(Part 1)
“
Therefore the Lord Almighty says this: “Because you have not listened to my
words, I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon, “ declares the Lord, “and I will bring them against this land
and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy
them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin. I
will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and
bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. This whole
country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king
of Babylon seventy year.”
Jeremiah
25:8-11
As
God had predicted through the prophet Jeremiah, Israel was carried off by Babylon
into exile for 70 years. Babylon destroyed the city of Jerusalem. They razed
the temple and broke down the walls of the city.
However,
after the 70 years, a remnant of Israel began to return! The books of Ezra and
Nehemiah are dedicated to the fulfillment of this prophecy with the initial
return of those exiled beginning under the reign of Cyrus the Mede.
In
Ezra, we read about two phases of Israel’s return. One was under the leadership
of a man named Zerubbabel, who was responsible for leading some 50,000 exiles
back to Jerusalem. This group, finding the temple destroyed, restored the altar
and eventually rebuilt the temple. The second group of exiles came under the
leadership of a man named Ezra. Ezra was a scribe and expert in the Law of God.
He came and led the people in a time of consecration and repentance.
The
third group returned with a man named Nehemiah. He was the cup bearer of King
Artaxerxes. He became very distraught over the condition of Jerusalem and
received permission from the king to return and rebuild the city walls.
Nehemiah
came to Jerusalem and in a short amount of time did several amazing things.
First, he rallied the Israelites to repair the breaches in the walls
surrounding Jerusalem. Then he worked with the elders of the people to see that
the city was repopulated. Finally, with Ezra’s help, he reinstituted proper
temple worship and made provision for the priests.
After
dedicating the wall, Nehemiah returned to Babylon, just as he had promised the
king he would do. However, during his absence, Israel began to lose their
spiritual integrity!
Pastor Scott
Burr
http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com/
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