7:1 Now after these things had happened, during the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia, Ezra came up from Babylon. Ezra was the son of Seraiah, who was the son of Azariah, who was the son of Hilkiah, 7:2 who was the son of Shallum, who was the son of Zadok, who was the son of Ahitub, 7:3 who was the son of Amariah, who was the son of Azariah, who was the son of Meraioth, 7:4 who was the son of Zerahiah, who was the son of Uzzi, who was the son of Bukki, 7:5 who was the son of Abishua, who was the son of Phinehas, who was the son of Eleazar, who was the son of Aaron the chief priest.
The first six chapters showed the difficulties of building a temple (which pointed to the atonement of Christ) in the satanic world system. The last four chapters teach how Ezra brought revival to Israel. King Artaxerxes commissioned Ezra to go to Jerusalem. Thirteen years later, King Artaxerxes sent Nehemiah as well.
Ezra was a priest from the Levitical line of Aaron, Phinehas, and Hilkiah. Aaron was the first high priest of Israel. Phinehas was the one who stopped the plague on Israel by administering capital punishment on a Jewish fornicator and his Midianite woman. Hilkiah was the High Priest who led a revival during the days of King Josiah. Ezra came from a very godly and priestly family line.
As for Phinehas, he was the one who executed the Israelite and the Midianite woman in the Israelite camp to stop a plague from God. God approves of capital punishment, because it protects innocent victims from dangerous killers. There are many liberal judges today who feel that capital punishment is wrong, but they are not grounded in the entire counsel of the Word of God.
God gave capital punishment to governments to protect human lives. People are not safe in their cities, because capital punishment has been banished in many states. The Jewish man and his Midianite woman were executed, because this death would save multitudes in Israel from the pollution of demonic idolatry.
When a judge allows a guilty murderer, rapist, or child molester to live, then he is placing a killer on the streets to hunt down more innocent victims. This liberal judge is sacrificing hundreds of innocent human lives per today. Laws should not be made to protect criminals. Laws should be made to protect the innocent people walking on the street. Any liberal who condemns capital punishment is arrogant and devoid of wisdom, because he is elevating his own human opinion above the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God.
Between Azariah and Meraioth, six names appear in this genealogy. Since Seraiah was the high priest when Jerusalem fell in 586 B.C., then Ezra may have been his great-grandson.
7:6 This Ezra is the one who came up from Babylon. He was a scribe who was skilled in the law of Moses which the Lord God of Israel had given. The king supplied him with everything he requested, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.
Since Ezra was not able to execute the office of priest during his time in Babylon, he spent his time studying the Word of God. Tradition says that Ezra had memorized the entire Mosaic Law and he could write it from recall.
7:7 In the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, Ezra brought up to Jerusalem some of the Israelites and some of the priests, the Levites, the attendants, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants.
Fifty thousand Jews returned to Jerusalem during the first exile from Babylon. Two thousand Jews returned during the second exile from Babylon. Ezra returned with this second group.
7:8 He entered Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king. 7:9 On the first day of the first month he had determined to make the ascent from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he arrived at Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him.
This journey was a distance of 900 miles, which was about a five-month trip on foot. Ezra had to walk to Jerusalem to fulfill his calling. If anyone has been called by God to do a service for him, then this is a privilege which one should greatly appreciate. The most joyous act that a believer can do in this life is to become a servant of God. God will not use dirty ambassadors or ignorant carnal Christians, so Christians should study the entire bible at the deepest level and pray that God will use them.
7:10 Now Ezra had dedicated himself to the study of the law of the Lord, to its observance, and to teaching its statutes and judgments in Israel.
Ezra studied and applied the Word of God which was available in that day. Most scholars believe that Ezra wrote 1-2 Chronicles. Ezra studied Genesis-2 Kings, all of the poetic books, and most of the prophets. He may have possibly organized the canon of Scripture available in that day. He began to teach Israel the Word of God. Ezra’s teaching brought revival.
If the modern church wants revival in their nation, then they must return to teaching the entire counsel of the Word of God at the deepest level. The American bartender in 1850 knew more of the Scriptures than the modern church-goer of today. The modern pastor is the blind leading the blind, because he is too lazy to study the Scriptures in the original languages. Many modern pastors are attempting seeker-gimmicks to bring the young people into church. Young people are to smart to fall for these phony gimmicks. The young believers may know it yet, but what they want is the Word of God taught to them at the deepest level. Every mature Christian desires the deep things of the Word of God.
The pattern of Ezra’s preparation is an exemplary model for all to follow. He studied all of the Scriptures at the deepest level before he began to teach. So many bible teachers teach before they even study the entire counsel of the Word of God in the original languages. This causes these kinds of bible teachers to become fragmented in their teaching, because the teachers are fragmented themselves. This type of system produces a bunch of carnal Christians in the world who think that they are mature enough to take on an enemy who knows everyone of their weaknesses. Teachers must not be lazy. They must study the entire counsel of the Word of God in the original languages before they attempt to teach it.
7:11 What follows is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priestly scribe. Ezra was a scribe in matters pertaining to the commandments of the Lord and his statutes over Israel:
King Artaxerxes was the successor to King Ahasuerus, who was the king who married Esther. Therefore, these events described in the book of Esther took place approximately sixty years between Ezra 6 and Ezra 7.
7:12 “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, a scribe of the perfect law of the God of heaven:
King Artaxerxes, called himself “king of kings,” because he ruled over all of the kings of his Persian empire. However, he did recognize the God of Ezra as “the God of heaven,” just as King Cyrus had before him. Artaxerxes may have been either a son or stepson of Queen Esther, so she may have instructed him in the knowledge of the one true God.
Ezra was a priest and a scribe. A priest taught the Word of God. A scribe copied the Word of God to make sure that it was kept perfectly intact. These scribes did such a good job of preserving the text, that the entire Bible is over 99% accurate. There are a few copyist errors, but none of these copyist errors effect any major biblical doctrines. Most of the copyist errors deal with numbers. However, the correct numbers can be found in other sections of the text.
Sometimes skeptics will claim that there are “thousands of errors in the Bible.” This is a deceptive argument. What they are not telling their students is that one scribe made a copyist error, and several other scribes copied this same copyist error. The copyist error can be corrected from earlier manuscripts. There are no mistakes or copyist error in the original autographs.
Sometimes skeptics will say that if God is really God, then He should not allow any copyist errors in the thousands of manuscripts which exist. Satan wants copyist errors in the Bible, because he can easily mislead others into rejecting a Bible that they have not read. God allows copyist errors, because those who are called by God and those who study the Bible at the deepest level, will be able to recognize that the copyists are human. The copyists are not divinely inspired themselves. God uses sinful and imperfect humans who are not inspired to copy the Scriptures so that all can study them. The copies are not perfect, but those who study the copies can come to a perfect knowledge of God through the divine sanctification process by the Holy Spirit Himself.
The angelic world is currently observing the deceptive works of Satan and his demons in the area of copying, translation, interpreting, teaching, and censoring the Scriptures. When people die, they will be aware of the spiritual battle that is being fought over these issues.
Some skeptics say that if God is omnipotent, He should be able to produce perfect copies of the Scriptures or He should be able to preserve the original copies. God is omnipotent,, but God’s ways are higher than men. God chose a different method than those of the skeptics.
Some skeptics say that if God is omnipotent, He should have been able to preserve the original copies. If God did preserve the original copies, then man would probably worship them. The Israelites worshiped the bronze snakes. Unbelievers and carnal Christians possess even less bible doctrine than these Israelites, so the former would most likely worship the original documents as well.
The author of this study Bible has personally challenged many skeptics to go through every bible mistake and copyist error of the Bible, but none of them have ever accepted this offer. Most of these Bible critics have rejected a Bible that they have never even read. They have read what other skeptics have written about the Bible, but they have not studied the entire counsel of the Word of God for themselves. This is a big mistake on their part, because their ignorance of the Bible will cause them to become easily deceived by internet skeptics.
Satan has a kingdom full of internet skeptics who prey on those who choose not to study the Scriptures at the deepest level. These internet skeptics even deceive carnal Christians, causing them to live their entire Christian life without receiving bible doctrine from the entire counsel of the Word of God. Since Satan knows the weakness of every believer, the only defense against this kind of deception is the study and application of bible doctrine from the entire counsel of the Word of God.
It is important to note that this decree recorded in verses 12-26 is written in Aramaic. Aramaic was the international language of the world at that time.
7:13 I have now issued a decree that anyone in my kingdom from the people of Israel—even the priests and Levites—who wishes to do so may go up with you to Jerusalem.
This decree gave the Israelites freedom to leave Babylon and return to Jerusalem. Only about 52,000 of the several millions of Israelites accepted this offer. The Jews of this time period were not interested in God's messianic program.
7:14 You are authorized by the king and his seven advisers to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of your God which is in your possession, 7:15 and to bring silver and gold which the king and his advisers have freely contributed to the God of Israel, who resides in Jerusalem,
The seven advisors was the number according to Persian traditions. The Persian government funded this trip, possibly because the king was a son of Esther.
7:16 along with all the silver and gold that you may collect throughout all the province of Babylon and the contributions of the people and the priests for the temple of their God which is in Jerusalem.
Many of the other provinces of Babylon offered contributions for the temple to be rebuilt.
7:17 With this money you should be sure to purchase bulls, rams, and lambs, along with the appropriate meal offerings and libations. You should bring them to the altar of the temple of your God which is in Jerusalem.
All of these sacrifices pointed to the atonement of the Messiah. The Jews had not offered these sacrifices in over seventy years.
7:18 You may do whatever seems appropriate to you and your colleagues with the rest of the silver and the gold, in keeping with the will of your God.
If there was any gold leftover, the Jews were able to spend it as they needed on other projects.
7:19 Deliver to the God of Jerusalem the vessels that are given to you for the service of the temple of your God.
Babylon took the vessels as plunder during their destruction of the temple seventy years earlier. Belshazzar used the temple utensils in a pagan ceremony and lost the Babylonian kingdom to the Persians that very night. The Persian kings gave the utensils back to the Jews during their return back to Jerusalem.
7:20 The rest of the needs for the temple of your God that you may have to supply, you may do so from the royal treasury.
The Persian royal treasury funded the rebuilding of the temple. Persia was a world power at this time, because they were being blessed by the Abrahamic Covenant.
7:21 “I, King Artaxerxes, hereby issue orders to all the treasurers of Trans-Euphrates, that you precisely execute all that Ezra the priestly scribe of the law of the God of heaven may request of you—7:22 up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of olive oil, and unlimited salt.
The Persian King taxed all of the provinces and sent the tribute to Jerusalem.
7:23 Everything that the God of heaven has required should be precisely done for the temple of the God of heaven. Why should there be wrath against the empire of the king and his sons?
Since the King of Persia may have been a son of Esther, he understood the blessing and cursing aspects of the Abrahamic Covenant. He wanted Persia to be blessed instead of cursed.
7:24 Furthermore, be aware of the fact that you have no authority to impose tax, tribute, or toll on any of the priests, the Levites, the musicians, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or the attendants at the temple of this God.
Persian law ruled that the Levites were tax-exempt.
7:25 “Now you, Ezra, in keeping with the wisdom of your God which you possess, appoint judges and court officials who can arbitrate cases on behalf of all the people who are in Trans-Euphrates who know the laws of your God. Those who do not know this law should be taught.
The Persian King placed Ezra in charge of appointing Levites who knew the Mosaic Law into court positions. It is very important for modern politicians and judges to know bible doctrine. If they are ignorant of bible doctrine, then they will be making judgments which favor the satanic world system.
7:26 Everyone who does not observe both the law of your God and the law of the king will be completely liable to the appropriate penalty, whether it is death or banishment or confiscation of property or detainment in prison.”
The Jews were given the authority to administer capital punishment underneath the jurisdiction of the Mosaic law. Rome would later take away this divine institution from the Jews. This would cause the rabbi to tear their robes in disbelief and horror, because capital punishment had been taken from Israel, but there was no messiah. The rabbi did not know that Jesus had been born before this Roman edict. He was living as a child with his parents somewhere in the Middle East.
7:27 Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers, who so moved in the heart of the king to so honor the temple of the Lord which is in Jerusalem!
Jehovah moved the heart of a pagan king to honor the temple of Israel. Politicians think that they are in control of their political career, but they are not. They are just puppets on a string in the hands of a sovereign God. Satan controls the politicians of the satanic world system, but God controls Satan. Satan can only accomplish what God allows him to accomplish.
7:28 He has also conferred his favor on me before the king, his advisers, and all the influential leaders of the king. I gained strength as the hand of the Lord my God was on me, and I gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.
Ezra led a second group of about 2,000 men back to Jerusalem. This second group was low in quantity, but high in quality. Many of the revival leaders were in this group. This group would lead the nation into the completion of the temple construction program.