Day 262, September 19: Bible reading & prayer
Ezra 4-6, Psalm 137 (chronological); Ecclesiastes 7-9, 2 Corinthians 11:1-15 (OT/NT)
Yesterday, we started reading Ezra, a book testifying of the fulfillment of prophecy, as it recounts the fulfillment of the word of the LORD to His prophets about the return of His people from exile to Israel. Today we continue in Ezra, and we also read the next to last of the written Psalms.
Daniel “observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years” (Daniel 9:2, Day 259, see Jeremiah 25:11-12, Day 225, & 29:10, Day 226). The prophet Isaiah specifically named Cyrus as instrumental in the return of God’s people to their promised land (Isaiah 44:38 & 45:1, Day 208).
In Daniel 9:24-25, the angel Gabriel explained to Daniel, “Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place. So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress” (Day 259).
Yesterday, we read of the decree to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem of which Gabriel spoke: In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, fulfilling the word of the Lord by the prophet Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus to send a proclamation throughout his kingdom saying he had been appointed to build the LORD, God of heaven, a house in Jerusalem and allowing survivors to return to Israel to rebuild the temple, with a freewill offering from other survivors and the vessels which Nebuchadnazzar had taken, which he gave to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah.
Ezekiel used a lot of language about the “prince” in his visions of the restoration of the temple and Jerusalem, and the conduct of worship there. We just read of Gabriel also referring to “Messiah the Prince.” We are used to references to the “king,” but need to note that the princes of Judah descend from the line of the kings of Judah. I keep going back to the genealogy of the kings of Judah, descendants of David, because it is necessary to understand that this family line was preserved in exile and then in the return to Jerusalem, all the way through to the birth of the Messiah (Matthew 1:11-12).
Jehoiachin (AKA Coniah, AKA Jeconiah) was the son of Jehoiakim. He only ruled in Jerusalem for 3 months before he was taken by King Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon. He was later released by King Evil-merodach, Nebuchadnezzar’s son and successor (2 Kings 25:27, Jeremiah 52:31). He was the grandfather of Zerubbabel [Ezra 3:1], who returned to Jerusalem and helped rebuild the temple. “Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah” is another name for Zerubbabel.
We read yesterday the genealogy of “the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his city,” including sons of Israel, priests, Levites, singers, sons of the gatekeepers, temple servants, sons of Solomon’s servants, those who “were not able to give evidence of their fathers’ households and their descendants, whether they were of Israel,” and sons of priests, numbered 42,360, besides male and female servants, singing men and women, horses, mules, camels, and donkeys. In their seventy years in exile, most of the family lines had been preserved and most families still understood their role in service to the kingdom and the temple.
We also read yesterday that on the first day of the seventh month in Jerusalem, Jeshua [high priest] the son of Jozadak and his brothers the priests and Zerubbabel [governor, grandson of Jehoiakim, descendant in the line of King David] the son of Shealtiel and his brothers arose and built the altar of the God of Israel to offer burnt offerings on it, as written in the law of Moses. After gathering materials according to the permission they had from Cyrus king of Persia, in the second month of the second year after coming to the house of God in Jerusalem, the builders laid the foundation of the temple, and the priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the LORD according to the directions of King David of Israel. Many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ households, the old men who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud voice, while many shouted aloud for joy.
An overview of our yearly Bible reading plan, with all summaries so far, can be found here. My appeal for the resolution to read your Bibles is here.
September 19 chronological reading: Ezra 4-6, Psalm 137
Ezra 4
v1-3 “Now when the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the people of the exile were building a temple to the LORD God of Israel, they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers’ households, and said to them, ‘Let us build with you, for we, like you, seek your God; and we have been sacrificing to Him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us up here.’ But Zerubbabel and Jeshua [the priest] and the rest of the heads of fathers’ households of Israel said to them, ‘You have nothing in common with us in building a house to our God; but we ourselves will together build to the LORD God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia has commanded us.’
v4-5 “Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah, and frightened them from building, and hired counselors against them to frustrate their counsel all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
v6 “Now in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
v7 “And in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel and the rest of his colleagues wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the text of the letter was written in Aramaic and translated from Aramaic.
v8-10 “Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes, as follows— then wrote Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe and the rest of their colleagues, the judges and the lesser governors, the officials, the secretaries, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the Elamites, and the rest of the nations which the great and honorable Osnappar deported and settled in the city of Samaria, and in the rest of the region beyond the River.
v11-16 “Now this is the copy of the letter which they sent to him:
‘To King Artaxerxes: Your servants, the men in the region beyond the River, and now let it be known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us at Jerusalem; they are rebuilding the rebellious and evil city and are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. Now let it be known to the king, that if that city is rebuilt and the walls are finished, they will not pay tribute, custom or toll, and it will damage the revenue of the kings. Now because we are in the service of the palace, and it is not fitting for us to see the king’s dishonor, therefore we have sent and informed the king, so that a search may be made in the record books of your fathers. And you will discover in the record books and learn that that city is a rebellious city and damaging to kings and provinces, and that they have incited revolt within it in past days; therefore that city was laid waste. We inform the king that if that city is rebuilt and the walls finished, as a result you will have no possession in the province beyond the River.’
v17-22 “Then the king sent an answer to Rehum the commander, to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their colleagues who live in Samaria and in the rest of the provinces beyond the River: ‘Peace. And now the document which you sent to us has been translated and read before me. A decree has been issued by me, and a search has been made and it has been discovered that that city has risen up against the kings in past days, that rebellion and revolt have been perpetrated in it, that mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem, governing all the provinces beyond the River, and that tribute, custom and toll were paid to them. So, now issue a decree to make these men stop work, that this city may not be rebuilt until a decree is issued by me. Beware of being negligent in carrying out this matter; why should damage increase to the detriment of the kings?’
v23 “Then as soon as the copy of King Artaxerxes’ document was read before Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their colleagues, they went in haste to Jerusalem to the Jews and stopped them by force of arms.
v24 “Then work on the house of God in Jerusalem ceased, and it was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.”
Ezra 5
v1-2 “When the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them, then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them supporting them.
v3-5 “At that time Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai and their colleagues came to them and spoke to them thus, ‘Who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure?’ Then we told them accordingly what the names of the men were who were reconstructing this building. But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until a report could come to Darius, and then a written reply be returned concerning it.
v6-17 “This is the copy of the letter which Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai and his colleagues the officials, who were beyond the River, sent to Darius the king. They sent a report to him in which it was written thus: ‘To Darius the king, all peace. Let it be known to the king that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, which is being built with huge stones, and beams are being laid in the walls; and this work is going on with great care and is succeeding in their hands. Then we asked those elders and said to them thus, “Who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure?” We also asked them their names so as to inform you, and that we might write down the names of the men who were at their head. Thus they answered us, saying, “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth and are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished. But because our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and deported the people to Babylon. However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild this house of God. Also the gold and silver utensils of the house of God which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, and brought them to the temple of Babylon, these King Cyrus took from the temple of Babylon and they were given to one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had appointed governor. He said to him, ‘Take these utensils, go and deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem and let the house of God be rebuilt in its place.’ Then that Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem; and from then until now it has been under construction and it is not yet completed.” Now if it pleases the king, let a search be conducted in the king’s treasure house, which is there in Babylon, if it be that a decree was issued by King Cyrus to rebuild this house of God at Jerusalem; and let the king send to us his decision concerning this matter.’”
Ezra 6
v1-5 “Then King Darius issued a decree, and search was made in the archives, where the treasures were stored in Babylon. In Ecbatana in the fortress, which is in the province of Media, a scroll was found and there was written in it as follows: ‘Memorandum— In the first year of King Cyrus, Cyrus the king issued a decree: “Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the temple, the place where sacrifices are offered, be rebuilt and let its foundations be retained, its height being 60 cubits and its width 60 cubits; with three layers of huge stones and one layer of timbers. And let the cost be paid from the royal treasury. Also let the gold and silver utensils of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be returned and brought to their places in the temple in Jerusalem; and you shall put them in the house of God.”
v6-12 ‘Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai and your colleagues, the officials of the provinces beyond the River, keep away from there. Leave this work on the house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this house of God on its site. Moreover, I issue a decree concerning what you are to do for these elders of Judah in the rebuilding of this house of God: the full cost is to be paid to these people from the royal treasury out of the taxes of the provinces beyond the River, and that without delay. Whatever is needed, both young bulls, rams, and lambs for a burnt offering to the God of heaven, and wheat, salt, wine and anointing oil, as the priests in Jerusalem request, it is to be given to them daily without fail, that they may offer acceptable sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons. And I issued a decree that any man who violates this edict, a timber shall be drawn from his house and he shall be impaled on it and his house shall be made a refuse heap on account of this. May the God who has caused His name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who attempts to change it, so as to destroy this house of God in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have issued this decree, let it be carried out with all diligence!’
v13-15 “Then Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai and their colleagues carried out the decree with all diligence, just as King Darius had sent. And the elders of the Jews were successful in building through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they finished building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decree of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. This temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar; it was the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
v16-18 “And the sons of Israel, the priests, the Levites and the rest of the exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. They offered for the dedication of this temple of God 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel 12 male goats, corresponding to the number of the tribes of Israel. Then they appointed the priests to their divisions and the Levites in their orders for the service of God in Jerusalem, as it is written in the book of Moses.
v19-22 “The exiles observed the Passover on the fourteenth of the first month. For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves together; all of them were pure. Then they slaughtered the Passover lamb for all the exiles, both for their brothers the priests and for themselves. The sons of Israel who returned from exile and all those who had separated themselves from the impurity of the nations of the land to join them, to seek the LORD God of Israel, ate the Passover. And they observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy, for the LORD had caused them to rejoice, and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them to encourage them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.”
Psalm 137
v1-9 “By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down and wept, When we remembered Zion.
Upon the willows in the midst of it We hung our harps.
For there our captors demanded of us songs,
And our tormentors mirth, saying,
‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion.’
How can we sing the LORD’S song
In a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
May my right hand forget her skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you, If I do not exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.
Remember, O LORD, against the sons of Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Who said, ‘Raze it, raze it To its very foundation.’
O daughter of Babylon, you devastated one, How blessed will be the one who repays you With the recompense with which you have repaid us.
How blessed will be the one who seizes and dashes your little ones
Against the rock.”
September 19 OT/NT readings: Ecclesiastes 7-9, 2 Corinthians 11:1-15
We are reading Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament reading plan. We first read Ecclesiastes 7-9 in the chronological reading plan on Day 171.
We are reading the apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians in the New Testament reading plan. Paul went to Corinth during his second missionary journey (see timeline of the book of Acts). It was the first place he remained for any length of time (18 months) until a disturbance was formed against him and he moved on. He had met Romans Priscilla and Aquila in Corinth, and he took them with him to Ephesus and left them there while he returned to Antioch. He returned to Ephesus at the beginning of his third missionary journey, staying over 2 years. He wrote what we know as the first letter to the Corinthians from Ephesus. 1 Corinthians 5:9 refers to a previous letter that Paul wrote to the Corinthians and 1 Corinthians 7:1 refers to their writing a letter in return, containing questions he addresses in this letter.
During his time in Ephesus, when he wrote what we know as his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul resolved to travel through Macedonia and Greece to take a contribution to the saints in Jerusalem. He spoke about this collection in the last chapter of 1 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians was written during these travels at the end of his third missionary journey. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 13:1, “This is the third time I am coming to you,” so there was another visit by Paul to Corinth about which we don’t have details.
Paul wrote 1 Corinthians reprimanding them for divisions in the church, immorality, and incorrect handling of communion. He knows the reprimand of his letter caused sorrow. As I mentioned above, we get clues from his letter that he visited Corinth after he wrote it, with more reprimand causing further sorrow. He refers to the persecution he and those with him in Asia (Ephesus) endured, such that they despaired “even of life” (2 Corinthians 1:18), sealing his plan to leave Ephesus to travel through Macedonia and Greece. He had planned to go to Corinth (Greece) first, but decided not to return again and cause the Corinthians further sorrow. He is able to see a purpose in both his sorrow and theirs, declaring that the comfort we receive from God in our afflictions helps us comfort others in their afflictions. He explains the Corinthians should forgive the now repentant person who inspired his rebuke. He testifies of victory even in trying circumstances during his travels, making sure credit does not go to himself, but to the triune God. He explains that the ministry of the New Covenant, enabled by the Holy Spirit, is more glorious than the Old, and gives hope and boldness. He reminds that we can have confidence in a clear explanation of the gospel and should not veil it in any way. Those who do not understand it have had their minds blinded by the god of this world. He reminds that any power and effectiveness in ministry is due the work of the triune God in us. He reminds us to focus not on temporal affliction but eternal glory. We know by faith and not by sight, with God giving us His Spirit as a pledge, that once we are absent from the body, we will be home with the Lord, clothed in immortality. We aspire to be pleasing to Him, knowing we will all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, so that we can be recompensed for our deeds, whether good or bad. We know the fear of the Lord and we are controlled by the love of Christ, so we no longer live for ourselves but for Christ, who has committed to us the word of reconciliation. As his ambassadors, we appeal to others to be reconciled to God. Paul addresses those who, “take pride in appearance and not in heart.” Following Christ is not easy. May we not receive the grace of God in vain. May we not be bound with unbelievers. May we “cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”
Titus has visited the church in Corinth and brought a good report to Paul regarding their repentance and love for him. Paul gives them an update on the generous contribution to the saints in Jerusalem that he is receiving from the churches in Macedonia and encourages them to fulfill their commitment to this contribution. He is writing them, and sending Titus and another brother, ahead of his visit to help them prepare their contribution so that no one will be embarrassed when he arrives, especially if he has Macedonians with him to whom he has boasted about the Corinthians.
In chapter 10 yesterday, Paul addressed criticisms and boasting he’s obviously heard about from those outsiders who are affecting the Corinthian church and his relationship with them. “For they say, ‘His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible.’” “I ask that when I am present I need not be bold with the confidence with which I propose to be courageous against some, who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ….You are looking at things as they are outwardly.” He affirms that he has the authority to discipline the Corinthians, unlike the outsiders who are boasting about themselves, criticizing Paul, and usurping authority: “we were the first to come even as far as you in the gospel of Christ; not boasting beyond our measure, that is, in other men’s labors, but with the hope that as your faith grows, we will be, within our sphere, enlarged even more by you, so as to preach the gospel even to the regions beyond you, and not to boast in what has been accomplished in the sphere of another. But HE WHO BOASTS IS TO BOAST IN THE LORD. For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the Lord commends.”
2 Corinthians 11:1-15
v1-6 “I wish that you would bear with me in a little foolishness; but indeed you are bearing with me. For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin. But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles. But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things.
v7-11 “Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached the gospel of God to you without charge? I robbed other churches by taking wages from them to serve you; and when I was present with you and was in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for when the brethren came from Macedonia they fully supplied my need, and in everything I kept myself from being a burden to you, and will continue to do so. As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia. Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
v12-15 “But what I am doing I will continue to do, so that I may cut off opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the matter about which they are boasting. For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.”
Dear Lord,
they went in haste to Jerusalem to the Jews and stopped them by force of arms.
Then work on the house of God in Jerusalem ceased, and it was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
When the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them, then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them supporting them.
Thank You for this example of obedience to You that involves disobedience to men. May we clearly understand and be faithful to Your call, even when men threaten. You are able to provide for and protect us.
I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.
even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.
Help us. Give us discernment. Help us not to be led astray. Paul also taught in 1 Timothy 5:24-25, “The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins follow after. Likewise also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and those which are otherwise cannot be concealed.” We pray for the light of Your truth to reveal plainly to us those shepherds who can be trusted to lead Your sheep.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
"We pray for the light of Your truth to reveal plainly to us those shepherds who can be trusted to lead Your sheep." Amen. Thank you Dr. Milhoan. Peace.