Ezra 8

When talk show hosts and hostesses ask successful people the “secret” of their great achievements, the answers they get are varied and sometimes contradictory. Some successful people will give credit to their sobriety and personal discipline, while others will boast that they lived just the way they pleased whether anybody liked it or not. “I always maintain my integrity” is counterbalanced by “I pushed my way to the top no matter who got stepped on.”

But if we had interviewed Ezra and asked him the secret of his successful life, he would have said humbly, “The good hand of the Lord was upon me,” a phrase that’s found six times in Ezra 7 and 8 (7:6, 9, 28; 8:18, 22, 31). Nothing but the blessing of God can explain how an obscure Jewish priest and scholar, born in Babylonian captivity, could accomplish so much for God and Israel when so much was working against him.

That God’s good hand was upon this man doesn’t minimize the importance of his personal piety or his great ability as a scholar, nor does it ignore the great help King Artaxerxes gave him. God uses all kinds of people to accomplish His will, but if God’s hand isn’t at work in us and through us, nothing will be accomplished. It’s the principle Jesus taught His disciples, “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15: nkjv). What did God do for the people of Israel during those difficult days after the Babylonian captivity?

Many of the Jews were comfortable in Mesopotamia and quite satisfied to live and die there. During the captivity, they had followed Jeremiah’s counsel to be good citizens and settle down to normal lives (Jer. 29:1–7). Over the decades, the old generation had died and a new generation had arisen that had never seen Jerusalem or the temple and probably had little interest in the welfare of their fellow Jews sacrificially laboring there. No doubt some of the Jewish men were in government employ or in business and were unable to relocate without paying a great price. Even our Lord had a problem enlisting disciples who were too settled in their successful lifestyles (Luke 9:57–62), and that explains why there’s still a shortage of laborers (10:2).

Recruiting (Ezra 8:1–20). Wisely, Ezra gathered eighteen men who were the heads of Jewish families, knowing that they could influence their relatives, and the result was a total of 1,515 men, plus women and children (v. 21), who agreed to go with Ezra to Jerusalem. It wasn’t as large a company as the first contingent that had gone with Zerubbabel and Joshua nearly eighty years before, but that didn’t discourage them. If you compare the names in this list with those in Ezra 2:3–15, you’ll see that many of Ezra’s companions were related to those first settlers. The pioneer spirit seems to run in families.

The group left Babylon on the first day of the fifth month (7:9) and after about a week of travel stopped at the River Ahava (probably a canal) for three days before proceeding (8:15, 31). During that time, Ezra took inventory of the people and discovered that there were no Levites going with them, so he sent a special committee of eleven leading men to recruit some Levites for the journey. The committee returned with only 38 Levites, but 220 temple servants came along with them. It’s too bad the numbers weren’t reversed, but even then, the laborers were few.

Trusting (vv. 21–23). Ezra’s whole approach to this trip was a spiritual one, for if the good hand of God wasn’t with them, everything would fail. But to receive the blessing and help of God, they had to humble themselves and seek His face, so Ezra called for three days of fasting and prayer, asking God to protect them on their long journey.

Ezra could have asked for an armed escort, but he felt that a request for protection would dishonor the Lord in the eyes of the pagan king. He had already told Artaxerxes that God’s good hand was upon him and the Jews, so how could he then ask for human help? Ezra was relying on God’s covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3), that those who bless the Jews are blessed by God, and there’s a fine line between faith and presumption. Fourteen years later, Nehemiah didn’t hesitate to request an armed escort from the king (Neh. 2:9), and Paul was glad for the Roman soldiers who protected him during his journey from Jerusalem to Caesarea (Acts 23). Were they less devoted than Ezra? Of course not! Undoubtedly the Lord gave Ezra special faith for this journey because He knew that Ezra’s desire was only to glorify God. When you consider the factors involved in this expedition, you can see what great faith Ezra possessed. Here were several thousand Jews, inexperienced in travel and warfare, carrying a fortune in gold and silver, led by a scholar, not a soldier, and planning to travel through dangerous territory that was infested with brigands, and yet their leader didn’t want an army to protect them! If anybody deserves the “Great Faith Award,” it’s Ezra!

Committing (Ezra 8:24–30). To twelve leading priests, Ezra committed the responsibility for the treasure: twenty-five tons of silver, nearly eight tons of silver and gold vessels, plus various other vessels and the offering given by the people. The twelve men represented the twelve tribes of Israel and had an obligation to them, but even more, it was the Lord’s treasure and these priests would one day give an accounting to Him.

In one sense, this event is a parable of the Christian life. God’s people are on a difficult and dangerous journey to the heavenly Jerusalem (Heb. 12:22), and the Lord has committed certain of His treasures to us. Our task is to protect what He’s given us and be ready to give a good account of our stewardship when we get to the end of the journey. The only difference is that, in our journey, God expects us to invest and increase the treasure and not just guard it. (See Matt. 25:14–30; 1 Tim. 1:11, 18–19; 6:20; 2 Tim. 1:13–14; 2:2.)

As these Jewish èmigrès trudged through the wilderness, I wonder if they sang Psalm 121 to each other? I will lift up my eyes to the hills— From whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. Ps. 121:1–4 nkjv

Arriving (Ezra 8:31). They left Babylon on the first day of the first month (7:9), tarried three days at the Ahava canal (8:15), and then left that encampment on the twelfth day of the first month (8:31), arriving at Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month (7:9). They covered at least 900 miles in four months’ time, and the good hand of God protected them and their possessions all the way.

Our God is the Alpha and the Omega; what He starts, He finishes (Rev. 1:8, 11; 21:6; 22:13; Isa. 41:4; 44:6). If God is at the beginning of the journey and we trust Him, He’ll remain with us throughout the journey and take us to our destination. Each step of the way, God will see to it that we fulfill His loving purposes, and He will never forsake us (Isa. 43:1–2; Heb. 13:5–6).

Resting (Ezra 8:32). When my wife and I arrive home from an extended ministry trip, we find that it takes a couple of days to get rested and ready for the next assignment. Perhaps Ezra and his company arrived just before the Sabbath and wisely decided to prolong their rest. Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is to do nothing. Jesus told His busy disciples, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6: nkjv). As Vance Havner used to say, “If you don’t come apart, you will come apart— you’ll go to pieces.”

Reckoning (Ezra 8:33–34). The priests took the treasure to the temple where it was weighed and inventoried, and all the facts were written down so an official report could be sent to the king. “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40). God’s servants must be faithful in every area of ministry, but especially in the matter of money. When you read 2 Corinthians 8—9, you see how scrupulous Paul and his associates were in handling the “relief offering” that the Gentile churches were sending to Jerusalem. “For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men” (2 Cor. 8:21).

Worshipping (Ezra 8:35). The Jewish residents and the new arrivals gathered at the altar to worship God and declare their unity as His people. The twelve burnt offerings and twelve sin offerings were for the twelve tribes of Israel represented by the Jewish remnant in Jerusalem. Unlike the initial worship over seventy-five years before, when the altar was first set up, there’s no record of anybody lamenting for “the good old days” (3:11–13).

The new arrivals were worshipping in their land, at their temple altar, for the first time in their lives! How Ezra’s heart must have been stirred as he stood at the altar and participated in the worship service! “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go into the house of the Lord.’ Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem!” (Ps. 122:1–2 nkjv)

Clearance (Ezra 8:36). Having taken care of the spiritual matters that related to the nation and the temple, Ezra then presented himself and his credentials to the local Persian officials. “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Luke 20:25). He gave them the king’s letter, and the officers were quick to obey the king’s orders and assist the Jews in their projects. Ezra left Babylon with God’s law in his heart and the king’s letter in his hand and the good hand of God upon him. No wonder his mission was a success.