July 27-August 2

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I’m going to give you a bit of a timeline to help you follow what is going on with these chapters. The bible is not chronological, and so it can get confusing. There are different names for the same people, and different names for the same ethnicity of people. Ezra also jumps around which isn’t particularly helpful. So here is a brief timeline to help you keep track of where we’re at.

There are three main waves of Jews returning to Jerusalem.

Context: Babylonians were the ones who took Jews away from their homeland. Cyrus easily defeats Babylon, and now Persia is in charge with a more tolerant hand.

The first wave happens with Zerubbabel, a Jewish governor, and Jeshua (Joshua) is the priest who helps with the religious portion of returning to Jerusalem. This happens under Cyrus, and the temple foundation is laid. About 50,000 people have returned, and they brought sacred temple treasures with them. Opposition stalls the rebuilding of the temple. 

Cyrus has a son, but he’s not mentioned much and there is simply more stalling that occurs from local opposition.

Then Darius takes over, and he finds Cyrus’ decree to let the Jews go back and build. The work resumes. It is still Zerubbabel and Jeshua who are leading the rebuilding. The temple is completed, and Passover is celebrated. Haggai and Zechariah were prophets who became involved at this stage in urging the continuation of rebuilding. 

Xerxes comes onto the throne. He is also known as Ahasuerus. Jewish rapport is building in high places within Persia, and this is the king who marries Esther. 

Now we get our second wave of people returning to Jerusalem. Artaxerxes comes on to the throne. He is sympathetic to Jews, possibly influenced by Esther. Ezra is part of this second wave, and he goes and starts teaching the Law of Moses again. Unfortunately, letters of opposition once again stop the work. 

Then there is our third wave. Thirteen years later, Nehemiah gains sympathy from Artaxerxes. He is the cup-bearer, and the king notices Nehemiah is sad. He allows Nehemiah to go and build the wall (which affords great stability and protection to the Jews against all of the local opposition). The king even gives Nehemiah resources to do so. Despite continued opposition, Nehemiah finishes the wall in 52 days. The people celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. 

This entire timeline, from the first wave of Jews under Cyrus to when Nehemiah finishes building the wall around Jerusalem, occurs over approximately 95 years. 95 years of waiting. There were 70 years of exile under Babylon, and then there was another 95 years of waiting until they truly got any momentum in rebuilding their home. 

Despite the decrees of kings, the Jews found their work halted again and again and again by local enemies, primarily the Samaritans who held long-standing rivalries with Judah. 

And maybe that’s my message this week. The Lord is patient even when we’re anxious to reach our happy ending. Maybe we keep finding moments where we’ve finally “made it” only to have things fall apart again. Perhaps we find ourselves in the trenches, and it feels like no one is listening.

God knew exactly where His people were, and He was not as worried about rebuilding His temple as He was about rebuilding His people. After all, the temple isn’t the end-all. The temple is a tool to get to the end-all: a redeemed House of Israel. 

Perhaps it’s time to realign our goals with the Lord.

I’m going to keep referring to the goal of “rebuilding the temple and walls of Jerusalem,” but you can insert whatever goals you’re currently working towards. 

I’m sure it was discouraging for the Jews to face all of that opposition. I’m sure it was discouraging every time a page turned, and they thought it was “finally time.” Perhaps they kept thinking, “This is it,” only to get halted all over again. I wonder if they felt like they were taking one step forward and ten steps back.

Interestingly enough, the Lord sees the entire process differently. Where you see ten steps back, He sees 11 steps in the correct direction for His goal. The Lord wasn’t just rebuilding Jerusalem; He was rebuilding His people. And despite the fact that it likely made them feel broken down, those trials were an important part of their refining process. He was making them powerful by helping them face obstacle after obstacle. 

I can only imagine how much more they appreciated their home because of how much longer it took to rebuild it, and that was really the successful part for the Lord. They had a holy city, but more importantly, He had a people who loved their holy city. 

If you’re struggling to find peace in the midst of the ups and downs of trying to find your “happy ending,” might I make a recommendation?

Prayer.

Prayer is not about changing the Lord’s mind or getting yourself out of a situation. Prayer is about talking with the Lord so that you see the way that He sees. So turn to prayer; not just so you can ask Him to save you but so that you can see how He is actively working within your life. Perhaps He might even show you how the seeming setbacks are the exact stepping stones you need. He has a glorious goal in mind: you. 

I testify that the Lord remains with us through the ups and downs. I testify that even when we’re doing His work, He purposefully allows for opposition because opposition is an important ingredient for His goal. He can’t accomplish His goal without that opposition so don’t despair. It’s all part of the plan. He loves you. He’s got this. He knows exactly what He’s doing.