•605 First Jewish exiles deported to Babylon •597 Second deportation to Babylon •586 Jerusalem destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar —Third deportation to Babylon •539 Cyrus, King of Persia, conquers Babylon •538 Cyrus issues his decree to the Jewish exiles •537 About 50,000 Jews return to the land, led by Zerubbabel and Joshua •536 Foundation of the temple laid •536–520 Work interrupted because of official opposition •520 Work resumed; ministry of Haggai and Zechariah •515 The temple completed •458 Ezra the scribe arrives in Jerusalem •444 Nehemiah arrives; walls rebuilt, gates restored

Ezra 1:1-4 V. 1. Cyrus King of Persia – conquered the Babylonian Empire 539 BC “word of the Lord by Jeremiah might be fulfilled… the Lord stirred up Cyrus.”

God is Faithful to His Word: His promise to return Israel from exile Written c688 Fulfilled 538 (140 yrs before) 'who says of Cyrus, 'He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose'; saying of Jerusalem, 'She shall be built,' and of the temple, 'Your foundation shall be laid.’”’ (Isaiah 44:28) Written c594 Fulfilled 538 (56 yrs before) '"For thus says the Lord : When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. ' (Jeremiah 29:10)

God is sovereign over the nations God raised up Babylon to chasten the people of Judah 'Now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant (Jer 27:6a) God raised up Cyrus to defeat the Babylonians 'Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed:’ (Isaiah 45:1) He calls pagan kings – “my servant” and “my anointed” claims as his servants.

Nebuchadnezzar: “his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand, or say to him, “What have you done?” (Dan 4:34b-35a) Ezra 1:5-7 V. 5. “ God had stirred to go”. God had stirred the heart of Cyrus to let them go, now stirs the hearts of 50,000 people to go. “The same God who ordains the end (rebuild the temple) also ordains the means (people willing to go to Judah and work).”

vv. 6-8 As when Israel left Egypt with treasure from the Egyptians, they leave Babylon with the treasure taken from them – and with gifts from their neighbors

“Sheshbazzar” is probably Zerubbabel (governor of Judah)

Ezra 2:1-2 v. 2. Zerubbabel – governor of Judah. Jeshua – high priest.

God is faithful to his covenant In spite of their sins, these exiles were God’s chosen people and children of the covenant he had made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The nation had broken the covenant, but the Lord remained faithful to his word. He called the Jewish nation to bring blessing to all the earth, and he would see to it that they fulfilled their mission. Through them the world would receive the knowledge of the one true and living God, the written Word of God and ultimately the Savior of the world. – Warren Wiersbe

Ezra 2:68 – people gave a freewill offering for the work A decay in the quality of a nation’s leaders is an indication of trouble. “When small men cast long shadows, it’s a sign that the sun is setting.” – Walter Savage Landor Leaders gave generously and the people followed (Nehemiah 7)

Everyday people left captivity to give themselves to something big. To be the community of God’s people. We should give ourselves to God’s community.