5:1More details about the work and messages of Haggai and Zechariah are found in the books of the Bible that bear their names.
Life Application Study BibleEzraChapter 5
Ezra 5
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 729, 730, 731
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5Ezra 5
1At that time the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem. They prophesied in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. 2Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jehozadak* responded by starting again to rebuild the Temple of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them and helped them. 3But Tattenai, governor of the province west of the Euphrates River,* and Shethar-bozenai and their colleagues soon arrived in Jerusalem and asked, “Who gave you permission to rebuild this Temple and restore this structure?” 4They also asked for the names of all the men working on the Temple. 5But because their God was watching over them, the leaders of the Jews were not prevented from building until a report was sent to Darius and he returned his decision. 4:24 The second year of Darius’s reign was 520 B.c. The narrative started in 4:1-5 is resumed at verse 24.
Tattenai’s Letter to King Darius
66This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai the governor, Shethar-bozenai, and the other officials of the province west of the Euphrates River sent to King Darius: 7“To King Darius. Greetings. 8“The king should know that we went to the construction site of the Temple of the great God in the province of Judah. It is being rebuilt with specially prepared stones, and timber is being laid in its walls. The work is going forward with great energy and success. “We asked the leaders, ‘Who gave you permission to rebuild this Temple and restore this structure?’ 10And we demanded their names so that we could tell you who the leaders were. 11This was their answer: ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the Temple that was built here many years ago by a great king of Israel. 12But because our ancestors angered the God of heaven, he abandoned them to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon,* who destroyed this Temple and exiled the people to Babylonia. ‘However, King Cyrus of Babylon,* during the first year of his reign, issued a decree that the Temple of God should be rebuilt. King Cyrus returned the gold and silver cups that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the Temple of God in Jerusalem and had placed in the temple of Babylon. These cups were taken from that temple and presented to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom King Cyrus appointed as governor of Judah. 15The king instructed him to return the cups to their place in Jerusalem and to rebuild the Temple of God there on its original site. 16So this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the Temple of God in Jerusalem. The people have been working on it ever since, though it is not yet completed.’ 17" Therefore, if it pleases the king, we request that a search be made in the royal archives of Babylon to discover whether King Cyrus ever issued a decree to rebuild God’s Temple in Jerusalem. And then let the king send us his decision in this matter.”
Textual footnotes
- because Persia had conquered the Babylonian Empire.
- 5:2 Aramaic Jozadak, a variant spelling of Jenhozadak.
- 5:3 Aramaic the Province beyond the river; also in 5:6.
- 5:12 Aramaic Nebuchadnezzar the Chaldean. 5:13 King Cyrus of Persia is here identified as the king of Babylon
Life Application Notes 4 notes
5:1,2“The prophets of God were with them and helped them.” God sometimes sends prophets to encourage and strengthen his people. To accomplish this, Haggai and Zechariah not only preached but also got involved in the iabor. In the church today
5:6-17This letter, in comparison with the previous one (4:11-16), at least stated the facts correctly and asked a fair question. The earlier letter accused the Jews of preparing the foundation for the entire city, rather than reporting that they were doing only what they had been permitted by Cyrus to do. Perhaps the opposition simply thought that sending this letter to Babylon would create enough concern to stop the Jews from rebuilding the Temple. God had other plans, however. We can’t predict how God will get his purposes accomplished, but we can certainly trust he will succeed!
5:11While rebuilding the Temple, the workers were confronted by the Persia-appointed governor, demanding to know who gave permission for their construction project (5:3). This could have been intimidating, but, as we learn from the letter, they boldly replied, “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth.”
Charts, profiles & sidebars from the printed pages
Study feature · page 730
THE MEDO-PERSIAN EMPIRE The Medo-Persian Empire included the lands of Media and Persia, much of the area shown on this map and more. The Jewish exiles were concentrated in the area around Nippur in the Babylonian province. The decree by King Cyrus that allowed the Israelites to return to their homeland and rebuild the Temple was discovered in the palace at Ecbatana.
Caspian Sea Mediterranean Cs Babylon BABYLONIA “Southern boundary . of the empire
It is not always easy to speak up for our faith in an unbelieving world, but we must. The way to deal with pressure and intimidation is to recognize that we are workers for God. Our allegiance is to him first, people second. When we contemplate the reactions and criticisms of hostile people, we can become paralyzed with fear. If we try to offend no one or to please everyone, we won't be effective. God is our leader, and his rewards are most important. So don’t be intimidated. Let others know by your words and actions whom you really serve. 5:13-17 Cyrus is called king of Persia in 1:1 and king of Babylon in 5:13. Because Persia had just conquered Babylon, Cyrus was king of both nations. Babylon is more important to this story because it was the location of the Hebrews’ 70-year captivity. The Babylon in 5:17 may refer to the city of Babylon, which was the capital of the nation of Babylon.
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Study feature · page 731
THE POSTEXILIC PROPHETS
God used these men to confront and comfort his people after their return to their homeland from exile in Babylon. Who? When? Ministered to These Main Message Significance Contemporary Leaders Haggai 520 B.C. Zerubbabel « Encouraged the leaders Disobedience and Joshua and the people to con- careless obedience tinue rebuilding the of God’s commands Temple, which God lead to judgment. would bless
• Challenged the people’s careless worship, which God would not bless
Zechariah
Zerubbabel Joshua
520 B.C.
• Emphasized God’s command to rebuild his Temple
• Gave the people another look at God's plan to bless the world through Israel and its coming King—the Messiah (9:9, 10)
Encouragement for today’s effort sometimes requires that we remember God has a plan and purpose for tomorrow. Meanwhile the challenge is to live for him today.
Malachi
The priests are the only leaders mentioned
430 B.c.
• Confronted the people and priests with God’s promises of judgment on those who reject him and God’s blessing on those who live as he desires
God expects our obedience to him to affect our attitude toward him and our treatment of one another.
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