Ezra 3
People gather to build altar of LORD verse 1- 3
And when the seventh month was come
and the children of Israel were in the cities
the people gathered themselves together as
one man to Jerusalem
Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak
and his brethren the priests
Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel
and his brethren
and built the altar of the God of Israel
to offer burnt offerings thereon
as it is written
in the law of Moses
the man of God
And they set the altar upon his bases – for fear was on them
because of the people of those countries
And they offered burnt offerings thereon to the LORD
even burnt offerings morning and evening
People celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles 7/1 verse 4- 6
They kept also the FEAST OF TABERNACLES
as it was written
and offered the daily burnt offerings by number
according to the custom
as the duty of every day required
and afterward offered the continual burnt offering
both of the new moons – and of all the set
Feasts of the LORD that were consecrated
and of every one that willingly offered
a freewill offering
to the LORD
From the first day of the seventh month
began they to offer burnt offerings to the LORD
But the foundation of the temple of the LORD
was not yet laid
Masons and carpenters were hired verse 7
They gave money also to the masons – carpenters
and meat and drink and oil – unto them of Sidon
and to them of Tyre
to bring cedar trees from Lebanon
to the sea of Joppa – according to the grant
that they had of Cyrus king of Persia
Construction of Temple begin verse 8- 9
Now in the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem
in the second month [2/1/2] – began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel
and Jeshua the son of Jozadak – and the remnant of their
brethren the priests and the Levites – and all they that
were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem
and appointed the Levites – from twenty years old and upward
to set forward the work of the house of the LORD
Then stood Jeshua with his sons and his brethren
Kadmiel and his sons – the sons of Judah – together
to set forward the workmen in the house of God
the sons of Henadad
with their sons and their brethren the Levites
People celebrated foundation of Temple laid verse 10- 11
And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD
they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets
and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals
to praise the LORD
after the ordinance of David king of Israel
And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks to the LORD
BECAUSE HE is good – for HIS mercy endures for ever toward Israel
And the people shouted with a great shout – when they praised the LORD
BECAUSE the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid
Older priests wept with loud voice verse 12- 13
BUT many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers
who were ancient men – that had seen the first house
when the foundation of this house was laid
before their eyes WEPT with a loud voice
And many shouted aloud for joy – so that the people could not discern
the noise of the shout of joy from
the noise of the weeping of the people
FOR the people shouted with a loud shout
and the noise was heard afar off
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 3 And they set the altar upon his bases, for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries: and they offered burnt offerings thereon to the LORD, even burnt offerings morning and evening. (367 “fear” [‘eymah] means an overwhelming feeling of rear and anxiety, fright, horror, terror, dread, or horrors)
DEVOTION: Remember that the children of Israel were returning to the Promised Land that had been occupied by others for the last seventy years. They had their own worship. They had their own traditions. They were not to happy to see this new group of people coming into their land and starting to worship a God that they didn’t worship.
When we tell others about our beliefs there is usually a type of fear that the LORD doesn’t want us to have if we are honoring HIM. HE wants us to be a witness in spite of what the people around us believe. We are to share our faith in a manner that helps individuals understand the difference between what we believe and what they believe.
So we find the children of Israel afraid of the local residents because they don’t know what the reaction will be. We find out that the local residents were not happy to see them coming later in this historical book of the Bible.
We also find today that there are many people who don’t want to know what we believe because they don’t want to change what they are doing that is against the standard of the LORD.
Worship is important to the LORD. HE expects it and wants us to practice it on a weekly basis in a local church that teaches the Bible without reservation. Our commitment to the LORD is manifested when we are willing to walk into a local church and sing praises to the LORD.
The children of Israel worshiped the LORD by burning sacrifices on the altar and we are to make sure that we stay on the altar today as living sacrifices for the LORD.
Once we realize that we are living sacrifices to the LORD we will not be overly concerned about what people think of our times of worship.
CHALLENGE: We will only care what the LORD thinks of our worship.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 And afterward offered the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of the LORD that were consecrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill offering to the LORD. (5068 “willingly offered” [nadab] means to make an offering spontaneously or willingly to God, to make a voluntary decision, contribution, or give a freewill offering)
DEVOTION: When the LORD has done a great work in our life and an offering plate is passed in church do you give generously or another way? Here we have the children of Israel returning from a captivity and they want to rebuild the Temple and support the Temple.
So when they are asked for an offering they gave generously. They had been away from Jerusalem and the Temple for 70 years. Now they could worship the LORD again. They wanted to thank the LORD for their freedom especially their freedom of worship.
Today it seems that we are living in a time period when the genuine church is dying because the people of God don’t see the need to worship HIM in spirit and in truth. In many nations people who worship a false religion is killing those who are Christians. We don’t know when the LORD will return but we know that it seems like it is going to be soon because many churches that were Bible believing are now just places of entertainment rather than good Biblical teaching.
If there was a revival as is happening here in the life of Judah there is sense of genuine worship because they are happy to be back home.
CHALLENGE: When you give to the LORD’S work do you do it with a happy heart or one who sometimes thinks that the money would be better used to buy some toys we would like to have?
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: 7 They gave money also to the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, to them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia. (7558 “grant” [rishyown] means authorization, approval to do something, power of doing anything, full authority to carry out an assignment or commission)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel hired those who were professional to do the work on the Temple. They paid them with the money that was raised by freewill offerings to the LORD. They had money given to them by the people who lived in Persia. They had money given to them from those who were Israelites who were not returning to the Promised Land for one reason or another.
Money helped them get the work done for the LORD. The materials for building a new Temple were going to be expensive but they were not worried about the money. They just wanted to get the project done at this time.
So we have a good beginning to the building of the Temple. The foundation was laid but we will find that starting a project and finishing a project are two different things. There is always a cost to any project we set our mind on for our worship of the LORD. The cost is not always just money.
Permission was needed to complete this project as well. They had permission for Cyrus king of Persia but kings die and others come into power and there needs to be something in writing for a project to keep going when there are new leaders in a nation.
Even today we find that at one time it is good to build new churches and another time people don’t want churches built. The political atmosphere changes in some countries overnight.
We have to be ready for anything when attitudes change toward the LORD in a given country. What is the attitude today here in this country regarding the work of the LORD in your community? Are churches growing or dying? When governments want to change the beliefs that are taught in the local church what should the local church do when their Biblical beliefs are not just what the government or the local people might want to be taught?
Our standard has to always be the standard the LORD sets in HIS word no matter what.
CHALLENGE: Compromise is not part of the Christian faith when it comes to the plain teachings of the Word of God.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 11 And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endures forever 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. (2617 “mercy” [checed] means kindness, piety, beauty, favor, or good deed)
DEVOTION: Struggles are what the life of those who follow the LORD is made up of from ancient times to today. We can sometimes think that those who lived in previous years had it easy compared to what we are going through today. It is not true. Each generation of those who follow the LORD go through times of trials. They seem different but they are not. There is nothing new under the son.
The Israelites that returned under the orders of Cyrus were still concerned with what those around them would do or say once they began worshiping the LORD.
The seventy years prophesied by Jeremiah were fulfilled. Now the children of Israel were back in Jerusalem to build a temple. The judgment of God was on the land because the former generations had not kept the Sabbath of the land properly.
LORD judged them with captivity. When they didn’t worship the LORD on a weekly basis, they began worshipping false gods or they just stopped worshipping. After seventy years, the foundation of the temple was relayed.
The young people were shouting for joy and praising the LORD. The older men wept because they remembered the first temple and all its glory. All realized that the LORD was continuing to show kindness to HIS people. HE is a forgiving God. They had a center place to worship AGAIN and they appreciated it.
The first temple was the one that Solomon built with gold and silver and many precious stones. This one didn’t have the wealth that the first one had when it was built. So at one meeting there was shouting and crying. The older ones were crying. The younger ones were praising. The noise was so great that people could not discern who was crying and who was praising.
We should worship the LORD on a weekly basis together. HE has not given up on us. HE continues to show us KINDNESS. We should worship the LORD privately on a daily basis. The New Testament tells us that we are to “not forsake the assembling together.” Are we worshiping the LORD together each week?? Are we praising HIM together? If we are missing the body is not complete.
When we worship, we should be shouting for joy or crying in repentance. Don’t just attend church with no reaction to being in the presence of the LORD.
CHALLENGE: I see too many believers in church looking like individuals who have just sucked on a lemon. There should be joy in the presence of the LORD!!!! Show JOY!!!
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: 13 So that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people: for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off. (5234 “discern” [nakar] means to detect something accurately with the senses, know, acknowledge, pay attention to, observe, distinguish, or understand)
DEVOTION: When you have two groups of people together who are separated by a large age range you can get two different reactions to the same event.
Here we have older Israelites who knew what the first Temple looked like in all its glory and this present foundation that was laid for the second Temple. The difference was noted by the older Israelites and they cried. The younger generation was just glad to be back in the Promised Land as they had been in captivity for seventy years.
Two generations seeing the same event with different reactions. We have many older people in some congregations who remember the “good old days” and think that everything now is not good. However, we have younger generation who look at the worship services today with great joy. Which group is right?
They are both right. There are some things that were good in the past but not as good today for reaching people for the LORD. There are some new things that are not good as well. We have to try to distinguish between what is good today from the past and what is not good today from the present.
This can cause many times of discussion in local churches today. We need to find a balance and make sure that both groups are praising the LORD while the service brings honor to the LORD as well. This is not easy but it is something that the LORD would like in our local churches.
CHALLENGE: Balance that reaches both generations is good. Finding has to be a matter of prayer on a regular basis for the church to move forward for the LORD.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Jeshua – the son of Jozadak – priest verse 2, 8, 9
Zerubbabel verse 2, 8
Priests verse 2, 8, 12
Built an altar of the God of Israel verse 2
Offered burnt sacrifices verse 2- 6
morning and evening
gathered daily burnt offerings
Feast of Tabernacles verse 4
New moons verse 5
Set feasts of the LORD verse 5
Freewill offering verse 5
Foundation of Temple laid verse 6 – 11
7/1 began the sacrifices
List of things needed to worship
and build the Temple
Priests in apparel with trumpets
Levites with cymbals
Praising the LORD
Singing
Giving Thanks
Great shout
House of God verse 8, 9
Levites verse 8, 12
20 years old and upward
House of the LORD verse 8, 11
Henadad = Levite verse 9
Temple of the LORD verse 10, 11
Foundation laid
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Law of Moses verse 2
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign) verse 2, 8, 9
God of Israel verse 2
Man of God – Moses verse 2
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 5, 6, 8, 10, 11
Feasts of the LORD verse 5
House of God verse 8, 9
House of the LORD verse 8
Temple of the LORD verse 10
Praise the LORD verse 10, 11
Goodness of LORD verse 11
Mercy of the LORD verse 11
Great shout verse 11
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Workers from Tyre verse 7
Cyrus – king of Persia verse 7
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Fear of people of the land verse 3
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Man of God verse 3
Freewill offering given verse 5
Consecrated verse 5
Sing praise verse 11
Giving thanks verse 11
Mercy of God verse 11
Shouts for joy verse 12, 13
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Children of Israel verse 1
Jerusalem verse 1
Moses – man of God verse 2
Foundation of the Temple not laid 1/7 verse 6
Money given to workers verse 7
David – king of Israel verse 10
LORD is good and merciful to Israel verse 11
Chief of the fathers verse 12
Ancient Israelites who knew first Temple cried verse 12
Noise of celebration heard far away verse 12
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
The last two verses have all the unexpectedness of actuality. The spontaneous cry of disappointment, breaking into the celebrations, was a foretaste of much that was to follow. Haggai would recognize that note and preach against it (Hag. 2:3ff.); Zechariah would have to challenge those who ‘despised the day of small things’ (Zech. 4:10). But both those prophets did so with such memorable words that we can be grateful that they had to meet this mood and answer it. (Kidner, D. (1979). Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 12, p. 53). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.)
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The seventh month, Tishri in the Jewish calendar, corresponded to our October and had a particularly sacred character for the Jewish people since it was the season of three great religious festivals—the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles. It was a particularly appropriate time therefore for the people to revive the nation’s religious life by starting work on the altar and the temple. They were evidently united and zealous in this desire to re-establish the old ways of truth and righteousness, for they were quite prepared to leave their fields, and the rebuilding of their own homes, in order to gather as ‘one man’ in Jerusalem for the work of reconstruction.
(Williams, P. (2006). Opening up Ezra (pp. 37–38). Leominster: Day One Publications.)
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The basic meaning of the term is a “physical apprehension,” whether through sight, touch, or hearing. Darkness sometimes makes “recognition” impossible (Ruth 3:14). People are often “recognized” by their voices (Judg. 18:3). Nakar sometimes has the meaning of “pay attention to,” a special kind of “recognition”: “Blessed be the man who took notice of you” (Ruth 2:19, rsv, kjv, “did take knowledge of”). This verb can mean “to be acquainted with,” a kind of intellectual awareness: “… Neither shall his place know him any more” (Job 7:10; cf. Ps. 103:16). The sense of “to distinguish” is seen in Ezra 3:13: “… The people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people.…” (Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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Moral or Sanctimonious
“And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” (Luke 6:41)
This rhetorical question by the Lord Jesus incisively points out a sin common among most Christians—the sin of sanctimoniousness, committed in the good name of morality. It is easy to criticize fellow Christians for their moral or ethical deficiencies while simultaneously justifying one’s self for the same or worse defects. “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things” (Romans 2:1).
True morality is generated internally from a heart of gratitude and love for the Lord and His Word, then manifested externally in a godly life of non-self-centered service. Sanctimoniousness is generated from a heart of pride and is manifested in a critical spirit. Morality judges one’s self; sanctimoniousness judges others.
This inconsistency afflicts all of us to some degree, so we need to be especially alert to its outcropping in our own lives. We must condemn sin, of course, but we must at least be as concerned to correct it in ourselves as we are in others. “But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ” (Romans 14:10).
And if, indeed, we do see a mote—or even a beam—in a brother’s eye, one that really needs to be removed for the Lord’s sake and that of His testimony, the best procedure is not one of sanctimonious rebuke but of gentle and empathetic edification. “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted” (Galatians 6:1). (HMM of The Institute for Creation Research)
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Franklin Graham writes – I’ve got to hand it to the Catholic Archbishop from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s hometown of San Francisco for his boldness in speaking the truth about her support of the murder of babies through abortion. He said, “To use the smokescreen of abortion as an issue of health and fairness to poor women is the epitome of hypocrisy: what about the health of the baby being killed? What about giving poor women real choice, so they are supported in choosing life?” I agree with him 100% on this and pray that Speaker Pelosi is listening and will take his words to heart.
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Part of my son, Brian’s sermon today” (Co)
James “Deacon” White played at the very dawn of professional baseball. In fact, on May 4, 1871, James White had the very first hit, in the first game, of the first professional baseball league. It was a double. He was the first catcher to use a mask and the first pitcher to go into a wind-up before throwing the ball.
Over his 20year career, White played for teams in Cincinnati, Buffalo, Detroit, Boston, Pittsburgh, before joining the team that became the Chicago Cubs. White would eventually become the oldest player in the Baseball Hall of Fame. It’s not an exaggeration to say that White helped create the game of baseball we know today.
The inscription on White’s plaque in the Hall of Fame, however, doesn’t begin with the words “19th-century star of baseball,” or “premier catcher of his era,” or “led teams to six championships,” although all three phrases are there. The first words on the plaque are “Consummate gentleman.” At a time when professional athletes were seen as unsavory, hard-drinking, womanizers, James White earned the nickname “Deacon” for his commitment to Christian faith and virtue which were evident to everyone who saw him play.
For example, in 1878, the Indianapolis Journal reported that an umpire actually consulted with White, a player on the field, about whether the base runner was out. When the opponent complained, the ump declared, “When White says a thing is so it is so, and that is the end of it.”
In 1886, the Detroit Free Press wrote: No one ever yet heard Deacon White say a bad word; no one ever saw him spike or trample upon an opponent; no one ever saw him hurl his bat towards the bench when he struck out; no one ever heard him wish the umpire were where the wicked never cease from troubling and the weary never give us a rest. And think of it! Nineteen years of provocation! Will anybody deny that Deacon White is a great and good man, as well as a first-class ballplayer?
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“WITHOUT DOUBTING”
I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 1 Timothy 2:8
The third condition about prayer is described as “without doubting,” or if you prefer it, “without disputing.” The reference is not to disputing with others, but to disputing with oneself. It denotes a state of wavering and uncertainty or perhaps even a state of actual intellectual rebellion.
The doubt may express itself in many different ways. It may be doubt with respect to the very being of God, doubt, to use the words of the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, as to whether “he [God] is.” Then there is often doubt with respect to what we may call the power or the possibility of prayer, as to whether anything can happen or even does happen, in a word whether there is any point in our praying at all.
As a result of these doubts, it often comes to pass that prayer is nothing but some desperate adventure or doubtful experiment in which we engage. We find ourselves in a difficult position or face to face with some dire need. We more or less “cry out in the dark,” on the possible chance that it may succeed and we may be delivered.
Unless we observe this third condition, prayer is useless. We must approach God believing “that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). The men whose prayers have been answered have always been those who knew God, those who have trusted Him most thoroughly, those who have been most ready to say at all times and in all circumstances, “Thy will be done,” assured as they were of His holy and loving purpose. There must be no doubt, no disputing, no desperate experiments, but rather a calm and unhurried resting upon and in God and His perfect will.
A Thought to Ponder: The men whose prayers have been answered have always been those who knew God.
(From Why Does God Allow War? pp. 30-32 by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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The God of My Salvation
“Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause. Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.” (Psalm 25:3-5)
Have you encountered persecution in your neighborhood, workplace, or even within your own family? How can you find comfort and relief?
In today’s text, David was discouraged by nameless enemies. Yet his discouragement was met by confident trust and consistent theology. The Lord is completely trustworthy. He cares for His people, and this fact is confirmed throughout the Psalms.
Waiting on the Lord is not a passive afterthought (Psalm 27:14; 37:7; Luke 12:35-40). No, this is an active pursuit. Biblical hope is more like a tense expectation. David knew the Lord would deliver him—if not on Earth, then certainly unto his heavenly future (2 Timothy 4:18). Consider implementing David’s pattern in your own life.
- Adoration: Praise the Lord for His sovereignty, holiness, and omnipotence.
- Humility: Daily seek God’s Word with faithfulness, humility, and the desire to obey.
- Worship: Honor and thank the Lord for His gift of salvation from temporary trials and for all eternity.
- Patience: Wait on the Lord to deliver and provide. He alone is worthy of our trust and hope.
- Will you choose to adore, humbly pursue, worship, and patiently trust the God of your salvation? (MH, The Institute for Creation Research)
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