Ezra & Nehemiah

OBJECTIVE

  • The objective of today's lesson is to introduce the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, outline the history of the reconstruction of the temple and its walls, and identify the main characters as types of Christ.

INTRODUCTION & HOOK - 5 Minutes

  • Group projects can be fun, easy, difficult, or frustrating depending on how you approach it
  • It may be fun to work with your friends, but once everyone is together, it's time to unite on the assignment
  • The first challenge is always figure out the directions and how to approach the problem
  • Although there's immediate excitement, it soon dissipates as the onerous work encroaches
  • Some friends begin slacking off, while others become frustrated or try to change plans
  • All in all it takes a strong leader to recognize everyone's skills to unite the participants together to delegate tasks and get the project done
  • Just like you may have a class project for an assignment, the exiled Jews recognized an important project: rebuilding the temple
  • Today we will learn about the strong leaders including Ezra and Nehemiah who influenced kings, workers, and regularly people to come together to rebuild the house of God

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 5 Minutes

  • 3 And they said to me, "The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire." 4 So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven (Ne. 1:3-4)
  • 5 And I said: "I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments, 6 please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father's house and I have sinned. 7 We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. 8 Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; 9 but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.' 10 Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. 11 O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man." For I was the king's cupbearer (Ne. 1:5-11)

Memory Verse

Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem (Er. 1:3)

CONTENT (KEY POINTS) - 25 Minutes

Introduction

  • Background
    • As we saw in last week's lesson, Daniel was taken captive in Babylon in 605 BC
    • When Babylon conquered Judah in 586, they destroyed the temple of Jerusalem
    • However, when the Persians conquered Babylon in 538 BC, the new Empire allowed for the Jews to return to Judah
  • Why study Ezra and Nehemiah Together
    • The earliest manuscripts of Ezra and Nehemiah were collected together as a single book
    • The stories of Ezra and Nehemiah follow a single story of the reconstruction of the Temple, its walls, and the restoration of living according to the Law
  • Book of Ezra
    • This book by Ezra tells the history of the exiles' return to Jerusalem in 538 BC and the reconstruction of the temple in 516 BC
    • Er. 1-6 follow Zerubbabel and Joshua the high priest beginning reconstruction
    • Er. 7-10 follows Ezra leading the exiles back to Jerusalem
  • Book of Nehemiah
    • This book by Nehemiah follows his account regarding reconstructing the walls of the temple
    • After the completion of the temple, the book concludes by showing Ezra the priest and Nehemiah the governor bringing about social and spiritual reforms to Jerusalem

Reconstruction of the Temple

  • The End of the Babylonian Captivity (Er. 1)
    • After the fall of Babylon at the hands of the Perian empire in 539 BC, Cyrus, king of the Persians, proclaimed that the captives may return to Jerusalem
    • Zerubbabel and Joshua the high priest led the exiled Jews back to Jerusalem in 538 BC
  • Restoration of the Temple Begins (Er. 2-3)
    • When the Jews arrived in Jerusalem, Joshua and Zerubbabel built an altar to God and offered burnt offerings and celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles
    • After two years, the foundation of the temple was laid, and while many rejoiced, others wept because it was not as glorious as the first temple
  • Opposition to and Completion of the Temple (Er. 4-6)
    • Outsiders attempted to stop the reconstruction of the Temple by saying that it was an act of rebellion
    • The Jews appealed to the King of the Persians and told him that Cyrus had let them build the Temple
    • When the King found the decree, he allowed them to continue building
    • When it was completed, they dedicated the Temple and celebrated Passover

Leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah

  • Ezra the Priest (Er. 7)
    • Ezra was a priest and scholar who was devoted to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, whose heart was "prepared to seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel" (cf. Er. 7:10)
  • Ezra leads Exiles to Jerusalem (Ez. 8-10)
    • He led a large group of exiles on a four-month journey from Babylon to Jerusalem
    • He instituted spiritual and social reforms to ensure that this new community in Jerusalem would obey God's law and avoid the sins that led to exile
  • Nehemiah the Cupbearer (Ne. 1-2)
    • Nehemiah was a Jewish man who served the cupbearer of Artaxerxes in the Persian capital of Susa (cf. Ne. 1:11)
    • Being a cupbearer to the king mean holding an influential position as a confidant of the king
    • When he heard that the walls of Jerusalem were in shambles, Nehemiah, whose name means "the Lord comforts," was thrown into distress
    • When Artaxerxes saw his distress, he asked how he could help, and Nehemiah requested to go to Judah and rebuild the walls of the Temple
    • Having received everything he needed from Artaxerxes, Nehemiah went to Jerusalem in 444 BC to observe the walls and encouraged the people to rebuild the temple
  • Rebuilding the Temple Walls (Ne. 3-5)
    • When Nehemiah tried to reconstruct the temple walls, he was met with opposition both from outsiders as well as the attitudes of the people
    • There were conspiracies to kill Nehemiah
      • The enemies of Nehemiah tried to meet alone with him, but he refused saying he needed to complete his work
        - > After asking four times, they arrived a fifth time with a letter stating that Nehemiah was building the Temple walls to become the king of Judah, but he was not afraid
      • When this failed, they sent a secret informant to Nehemiah telling him that men were seeking his life and that he should run
        - > Nehemiah then perceived that God did not send this person, but that this person was hired to scare Nehemiah into sinning so an evil report may be made against him (cf. Ne. 6:11-13)
    • Nehemiah finished building the walls of the Temple
  • Ezra Reads and Explains the Law (Ne. 8-13)
    • When the walls of Jerusalem were finally complete, Ezra read God's law to the people and renewed the spirit of obedience towards the commandments of God
    • Nehemiah commanded the people to "go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength" (Ne. 8:10)
    • Nehemiah dedicated the walls and further installed social reforms (Ne. 12)

Types of Christ: Cyrus, Ezra, Nehemiah, Artaxerxes II

  • To review, we study types of Christ within the Old Testament to learn more about Him through hidden images that weren't recognized until the coming of Christ
    • This is an example of using the New to read the Old Testament
  • Cyrus is a type of Christ, who recognized that God was in Jerusalem, and called the Jews back to rebuild the temple and continue in worship
  • Ezra was a type of Christ who restored the reading of sacred Scripture, enriched the Lord's house with greater gifts, appointed leaders and guardians, and purified the exiles as our Lord Jesus Christ united the Old and the New Testaments and united the Christians in His body
  • Nehemiah appealing to Artaxerxes is a type of the mediation of Christ, Christ mediates on our behalf to the Father
  • Artaxerxes is also a type of Christ, who allowed the temple walls to be rebuilt

DISCUSSION (Challenge) - 10 Minutes

  • What were the results of Ezra's leadership?
  • What were the results of Nehemiah's leadership?
  • Why was it so important to Nehemiah and Ezra that the Jews live according to the Law, especially after the exile?

LIFE APPLICATION - 5 Minutes

  • Ezra's passion was the study of the law and living according to the law, so under his leadership the reading of Scripture and the obedience to the commandments of God were renewed
    • Our personal obedience to God's commands may influence others to also follow the Lord
    • Without first practicing the commands of God, we cannot teach them
  • Nehemiah used his influence to gather the resources from Artaxerxes to rebuild the temple walls, and his courage to stand up against opposition resulted in the competition of the walls
    • Nehemiah did not use his position for worldly gain, but for the benefit of the exiles
    • We may consider that God has put each of us in a different family with different talents, personalities, and gifts so that we may benefit the rest of the Church
  • Nehemiah and Ezra recognized that the Babylonian exile was a result of the rebellion of the people against the Law, so Nehemiah and Ezra sought social reforms so the Jews may live according to the Law and may not experience another exile
    • As Nehemiah and Ezra held on closely to the lesson learned from exile, we may hold on to the lessons we learn personally through experience or from lessons and may diligently hold fast to God's commandments so we do not peril ourselves

PARENTS CORNER/HOMEWORK

  • As Ezra read the Scripture to the people to remind them to follow the Lord, it is good to read Scripture with our children so they may hear the Word of God and follow Him
  • Encourage your child to be active in church events, and even volunteer to help get your child further involved
  • As Nehemiah was concerned about what was going on back home in Jerusalem, share with your child events in the churches in Egypt so they may feel closely connected and considerate

LESSON ATTACHMENTS

Old Testament Timeline & Summary.pdf