00A.06 Ezra 6
Ezra 6:1-22 The opponents had written to Darius with the ultimate objective of stopping the building of the temple and of the city. But their strategy backfires. Through God’s providence, the old decree of King Cyrus is discovered at Achmetha, somewhere in the province. This decree also stated that expenses for the project should be paid for out of the king’s treasure. As a result of this attack on the work, the work is facilitated. Darius passes a decree strictly prohibiting that anyone should interfere with this work, or hinder it.
Again, Ezra 6:14 allows us to look behind the scenes: ’they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai, the prophet, and Zechariah.. And they builded, and finished it’. The prophets had reached the consciences of the people. A divine work happened in their hearts. And once their hearts were right, God also ensured, governmentally, that the work could not be stopped through the enemies.
If one looks at Ezra 4:1-24, Ezra 5:1-17, Ezra 6:1-22 as a whole, an important lesson emerges: where there is no exercise, God may allow circumstances to make the work impossible. Outwardly, it will look as though the work ceased due to "Force Majeure", but the deeper reason is that there was little or no exercise in the hearts of God’s people. On the other hand, God intervenes, for instance, by sending prophets who speak to the heart of the people. Then, when hearts turn to God, He will also take care of the circumstances. And then nobody will be able to stop the work, until it is finished, ’according to the commandment of the God of Israel’. So we come to the moment when the house of God is finished and dedicated to God with sacrifices (Ezra 6:17). One sacrifice arrests our attention in a special way. They offer ’for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel’
There they were, a minority from two tribes out of 12. And yet they are conscious of the whole people. They offer 12 he goats, making the point that the people was composed of 12 tribes and that all the 12 tribes had sinned and that the only way for God to bless and forgive them would be on the basis of the sin offering. The fact that 10 tribes were completely absent and the fact that many who belonged to Judah and Benjamin had remained in Babylon did not prevent them from remembering the whole people before God. Does this not have a voice for today, does it not give orientation in a time of ruin? We cannot undo the dispersion of God’s people, we cannot force everyone to return to the fundamental principles that Jerusalem stands for (although we want to encourage as many as we can to do so). But we can act on the basis that the people of God is one. We do not form churches, introduce memberships etc. but simply take account of the fact that there is one body. When we receive someone for the breaking of the bread, we do not receive him or her because he or she is a member of an organisation, but we do so because (i) he or she is a member of the body of Christ and (ii) not disqualified from this privilege by things that dishonour the Lord. This latter aspect is also seen in the way they celebrated the Passover here. All of the priests and the Levites were purified (Ezra 6:20) and those who had separated themselves ’from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the Lord God of Israel’ ate of the Passover. Nothing that dishonours God was to be associated with the feast which reminded them of that night when God spared those who were sheltered by the blood of the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:1-51). No wonder that the feast of the unleavened bread was kept, and was kept with joy (Ezra 6:22) and the king of Assyria was supportive of the work of the house of God. It is a timeless principle: obedience brings joy and blessing.