Ezra and Nehemiah like Kings and Chronicles were a single book in the Hebrew Bible. Be sure to watch the Bible Project Video on Ezra-Nehemiah here. You will get in a few minutes a good summary of what is taking place in these books. A refresh of the timeline of the events you will be reading about will help in understanding these books. Judah and the Temple were destroyed in 586/587 BC by the Babylonians. The final deportation of the people then took place with Judah going into exile in Babylon. Babylon was defeated by the Persians in 539 BC. Cyrus the Persian ruler had a different philosophy than the Assarian and Babylonian rulers in that he didn’t force conquered peoples into exile. After defeating Babylon, he allowed all of the exiled people who wished to return to their homeland to leave Babylon. The first of the Jewish exiles to head back home were led by Zerubbabel in 538 BC. The returning exiles desired to rebuild the Temple but ran into such opposition that the rebuilding effort stopped until 520 BC. The Temple was finished about 516/515 BC. The second group of exiles to head back were led by Ezra in 458 BC and the final group were led by Nehemiah in 445/444 BC. Dating many of the Biblical events is difficult to do with precision. If you have the Holiman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (HIBD) there is an article titled Chronology of the Biblical Period on page 287 in the Revised and Expanded edition that explains how dates are determined for Biblical events. Also, if you have the Holman Concise Bible Commentary (HCBC) there is a chart with some dates of the main events on page 188. Don’t forget to read the introductions to these two books in the commentary.
When you watch the Bible Project Video listen carefully around the 3 minute 50 second timeframe for a different interpretation of the events in Ezra chapter nine and ten from the interpretation given in the HCBC pages 180 and 181. Which do you believe has the stronger argument? What do you believe is the correct interpretation? It might make for a lively discussion in your DGroup.
In the HCBC on page 176 in the section titled Purpose and Theology under point number 2 the author mentions the Cyrus Cylinder. This a barrel-shaped cuneiform document that was found in 1879. It’s nowlocated in the British Museum. The HIBD has a photograph of the cylinder in the article on Cyrus. The picture doesn’t give the dimensions but the cylinder is about 9 inches in length and 4 inches in diameter. The cylinder mentions the achievements of Cyrus and although it doesn’t specifically mention allowing the Jews to return to Judah it does mention his policy of allowing captured people to return to their homeland.
Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem about 13 years after Ezra. Most of the book consists of memoirs of Nehemiah, you’ll notice these sections are written in the first person. Referring to Deuteronomy chapters 28 through 30 one Old Testament Scholar wrote:
Moses foretold of judgment, exile, and restoration in Israel’s future. In truth, the book of Nehemiah recounts what was already foretold by the Lord to Moses many years earlier thus underscoring the fact that the God of Israel is the sovereign judge of the nations, including Israel, as well as the God of amazing grace.
If you would like to read this journal article by Dr. Betts you can view or download the pdf version by clicking this link SBJT Vol 9. 1 Betts, Terry J. 2005. “The Book of Nehemiah in Its Biblical and Historical Context.” Southern Baptist Journal of Theology Volume 9, no. 3: pg 5.
When you watch the Bible Project Video listen carefully around the 3 minute 50 second timeframe for a different interpretation of the events in Ezra chapter nine and ten from the interpretation given in the HCBC pages 180 and 181. Which do you believe has the stronger argument? What do you believe is the correct interpretation? It might make for a lively discussion in your DGroup.
In the HCBC on page 176 in the section titled Purpose and Theology under point number 2 the author mentions the Cyrus Cylinder. This a barrel-shaped cuneiform document that was found in 1879. It’s nowlocated in the British Museum. The HIBD has a photograph of the cylinder in the article on Cyrus. The picture doesn’t give the dimensions but the cylinder is about 9 inches in length and 4 inches in diameter. The cylinder mentions the achievements of Cyrus and although it doesn’t specifically mention allowing the Jews to return to Judah it does mention his policy of allowing captured people to return to their homeland.
Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem about 13 years after Ezra. Most of the book consists of memoirs of Nehemiah, you’ll notice these sections are written in the first person. Referring to Deuteronomy chapters 28 through 30 one Old Testament Scholar wrote:
Moses foretold of judgment, exile, and restoration in Israel’s future. In truth, the book of Nehemiah recounts what was already foretold by the Lord to Moses many years earlier thus underscoring the fact that the God of Israel is the sovereign judge of the nations, including Israel, as well as the God of amazing grace.
If you would like to read this journal article by Dr. Betts you can view or download the pdf version by clicking this link SBJT Vol 9. 1 Betts, Terry J. 2005. “The Book of Nehemiah in Its Biblical and Historical Context.” Southern Baptist Journal of Theology Volume 9, no. 3: pg 5.
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