BibleProject | One Story That Leads to Jesusਨਮੂਨਾ

Today’s reading fast forwards several decades into a new phase of Israel’s rebuilding campaign. But some of the people’s choices feel more like a rewind, back into past mistakes.

Once again, the story starts with a Persian king declaring that all Israelites are free to return home. This time, a Torah scholar named Ezra leads the journey back to Jerusalem.

Like Zerubbabel, Ezra gets off to a great start. He gathers a group of exiles to rebuild a Torah-observant community back in the land. He even includes Levites so they can transport the sacred materials for the temple (see Num. 3-4). Before they leave, Ezra leads the community in corporate fasting and prayer for God’s protection on the dangerous journey through the wilderness. They make it to the promised land safe and sound.

But then Ezra’s rebuilding campaign, like Zerubbabel’s, turns for the worse. Ezra learns that, once again, many men have intermarried with non-Israelites. God prohibited Israel from intermarrying (Deut. 7:3-4). He said doing so would cause Israel to give allegiance to other gods. This exact thing led to idolatry and exile before. Ezra’s response sharply warns against repeating those old mistakes.

Distraught, Ezra turns to Yahweh with a heartfelt prayer of repentance. But then he quickly enacts a divorce decree to cast all these women and their children out on their own—even though God opposes such divorce and relational violence against vulnerable women and children (Mal. 2:13-16).

Note: God’s prohibition against intermarriage was not a universal prohibition for all humanity. It is specifically related to the Israelites’ worship of idols and other gods as a result of their intermarriage practices at that time.

Notice two key points as the story concludes. First, Ezra faces an impossible situation. Either decision violates God’s instruction. Second, at the end, we want to know if God approves of Ezra’s choice, but Scripture does not tell us. Perhaps the authors are illustrating the desperate, impossible situations we get ourselves into, where the only way forward is to trust God’s compassionate mercy.

Getting the Israelites out of Babylon was easy. God stirs the hearts of Persian rulers, and good things begin. Getting Babylon out of the Israelites is turning out to be a lot harder.

Reflection Questions

• Have you ever found yourself in an impossible situation, where you can’t think or behave your way out of a bad spot? How could the conclusion to the book of Ezra, seen in light of the overall biblical story, provide hope in God’s compassionate mercy?
• Read Ezra 9:7-9 closely. How does Ezra describe Israel’s condition back in the land? What does his prayer reveal regarding the returned Israelites’ beliefs about exile?