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Important Dates To Remember 612 B.C. 606 B.C. 586 B.C. 539 B.C. 536 B.C. 520 B.C. 516 B.C. 483 B.C. 458 B.C. 445 B.C. 430 B.C. Babylon defeats Assyria 1st captives taken (Daniel & 3 friends) Judah falls to Babylon; captivity begins Medo-Persia defeats Babylon – Zerubbabel (temple) Prophecies of Haggai & Zechariah Temple completed Story of Esther (between Ezra 6-7) – Ezra (spiritual infrastructure) – Nehemiah (city walls) Prophecy of Malachi 70 yrs RETURN #1 RETURN #2 RETURN #3

Quarter 8 Captivity Return From Captivity Years Of Silence

Ezra Restores The Worship Early Chapters From Nehemiah Quarter 8 Lesson 14 Ezra Restores The Worship Early Chapters From Nehemiah

Persian Kings Cyrus The Great Cambyses Darius I (Hystaspes) Xerxes I (Ahasuerus) Artaxerxes I (Longimanus) 539 – 530 B.C. 530 – 522 B.C. 522 – 486 B.C. 486 – 465 B.C. 465 – 424 B.C. Temple rebuilding work stopped until 2nd year Ezra 4:24 Hag 1:1 Zech 1:1 Esther chosen to be queen in 7th year Esth 2:16 Ezra authorized to lead 2nd return to Jerusalem in 7th year Ezra 7:8 Nehemiah authorized to lead 3rd return to Jerusalem in 20th year Neh 1:1 2:1 Haman’s plot to destroy all Jews set to occur in 12th year Esth 3:7

Ezra Restores The Worship 6th year of Darius I (Hystaspes) Ezra 6:15 7th year of Artaxerxes I (Longimanus) Ezra 7:1 Span of 57-58 years…insert story of Esther Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) [father of Artaxerxes I] is king Ezra 1-6 covers 23 years (538-515 B.C.) Ezra 7-10 covers 1 year (458 B.C.)

Ezra Restores The Worship Ezra’s lineage Ezra 7:1-5 (priest) Ezra’s description Ezra 7:6, 10 (profession, priorities) Artaxerxes’ decree Ezra 7:11-26 Authority for 2nd return; full backing of throne Passage of time since 1st return = 78 years Likely Zerubbabel & Joshua are dead Very likely Israel had again fallen into spiritual disorder (Haggai’s prophecy) Thus, Ezra commanded to teach vv. 25-26

Ezra Restores The Worship Returning remnant listed Ezra 8:1-20 A little more than 1,500 men…about 1/8 the size of Zerubbabel’s group in 1st return Ezra had refused a security detail Ezra 8:22 Indicates a complete trust in God Remnant had a major problem Ezra 9-10 Mixed marriages again showed the remnant was violating the Law Ex 34 Deut 7:3 Ezra 9:12 It would only lead them away from the God who brought them back cp. 1 Kings 11:2

Ezra Restores The Worship Remnant had a major problem Ezra 9-10 Made worse because leaders were the major offenders 9:2 Ezra’s personal reaction 9:3-4 Ezra’s contrite prayer 9:5-15 Fixing such a widespread problem would be a “process” requiring time 10:7-14, 16-17 [“process” took about 3 months] Emotionally tough to do…but still “do-able” 10:3, 44

Early Chapters From Nehemiah Timeline information… 20th year of Artaxerxes I [445 B.C.] 13 yrs since Ezra led 2nd return [458 B.C.] 71 yrs since the temple completed [516 B.C.] 91 yrs since Zerubbabel’s 1st return [536 B.C.] 141 yrs since walls last stood [586 B.C.] Nehemiah is told about Jerusalem’s condition 1:3 People in great distress & reproach Walls still in shambles…city had no protection

Early Chapters From Nehemiah Nehemiah reacts 1:4-11 Great sadness…not indifferent because of his own personal success in Susa cp. 2:3 He prays (confession of sin…asks God to be faithful to His promise…hopes for success before the king) [already planning] Nehemiah requests 2:1-10 Asks Artaxerxes for time to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the city walls Had specific answers for questions v. 6 Had devised a plan already vv. 7-8

Early Chapters From Nehemiah Nehemiah reviews & recruits 2:11-18 Inspects the enormous task to be accomplished Encourages the remnant to join him in rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls

Nehemiah’s Inspection Of Jerusalem’s Walls Neh. 2:12-15 Dangerous 2:14

Early Chapters From Nehemiah Nehemiah reviews & recruits 2:11-18 Inspects the enormous task to be accomplished Encourages the remnant to join him in rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls Nehemiah responds 2:19-20 His efforts are mocked and slandered…nothing the remnant hadn’t already faced Ezra 4 Replies with solid faith in God, His providence, and His protection

Early Chapters From Nehemiah Nehemiah records 3:1-32 He writes the record of the repair work Some entries are noteworthy… Project not managed as 1 gigantic job…broken up into smaller segments…helped facilitate everyone being involved Eph 4:16 Builders worked near their own homes…helped facilitate a “sense of personal ownership”… probably produced a high quality of work vv. 10, 21, 23, 28-30

Early Chapters From Nehemiah Nehemiah records 3:1-32 He writes the record of the repair work Some entries are noteworthy… Sadly, not everyone would participate v. 5b Thankfully, others picked up the slack…did more than their share vv. 11, 19-21, 24, 27, 30

APPLICATIONS Like Ezra, we must have the “heart of a scribe” – We must prepare ourselves in the same way… study…practice…teach Ezra 7:10 – The New Testament exhorts in a similar way Jn 7:14-17 2 Tim 1:13 2:2 M/D/R “controversy” can be easily solved – Does not minimize “emotional hardship” – To what did Ezra point the guilty? – Law of God must still be taught, followed to solve “marital dilemmas” Mt 22:29, 31 Mt 19 Mk 10

APPLICATIONS God’s work must be accompanied by prayer – Several N.T. passages invoke the importance of praying while we carry out God’s commands Phil 4:6-7 Eph 6:10-18 1 Pet 5:5-8 – Nehemiah serves as a wonderful role model for an active (healthy) prayer life

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