Ezra 7-10 • Follow God’s Way Rather Than Your Own Way of Living Life

Are you recruiting volunteers for a ministry? Do you seek out trustworthy people who can direct you to the right volunteers while trusting God to put a desire in their hearts to serve? When it is time to travel, do you seek God’s protection as well as taking proper precautions? Or do you just trust in your own skills to handle anything? Do you ask God to lead you to trustworthy people to handle your finances and resources whether personal or business? Do you approach authorities with respect and honesty while trusting God to work on their hearts to accept whatever you are asking of them? In the last blog, we saw how Esther and her cousin Mordecai trusted God to work in the background on their behalf. This is post #8 in the Ezra to Malachi blog series. In this post, we will look at why following God’s way rather than your own way is the best way to live life.

Listen to this post as a similar podcast from our Identity: Sticking to Your Faith in a Pull-Apart World Bible Study covering the last 7 written books of the Old Testament.

The Influence of Leaders

A couple of years after King Cyrus conquered Babylon, he decreed that any Jews who wanted to return to their land could do so with his blessing and money to rebuild their temple. Around 50,000 Jews returned. After a short stoppage of work, the Jews did rebuild their temple several years later with the blessing of King Darius.

God sent great leaders with the people. Zerubbabel was a descendent of King David who became the governor of the newly established Judah. He was wise and God-honoring. Jeshua was a descendent of Aaron and became the High Priest for the people. He was also wise and God-honoring. To encourage the temple rebuilding, God sent two prophets: Haggai and Zechariah. Both gave messages from the Lord that confirmed that God would be with them in His presence, power, and purpose.

The leaders that followed Zerubbabel and Jeshua for the next 60 years were not the strong leaders the Jewish people needed. King Darius’ son Xerxes allowed the edict to wipe out the Jews as recorded in the book of Esther. Thankfully, God provided Esther and Mordecai to stop the slaughter and use it for His own purposes. Fifteen years after that incident, Xerxes’ son became king. It was during his reign that God placed a burden on Ezra’s heart to go to Jerusalem and teach the people how to live their lives according to God’s way rather than by the cultural influences that surrounded them.

Follow God’s Way of Preparation

Ezra’s preparation

Ezra was a Jewish priest. The role of the priest was to teach the people about God and represent the people before God. Ezra prepared himself to do that.

This Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted him everything he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him. Some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers and temple servants, also came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. … For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel. (Ezra 7:6-7, 10)

Ezra was born in Babylon after the first group of exiles returned home eighty years earlier. We do not know his age. We do know that he had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of Moses—what we find in the books of Exodus through Deuteronomy. But not only did he study it and obey it, he prepared himself to teach it in Israel. The hand of the Lord was on him. No doubt, the burden to teach God’s law to fellow Jews in Israel came from God as well. And Ezra gathered other Jews to go with him, especially those involved in the worship of God at the temple.

Ezra’s reputation

Ezra’s standing with King Artaxerxes is remarkable. The king obviously respected Ezra as a scholar and as someone who would benefit the people of Judah who were part of Artaxerxes’ kingdom. So the king wrote a letter of validation, which stated this …  

Now I decree that any of the Israelites in my kingdom, including priests and Levites, who volunteer to go to Jerusalem with you, may go. You are sent by the king and his seven advisers to inquire about Judah and Jerusalem with regard to the Law of your God, which is in your hand. Moreover, you are to take with you the silver and gold that the king and his advisers have freely given to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem, together with all the silver and gold you may obtain from the province of Babylon, as well as the freewill offerings of the people and priests for the temple of their God in Jerusalem. With this money be sure to buy bulls, rams and male lambs, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings, and sacrifice them on the altar of the temple of your God in Jerusalem. (Ezra 7:13-17)

Ezra was being sent by the king to do the work of God in Jerusalem! Isn’t that amazing? And isn’t it amazing what the king knew about the Jewish sacrificial practices? The king also knew that Ezra had a physical copy of the Law of God in his hands.

Ezra’s provision

The king and his advisors gave Ezra authority to use resources given by the king to the God of Israel. He could also take freewill offerings from the people to do whatever was needed for the worship of God. The king’s officials in the province of Judah were to throw in their share of supplies as needed from the royal treasury. Ezra and his fellow priests, Levites, and other workers at the temple were exempt from paying taxes to the king. Though a common practice in the Persian empire for their own priests, it is a miracle that the Jews received such a benefit. The hand of God was upon them.

Ezra’s authority

King Artaxerxes recognized Ezra’s trustworthiness as a man of integrity and worth. This is a reward for following God’s way. So the king gave him authority to do more than just teach the Mosaic Law.

And you, Ezra, in accordance with the wisdom of your God, which you possess, appoint magistrates and judges to administer justice to all the people of Trans-Euphrates—all who know the laws of your God. And you are to teach any who do not know them. Whoever does not obey the law of your God and the law of the king must surely be punished by death, banishment, confiscation of property, or imprisonment. (Ezra 7:25-26)

 Ezra was given authority to appoint judges to administer justice and to admonish the people to obey God’s laws. Remember that Ezra was not a political leader. He was not a governor. But the role of Levites according to the law of Moses was to act as judges in their various towns. So it fit with following God’s law as God wanted it to be done. Ezra could teach the judges as well as the people what it meant to obey God’s law and, of course, the king’s law as well. It was a win/win for the Jews and for the king.

Ezra responded with praise to the Lord for such a great privilege.

Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart to bring honor to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way and who has extended his good favor to me before the king and his advisers and all the king’s powerful officials. Because the hand of the Lord my God was on me, I took courage and gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me. (Ezra 7:27-28)

Ezra chose to follow God’s way and experienced the rewards for doing so.

Follow God’s Way on the Journey

Seeking workers for the ministry

The first thing Ezra noticed was that there were not enough Levites going back with him to Israel. Levites were essential for many of the services related to the worship of God at the temple. And Levites were needed to be teachers of the Law and judges according to the Law in the various towns and cities.

Ezra did his part by seeking volunteers God’s way. He sent word about the need to trustworthy people and trusted God to supply. God did His part and sent a group of Levites willing to go back to Israel.

Protection and rest

So the group of around 2000 Jews made the four-month trek to Jerusalem. I love how Ezra demonstrates for us the two aspects of trusting God. They prayed for God to provide protection then traveled with confidence.

On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and bandits along the way. So we arrived in Jerusalem, where we rested three days. (Ezra 8:31-32)

God answered their prayer. Then, they rested for three days. Rest is part of trusting God too. God knows when you need rest. You can let go of whatever your next tasks are and trust Him to take care of things while you rest. That is living life God’s way. So is the proper handling of resources…

Financial integrity

Safely carrying a lot of riches can be daunting to a leader. Ezra trusted God to help him find trustworthy people in their group who would guard all the riches they were carrying. Once in Jerusalem, they weighed out everything and put it in the hands of the priest and his associates.

Everything was accounted for by number and weight, and the entire weight was recorded at that time. (Ezra 8:34)

They managed the riches according to God’s way and were found faithful.

Respect for authority

One more area in which Ezra had to trust God was what to do with the letter sent by Artazerxes. Ezra delivered it to the king’s officials in the area as he was told to do by the king. That is God’s way of dealing with the proper authorities. Ezra trusted God to do His part in making the officials agreeable to Ezra’s presence and work there.

They also delivered the king’s orders to the royal satraps and to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, who then gave assistance to the people and to the house of God. (Ezra 8:36)

God worked it out for Ezra. No trouble from the king’s officials. At least not yet!

Do you trust God with those things as well?

• Are you recruiting volunteers for a ministry? Do you seek out trustworthy people who can direct you to the right volunteers while trusting God to put a desire in their hearts to serve?
• When it is time to travel, do you seek God’s protection as well as taking proper precautions? Or do you just trust in your own skills to handle anything?
• What about financial integrity? Do you ask God to lead you to trustworthy people to handle your finances and resources whether personal or business?
• Then, there is respecting authority. Do you approach authorities with respect and honesty while trusting God to work on their hearts to accept whatever you are asking of them?

The two aspects of trusting God apply to everyday things of life.

Follow God’s Way in Confronting Sin

The sin exposed

Ezra had come to teach and properly establish the worship of God at the temple according to God’s own commandments given through Moses. But after a few months of being in Jerusalem, he got hit with news of a terrible sin that a number of people were openly committing, even the priests who should have known better. Ezra found out that some of them had intermarried with the non-Jews in the land. The non-Jews were idol worshipers. This was infidelity to God. That influence of idol worship had gotten the Jews into big-time trouble with God who sent the Jews into a 70-year timeout. Why would anyone fall back into that practice?!

Ezra mourned the sin, sat appalled, then prayed. He confessed the sin, taking the guilt upon himself even though he was not guilty. He appealed to God’s gracious act of sparing a remnant of the Jews rather than deserting them altogether. He sought God’s mercy for them. He met this challenge of sin by calling it what it was—sin! He did not accept excuses such as “There weren’t enough Jewish women so we had to marry the neighbors.” Or another excuse could be “We did not know it was wrong.” They knew. They did it anyway even though they knew their forefathers had also taken the dangerous road of making excuses.

The solution and response

Ezra did his part by mourning the sin and bringing it up before the Lord in prayer. God worked in the hearts of the Jewish men, women, and children who gathered around him as he prayed. They wept bitterly as they recognized their terrible sin. They had not trusted God enough to provide Jewish wives and husbands for them.

Then Shekaniah son of Jehiel, one of the descendants of Elam, said to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the peoples around us. But in spite of this, there is still hope for Israel. Now let us make a covenant before our God to send away all these women and their children, in accordance with the counsel of my lord and of those who fear the commands of our God. Let it be done according to the Law. Rise up; this matter is in your hands. We will support you, so take courage and do it.” (Ezra 10:2-4

God worked on the hearts of the people to present a solution. They would support Ezra’s leadership in this matter and take an oath to do what they suggested to do. Ezra selected trustworthy men to oversee the separations needed then trusted God to oversee their work and the people’s responses. The elders promised to investigate the cases in their various towns. Within three months, it was done. All but two men agreed to give up their foreign wives.

The process for confronting sin

Confronting sin takes courage and conviction. Our culture tends to dismiss the seriousness of human sinfulness. We blame people and circumstances for our behavior and attitudes rather than taking responsibility for our own sinful choices. God hates sin. It incurs His anger. But God loves people. Jesus Christ came to take on our sin and incur the anger of God for us. Anyone who trusts in Christ receives this pardon for sin. The amazing thing is that God declares every believer “not guilty” even while we are capable of sinning again. Love of God and gratitude for what He has done should motivate us to obey Him and avoid sin in our lives.

As in all of life, not every Christian will respond to God’s conviction of sin. You cannot control that.

If you are in a leadership position, you must trust God by doing your part God’s way. There are several New Testament passages about confronting sin in an individual’s life. Jesus gave wisdom for this in Matthew chapter 18.

“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector. (Matthew 18:15-17)

You must trust God as you do your part His way. That would be to start with personal interaction as sisters in Christ. Then, bring others along who will lovingly confront the issue with you. You trust God to work on that person’s heart to respond, to acknowledge the sin, and to turn from it through repentance and dependence on Christ to obey Him in that area of life. The goal is restoration of obedience to the Lord first which should lead to the restoration of community.

There is a biblical process for dealing with recognized sin in your own life. You can read about it in my blog, “Pathway #4: Choose Whom You Will Serve.” You can also download this bookmark with the process on it.

The Blessed Reward

By following God’s way of preparing himself and leading others, Ezra was rewarded with seeing that the majority of the people turned from their sinful behavior. They then recommitted themselves to following God’s way to live rather than the world’s way or their own way. For a godly leader, that is a blessed reward.

In the next blog, we will learn from Nehemiah chapters 1-6 how he trusted God with lies, danger, and a really hard job to do.

Let Jesus satisfy your heart with complete trust in Him so that you will follow His way of living life instead of the world’s way or your own way.

All of the above information is covered in the  Identity: Sticking to Your Faith in a Pull-Apart World Bible Study  covering the last 7 written books of the Old Testament.

Related Resources:

• Identity: Sticking to Your Faith in a Pull-Apart World Bible Study
• Satisfied Series 18 Podcasts (Ezra-Malachi)
• Jeremiah 29:1-14-The Two Aspects of Trusting God

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