GOD's People Need GOD's Strong Men | Tim Hatch [Ezra 7:7-10]
What's interesting about the Book of Ezra is that you don't meet the title character until the 7th CH.
And that is where we are.
He comes to Jerusalem 60 years after the 1st exiles returned & started to rebuild the city & the Temple.
So much has happened & so much has been overcome, you begin to wonder, what is his importance to this narrative.
But the details emerge quickly as Ezra brings what GOD's people have always needed—skill in declaring the Truth of GOD's WORD with boldness & conviction so that GOD's people live according to GOD's ways.
Ezra 7:1-6 | ¹ Many years later, during the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,
² the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub, ³ the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, ⁴ the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki, ⁵ the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest—
⁶ this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the GOD of Israel, had given. The king had granted Ezra all his requests, for the hand of the LORD his GOD was upon him.
Ezra is a priest who descends straight from the high priestly line of Aaron down through Zadok & Phineas.
We remember these men for their stouthearted devotion to GOD's leaders—Moses, Joshua & David.
In other words, Ezra was from a long line of devoted & strong -willed priests whom GOD used to lead HIS people in concert with the truth of HIS Word.
What set Ezra apart was his skill in the Law.
He was fluent in its truths & after 60 years in the land, the returned exiles had started to depart once again from the law of GOD.
It would seem that this Ezra was sent by GOD in the nick of time to bring the people back to what made them strong— the living WORD that proceeds from the mouth of GOD.
Ezra 7:7-10 | ⁷ So in the 7th year of King Artaxerxes, he went up to Jerusalem with some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, & temple servants.
⁸ Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the 5th month of the 7th year of the king. ⁹ He had begun the journey from Babylon on the 1st day of the 1st month, & he arrived in Jerusalem on the 1st day of the 5th month, for the gracious hand of his GOD was on him.
¹⁰ For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, to practice it, & to teach its statutes & ordinances in Israel.
Notice that last line of description for this man.
He had set his heart to study GOD's Law, do it & teach it to the people of GOD.
Ezra will bring the exiles back to the truth of GOD's law.
He will challenge them & rebuke them & call them to repentance with force! It will be his efforts that establish Israel in the land, snatching them from the brink of another season of corruption & immorality.
Now Ezra was also commissioned with the authority of Artaxerxes for this work.
Ezra 7:25-26 | ²⁵ And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your GOD which you possess, are to appoint magistrates & judges to judge all the people west of the Euphrates—all who know the laws of your GOD.
And you are to teach these laws to anyone who does not know them. ²⁶ If anyone does not keep the law of your GOD & the law of the king, let a strict judgment be executed against him, whether death, banishment, confiscation of property, or imprisonment.
So you have a man with 2 great gifts.
The skill of studying GOD's law & the authority to put it into legislative practice.
Ezra is set up for mighty leadership over GOD's people. And this is what they NEED.
Today preachers are often cast as soft-spoken almost effeminate man-boys in popular & movies television shows. Ask yourself when was the last time you saw a strong man portraying a priest or preacher in a movie. I can think of Machine Gun Preacher with Gerard Butler but that's all that comes to mind. Most of the time the guy is skinny, not intimidating at all, & almost unsure of his responsibility to guard & care for GOD's sheep. Sadly, communities suffer when strong men do not take strong leadership roles in the presentation of GOD's Word. We need to reclaim this aspect of Christian ministry once again.
Consider that JESUS made a whip [John 2:15] & drove money changers out of the Temple. Consider Paul was once stoned & left for dead, got back up, & went BACK into the city where those men attacked him [Acts 14:20]. Consider the strong character of Steven as he bore the pelting stones & saw JESUS standing at GOD's right hand [Acts 7]! These men are not wimps. They are to be admired. And these are the men scripture highlights in the NT. Never mind the warriors of the OT like Joshua, Gideon, Samson, David, & Benaiah. The Book of Hebrews extols the strength of GOD's strong men.
Hebrews 11:32–34 [ESV] what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David & Samuel & the prophets— 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. These are NOT the details of weak-willed men unsure of their place in the world. These are testimonies of the strong who knew their GOD was powerful. And they changed the world. GOD make us like these men today.
