WEEK 15 Ezra 1
MONDAY Reflections
There is some disagreement among scholars whether Cyrus was a true believer in the God of Israel, if he was trying to please any god that might be out there, or if he was trying to gain political favor with the people that served God. God is the ultimate judge of the heart, so I will leave the state of Cyrus’ heart with Him.
What I do notice is that, whatever the motive, Cyrus has the right theology when he says God has given him the kingdoms of the world and that he should give thanks to God. How to give thanks in his day was answered by building a temple for God in the city God had chosen. The choice of Jerusalem for the temple to the God of Israel can be considered a political move, but I prefer to see it as the providence of God. God is preparing Israel and the world for the coming of Jesus. I can't imagine Jesus' ministry being the same without the temple in Jerusalem.
Ezra mentions the return of all the articles from the temple that Nebuchadnezzar captured. Missing are most of the furniture that represents Jesus: the brazen altar, brazen laver, the table of shewbread, the altar of incense, and, of most importance, the Ark of God. My personal thoughts are that God/Jesus can't be contained in a heathen temple. This is as I say, according to St. Charles. The truth is we don’t know, and any guess is just that a guess.
Ezr 1:1-11
(1) Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
(2) Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
(3) Who is there among you of all his people? 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 the God,) which is in Jerusalem.
(4) And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with beasts, beside the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.
(5) Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem.
(6) And all they that were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts, and with precious things, beside all that was willingly offered.
(7) Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods;
(8) Even those did Cyrus king of Persia bring forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and numbered them unto Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah.
(9) And this is the number of them: thirty chargers of gold, a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives,
(10) Thirty basons of gold, silver basons of a second sort four hundred and ten, and other vessels a thousand.
(11) All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with them of the captivity that were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem.
No comments:
Post a Comment