ReTurn, ReBuild, ReNew - Ezra's Journey to Jerusalem
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Today we continue a series of messages from the book of Ezra. This is message number 7 and we are in chapter 8. Looks like we have just 2 more messages in this series. We’ll cover chapter 9 next week and finish up in chapter 10.
The title of this series is Return, Rebuild, Renew. We have seen how the Jewish exiles in Babylon have returned to Jerusalem, the returned in order that they might rebuild the temple and the city and in the process, they have renewed their relationship with God.
I am struck at how gracious God was with them. We often only see how God disciplined the nation of Israel when they were off track, but what is even more striking than that is that He ultimately extended grace and mercy even when they went astray.
Last week we read most of chapter 7 that was the letter to Ezra from King Artaxerxes that gave Ezra the earthly authority and command to return to Jerusalem and restore the temple and the city to its former glory.
Chapter 7 ends with this praise from Ezra regarding the circumstances:
27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart to bring honor to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way
28 and who has extended his good favor to me before the king and his advisers and all the king’s powerful officials. Because the hand of the Lord my God was on me, I took courage and gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.
I pray that I never take credit for anything, but in all things that I give praise like Ezra. It is by God’s grace that I am breathing this morning, it is by that same grace that He gives me strength to stand up here each Sunday and talk about Him.
Today in chapter 8, we are going to read some of the details of the journey from Babylon to Jerusalem. Let’s start reading in verse 1…I am not going to read all of the names, but I will point out the totals of the men.
1 These are the family heads and those registered with them who came up with me from Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes:
2 of the descendants of Phinehas, Gershom; of the descendants of Ithamar, Daniel; of the descendants of David, Hattush
3 of the descendants of Shekaniah; of the descendants of Parosh, Zechariah, and with him were registered 150 men;
4 of the descendants of Pahath-Moab, Eliehoenai son of Zerahiah, and with him 200 men;
5 of the descendants of Zattu, Shekaniah son of Jahaziel, and with him 300 men;
6 of the descendants of Adin, Ebed son of Jonathan, and with him 50 men;
7 of the descendants of Elam, Jeshaiah son of Athaliah, and with him 70 men;
8 of the descendants of Shephatiah, Zebadiah son of Michael, and with him 80 men;
9 of the descendants of Joab, Obadiah son of Jehiel, and with him 218 men;
10 of the descendants of Bani, Shelomith son of Josiphiah, and with him 160 men;
11 of the descendants of Bebai, Zechariah son of Bebai, and with him 28 men;
12 of the descendants of Azgad, Johanan son of Hakkatan, and with him 110 men;
13 of the descendants of Adonikam, the last ones, whose names were Eliphelet, Jeuel and Shemaiah, and with them 60 men;
14 of the descendants of Bigvai, Uthai and Zakkur, and with them 70 men.
From this list, we can deduce that there were 1500 or so men and if each man brought with them on average a wife and 3 children, the number of total people was in excess of 7000.
To start the journey, Ezra picks a place to meet...
15 I assembled them at the canal that flows toward Ahava, and we camped there three days. When I checked among the people and the priests, I found no Levites there.
16 So I summoned Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah and Meshullam, who were leaders, and Joiarib and Elnathan, who were men of learning,
17 and I ordered them to go to Iddo, the leader in Kasiphia. I told them what to say to Iddo and his fellow Levites, the temple servants in Kasiphia, so that they might bring attendants to us for the house of our God.
18 Because the gracious hand of our God was on us, they brought us Sherebiah, a capable man, from the descendants of Mahli son of Levi, the son of Israel, and Sherebiah’s sons and brothers, 18 in all;
19 and Hashabiah, together with Jeshaiah from the descendants of Merari, and his brothers and nephews, 20 in all.
20 They also brought 220 of the temple servants—a body that David and the officials had established to assist the Levites. All were registered by name.
Ezra gathers the people ahead of the journey and camps 3 days while finalizing the arrangements. During those 3 days, Ezra realizes the group lacked qualified and trained Levites so he sent a crew to Iddo to gather a few to join them.
Again, in verse 18, Ezra acknowledges God’s grace on them as miraculously another 200+ decide on short notice to pack up and head back to Jerusalem. In 3 days, God provides the people needed to accomplish the work He has planned for them. Ezra just had to ask. Surely God had already prepared these Levites and temple servants to be ready. Let me encourage us all that if God has plans ahead, He will provide the people and the resources necessary to accomplish His plans. Sometimes it only takes 3 days and other times it might take years, but we can rest in the knowledge that God will provide.
Verse 21...
21 There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions.
22 I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, “The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.”
23 So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.
Surely Ezra could have asked for protection, but He instead was led by the Lord to not ask. This would be a witness to the king and all those watching. The people were traveling with lots of valuables and were very vulnerable to attack, yet God protected them on their journey.
Ezra did not just assume safety, He told the people to fast and petition God about their safety and God answered that prayer. It is never a bad idea to fast and petition God about something you have coming up.
I want to make a note about this decision...When faced with a decision like this - to ask for human protection or not - you would not be lacking in faith if you asked for help. This is not a command here. This is just how God moved in this instance. Hold you place here and turn with me to Nehemiah 2, starting in verse 7...
7 I also said to him, “If it pleases the king, may I have letters to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, so that they will provide me safe-conduct until I arrive in Judah?
8 And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the royal park, so he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple and for the city wall and for the residence I will occupy?” And because the gracious hand of my God was on me, the king granted my requests.
9 So I went to the governors of Trans-Euphrates and gave them the king’s letters. The king had also sent army officers and cavalry with me.
The book of Nehemiah is part of the same return, just a bit later. Nehemiah is making this same journey and he has military protection. Does this mean that Ezra had faith and Nehemiah did not…absolutely not. They were both following God’s leading in both instances. While their circumstances were similar, God chose a different method for them.
Back to Ezra
24 Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests, namely, Sherebiah, Hashabiah and ten of their brothers,
25 and I weighed out to them the offering of silver and gold and the articles that the king, his advisers, his officials and all Israel present there had donated for the house of our God.
26 I weighed out to them 650 talents of silver, silver articles weighing 100 talents, 100 talents of gold,
27 20 bowls of gold valued at 1,000 darics, and two fine articles of polished bronze, as precious as gold.
28 I said to them, “You as well as these articles are consecrated to the Lord. The silver and gold are a freewill offering to the Lord, the God of your ancestors.
29 Guard them carefully until you weigh them out in the chambers of the house of the Lord in Jerusalem before the leading priests and the Levites and the family heads of Israel.”
30 Then the priests and Levites received the silver and gold and sacred articles that had been weighed out to be taken to the house of our God in Jerusalem.
Here we have a great example of stewardship and protection of what belongs to the Lord. Before they left, they weighed what they had and gave them to responsible people to guard on the journey. They understood that when they arrived, they would be expected to have the same amount as what they were given. What a great example of taking great care of God’s things and holding men accountable to each other.
In addition to accountability, there is a delegation of the responsibility. Leaders can sometimes feel like we have to shoulder all of the responsibility. What a great example of having other faithful servants step up and take ownership of the responsibility of protecting what belongs to God.
31 On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and bandits along the way.
32 So we arrived in Jerusalem, where we rested three days.
Ah…they rested for 3 days. So many great principles in this passage.
Ezra trusted the Lord for additional people to serve.
Ezra instructed the people to fast and pray for safety on their journey.
Ezra delegated responsibility to others in the journey while also ensuring accountability
They rested after a long journey.
Let’s finish up the chapter
33 On the fourth day, in the house of our God, we weighed out the silver and gold and the sacred articles into the hands of Meremoth son of Uriah, the priest. Eleazar son of Phinehas was with him, and so were the Levites Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui.
34 Everything was accounted for by number and weight, and the entire weight was recorded at that time.
35 Then the exiles who had returned from captivity sacrificed burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven male lambs and, as a sin offering, twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord.
36 They also delivered the king’s orders to the royal satraps and to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, who then gave assistance to the people and to the house of God.
This gives us a conclusion to their journey back. They put all things in order as was their responsibility when they got to Jerusalem. They counted all that was brought and then offered the necessary sacrifices.