIGN WIVES
18 The following were found to have married foreign women from the descendants of the priests:
from the descendants of Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah. 19 They pledged to send their wives away, and being guilty, they offered a ram from the flock for their guilt;
20 Hanani and Zebadiah from Immer’s descendants;
21 Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah from Harim’s descendants;
22 Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah from Pashhur’s descendants.
23 The Levites:
Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (that is Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.
24 The singers:
Eliashib.
The gatekeepers:
Shallum, Telem, and Uri.
25 The Israelites:
Parosh’s descendants: Ramiah, Izziah, Malchijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malchijah, and Benaiah;
26 Elam’s descendants: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Elijah;
27 Zattu’s descendants: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza;
28 Bebai’s descendants: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai;
29 Bani’s descendants: Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and Jeremoth;
30 Pahath-moab’s descendants: Adna, Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh;
31 Harim’s descendants: Eliezer, Isshijah, Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah;
33 Hashum’s descendants: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei;
34 Bani’s descendants: Maadai, Amram, Uel, 35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi, 36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, 37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, Jaasu, 38 Bani, Binnui, Shimei, 39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah, 40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph;
43 Nebo’s descendants: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.
44 All of these had married foreign women, and some of the wives had given birth to children.[4]
 

• Ezra then returned to Babylonia, where tradition said he died and where his alleged tomb may still be visited.
• The Book of Ezra-Nehemiah presents Ezra as a strong personality.

He did not emphasize the law as an end in itself; instead, he was convinced that the covenant community needed to return to God by taking seriously his revelation and applying it to every aspect of life.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 7:1–28.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 8:1–36.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 9:1–15.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 10:1–44.

Books of the Bible

• 5-12-5-5-12    4-1-21-1

 
586 BC – King Nebuchadnezzar came in, destroyed the Temple at Jerusalem, and took the Israelites into Babylonian captivity.
 
Cyrus the Great (559-530 BCE): Cyrus is the Persian king who conquered Babylon in 539 BCE and issued a decree in 538 BCE allowing the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple (Ezra 1:1-4).

• This marked the end of the Babylonian Captivity.

 
Cambyses II (530-522 BCE): Although not mentioned in the Bible, Cambyses was Cyrus's successor.

• His reign is a transitional period between Cyrus and Darius.

 
Darius I (522-486 BCE): Darius is mentioned in the Book of Ezra as the king who confirmed the decree of Cyrus and supported the completion of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.

• The temple was completed in the sixth year of Darius's reign, around 516 BCE (Ezra 6:1-15).

 
Xerxes I (486-465 BCE): Known as Ahasuerus in the Book of Esther, Xerxes is the king during whose reign the events of Esther take place.

• Esther becomes queen, and through her courage, she saves the Jewish people from Haman's plot to annihilate them (Esther 1:1, 2:16-17).

 
Artaxerxes I (465-424 BCE): Artaxerxes is the king mentioned in the Book of Ezra who allows Ezra to return to Jerusalem to teach the Law and implement reforms (Ezra 7:1-28).

• He is also the king during Nehemiah's time, who permits Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city's walls (Nehemiah 2:1-8).

 
THE DECREE OF CYRUS
EZRA 1
1 In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah, the Lord roused the spirit of King Cyrus to issue a proclamation throughout his entire kingdom and to put it in writing:
2 This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: “The Lord, the God of the heavens, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and has appointed me to build him a house at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Any of his people among you, may his God be with him, and may he go to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 Let every survivor, wherever he resides, be assisted by the men of that region with silver, gold, goods, and livestock, along with a freewill offering for the house of God in Jerusalem.”
 
RETURN FROM EXILE
5 So the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and Levites—everyone whose spirit God had roused—prepared to go up and rebuild the Lord’s house in Jerusalem. 6 All their neighbors supported them, with silver articles, gold, goods, livestock, and valuables, in addition to all that was given as a freewill offering. 7 King Cyrus also brought out the articles of the Lord’s house that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem and had placed in the house of his gods. 8 King Cyrus of Persia had them brought out under the supervision of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. 9 This was the inventory:
30 gold basins, 1,000 silver basins,
29 silver knives, 10 30 gold bowls,
410 various silver bowls, and 1,000 other articles.
11 The gold and silver articles totaled 5,400. Sheshbazzar brought all of them when the exiles went up from Babylon to Jerusalem.[1]
 
THE EXILES WHO RETURNED
EZRA 2
1 These now are the people of the province who came from those captive exiles King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had deported to Babylon. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town. 2 They came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah… [2]

• List of descendants

 
64 The whole combined assembly numbered
 
         42,360
 

65 not including their 7,337 male and female servants,
and their 200 male and female singers.
66 They had 736 horses, 245 mules,
67 435 camels, and 6,720 donkeys.
 
GIFTS FOR THE WORK
68 After they arrived at the Lord’s house in Jerusalem, some of the family heads gave freewill offerings for the house of God in order to have it rebuilt on its original  site. 69 Based on what they could give, they gave 61,000 gold coins, 6,250 pounds of silver, and 100 priestly garments to the treasury for the project. 70 The priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants, and some of the people settled in their towns, and the rest of Israel settled in their towns.[3]
 
SACRIFICE RESTORED
EZRA 3
1 When the seventh month arrived, and the Israelites were in their towns, the people gathered as one in Jerusalem. 2 Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers the priests along with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his brothers began to build the altar of Israel’s God in order to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the law of Moses, the man of God. 3 They set up the altar on its foundation and offered burnt offerings for the morning and evening on it to the Lord even though they feared the surrounding peoples. 4 They celebrated the Festival of Shelters as prescribed, and offered burnt offerings each day, based on the number specified by ordinance for each festival day. 5 After that, they offered the regular burnt offering and the offerings for the beginning of each month, and for all the Lord’s appointed holy occasions, as well as the freewill offerings brought to the Lord.
6 On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, even though the foundation of the Lord’s temple had not yet been laid. 7 They gave money to the stonecutters and artisans, and gave food, drink, and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so they would bring cedar wood from Lebanon to Joppa by sea, according to the authorization given them by King Cyrus of Persia.
 
REBUILDING THE TEMPLE
8 In the second month of the second year after they arrived at God’s house in Jerusalem, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Jeshua son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brothers, including the priests, the Levites, and all who had returned to Jerusalem from the captivity, began to build. They appointed the Levites who were twenty years old or more to supervise the work on the Lord’s house. 9 Jeshua with his sons and brothers, Kadmiel with his sons, and the sons of Judah and of Henadad, with their sons and brothers, the Levites, joined together to supervise those working on the house of God.
 
TEMPLE FOUNDATION COMPLETED
10 When the builders had laid the foundation of the Lord’s temple, the priests, dressed in their robes and holding trumpets, and the Levites descended from Asaph, holding cymbals, took their positions to praise the Lord, as King David of Israel had instructed. 11 They sang with praise and thanksgiving to the Lord: “For he is good; his faithful love to Israel endures forever.” Then all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s house had been laid.
12 But many of the older priests, Levites, and family heads, who had seen the first temple, wept loudly when they saw the foundation of this temple, but many others shouted joyfully. 13 The people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shouting from that of the weeping, because the people were shouting so loudly. And the sound was heard far away.[4]
 
OPPOSITION TO REBUILDING THE TEMPLE
EZRA 4
1 When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles, were building a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel, 2 they approached Zerubbabel and the family heads and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we also worship your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time King Esar-haddon of Assyria brought us here.”
3 But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other heads of Israel’s families answered them, “You may have no part with us in building a house for our God, since we alone will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia has commanded us.” 4 Then the people who were already in the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build. 5 They also bribed officials to act against them to frustrate their plans throughout the reign of King Cyrus of Persia and until the reign of King Darius of Persia.
 
OPPOSITION TO REBUILDING THE CITY
6 At the beginning of the reign of Ahasuerus, the people who were already in the land wrote an accusation against the residents of Judah and Jerusalem. 7 During the time of King Artaxerxes of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel and the rest of his colleagues wrote to King Artaxerxes.[5]
 

• Timeline of Temple Rebuild

 
11 This is the text of the letter they sent to him:
To King Artaxerxes from your servants, the men from the region west of the Euphrates River:
12 Let it be known to the king that the Jews who came from you have returned to us at Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and evil city, finishing its walls, and repairing its foundations. 13 Let it now be known to the king that if that city is rebuilt and its walls are finished, they will not pay tribute, duty, or land tax, and the royal revenue will suffer. 14 Since we have taken an oath of loyalty to the king, and it is not right for us to witness his dishonor, we have sent to inform the king 15 that a search should be made in your predecessors’ record books. In these record books you will discover and verify that the city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces. There have been revolts in it since ancient times. That is why this city was destroyed. 16 We advise the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls are finished, you will not have any possession west of the Euphrates.
 
ARTAXERXES’S REPLY
17 The king sent a reply to his chief deputy Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues living in Samaria and elsewhere in the region west of the Euphrates River:
Greetings.
18 The letter you sent us has been translated and read, in my presence. 19 I issued a decree and a search was conducted. It was discovered that this city has had uprisings against kings since ancient times, and there have been rebellions and revolts in it. 20 Powerful kings have also ruled over Jerusalem and exercised authority over the whole region west of the Euphrates River, and tribute, duty, and land tax were paid to them. 21 Therefore, issue an order for these men to stop, so that this city will not be rebuilt until a further decree has been pronounced by me. 22 See that you not neglect this matter. Otherwise, the damage will increase and the royal interests will suffer.
23 As soon as the text of King Artaxerxes’s letter was read to Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their colleagues, they immediately went to the Jews in Jerusalem and forcibly stopped them.[6]
 
EZRA 6
13 Then Tattenai governor of the region west of the Euphrates River, Shethar-bozenai, and their colleagues diligently carried out what King Darius had decreed. 14 So the Jewish elders continued successfully with the building under the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo. They finished the building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and King Artaxerxes of Persia. 15 This house was completed on the third day of the month of Adar in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
 
TEMPLE DEDICATION AND THE PASSOVER
16 Then the Israelites, including the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the exiles, celebrated the dedication of the house of God with joy. 17 For the dedication of God’s house they offered one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs, as well as twelve male goats as a sin offering for all Israel—one for each Israelite tribe. 18 They also appointed the priests by their divisions and the Levites by their groups to the service of God in Jerusalem, according to what is written in the book of Moses.
19 The exiles observed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month. 20 All of the priests and Levites were ceremonially clean, because they had purified themselves. They killed the Passover lamb for themselves, their priestly brothers, and all the exiles. 21 The Israelites who had returned from exile ate it, together with all who had separated themselves from the uncleanness of the Gentiles of the land, in order to worship the Lord, the God of Israel. 22 They observed the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, because the Lord had made them joyful, having changed the Assyrian king’s attitude toward them, so that he supported them in the work on the house of the God of Israel.[7]
 
This is religion.
 
Ezra-Nehemiah is a scriptural manual on revival.

• God's people wax and wane during their spiritual journey, and God has given in Ezra-Nehemiah a book to address this consistent issue.

 
God does not discard what He has chosen, but He remakes it when it fails.
 
In today’s cancel culture, with most people, if someone fails a few times, that person is out.
With God, if a person fails, he gets many other opportunities.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 1:1–11.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 2:1–2.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 2:64–70.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 3:1–13.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 4:1–7.
[6] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 4:11–23.
[7] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ezr 6:13–22.

• King Ahasuerus showed Esther favor, and she requested a dinner with him and Haman.
• Haman was fuming at the thought of Mordecai, so he had 75-foot gallows built.

 
MORDECAI HONORED BY THE KING
ESTHER 6
1 That night sleep escaped the king, so he ordered the book recording daily events to be brought and read to the king.

• The reading of the equivalent of the Congressional Record would have put the king to sleep under normal circumstances

2 They found the written report of how Mordecai had informed on Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs who guarded the entrance, when they planned to assassinate King Ahasuerus. 3 The king inquired, “What honor and special recognition have been given to Mordecai for this act?”
The king’s personal attendants replied, “Nothing has been done for him.”
4 The king asked, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman was just entering the outer court of the palace to ask the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows he had prepared for him.
5 The king’s attendants answered him, “Haman is there, standing in the court.”
“Have him enter,” the king ordered. 6 Haman entered, and the king asked him, “What should be done for the man the king wants to honor?”
Haman thought to himself, “Who is it the king would want to honor more than me?” 7 Haman told the king, “For the man the king wants to honor: 8 Have them bring a royal garment that the king himself has worn and a horse the king himself has ridden, which has a royal crown on its head. 9 Put the garment and the horse under the charge of one of the king’s most noble officials. Have them clothe the man the king wants to honor, parade him on the horse through the city square, and call out before him, ‘This is what is done for the man the king wants to honor.’ ”
10 The king told Haman, “Hurry, and do just as you proposed. Take a garment and a horse for Mordecai the Jew, who is sitting at the King’s Gate. Do not leave out anything you have suggested.”

• He may have known that Haman was anti-Semitic long ago.
• It seems incredible that Ahasuerus would issue such a decree without finding out whom it would eliminate.

11 So Haman took the garment and the horse. He clothed Mordecai and paraded him through the city square, calling out before him, “This is what is done for the man the king wants to honor.”
12 Then Mordecai returned to the King’s Gate, but Haman hurried off for home, mournful and with his head covered. 13 Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened. His advisers and his wife Zeresh said to him, “Since Mordecai is Jewish, and you have begun to fall before him, you won’t overcome him, because your downfall is certain.” 14 While they were still speaking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and rushed Haman to the banquet Esther had prepared.[1]
 
HAMAN IS EXECUTED
ESTHER 7
1 The king and Haman came to feast with Esther the queen.

• It was the practice for the most highly honored of the nobles to attend only the king's breakfast so they could later entertain their guests in the same manner.

2 Once again, on the second day while drinking wine, the king asked Esther, “Queen Esther, whatever you ask will be given to you. Whatever you seek, even to half the kingdom, will be done.”
3 Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favor with you, Your Majesty, and if the king is pleased, spare my life; this is my request. And spare my people; this is my desire. 4 For my people and I have been sold to destruction, death, and annihilation. If we had merely been sold as male and female slaves, I would have kept silent. Indeed, the trouble wouldn’t be worth burdening the king.”

• Her whole speech is designed to present her as one who, like Mordecai, has uncovered a plot against the king.
• She pleads for the king to save her own life and the lives of her people because it is in his best interest to do so.

5 King Ahasuerus spoke up and asked Queen Esther, “Who is this, and where is the one who would devise such a scheme?”,
6 Esther answered, “The adversary and enemy is this evil Haman.”
Haman stood terrified before the king and queen. 7 The king arose in anger and went from where they were drinking wine to the palace garden. Haman remained to beg Queen Esther for his life because he realized the king was planning something terrible for him. 8 Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was reclining. The king exclaimed, “Would he actually violate the queen while I am in the house?” As soon as the statement left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.

• Had Haman knelt as much as a foot away from the queen's couch, the king's reaction could still have been justified.
• A criminal is unworthy any longer to look on the face of the king

9 Harbona, one of the king’s eunuchs, said, “There is a gallows seventy-five feet tall at Haman’s house that he made for Mordecai, who gave the report that saved the king.”
The king said, “Hang him on it.”
10 They hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king’s anger subsided.[2]
 
ESTHER INTERVENES FOR THE JEWS
ESTHER 8

• Even though Haman was now dead, the Jews were not yet safe.
• This section of the text records what Esther and Mordecai did to ensure the preservation of the Jews who then lived throughout the vast Persian Empire.

1 That same day King Ahasuerus awarded Queen Esther the estate of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. Mordecai entered the king’s presence because Esther had revealed her relationship to Mordecai. 2 The king removed his signet ring he had recovered from Haman and gave it to Mordecai, and Esther put him in charge of Haman’s estate.

• If God can change the heart of an Ahasuerus, He can change any heart—any heart!

3 Then Esther addressed the king again. She fell at his feet, wept, and begged him to revoke the evil of Haman the Agagite and his plot he had devised against the Jews. 4 The king extended the gold scepter toward Esther, so she got up and stood before the king.
5 She said, “If it pleases the king and I have found favor with him, if the matter seems right to the king and I am pleasing in his eyes, let a royal edict be written. Let it revoke the documents the scheming Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the king’s provinces. 6 For how could I bear to see the disaster that would come on my people? How could I bear to see the destruction of my relatives?”
7 King Ahasuerus said to Esther the queen and to Mordecai the Jew, “Look, I have given Haman’s estate to Esther, and he was hanged on the gallows because he attacked the Jews. 8 Write in the king’s name whatever pleases you concerning the Jews, and seal it with the royal signet ring. A document written in the king’s name and sealed with the royal signet ring cannot be revoked.”

• Esther's commitment to her people, which jeopardized her safety, was very selfless and accounts for the high honor the Jews have given her since these events transpired.

9 On the twenty-third day of the third month—that is, the month Sivan—the royal scribes were summoned. Everything was written exactly as Mordecai commanded for the Jews, to the satraps, the governors, and the officials of the 127 provinces from India to Cush. The edict was written for each province in its own script, for each ethnic group in its own language, and to the Jews in their own script and language.
10 Mordecai wrote in King Ahasuerus’s name and sealed the edicts with the royal signet ring. He sent the documents by mounted couriers, who rode fast horses bred in the royal stables.

• The first decree, to destroy the Jews, had gone out on April 17, 474 B.C. (3:12).
• The Jews had over eight months to prepare for the day their enemies might attack them, which was March 7, 473 B.C.
• Ahasuerus published this second one, allowing the Jews to defend themselves, on June 25, 474 B.C.

11 The king’s edict gave the Jews in each and every city the right to assemble and defend themselves, to destroy, kill, and annihilate every ethnic and provincial army hostile to them, including women and children, and to take their possessions as spoils of war.

• I think the children and women in view were those of the Jews, not the enemies of the Jews.

12 This would take place on a single day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month Adar.
13 A copy of the text, issued as law throughout every province, was distributed to all the peoples so the Jews could be ready to avenge themselves against their enemies on that day. 14 The couriers rode out in haste on their royal horses at the king’s urgent command. The law was also issued in the fortress of Susa.
15 Mordecai went from the king’s presence clothed in royal blue and white, with a great gold crown and a purple robe of fine linen. The city of Susa shouted and rejoiced, 16 and the Jews celebrated with gladness, joy, and honor. 17 In every province and every city where the king’s command and edict reached, gladness and joy took place among the Jews. There was a celebration and a holiday. And many of the ethnic groups of the land professed themselves to be Jews because fear of the Jews had overcome them.[3]

• “Holiday" is literally "good day"
• This was not the Feast of Purim but a celebration in anticipation of Purim.
• Purim follows the Jewish lunar calendar.
• This year was March 13 & 14th.

 
VICTORIES OF THE JEWS
ESTHER 9
1 The king’s command and law went into effect on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month Adar. On the day when the Jews’ enemies had hoped to overpower them, just the opposite happened. The Jews overpowered those who hated them. 2 In each of King Ahasuerus’s provinces the Jews assembled in their cities to attack those who intended to harm them. Not a single person could withstand them; fear of them fell on every nationality.
3 All the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and the royal civil administrators, aided the Jews because they feared Mordecai. 4 For Mordecai exercised great power in the palace, and his fame spread throughout the provinces as he became more and more powerful.
5 The Jews put all their enemies to the sword, killing and destroying them. They did what they pleased to those who hated them.

• Mordecai was now so powerful in the Persian government that the lesser officials sided with the Jews out of fear of him.

6 In the fortress of Susa the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men, 7 including Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. 10 They killed these ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. However, they did not seize any plunder.
11 On that day the number of people killed in the fortress of Susa was reported to the king. 12 The king said to Queen Esther, “In the fortress of Susa the Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men, including Haman’s ten sons. What have they done in the rest of the royal provinces? Whatever you ask will be given to you. Whatever you seek will also be done.”

• The fact that these people were even willing to attack when they knew the Jews would protect themselves is proof that anti-Semitism was very strong throughout the empire.

13 Esther answered, “If it pleases the king, may the Jews who are in Susa also have tomorrow to carry out today’s law, and may the bodies of Haman’s ten sons be hung on the gallows.” 14 The king gave the orders for this to be done, so a law was announced in Susa, and they hung the bodies of Haman’s ten sons. 15 The Jews in Susa assembled again on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and killed three hundred men in Susa, but they did not seize any plunder.

• The purpose of hanging the bodies of Haman's 10 executed sons on the gallows was to disgrace them and to discourage other enemies of the Jews from attacking them.
• The Jews were free to strike back without reservation, in retaliation
•  But it is clear that they applied self-control.
• The Jews certainly defended themselves against their enemies, against those who attempted to wipe out their race, but the Jews resisted the temptation to go too far.
• They had been given permission to take material advantage of their enemies' defeat, but they refused to do that.
• They held back.
• Think of it this way: Not only did the Jews gain mastery over their enemies, they gained mastery over themselves.

16 The rest of the Jews in the royal provinces assembled, defended themselves, and gained relief from their enemies. They killed seventy-five thousand of those who hated them, but they did not seize any plunder. 17 They fought on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar and rested on the fourteenth, and it became a day of feasting and rejoicing.
18 But the Jews in Susa had assembled on the thirteenth and the fourteenth days of the month. They rested on the fifteenth day of the month, and it became a day of feasting and rejoicing. 19 This explains why the rural Jews who live in villages observe the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a time of rejoicing and feasting. It is a holiday when they send gifts to one another.

• The Jews in the outlying areas of the empire celebrated on March 8, and the Jews in Susa celebrated on March 9.
• The deliberate decision not to enrich themselves at the expense of their enemies would not go unnoticed in a culture where victors were expected to take the spoil.

20 Mordecai recorded these events and sent letters to all the Jews in all of King Ahasuerus’s provinces, both near and far. 21 He ordered them to celebrate the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar every year 22 because during those days the Jews gained relief from their enemies. That was the month when their sorrow was turned into rejoicing and their mourning into a holiday. They were to be days of feasting, rejoicing, and of sending gifts to one another and to the poor.
23 So the Jews agreed to continue the practice they had begun, as Mordecai had written them to do. 24 For Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them. He cast the pur—that is, the lot—to crush and destroy them. 25 But when the matter was brought before the king, he commanded by letter that the evil plan Haman had devised against the Jews return on his own head and that he should be hanged with his sons on the gallows. 26 For this reason these days are called Purim, from the word pur. Because of all the instructions in this letter as well as what they had witnessed and what had happened to them, 27 the Jews bound themselves, their descendants, and all who joined with them to a commitment that they would not fail to celebrate these two days each and every year according to the written instructions and according to the time appointed. 28 These days are remembered and celebrated by every generation, family, province, and city, so that these days of Purim will not lose their significance in Jewish life and their memory will not fade from their descendants.

• Purim is the only Jewish holiday that is mentioned in the Bible but not in the Torah, and our only information about its origin comes from the Book of Esther.
• The absence of explicit reference in the text to God helping His people does not deny His help.
• Instead, it reflects the attitude of the Jews who chose to ignore God's commands, through Moses, Isaiah, and Jeremiah, to return to the Promised Land.
• They had pushed God aside in their lives, as Mordecai and Esther apparently had done to some extent.
• Nevertheless, God remained faithful to His promises, in spite of His people's unfaithfulness 

29 Queen Esther, daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai the Jew, wrote this second letter with full authority to confirm the letter about Purim. 30 He sent letters with assurances of peace and security to all the Jews who were in the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, 31 in order to confirm these days of Purim at their proper time just as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had established them and just as they had committed themselves and their descendants to the practices of fasting and lamentation. 32 So Esther’s command confirmed these customs of Purim, which were then written into the record.[4]
 
MORDECAI’S FAME
ESTHER 10
1 King Ahasuerus imposed a tax throughout the land even to the farthest shores. 2 All of his powerful and magnificent accomplishments and the detailed account of Mordecai’s great rank with which the king had honored him, have they not been written in the Book of the Historical Events of the Kings of Media and Persia? 3 Mordecai the Jew was second only to King Ahasuerus. He was famous among the Jews and highly esteemed by many of his relatives. He continued to pursue prosperity for his people and to speak for the well-being of all his descendants.[5]

• God delights in lifting up nobodies and using them as somebodies.

The Book of Esther shows how God has remained faithful to His promises in spite of His adversaries' antagonism and His people's unfaithfulness.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 6:1–14.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 7:1–10.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 8:1–17.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 9:1–32.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 10:1–3.

• King Ahasuerus has chosen Esther as Queen after he divorced Vashti.
• Showed the contrast of the King with much authority vs a little Jewish virgin girl.

 
MORDECAI SAVES THE KING
19 When the virgins were gathered a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the King’s Gate.

• Evidently the reassembling of the virgins was part of a procession that the king designed to show off Esther's beauty, compared with the other contestants in his beauty contest.
• The context suggests that this was a part of the gala that celebrated the king's wedding to Esther.
• Mordecai had evidently received an appointment to a governmental position as a magistrate or judge earlier, perhaps because of Esther's influence.
• The "king's gate" was where people settled some legal matters in the capital.

20 Esther still did not reveal her family background or her ethnicity, as Mordecai had directed. She obeyed Mordecai’s orders, as she always had while he raised her.

• The impression remains that Esther's Jewishness was more a fact of birth than of religious conviction.
• She was more faithful to Mordecai than she was to God.

21 During those days while Mordecai was sitting at the King’s Gate, Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs who guarded the entrance, became infuriated and planned to assassinate King Ahasuerus. 22 When Mordecai learned of the plot, he reported it to Queen Esther, and she told the king on Mordecai’s behalf.

• We do know that 14 years later Ahasuerus did die at the hand of an assassin.

23 When the report was investigated and verified, both men were hanged on the gallows (tree). This event was recorded in the Historical Record in the king’s presence.[1]

• Impalement was not the method of execution, but the disgracing of the person, through the public display of his body after death or execution.

 
HAMAN’S PLAN TO KILL THE JEWS
ESTHER 3
1 After all this took place, King Ahasuerus honored Haman, son of Hammedatha the Agagite. He promoted him in rank and gave him a higher position than all the other officials. 2 The entire royal staff at the King’s Gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded this to be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage.

• Mordecai refused to bow down because Haman was a known enemy of the Jews.

3 The members of the royal staff at the King’s Gate asked Mordecai, “Why are you disobeying the king’s command?” 4 When they had warned him day after day and he still would not listen to them, they told Haman in order to see if Mordecai’s actions would be tolerated, since he had told them he was a Jew.
5 When Haman saw that Mordecai was not bowing down or paying him homage, he was filled with rage. 6 And when he learned of Mordecai’s ethnic identity, it seemed repugnant to Haman to do away with Mordecai alone. He planned to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout Ahasuerus’s kingdom.

• How many times has this been attempted?
• Pharoh, Hitler, Nasser

7 In the first month, the month of Nisan, in King Ahasuerus’s twelfth year, the pur—that is, the lot—was cast before Haman for each day in each month, and it fell on the twelfth month, the month Adar.

• In Ahasuerus' twelfth year (474 B.C.) Haman cast "the lot"--pur is the Persian word for "lot"—to determine the day most favorable to wipe out the Jews.
• However, God controlled the lot-casting (Proverbs 16:33 – “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.”[2]) and gave the Jews almost a year to prepare for conflict with their enemies.
• As a result, they had time to prepare to defend themselves.
• Evidently, the Jews named their feast "Purim" in honor of the lots that Haman cast, but which God controlled, as a tribute to God's sovereign protection of them.

8 Then Haman informed King Ahasuerus, “There is one ethnic group, scattered throughout the peoples in every province of your kingdom, keeping themselves separate. Their laws are different from everyone else’s and they do not obey the king’s laws. It is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.

• What Haman is really saying, then, is that the Jews do not acknowledge the sovereignty of the king; and this constitutes treason.

9 If the king approves, let an order be drawn up authorizing their destruction, and I will pay 375 tons of silver to the officials for deposit in the royal treasury.”
10 The king removed his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 Then the king told Haman, “The money and people are given to you to do with as you see fit.”
12 The royal scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and the order was written exactly as Haman commanded. It was intended for the royal satraps, the governors of each of the provinces, and the officials of each ethnic group and written for each province in its own script and to each ethnic group in its own language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the royal signet ring. 13 Letters were sent by couriers to each of the royal provinces telling the officials to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jewish people—young and old, women and children—and plunder their possessions on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, the twelfth month.
14 A copy of the text, issued as law throughout every province, was distributed to all the peoples so that they might get ready for that day. 15 The couriers left, spurred on by royal command, and the law was issued in the fortress of Susa. The king and Haman sat down to drink, while the city of Susa was in confusion. [3]
 
MORDECAI APPEALS TO ESTHER
ESTHER 4 
1 When Mordecai learned all that had occurred, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, went into the middle of the city, and cried loudly and bitterly.

• Grieving for his people, the Jews.
• But also struck with guilt since he did not bow to Hamon.

2 He went only as far as the King’s Gate, since the law prohibited anyone wearing sackcloth from entering the King’s Gate. 3 There was great mourning among the Jewish people in every province where the king’s command and edict reached. They fasted, wept, and lamented, and many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
4 Esther’s female servants and her eunuchs came and reported the news to her, and the queen was overcome with fear. She sent clothes for Mordecai to wear so that he would take off his sackcloth, but he did not accept them. 5 Esther summoned Hathach, one of the king’s eunuchs who attended her, and dispatched him to Mordecai to learn what he was doing and why. 6 So Hathach went out to Mordecai in the city square in front of the King’s Gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened as well as the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay the royal treasury for the slaughter of the Jews.
8 Mordecai also gave him a copy of the written decree issued in Susa ordering their destruction, so that Hathach might show it to Esther, explain it to her, and command her to approach the king, implore his favor, and plead with him personally for her people. 9 Hathach came and repeated Mordecai’s response to Esther.

• The facts that Mordecai knew the exact amount of money that Haman had promised Ahasuerus, and that he had a copy of the text of Ahasuerus' edict, supports the conclusion that Mordecai occupied an official position in the government at this time

10 Esther spoke to Hathach and commanded him to tell Mordecai, 11 “All the royal officials and the people of the royal provinces know that one law applies to every man or woman who approaches the king in the inner courtyard and who has not been summoned—the death penalty—unless the king extends the gold scepter, allowing that person to live. I have not been summoned to appear before the king for the last thirty days.” 12 Esther’s response was reported to Mordecai.

• Herodotus wrote that from earliest times, Median kings had refused entrance to their throne rooms to unannounced persons, in order to enhance their dignity, and to protect themselves.
• But anyone who desired an audience with the king might ask to be announced.
• Evidently the Persians also observed this custom.

13 Mordecai told the messenger to reply to Esther, “Don’t think that you will escape the fate of all the Jews because you are in the king’s palace. 14 If you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will come to the Jewish people from another place, but you and your father’s family will be destroyed. Who knows, perhaps you have come to your royal position for such a time as this.”

• Mordecai saw that this was Esther's moment of destiny, though he made no mention of God's providence,

15 Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa and fast for me. Don’t eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my female servants will also fast in the same way. After that, I will go to the king even if it is against the law. If I perish, I perish.” 17 So Mordecai went and did everything Esther had commanded him. [4]
 
ESTHER APPROACHES THE KING
ESTHER 5
1 On the third day, Esther dressed in her royal clothing and stood in the inner courtyard of the palace facing it. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the royal courtroom, facing its entrance. 2 As soon as the king saw Queen Esther standing in the courtyard, she gained favor with him. The king extended the gold scepter in his hand toward Esther, and she approached and touched the tip of the scepter.
3 “What is it, Queen Esther?” the king asked her. “Whatever you want, even to half the kingdom, will be given to you.”
4 “If it pleases the king,” Esther replied, “may the king and Haman come today to the banquet I have prepared for them.”
5 The king said, “Hurry, and get Haman so we can do as Esther has requested.” So the king and Haman went to the banquet Esther had prepared.
6 While drinking the wine, the king asked Esther, “Whatever you ask will be given to you. Whatever you want, even to half the kingdom, will be done.”
7 Esther answered, “This is my petition and my request: 8 If I have found favor in the eyes of the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and perform my request, may the king and Haman come to the banquet I will prepare for them. Tomorrow I will do what the king has asked.”

• A clever move on Esther's part to disarm Haman and make him think he was the center of attention.
• This plays to Haman's personal weakness and also to Esther's plan.
• It was crucial, after all, that Haman attend the next party, where he would indeed be the center of attention; the party to come was, then, as much for Haman as for the king.

9 That day Haman left full of joy and in good spirits. But when Haman saw Mordecai at the King’s Gate, and Mordecai didn’t rise or tremble in fear at his presence, Haman was filled with rage toward Mordecai. 10 Yet Haman controlled himself and went home. He sent for his friends and his wife Zeresh to join him. 11 Then Haman described for them his glorious wealth and his many sons. He told them all how the king had honored him and promoted him in rank over the other officials and the royal staff. 12 “What’s more,” Haman added, “Queen Esther invited no one but me to join the king at the banquet she had prepared. I am invited again tomorrow to join her with the king. 13 Still, none of this satisfies me since I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the King’s Gate all the time.”

• A person of good character overlooks slights against himself or herself, but a man or woman of inferior character magnifies them.

14 His wife Zeresh and all his friends told him, “Have them build a gallows seventy-five feet tall. Ask the king in the morning to hang Mordecai on it. Then go to the banquet with the king and enjoy yourself.” The advice pleased Haman, so he had the gallows constructed.[5]

• Charles Swindoll – “First: When preparing for an unprecedented event, wait on the Lord before getting involved. …
• Second: When dealing with an unpredictable person, count on the Lord to open doors and hearts. …
• Third: When working through an unpleasant situation, trust the Lord for enduring patience. …

Fourth: When standing against an unprincipled enemy, ask the Lord for invincible courage.”

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 2:19–23.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Pr 16:33.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 3:1–15.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 4:1–17.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 5:1–14.

• List of Kings

 
2 Kings 18-20

• Focuses on the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah, highlighting his faithfulness to God, his reforms, and his interactions with the Assyrian empire and the prophet Isaiah.

1. Hezekiah's Reforms and Faith (Chapter 18): Hezekiah becomes king of Judah and is noted for his devotion to God. He removes high places, idols, and other forms of idolatry, trusting in the Lord like no king before him (2 Kings 18:3-6). During his reign, the Assyrian king Sennacherib invades Judah, and Hezekiah seeks God's help.
2. Assyrian Threat and Deliverance (Chapter 19): Sennacherib's forces threaten Jerusalem, and Hezekiah turns to God in prayer. The prophet Isaiah assures Hezekiah that God will defend the city. In response, God miraculously delivers Jerusalem by sending an angel to strike down the Assyrian army (2 Kings 19:35-36).
3. Hezekiah's Illness and Recovery (Chapter 20): Hezekiah falls ill and is told by Isaiah that he will die. Hezekiah prays, and God grants him an additional fifteen years of life, confirmed by a miraculous sign (2 Kings 20:1-11). However, Hezekiah later shows Babylonian envoys his treasures, prompting Isaiah to prophesy that Babylon will eventually carry off Judah's wealth and people (2 Kings 20:12-19).

These chapters highlight Hezekiah's faith and reliance on God, showcasing God's power to deliver and heal. They also foreshadow future challenges for Judah, emphasizing the importance of continued faithfulness to God.
 
2 Kings 25
 describes the fall of Jerusalem and the end of the kingdom of Judah, marking a significant moment in Israel's history.

1. Siege and Fall of Jerusalem (Verses 1-7): King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem in the ninth year of King Zedekiah's reign. The siege lasts for about two years, leading to severe famine in the city. Eventually, the Babylonians breach the city walls, and Zedekiah attempts to escape but is captured. He is taken to Riblah, where he witnesses the execution of his sons before being blinded and taken to Babylon.
2. Destruction of the City and Temple (Verses 8-17): Nebuzaradan, the captain of the Babylonian guard, arrives in Jerusalem and burns the temple, the king's palace, and all the houses. The walls of Jerusalem are broken down, and the remaining treasures of the temple are taken to Babylon. This destruction fulfills the prophecies of judgment due to the people's persistent unfaithfulness.
3. Exile and Governance (Verses 18-26): The Babylonians take many people into exile, leaving only the poorest in the land to tend the vineyards and fields. Gedaliah is appointed as governor over the remaining people, but he is later assassinated, leading to further instability and fear among the people.
4. Jehoiachin's Release (Verses 27-30): In the thirty-seventh year of his exile, Jehoiachin, the former king of Judah, is released from prison by the new Babylonian king, Evil-Merodach. He is treated kindly and given a place of honor at the king's table for the rest of his life.

2 Kings 25 concludes the narrative of the kingdom of Judah, highlighting the consequences of disobedience and the fulfillment of prophetic warnings. Despite the devastation, the release of Jehoiachin offers a glimmer of hope for the future restoration of God's people.
 
Persian Empire Map
Cyrus the Great – Ezra
Chronological Order of Restoration
King Xerxes (Ahasuerus)( the son of Darius I (521-486 B.C.) - Esther
King Artexerxes - Nehemiah
 
The events of the Book of Esther took place during the Persian period of ancient Near Eastern history (539-331 B.C.) and during the reign of King Ahasuerus in particular (486-465 B.C.)
483 B.C. - Ahasuerus' military planning session in Susa
482 B.C. - The deposition of Vashti
481 B.C. - The beginning of Ahasuerus' unsuccessful expedition against Greece
480 B.C. - Esther's arrival in Susa
479 B.C. - Ahasuerus' return to Susa and Esther's coronation
474 B.C. - The issuing of Ahasuerus' decrees affecting the Jews
473 B.C. - The Jews' defense of themselves and the establishment of the Feast of Purim
 
VASHTI ANGERS THE KING
ESTHER 1
1 These events took place during the days of Ahasuerus, who ruled 127 provinces from India to Cush. 2 In those days King Ahasuerus reigned from his royal throne in the fortress at Susa.

• "Susa" is the Greek name for the Hebrew "Shushan."
• "The French excavations at Susa between 1880-1890 disclosed the great palace of Xerxes (Ahasuerus, 486-465 B.C.), the place where Queen Esther would have lived.
• The building covered two and one-half acres, and included a beautiful throne-room which was decorated with thirty-six fluted columns, each being some sixty-seven feet high and supporting a ceiling of Lebanon cedar.

3 He held a feast in the third year of his reign for all his officials and staff, the army of Persia and Media, the nobles, and the officials from the provinces.

• The third year of Ahasuerus' (Xerxes') reign was evidently 483 or 482 B.C. He would have been in his mid-thirties.

4 He displayed the glorious wealth of his kingdom and the magnificent splendor of his greatness for a total of 180 days.

• For 6 months he planned his campaign against Greece.

5 At the end of this time, the king held a week-long banquet in the garden courtyard of the royal palace for all the people, from the greatest to the least, who were present in the fortress of Susa. 6 White and blue linen hangings were fastened with fine white and purple linen cords to silver rods on marble columns. Gold and silver couches were arranged on a mosaic pavement of red feldspar, marble, mother-of-pearl, and precious stones.
7 Drinks were served in an array of gold goblets, each with a different design. Royal wine flowed freely, according to the king’s bounty. 8 The drinking was according to royal decree: “There are no restrictions.” The king had ordered every wine steward in his household to serve whatever each person wanted. 9 Queen Vashti also gave a feast for the women of King Ahasuerus’s palace.
10 On the seventh day, when the king was feeling good from the wine, Ahasuerus commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas—the seven eunuchs who personally served him—

• The Persian kings castrated many of the men who served the king and his family so that they could not have sexual relations with the female members of the royal court and start dynasties of their own.

11 to bring Queen Vashti before him with her royal crown. He wanted to show off her beauty to the people and the officials, because she was very beautiful. 12 But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command that was delivered by his eunuchs. The king became furious and his anger burned within him.
 
THE KING’S DECREE
13 The king consulted the wise men who understood the times, for it was his normal procedure to confer with experts in law and justice. 14 The most trusted ones were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan. They were the seven officials of Persia and Media who had personal access to the king and occupied the highest positions in the kingdom. 15 The king asked, “According to the law, what should be done with Queen Vashti, since she refused to obey King Ahasuerus’s command that was delivered by the eunuchs?”
16 Memucan said in the presence of the king and his officials, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king, but all the officials and the peoples who are in every one of King Ahasuerus’s provinces. 17 For the queen’s action will become public knowledge to all the women and cause them to despise their husbands and say, ‘King Ahasuerus ordered Queen Vashti brought before him, but she did not come.’ 18 Before this day is over, the noble women of Persia and Media who hear about the queen’s act will say the same thing to all the king’s officials, resulting in more contempt and fury.

• The king's advisers feared that Vashti's rebellion would lead to a popular women's liberation movement and to a revolution among the aristocratic wives particularly.

19 “If it meets the king’s approval, he should personally issue a royal decree. Let it be recorded in the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it cannot be revoked: Vashti is not to enter King Ahasuerus’s presence, and her royal position is to be given to another woman who is more worthy than she. 20 The decree the king issues will be heard throughout his vast kingdom, so all women will honor their husbands, from the greatest to the least.”

• This is a royal divorce.

21 The king and his counselors approved the proposal, and he followed Memucan’s advice. 22 He sent letters to all the royal provinces, to each province in its own script and to each ethnic group in its own language, that every man should be master of his own house and speak in the language of his own people.[1]
 
THE SEARCH FOR A NEW QUEEN
ESTHER 2
1 Some time later, when King Ahasuerus’s rage had cooled down, he remembered Vashti, what she had done, and what was decided against her.

• Nearly four years have passed since Vashti was deposed.
• During that time, Ahasuerus directed his ill-fated Greek campaign and came home in humiliation instead of honor.

2 The king’s personal attendants suggested, “Let a search be made for beautiful young virgins for the king. 3 Let the king appoint commissioners in each province of his kingdom, so that they may gather all the beautiful young virgins to the harem at the fortress of Susa. Put them under the supervision of Hegai, the king’s eunuch, keeper of the women, and give them the required beauty treatments. 4 Then the young woman who pleases the king will become queen instead of Vashti.” This suggestion pleased the king, and he did accordingly.
5 In the fortress of Susa, there was a Jewish man named Mordecai son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite. 6 Kish had been taken into exile from Jerusalem with the other captives when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took King Jeconiah of Judah into exile. 7 Mordecai was the legal guardian of his cousin Hadassah (that is, Esther), because she had no father or mother.

• By mentioning both her Hebrew and Babylonian name, the author is highlighting Esther as a woman with two identities, an issue that will be brought into sharp conflict later in the story.

The young woman had a beautiful figure and was extremely good-looking. When her father and mother died, Mordecai had adopted her as his own daughter.
8 When the king’s command and edict became public knowledge and when many young women were gathered at the fortress of Susa under Hegai’s supervision, Esther was taken to the palace, into the supervision of Hegai, keeper of the women. 9 The young woman pleased him and gained his favor so that he accelerated the process of the beauty treatments and the special diet that she received. He assigned seven hand-picked female servants to her from the palace and transferred her and her servants to the harem’s best quarters.

• As will become clear, Esther cooperated in practices contrary to the Mosaic Law.
• These included marrying a pagan (Deut. 7:1-4; cf. Ezra 9:12; 10:10-15), and eating unclean food (Lev. 11:46-47).

10 Esther did not reveal her ethnicity or her family background, because Mordecai had ordered her not to make them known. 11 Every day Mordecai took a walk in front of the harem’s courtyard to learn how Esther was doing and to see what was happening to her.

• It is impossible to determine if Esther was forced to participate in the king's "beauty contest," or if she did so willingly.
• In view of Ahasuerus' great power, I tend to think she probably had no choice.

12 During the year before each young woman’s turn to go to King Ahasuerus, the harem regulation required her to receive beauty treatments with oil of myrrh for six months and then with perfumes and cosmetics for another six months. 13 When the young woman would go to the king, she was given whatever she requested to take with her from the harem to the palace. 14 She would go in the evening, and in the morning she would return to a second harem under the supervision of the king’s eunuch Shaashgaz, keeper of the concubines. She never went to the king again, unless he desired her and summoned her by name.

• He king evidently had sexual relations with a different virgin every night or whenever he pleased.
• The harem officials watched these girls closely to make sure that they did not have some disease that they would pass on to him.
• The women in the harem used their time to become as attractive as possible.

ESTHER BECOMES QUEEN
15 Esther was the daughter of Abihail, the uncle of Mordecai who had adopted her as his own daughter. When her turn came to go to the king, she did not ask for anything except what Hegai, the king’s eunuch, keeper of the women, suggested. Esther gained favor in the eyes of everyone who saw her.

• Both Josephus and the Jewish Rabbis exaggerated the beauty of Esther and elaborated on her virtues and piety.
• The Rabbis held that Esther was one of the four most beautiful women in history along with Sarah, Rahab, and Abigail (Megillah 15a).
• Josephus maintained that Esther 'surpassed all women in beauty' in the entire habitable world.

16 She was taken to King Ahasuerus in the palace in the tenth month, the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. 17 The king loved Esther more than all the other women. She won more favor and approval from him than did any of the other virgins. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. 18 The king held a great banquet for all his officials and staff. It was Esther’s banquet. He freed his provinces from tax payments and gave gifts worthy of the king’s bounty.[2]

• The Hebrew word translated "banquet" (hanaha) means "a coming to rest."
• This could mean that Ahasuerus released his subjects from some tax burdens, or from military service, or both, temporarily.
• On the other hand, he may have only given them a feast.

He also gave a holiday and "gifts" to the people in his provinces.
​
[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Es 2:1–18.

1 Kings 19

• Jezebel (Ahab’s wife) swore to kill Elijah

• Elijah hid for his life
• The Lord appeared to Elijah and told him to anoint two kings and Elisha as prophet.
• Through these kings the Lord wiped out the rest of the Baal followers.

1 Kings 20

• Ahab, King of Israel in the north, went to battle but never completed God’s instructions so the prophets warned him of his future.

 
AHAB AND NABOTH’S VINEYARD
1 KINGS 21
1 Some time passed after these events. Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard; it was in Jezreel next to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.

• Map
• Ahab’s winter palace.
• A vineyard, like an olive-orchard, is not just land that may have been in the family for a long time.
• It represents a high investment in many years of unfruitful care before it reaches maturity.

2 So Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give me your vineyard so I can have it for a vegetable garden, since it is right next to my palace. I will give you a better vineyard in its place, or if you prefer, I will give you its value in silver.”

• Israel is sometimes portrayed in the OT as a vine under God's special care (e.g., Isa. 3:13-15; cf. Mark 12:1-12 and parallels; John 15:1-17).
• Ahab's desire to replace a vineyard with a vegetable garden is meant to be seen as symbolic of a deeper desire.
• This is a king who wants to make Israel like Egypt [see Deut. 11:10].

3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “As the Lord is my witness, I will never give my ancestors’ inheritance to you.”
4 So Ahab went to his palace resentful and angry because of what Naboth the Jezreelite had told him. He had said, “I will not give you my ancestors inheritance.” He lay down on his bed, turned his face away, and didn’t eat any food.

• His couch in front of the buffet table.

5 Then his wife Jezebel came to him and said to him, “Why are you so upset that you refuse to eat?”
6 “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite,” he replied. “I told him, ‘Give me your vineyard for silver, or if you wish, I will give you a vineyard in its place.’ But he said, ‘I won’t give you my vineyard!’ ”
7 Then his wife Jezebel said to him, “Now, exercise your royal power over Israel. Get up, eat some food, and be happy. For I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”

• Jezebel believed that Ahab was the supreme authority in Israel, an opinion that he shared (cf. 20:42).
• They failed to acknowledge Yahweh's sovereignty over Israel.

8 So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal. She sent the letters to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city. 9 In the letters, she wrote:
Proclaim a fast and seat Naboth at the head of the people. 10 Then seat two wicked men opposite him and have them testify against him, saying, “You have cursed God and the king!” Then take him out and stone him to death.

• Jezebel apparently knew something of the Mosaic Law.
• It required two witnesses in capital offense cases (Deut. 17:6-7).
• Cursing God was a capital offense (Lev. 24:16).
• Since the king was God's anointed authority, Jezebel in effect elevated cursing the king to a crime on the same level with cursing Yahweh.
• This was inappropriate but consistent with her concept of Israel's king.
• She formed her plot in conscious disobedience to God's revealed will.
• "Every legal system can become the tool of politicians, if the values of those responsible for it have been sufficiently corrupted."

11 The men of his city, the elders and nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them, just as it was written in the letters she had sent them. 12 They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the people. 13 The two wicked men came in and sat opposite him. Then the wicked men testified against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth has cursed God and the king!” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones. 14 Then they sent word to Jezebel: “Naboth has been stoned to death.”

• Jezebel evidently executed Naboth's sons at the same time.
• 2 Kings 9:25-26 - Jehu said to Bidkar his aide, “Pick him up and throw him on the plot of ground belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember when you and I were riding side by side behind his father Ahab, and the Lord uttered this pronouncement against him: 26 ‘As surely as I saw the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons yesterday’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘so will I repay you on this plot of land’—this is the Lord’s declaration.[1] .

15 When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, “Get up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite who refused to give it to you for silver, since Naboth isn’t alive, but dead.” 16 When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite to take possession of it.

• When Ahab heard what his wife had done, he did not reprove her but took advantage of her actions and in doing so approved them.
• The most heinous act of Ahab came in the matter of Naboth.
• A king's primary responsibility was to render justice in the land [cf. 3:9].
• Ahab shockingly violated this requirement by stealing from a man he had murdered (through Jezebel)."

 
THE LORD’S JUDGMENT ON AHAB
17 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 18 “Get up and go to meet King Ahab of Israel, who is in Samaria. He’s in Naboth’s vineyard, where he has gone to take possession of it.

• Samaria was King Ahab’s capitol.
• Jezreel was his winter palace.

19 Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Have you murdered and also taken possession?’ Then tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: In the place where the dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, the dogs will also lick up your blood!’ ”

• Even though Jezebel was behind the murder of Naboth, God held her husband Ahab responsible for it, since he should have prevented it.
• Murdering someone and taking possession of his property was a capital offense under the Law of Moses (cf. 2 Sam. 11; 12:13).
• It would be a great shame for Ahab to have his blood flow in the streets of his winter capital: Jezreel.
• It would be an even greater disgrace to have it licked up by wild scavengers, as Naboth's blood had been.

20 Ahab said to Elijah, “So, my enemy, you’ve found me, have you?”
He replied, “I have found you because you devoted yourself to do what is evil in the Lord’s sight.

•  Elijah was Ahab's "enemy" because the prophet was God's representative whom the king had decided to oppose.
• Ahab had given himself over to do evil in that he had sacrificed his own life and future to obtain what he wanted.

21 This is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to bring disaster on you and will eradicate your descendants:
I will wipe out all of Ahab’s males,
both slave and free, in Israel;
22 I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have angered me and caused Israel to sin. 23 The Lord also speaks of Jezebel: ‘The dogs will eat Jezebel in the plot of land at Jezreel:
24 Anyone who belongs to Ahab and dies in the city, the dogs will eat, and anyone who dies in the field, the birds will eat.”

•  As for Jezebel, wild dogs, which normally lived off the garbage in cities, would eat her.
• Furthermore, all of Ahab's descendants would experience dishonorable deaths

25 Still, there was no one like Ahab, who devoted himself to do what was evil in the Lord’s sight, because his wife Jezebel incited him. 26 He committed the most detestable acts by following idols as the Amorites had, whom the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites.

•  The writer's assessment of Ahab was that he was the worst ruler in Israel yet.
• He was as bad as the Amorites whom God drove out because of their wickedness (cf. Lev. 18:25-30).
• Nevertheless, Ahab was a king over God's chosen people, though not of the Davidic line.

27 When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put sackcloth over his body, and fasted. He lay down in sackcloth and walked around subdued. 28 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 29 “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? I will not bring the disaster during his lifetime, because he has humbled himself before me. I will bring the disaster on his house during his son’s lifetime.”[2]

• Ahab's genuine repentance, when he heard of his fate—from Israel's true King—resulted in God's relenting and lightening His sentence.
• Not Ahab but his son Joram (i.e., Jehoram) would die on Naboth's land in Jezreel (v. 19; 2 Kings 9:25-26).
• There is no indication here or elsewhere that Jezebel ever repented.

 

• The story of Naboth warns against the use of piety and legality to cloak injustice.
• It teaches that those who support the plots of a Jezebel, whether by silent acquiescence or overt complicity, share her crime.
• It is a resounding affirmation that injustice touches God, that 'as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me' (Matt. 25:40, 45), that in the cosmic order of things there is a power at work that makes for justice.
• And the story attests that there is awesome power in the conscience and protest of the individual servant of God.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 2 Ki 9:25–26.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 1 Ki 21:1–29.

Solomon built the temple…
1 Kings 11 – Solomon married many wives and began worshipping their gods.

• God raised up enemies against Solomon and he dies.
• Saul – Solomon – (1025 -925 BC)

1 Kings 12 – Divided Kingdom

• Judah (925 – 586 BC) – Southern Kingdom
• Israel (925 – 721 BC) – Northern Kingdom

 
Cause of the Division:

• King Solomon's son, Rehoboam, continued Solomon's policies of heavy taxation and forced labor, which led to discontent among the northern tribes.
• They refused to acknowledge Rehoboam's authority and formed their own kingdom under Jeroboam.

 
Northern Kingdom (Israel):

• This kingdom was made up of ten tribes and had its capital in Samaria.
• The Northern Kingdom was known for its idolatry and often clashed with the Southern Kingdom.

 
Southern Kingdom (Judah):

• This kingdom was composed of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, as well as the Levites who served in the Temple in Jerusalem. Judah remained loyal to the Davidic dynasty, with Jerusalem as its capital.

 
Consequences of the Division:

• The division led to decades of conflict between the two kingdoms.
• The Northern Kingdom eventually fell to the Assyrians in 722 BCE, while the Southern Kingdom lasted for another century before being conquered by the Babylonians in 587 BCE.

 
1 KINGS 17
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, from the Gilead settlers, said to Ahab, “As the Lord God of Israel lives, in whose presence I stand, there will be no dew or rain during these years except by my command!”
2 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 3 “Leave here, turn eastward, and hide at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan. 4 You are to drink from the wadi. I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there.”
5 So he proceeded to do what the Lord commanded. Elijah left and lived at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan. 6 The ravens kept bringing him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening, and he would drink from the wadi. 7 After a while, the wadi dried up because there had been no rain in the land. [1]

• Again, God raised up a prophet to announce what He would do.
• Evidently, Ahab's (King of Israel) apostasy had been going on for 14 years before God confronted the king with His prophetic challenge.
• Normally, God gives sinners an opportunity to judge themselves and repent before He sends judgment on them.

 
ELIJAH’S MESSAGE TO AHAB
1 KINGS 18:1-46
1 After a long time, the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year: “Go and present yourself to Ahab. I will send rain on the surface of the land.” 2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab.
The famine was severe in Samaria. 3 Ahab called for Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. Obadiah was a man who greatly feared the Lord 4 and took a hundred prophets and hid them, fifty men to a cave, and provided them with food and water when Jezebel slaughtered the Lord’s prophets. 5 Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go throughout the land to every spring and to every wadi. Perhaps we’ll find grass so we can keep the horses and mules alive and not have to destroy any cattle.” 6 They divided the land between them in order to cover it. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went the other way by himself.
7 While Obadiah was walking along the road, Elijah suddenly met him. When Obadiah recognized him, he fell facedown and said, “Is it you, my lord Elijah?”
8 “It is I,” he replied. “Go tell your lord, ‘Elijah is here!’ ”
9 But Obadiah said, “What sin have I committed, that you are handing your servant over to Ahab to put me to death? 10 As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my lord has not sent someone to search for you. When they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made that kingdom or nation swear they had not found you.
11 “Now you say, ‘Go tell your lord, “Elijah is here!” ’ 12 But when I leave you, the Spirit of the Lord may carry you off to some place I don’t know. Then when I go report to Ahab and he doesn’t find you, he will kill me. But I, your servant, have feared the Lord from my youth. 13 Wasn’t it reported to my lord what I did when Jezebel slaughtered the Lord’s prophets? I hid a hundred of the prophets of the Lord, fifty men to a cave, and I provided them with food and water. 14 Now you say, ‘Go tell your lord, “Elijah is here!” ’ He will kill me!”
15 Then Elijah said, “As the Lord of Armies lives, in whose presence I stand, today I will present myself to Ahab.”
16 Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him. Then Ahab went to meet Elijah. 17 When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is that you, the one ruining Israel?”
18 He replied, “I have not ruined Israel, but you and your father’s family have, because you have abandoned the Lord’s commands and followed the Baals.

• Ahab had a problem finally believing that he was seeing Elijah similar to Obadiah's.
• He believed that Elijah was the cause of the famine.
• The real source of Israel's troubles was Ahab's disregard of the Mosaic Covenant and their preference for idolatry.

19 Now summon all Israel to meet me at Mount Carmel, along with the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

• Obadiah was similar to many believers in Yahweh who were living in Israel at that time.
• They had divided allegiances, they had faith in Yahweh, they were fearful for their own safety, and they were slow to respond to God's word.
• Elijah saw beforehand, in Obadiah's response to him, how believers in Israel would respond to what he would soon do on Mount Carmel.
• Elijah would call on the people to do essentially what he had commanded Obadiah to do: obey the LORD's word through His prophet.

 
Prophet vs Non-Prophet

• As a non-prophet, I can’t help but experience life with me at the center of my universe.
• With my eyes I look out on the world.
• With my ears I hear what is going on.
• I can only feel, want, and experience what I am feeling, wanting, and experiencing.
• I naturally want the people around me to give up themselves and become what I want them to be.
• I prefer those close to me to think, feel, and act toward the world in the same way I do.
• I prefer the illusion of sameness when really we are very different from each other.
• I want other people’s worlds to be like mine.
• I even act the same way in my relationship with God, walking out my spirituality as if I am the center of the universe.
• For this reason, M. Scott Peck argues that we are all born narcissists and that learning to grow out of our narcissism is at the heart of the spiritual journey.[2]

 

• As for a prophet, their desire is God’s desire.
• This is what God has given them to share instead of their own feelings, wants, and experiences.
• It would be easy for pastors to place their own agendas in the middle of the message and express them as being Biblical or of God.

 
 
ELIJAH AT MOUNT CARMEL
20 So Ahab summoned all the Israelites and gathered the prophets at Mount Carmel. 21 Then Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions?, If the Lord is God, follow him. But if Baal, follow him.” But the people didn’t answer him a word.
22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I am the only remaining prophet of the Lord, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men. 23 Let two bulls be given to us. They are to choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and place it on the wood but not light the fire. I will prepare the other bull and place it on the wood but not light the fire. 24 Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The God who answers with fire, he is God.”
All the people answered, “That’s fine.”
25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Since you are so numerous, choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first. Then call on the name of your god but don’t light the fire.”
26 So they took the bull that he gave them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound; no one answered. Then they danced around the altar they had made.
27 At noon Elijah mocked them. He said, “Shout loudly, for he’s a god! Maybe he’s thinking it over; maybe he has wandered away; or maybe he’s on the road. Perhaps he’s sleeping and will wake up!” 28 They shouted loudly, and cut themselves with knives and spears, according to their custom, until blood gushed over them. 29 All afternoon they kept on raving until the offering of the evening sacrifice, but there was no sound; no one answered, no one paid attention.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near me.” So all the people approached him. Then he repaired the Lord’s altar that had been torn down: 31 Elijah took twelve stones—according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel will be your name”—32 and he built an altar with the stones in the name of the Lord. Then he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold about four gallons., 33 Next, he arranged the wood, cut up the bull, and placed it on the wood. He said, “Fill four water pots with water and pour it on the offering to be burned and on the wood.” 34 Then he said, “A second time!” and they did it a second time. And then he said, “A third time!” and they did it a third time. 35 So the water ran all around the altar; he even filled the trench with water.

• The 12 large jars of water that he had poured on the sacrifice may also have represented Israel.
• Elijah may have obtained the water from a spring or perhaps from the Great (Mediterranean) Sea that is not far from some parts of Mount Carmel.
• The traditional site of this confrontation, however, is at the east end of the Carmel range of mountains, far from the sea.

36 At the time for offering the evening sacrifice, the prophet Elijah approached the altar and said, “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, today let it be known that you are God in Israel and I am your servant, and that at your word I have done all these things. 37 Answer me, Lord! Answer me so that this people will know that you, the Lord, are God and that you have turned their hearts back.”
38 Then the Lord’s fire fell and consumed the burnt offering, the wood, the stones, and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. 39 When all the people saw it, they fell facedown and said, “The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God!”
40 Then Elijah ordered them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let even one of them escape.” So they seized them, and Elijah brought them down to the Wadi Kishon and slaughtered them there. 41 Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a rainstorm.”
42 So Ahab went to eat and drink, but Elijah went up to the summit of Carmel. He bent down on the ground and put his face between his knees. 43 Then he said to his servant, “Go up and look toward the sea.”
So he went up, looked, and said, “There’s nothing.”
Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”
44 On the seventh time, he reported, “There’s a cloud as small as a man’s hand coming up from the sea.”
Then Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Get your chariot ready and go down so the rain doesn’t stop you.’ ”
45 In a little while, the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and there was a downpour. So Ahab got in his chariot and went to Jezreel. 46 The power of the Lord was on Elijah, and he tucked his mantle under his belt and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.[3]

• The story of Elijah places him as one of the main characters of the Old Covenant.
• To speak truth in a world of untruth is a hard life… unless you have God to back it up for you.

We have all sorts of miracles in this room… maybe not as big as ending a 3.5 year drought… but enough to prove that God is real, alive, and caring for us.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 1 Ki 17:1–7.
[2] Peter Scazzero, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: It’s Impossible to Be Spiritually Mature, While Remaining Emotionally Immature (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2017), 171–172.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 1 Ki 18:1–46.