Today's post is by guest writer, Lucas Ward.
Ezra 7 is a fairly innocuous chapter. If you aren’t careful you miss something amazing.
We are introduced to Ezra, a potential priest descended from Aaron. He is a scribe of the Law. He has requested of the king, through proper channels apparently, the right to lead a group of people back to Jerusalem. King Artaxerxes grants Ezra's request and then some, giving money to Ezra so he could buy the needed goods to make sacrifices on the king’s behalf, giving gifts to the temple for its service, designating a drawing account Ezra can use to beautify the temple, exempting the priests and temple workers from taxes, and finally designating Ezra a sort of minor governor with the ability to enforce the law, both God's and the king's, up to using the death penalty. Notice, this was a pagan king who was showing so much interest and support in Ezra’s mission.
Ezra must have been blown away at the favor the king showed him,. but all in all, it was a fairly common occurrence. A minor functionary makes a request through channels to the king and gets a favorable response. No big deal.
Except for the fact that God is credited at every step.
As we read through the chapter, we would expect to see prophets proclaiming the word of the Lord or interpreting dreams, right? Or maybe Ezra performed miracles to convince the king. Surely a hand wrote upon the wall. No, none of these things happened. God used nothing miraculous or spectacular to gain all this favor and help for His children. As far as worldly people were concerned this was a completely normal, straightforward event.
Yet in verse 6 we are told that "the king granted him all his request according to the hand of Jehovah, [Ezra’s] God upon him." And the trip back to Jerusalem was quick and easy because of "the good hand of his God upon him." (vs 9). And Ezra had the strength to see all this through because he "was strengthened according to the hand of Jehovah my God upon me," (vs 28). God, without doing anything miraculous, caused all these things to happen. He was working for the betterment of His people all through this chapter while staying behind the scenes.
Does God work miracles today? We know He doesn't. Does He send prophets? No. Does He work in our lives? Absolutely, yes, just as He worked behind the scenes to help Ezra get everything he needed. Can He really affect the world positively for us without miracles? Well, look at what He did for Ezra. Ezra wouldn't have dreamed of asking for half of what the king gave him, but God was on Ezra's side.
God is working for us in the same way. We just need to trust him, just like Ezra did, and with no more evidence than Ezra had. We just need to remember who is on our side, and believe it.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king, to beautify the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem, and who extended to me his steadfast love before the king and his counselors, and before all the king's mighty officers. I took courage, for the hand of the LORD my God was on me, and I gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me. ..The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will. Ezra 7:27-28; Proverbs 21:1.
Lucas Ward
Ezra 7 is a fairly innocuous chapter. If you aren’t careful you miss something amazing.
We are introduced to Ezra, a potential priest descended from Aaron. He is a scribe of the Law. He has requested of the king, through proper channels apparently, the right to lead a group of people back to Jerusalem. King Artaxerxes grants Ezra's request and then some, giving money to Ezra so he could buy the needed goods to make sacrifices on the king’s behalf, giving gifts to the temple for its service, designating a drawing account Ezra can use to beautify the temple, exempting the priests and temple workers from taxes, and finally designating Ezra a sort of minor governor with the ability to enforce the law, both God's and the king's, up to using the death penalty. Notice, this was a pagan king who was showing so much interest and support in Ezra’s mission.
Ezra must have been blown away at the favor the king showed him,. but all in all, it was a fairly common occurrence. A minor functionary makes a request through channels to the king and gets a favorable response. No big deal.
Except for the fact that God is credited at every step.
As we read through the chapter, we would expect to see prophets proclaiming the word of the Lord or interpreting dreams, right? Or maybe Ezra performed miracles to convince the king. Surely a hand wrote upon the wall. No, none of these things happened. God used nothing miraculous or spectacular to gain all this favor and help for His children. As far as worldly people were concerned this was a completely normal, straightforward event.
Yet in verse 6 we are told that "the king granted him all his request according to the hand of Jehovah, [Ezra’s] God upon him." And the trip back to Jerusalem was quick and easy because of "the good hand of his God upon him." (vs 9). And Ezra had the strength to see all this through because he "was strengthened according to the hand of Jehovah my God upon me," (vs 28). God, without doing anything miraculous, caused all these things to happen. He was working for the betterment of His people all through this chapter while staying behind the scenes.
Does God work miracles today? We know He doesn't. Does He send prophets? No. Does He work in our lives? Absolutely, yes, just as He worked behind the scenes to help Ezra get everything he needed. Can He really affect the world positively for us without miracles? Well, look at what He did for Ezra. Ezra wouldn't have dreamed of asking for half of what the king gave him, but God was on Ezra's side.
God is working for us in the same way. We just need to trust him, just like Ezra did, and with no more evidence than Ezra had. We just need to remember who is on our side, and believe it.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king, to beautify the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem, and who extended to me his steadfast love before the king and his counselors, and before all the king's mighty officers. I took courage, for the hand of the LORD my God was on me, and I gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me. ..The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will. Ezra 7:27-28; Proverbs 21:1.
Lucas Ward
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