Ezra BIBLE STUDY JOURNAL By Julie Snobelen www.magnifyhimtogether.com (2018)
Contents Study Tips... Page 2 Introduction to Ezra... Page 3 Chapter 1... Page 4 Chapter 2... Page 6 Chapter 3... Page 8 Chapter 4... Page 10 Chapter 5... Page 12 Chapter 6.. Page 14 Chapter 7..Page 16 Chapter 8 Page 18 Chapter 9 Page 20 Chapter 10.Page 22 Page i
Study Tips Pray Read Purpose of Reading the Word of God it is the sword of the spirit to withstand evil (Ephesians 6:17) it can discern the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12) it is a seed that is sown (Luke 8:11) it gives light and understanding (Psalm 119:130) it accomplishes God s purpose (Isaiah 55:11) it is like a fire and a hammer that breaks rock (Jeremiah 23:29) it is spiritual food (living bread) (Luke 4:4) it works in those who believe (1 Thess 2:13) we are born again by the word (1 Peter 1:23) Notice Ask the who, what, why, when, where, how questions. Subject: the person, place, thing or idea that is doing or being something. Object: the recipient of the action done by the subject Pronouns: he, she, it, etc. Verbs: action words. Use different colours to mark out the subject, the object, the verbs, and the other key words mentioned. This makes it easier to make lists later on. Look up cross-references references (help understand the context). Ask questions (and find answers). with it God smites the earth (Isaiah 11:4) with it God rules the nations (Revelation 19:15) it produces faith (Romans 10:17) it can overcome the wicked one (1 John 2:14) it makes us holy (Numbers 15:40) by it we understand righteousness, judgement, and equity (Proverbs 2:9) it delivers from evil (Proverbs 2:12) it brings peace (Isaiah 48:18) it is a lamp to our feet (Psalm 119:105) it is the joy and rejoicing of the heart (Jer 15:16) it is truth (John 17:17) Make Connections Look for: repeated words, similar ideas contrasts / comparisons (like, but) reasons (for, because) conclusions (now, therefore, so that) Make lists from the words you have highlighted (verbs, repeated words, contrasts, comparisons, reasons, conclusions). Look up any words that you do not understand. Break chapter into sections and summarize the main thought. Expand What does this passage teach about God? What does this passage teach about ourselves? What correct or incorrect actions or thoughts are presented that we can learn from? What is being said that needs to be obeyed, followed, avoided, or rejoiced over, believed in? Apply Choose a key verse to memorize and an action to take. Page 2
Introduction to Ezra Ezra And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. Ezra is the record of what happened when the 70 years of exile in Babylon were completed and God fulfilled His promise of bringing the people back to their land. Seventy years is a long time. The people had been encouraged to: Build... houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished (Jeremiah 29:4-6 KJV). Possibly many had become very comfortable in their new life, although there were also likely many who had been waiting anxiously for this day. I do not expect it was an easy decision for some to pull up roots and go back. Perhaps it makes us think about how comfortable we are in our lives and question how eager we may be to leave it all behind one day. The whole experience of the captivity and exile had been purifying however. They had learned through disaster what the prophets had been telling them all along. "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." (Isaiah 55:6-7) They could now understand how suffering brings us to God and a consciousness of our inability to save ourselves. When we read Ezra, we can learn the history of the Jewish nation, but we can also learn lessons about what adversity can teach us, how easy it is to let ideals slide when there is opposition, and how it is possible to get distracted from living in the present by glorifying the past or dreaming of the future. Ezra is actually very applicable to our lives today - it is about building the house of God. As we read about the stages the people went through in achieving this, we can pull out many lessons for ourselves. Timeline Cyrus II 559-529 BC Return to build temple (538 BC) Cambyses 529-522 BC Darius I 522-486 BC Temple completed (6 th year of reign) Xerxes I (Ahasuerus) 486-465 BC Esther Artaxerxes I 465-425 BC Ezra (7 th year of reign) and Nehemiah (444 BC) Xerxes II 425-424 BC Darius II 423-404 BC Page 3
Ezra Chapter 1 A New Beginning Verses 1-4: Notice Give each section a title: Make Connections Words you may want to look up (KJV): stirred up, charged. Verses 5-6: Verses 7-11: Color all the occurrences es of the house of God. What is the focus of this book? You may find it interesting to find out more about the Cyrus Cylinder. Color the occurrences of spirit spirit. Draw a line to how the spirit affected Cyrus (two actions) and the people (two actions). Background: Cyrus Isaiah 44:28-45:7; Captivities 2 Kings 24, 25; 2 Chronicles 36:1-21; Jeremiah 29, 39, 52. The book of Ezra contains lots of lists of things. What is the list in this chapter? What is the significance of the vessels being mentioned (Jeremiah 27:21)? Page 4
Why did the people go into captivity? expand What lessons might the people have learned in the destruction of Jerusalem and their exile? In order to respond to the opportunity to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem personal sacrifice had to be made. What would that have included? apply What verse stands out to you in this chapter? Why? Rewrite the charge given to Cyrus as though it was written you to today the house of God being the ecclesia. Are you content in Babylon? Page 5
Ezra Chapter 2 Restored to the Land Verses 1-2: Verses 3-20: Verses 21-35: Verses 36-39: Verses 40-42: Verses 43-54: Verses 55-58: Verses 59-60: Verses 61-63: Verses 64-67: Verses 68-69: Verse 70: Notice Give each section a title: Who are the leaders of the return to Jerusalem? NoticE cont. Note the final tally of people who returned. Note that there is a discrepancy between the numbers listed and the total - some feel the extra are women and children, or perhaps people who were not from the kingdom of Judah but chose to return (possibly from the kingdom of Israel). Make Connections See if you can find out who the Nethinims were, and the sons of Solomon s servants. Find out what you can about Zerubbabel (probably also called Sheshbazaar). Find out how far the journey from Babylon to Israel was. What would they be able to bring with them on a journey that long? What luxuries could they expect to find at the end of their journey? Note the different groups of people listed. Do you know what they were responsible for? Cross-references: Romans 4:13-17, Revelation 20:12. How do these verses relate to the idea of being able to show whether they were of Israel or not? Page 6
expand Some of the people and some of the priests could not prove their descendants. Why do you think this happened? This whole chapter is a list. Why is a list like this important? Although most of the people could show that they were God's chosen people, and this was important, what should they have learned from their exile about the standing this gave them with God? What was God's purpose in subjecting them to discipline? (Hebrews 12:6,10) apply What verse stands out to you in this chapter? Why? This chapter seems to emphasize the importance of continuity (those returning and God's faithfulness). What are you handing down to your descendants? What would you like to hand down? Page 7
Ezra Chapter 3 Restored Worship Verses 1-7: Verses 8-11: Notice Give each section a title: Make Connections Passages to look up: Psalm 136; Feasts of the Seventh Month - Leviticus 23:24-44; Numbers 29:1-40 Verses 12-13: Who are the main characters in this chapter? Make a list of all the things the people acted on in this chapter (try for at least 11) Find where it says "as it is written" (twice). Why is this important? How long was it after their arrival that they began to work on the temple foundation? Page 8
expand What was a burnt offering and what was it's purpose? What was a freewill offering and what was it's purpose? Why did some weep and some shout for joy when the foundation was completed? What verse stood out to you and why? apply Think about how each of the events in this chapter relate to us today: gathering as one man v.1 rebuilding the altar v.2 doing things as it is written v.2,4 keeping the feasts v.4 offering burnt offerings and freewill offerings v5 giving resources to the workers v.7 building a foundation for the house of God v.10 praising God and singing to Him as it is being built v10,11 young and old, rejoicing and weeping v.12,13 Page 9
Ezra Chapter 4 Spiritual Highs and Lows Verses 1-5: Notice Give each section a title: Make Connections Find out more about the "adversaries" who wanted to build with the people (2 Kings 17:24-33) Verses 6-23: Verse 24: Circle all the things they did when they were told "no" and then make this into a list. ("The kisses of an enemy are deceitful...") Note that this chapter includes the recounting of nasty letterwriting to Ahasuerus and to Artaxerxes as these people attempted to stop any progress by the Jews. The letter to Artaxerxes refers to the rebuilding of the city rather than the house of God. Circle all the nasty things they said about Jerusalem, and then make this into a list. Page 10
expand In the previous chapter the people experienced a spiritual high as they completed laying the foundation of the temple. This chapter recounts a spiritual low as they are weakened by their nasty neighbours until the building finally stops completely - Haggai 1:2 tells us that the people finally came to the conclusion that the time had not yet come to build the house of God. Does opposition to our work mean that it is not God's will? apply Use the list you made of all the things the adversaries did to stop the building of the Temple, and note how this happens today in our lives. What is the proper way to respond to opposition in our lives? Page 11
Ezra Chapter 5 Overcoming Verses 1-2: Verses 3-5: Verses 6-17: Notice Give each section a title: Make Connections Read through the book of Haggai and summarize the LORD's message to the people through him. What was the result of the "eye of their God" being upon them? What does Haggai specifically say about the glory of this house of the LORD? What was different about the building of the first and second temple? How is the letter in this chapter different than previous letters that have been presented? Page 12
expand What helped the people overcome their discouragement and begin building again? apply What verse stands out to you in this chapter and why? What lessons can you pull out of this chapter and Haggai about overcoming discouragement? Page 13
Ezra Chapter 6 Joy Notice Give each section a title: Verses 1-12: Make Connections Words to look up: "joy", "rejoice", "joyful" - What kind of people did God want them to be? Verses 13-15: Verses 16-22: Underline the additional information given from the decree of Cyrus. Underline the further instructions Darius gave to the governor. When was the house finally completed? Passages to look up: Passover - Exodus 12:6-36, 2 Chronicles 30; Joy - Deuteronomy 12:7-12, 28:47-48 Circle all the occurrences of words related to "joy". Note that the sin offering included all the tribes of Israel - there was still atonement for the whole nation. Page 14
expand Note the ways that God provided for His people in this chapter. How were the feasts they celebrated especially appropriate at this time? Why does this chapter end so differently from the chapter before? apply How does faith in God and perseverance in His work make a difference to attitude? Have you ever thought about how being joyful naturally makes us want to praise? Page 15
Ezra Chapter 7 Reformation of the People Notice 58 years later (around 457 BC) Give each section a title: Verses 1-10: Verses 11-26: Verses 27-28: Notice cont. Note the year of Artaxerxes' reign that Ezra went up to Jerusalem with a favorable letter. The letter in chapter 4 to Artaxerxes was probably written sometime after Ezra's arrival which once again put a halt on any building work in the city. Make a list of all the things Ezra must have requested from the King that were granted in the letter. Notice Ezra's family tree. Underline all the occurrences that connect Ezra with the law of God (you should find 8). Underline all the occurrences God`s hand being upon Ezra. What were the results of this? Make Connections Words to look up: "prepared his heart" What does v.10 tell you about Ezra? Passages to look up: the hand of God - 1 Chronicles 29:14-18, Philippians 2:12,13 Page 16
Why was Ezra blessed so richly by God? expand apply Come up with at least three examples from Ezra that we could put into practice in our own endeavours. Page 17
Ezra Chapter 8 Work that God Blesses Notice Give each section a title: Verses 1-14: Make Connections Compare this list of men to the list from chapter 2. Notice how many are from the same families that came the first time. Verses 15-20: Verses.21-23: Verses 24-36: Count up the total numbers this time. "Men of understanding" is mentioned twice in this chapter. What does it mean? Underline the occurrences of God's hand being upon them. How was this borne out? Take note of how Ezra parcels out the riches they were bringing with him. Other passages to consider: Titus 1:5-9, 1 Timothy 3:1-7 Page 18
expand Why did Ezra not ask for a guard? How do we know when to operate by faith alone or to take advantage of other means of safety? What was the point of Ezra parceling out the riches and weighing them before and after? apply What can we learn from Ezra's example of fasting? of being completely transparent with the riches he had been entrusted with? Page 19
Ezra Chapter 9 Confession Verses 1-4: Notice Give each section a title: Make Connections ons Other passages to consider: Exodus 34:11-16; Deuteronomy 7; Isaiah 56:1-8; Psalm 103 Verses 5-15: Circle the words that have to do with sin. What are the ways that Israel has sinned? Circle the words that have to do with grace. Make them into a list. Notice who had been chief in this trespass in verse 2. Notice who assembled themselves to Ezra in verse 4. Page 20
expand What is odd about the first verse? Why is confession important? What does it do for us? What was the problem with intermarriage? apply How do we know what sin is? Does sin shock us? What should the godly reaction to sin be? Page 21
Ezra Chapter 10 Discipline Notice Give each section a title: Verses 1-5: Verses 6-17: Verses 18-44: Make Connections Many think that Ezra wrote Psalm 119 to outline the utmost importance of God's word, laws, commandments, testimonies, precepts, statutes and judgments. Read through it with this thought in mind, and think about the difficulties Ezra would have faced teaching and enforcing the laws of God. Find the two places where the word "tremble" is used? What are they trembling about? Circle all the words that relate to Ezra's reaction and the people's reaction to their trespass. Make a list. Go through the list of names given and compare how many had taken strange wives to the number that came into the land in chapter 2. Read verse 15 in few different versions to understand what it is saying. Page 22
expand Some people criticize Ezra for taking this action, stating that God hates divorce. Given that the priest, princes and rulers were "chief in this trespass", why might it have been a correct action to take for the future of Israel? apply How quickly do we act to correct sin in our own lives? How seriously do we take the responsibility of being an example to others? Do we tremble at the commandment of God? Page 23