WWUTT 724 The Hand of the Lord Was Upon Him?

When you read the book of Ezra, it seems like everything just happened to work out for Judah, that they were able to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their temple.

But it wasn't because of chance or circumstance, it was the hand of God when we understand the text.

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Thank you, Becky. In our study of Ezra, we are in chapters 7 and 8 today.

If you want to open up your Bible and join with me there. We make a significant leap forward in the story.

From what we read last week at the end of chapter 6, over 50 years have transpired now as we come into chapters 7 and 8.

Also Ezra comes into the story. We have not yet seen the namesake of this particular book, but he makes his debut here in chapter 7 to oversee the function of the temple.

Ezra being an expert in the law of Moses, and we'll read about that here in just a moment. Now we have entered into what is known as the second temple period.

The first temple is gone. It's been destroyed. It was wiped out after the Jews were exiled.

Now being allowed to return to their land, they're rebuilding Jerusalem. They've rebuilt the temple, and the temple is not quite as great as it was the first time.

We know this because after it was constructed, the younger generation, they rejoiced to see the temple built, but the older generation, they were filled with tears.

It was kind of a mixed emotion. It was bittersweet. They were excited to see the temple standing again.

The altar reconstructed, the foundation laid, the temple erected, but at the same time, it wasn't as great as it was before.

And they remembered what the temple looked like before the enemy had destroyed it.

So it's not as fantastic as it was the first time when it was built by Solomon.

Of course, Jerusalem is not nearly as wealthy as they were when Solomon first constructed the temple.

Even the details about the temple are limited. We don't know much about what this looked like, though we have lavish detail that's given to us in First Kings and in Second Chronicles.

Here, we don't even know the exact dimensions of Zerubbabel's temple. We know that it was 60 cubits wide and 60 cubits high, according to Ezra 6 .3,

which we read last week. But it doesn't say how deep it was. That would be if you were looking at it, standing at the front, it would be like a square.

60 cubits wide, 60 cubits high, which is 90 feet. 90 feet wide, 90 feet high. But we don't know how deep it was.

So there are things about this temple that we don't know about. But the beauty of the temple is not as important to us here as knowing that God's hand is upon his people and he is ensuring that what he has promised to them is being done.

The walls of Jerusalem are going to be rebuilt, which we're going to read about that when we get to Nehemiah. The temple is being reconstructed.

God's presence is with his people. He is providentially moving all these pieces into place to ensure that what he has promised to his people will be fulfilled.

In fact, we're going to read today a reference to the prophet Isaiah, and it's to show that what

Isaiah prophesied came to fulfillment. So let's get to chapter seven here, beginning in verse one.

Now, after this, in the reign of Adizersi's king of Persia, Ezra, the son of Shariah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah, son of Shalom, son of Zadok, son of Ahitab, son of Amariah, son of Azariah, son of Merioth, son of Zerahiah, son of Uzziah, son of Bukai, son of Abishua, son of Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, the chief priest.

This Ezra went up from Babylonia. Now, that's that's an awesome passage to read.

I know most of the time I kind of skip over the long genealogies, but in this particular one,

I did want to read that to show the connection between Ezra and Aaron.

Ezra is a descendant of Aaron, the Aaronic priesthood, and he has many qualifications for the job that is before him to oversee the function of the newly constructed temple.

It was it was dedicated over 50 years, 57 years to be exact, before Ezra shows up here on the scene.

So continuing on in verse six, he was a scribe skilled in the law of Moses that the

Lord, the God of Israel, had given and the king granted him all that he asked for.

The hand of the Lord, his God was upon him over and over throughout the scriptures,

Old Testament and new praise and glory and honor are given to God for everything.

Whatever happens is not a result of chance or circumstance. It is

God providentially moving things into place because the Lord is faithful to his promises and he will provide for his people as he is doing here.

I've heard a story about an old woman, a widow, and you may have heard this story as well.

She used to come out on her porch every single morning and praise God for another beautiful day.

Also praise the Lord for all that he has provided for her. She would do this every single day.

And after a time, there was an atheist who moved in next door. And this was one of those irritating kind of atheists that hate any kind of mention of God or Jesus at all.

And he would listen to his neighbor, this widow, come out on her porch and praise God every morning. So one day he decided to poke at her a little bit.

And he said, you know, all this stuff that you are praising God for, he didn't give this to you. It's provided by people.

It's provided by the government who gives you a welfare check and provides for your health care that you have this house that you can live in.

And I know old Mr. Johnson down the road, make sure your car is still running and your gutters are cleared out and your

AC is still running clean. It's people that provide these things for you, not

God. What is God ever manifested before your very eyes? There are no miracles.

There is no God. It's people that do these things. It's just good, kind people. And so there was one day when the atheist was talking with his widow neighbor, and she said to him that that her cupboards were bare and there wasn't much food in the house.

But she went on to say, the Lord will still provide for me. I know that the Lord will provide even though I don't have much.

He's always provided for me. Well, the atheist decided that he was going to show this woman that there was no

God who was providing for her, that it always came from just good natured people.

So he went to the store and bought her groceries, two big sacks of groceries, everything that she would need.

And one morning he brought that those two sacks of groceries and set them on her porch before she came out to praise

God for the day. So he kind of hit off to the side a little bit and waited for the woman to come out. And just like she did every morning, she came out to praise

God. And there were the groceries there. And she gasped and she started praising God. I ask you for food.

I prayed and asked that you would provide for me. And look, here it is. Two sacks of groceries. Oh, Lord, you are so good.

And the atheist jumped out and said, ha ha, I've got you. See, God didn't provide these groceries for you.

I did this. I went down to the grocery store and bought you these groceries out of the kindness of my heart.

It's good people that provide for you. It doesn't have anything to do with God. Well, the the old widow looked at him and smiled, and she raised her face up to heaven again and lifted up her arms and said, oh,

Lord, you have provided for me some food and you've made the devil pay for it.

Yeah, this story is a joke. I don't know that it's a true story, but but nonetheless, what it illustrates is that this woman gave praise to God for everything.

Everything that was provided for her came from the hand of God because God cares for his children.

Jesus himself said in Matthew chapter six, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body.

What you will put on is not life more than food and the body more than clothing. Look at the birds of the air.

They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns. And yet your heavenly father feeds them.

Are you not of more value than they and which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin.

Yet I tell you, even Solomon and all his glory was not a raid like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you?

Oh, you of little faith. Therefore, do not be anxious saying, what shall we eat or what shall we drink or what shall we wear for the pagans?

Seek after all these things in your heavenly father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.

And I love the statement that Jesus makes there that your heavenly father feeds the birds of the air.

Are you not of more value than they? God provides for his people.

He's providing for his people here in Ezra chapter seven. He brought them out of exile as he promised he would.

He provided for them the materials that they needed to construct the temple. They're coming back to a devastated

Jerusalem. What are they going to have to be able to rebuild? Well, the kings that were supporting this venture of the

Jews were supporting them because of the providence of God, who was so working in the hearts of these kings and governors that these things would be provided for the people of God.

And here they have been sent a priest in the line of Aaron, who will oversee the operation of the temple, the instructions that need yet to be given to the

Jews to live as the people of God. And it is by the hand of the

Lord that Ezra was brought here to Jerusalem. So we continue on here in the verse seven.

I am going to get through chapter eight today, even though we've only been through six verses so far.

So in verse seven, there went up also to Jerusalem in the seventh year of Ataxerxes, the king, some of the people of Israel and some of the priests and Levites, the singers and gatekeepers and the temple servants.

And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king.

For on the first day of the first month, he began to go up from Babylonia. And on the first day of the fifth month, he came to Jerusalem for the good hand of his

God was on him. There we have credit given to God once again. Verse 10, for Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the

Lord and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.

And that's kind of setting the stage for Ezra's mission while he is there. Now, we don't really know the means by which

Ezra came to this place or or how Ezra came to be such a student of the law of God.

We don't we don't know anything about Ezra's backstory. But again, credit is being given here to God for providing all of these things and stirring in the hearts of people.

Verse 11. This is a copy of the letter that King Ataxerxes gave to Ezra, the priest, the scribe, a man learned in matters of the commandments of the

Lord and his statutes for Israel. And I'm told here that this section of the letter is actually written in Aramaic, and it shows the authenticity of the letter, the fact that it goes from Hebrew to Aramaic.

So verse 12, Ataxerxes, king of kings to Ezra, the priest, the scribe of the law of the

God of heaven, peace. And now I make a decree that any one of the people of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom who freely offers to go to Jerusalem may go with you.

For you are sent by the king and his seven counselors to make inquiries about Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of your

God, which is in your hand, and also to carry the silver and gold that the king and his counselors have freely offered to the

God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem with all the silver and all the gold that you shall find in the whole province of Babylonia.

And with the freewill offerings of the people and the priests vowed willingly for the house of their

God that is in Jerusalem. With this money, then you shall with all diligence by bulls, rams and lambs with their grain offerings and with their drink offerings.

And you shall offer them on the altar of the house of your God that is in Jerusalem. Whatever seems good to you and your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and gold, you may do according to the will of your

God. The vessels that have been given you for the service of the house of your God, you shall deliver before the

God of Jerusalem and whatever else is required for the house of your God, which it falls to you to provide, you may provide it out of the king's treasury.

That's incredibly generous. So this is on top of all of the other things that had been carried out of the temple in Jerusalem at the time that they were they were exiled to Babylon.

King Ataxerxes is even adding on to that. You can take anything out of the treasury that you need.

What generosity? And this could only be by the hand of God moving King Ataxerxes to be so generous.

And I, verse 21, Ataxerxes, the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the province beyond the river, whatever

Ezra, the priest, the scribe of the law of God of the God of heaven requires of you, let it be done with all diligence up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cores of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of oil and salt without prescribing how much, by the way, a bath is six gallons.

So you're talking over 600 gallons of each of these items that are being provided for the

Jews and salt without prescribing how much. So just take all the salt you need.

Whatever is decreed by the God of heaven, let it be done in full for the house of the God of heaven, lest his wrath be against the realm of the king and his sons.

So this kind of reveals a little bit of the motivation of Ataxerxes. He was doing this for Ezra and for the people of Israel that God might not bring his wrath upon Ataxerxes and his kingdom or his household, his sons.

That was his motivation. I can appease the God of the people of Israel.

So verse 24, we also notify you that it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, custom or toll on any one of the priests, the

Levites, the singers, the doorkeepers, the temple servants or other servants of this house of God.

So so get that the people who work in the house of God don't get taxed.

What a gift. Verse 25. And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your

God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province beyond the river, all such as know the laws of your

God and those who do not know them. You shall teach whoever will not obey the law of your

God and the law of the king. Let judgment be strictly executed on him, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of his goods or for imprisonment.

So Ataxerxes is even give he is even giving authority to Ezra to place authority in in and whoever comes into Judah, they have to listen to the authority that has been appointed.

So Ataxerxes is giving this kind of appointment to Ezra and to the people of Judah.

They are going to be allowed to rule their own kingdom. Now, it's not like they're completely independent.

They still are under the rule of someone else. And eventually it's going to be the Romans. It's not quite the freedom they had when they were their own empire under Solomon.

But nonetheless, this is still an incredible blessing as God is moving in the hearts of even a pagan king such as this to bless

Judah with reconstruction and establishment. So in verse 27, blessed be the

Lord, the God of our fathers who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king to beautify the house of the

Lord that is in Jerusalem. And that there, verse 27, goes to something that Isaiah wrote in Isaiah chapter 60.

Very similar wording there. So it's as though Ezra is showing that God has fulfilled the prophecy that was made through Isaiah hundreds of years before.

Verse 28, God extended to me his steadfast love before the king and his counselors and before all the king's mighty officers.

I took courage for the hand of the Lord. My God was on me and I gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me.

Now, where we go from here, Ezra is still not in Jerusalem yet. He hasn't gotten back there.

This is just the king telling him what he is, what Ezra is going to be able to do once he gets to Jerusalem and he's able to take any of the

Israelites with him that he wants any of those things that he needs for the construction of Jerusalem and for the temple.

And so what we have next in chapter eight is a genealogy of those who returned with Ezra.

And then in verses 15 through 20, Ezra mentions the

Levites that went with him. So they were going to submit themselves to the work that needed to be done in the temple.

And then in verse 21, that's where we'll pick up here. Ezra prays for God's protection for their journey on the way back to Jerusalem.

Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river Ahava that we might humble ourselves before our

God to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children and all our goods. For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king the hand of our

God is for good on all who seek him and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.

So we fasted and implored our God for this. And he listened to our entreaty. So Ezra is saying here, well, we told we told

King Ataxerxes that God was going to provide for us and he was going to protect us. And now I'm going to ask the king for protection that may not be the best witness to the king.

So Ezra had the people fast and pray for God's protection that as they traveled back to Jerusalem, they would arrive there safely.

Verse 24. Then I set apart 12 of the leading priests, Sherabiah, Hashabiah and 10 of their kinsmen with them.

And I weighed out to them the silver and the gold and the vessels, the offering for the house of our

God that the king and his counselors and his lords and all Israel there, their present had offered.

I weighed out into their hands, 650 talents of silver and silver vessels worth 200 talents and a hundred talents of gold, 20 bowls of gold worth of a thousand derricks and two vessels of fine, bright bronze as precious as gold.

And I said to them, you are holy to the Lord and the vessels are holy and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the

Lord, the God of your fathers, guard them and keep them until you weigh them before the chief priests and the

Levites and the heads of father's houses in Israel at Jerusalem within the chambers of the house of the

Lord. So the priests and the Levites took over the weight of the silver and the gold and the vessels to bring them to Jerusalem, to the house of our

God. Then we departed from the river Ahava on the 12th day of the first month to go to Jerusalem.

The hand of our God was on us and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way, which

I mentioned to you a couple of weeks ago that this was still a very chaotic area. And we've even seen some from the

Northern kingdom that became antagonists to those Jews who were trying to reconstruct the temple.

So it was not an easy journey for them to get back to Jerusalem. And yet the

Lord protected them. Verse 32, we came to Jerusalem and there we remain three days on the fourth day within the house of our

God, the silver and the gold and the vessels were weighed into the hands of the mayor of Merrimoth, the priest, son of Uriah.

And with him was Eliezer, the son of Phinehas. And with him were the Levites, Joseph bad, the son of Jeshua and Noah, Daya, the son of the whole was counted and weighed and the weight of everything was recorded at that time.

Those who had come from the captivity, the returned exiles offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, 12 bulls for all

Israel, 96 Rams, 77 lambs. And as a sin offering, 12 male goat, 12 male goats.

All this was a burnt offering to the Lord. They also delivered the King's commissions to the

King's say traps and to the governors of the province beyond the river. And they aided the people and the house of God in Philippians chapter four, verse four, the apostle

Paul wrote, rejoice in the Lord. Always. Again, I will say, rejoice, let your reasonableness be known to everyone.

The Lord is at hand. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.

Let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Amen. Gabriel Hughes is the pastor of First Southern Baptist Church in Junction City, Kansas.