43...HOME AGAIN. AGAIN!

   Based on the Books of Ezra (Ezr) & Nehemiah (Ne)...Read more there

EZRA

Ezra & Nehemiah are memoirs of these two respective Hebrews from Babylon & their return to Jerusalem dovetailed (not always seamlessly) by the later Chronicler into his own longer work (N1). In 538 BC the Persian king, Cyrus, who has by now defeated the Babylonians allows the captive Hebrews to return to Judah after 50 or 70 years (N2). The Hebrews are led back to Jerusalem by Sheshbazzar (N3) a descendant of King David, & heads of other families, including Jeshua, a priest. Ezra himself, a scribe or scholar of the Law returns in a second wave of returnees some years later. In Ch.1 Cyrus decrees the Hebrews may return home. Sympathetic to YHWH, to him a foreign god, Cyrus sets an example of religious inclusiveness & tolerance not often seen in history! In style typical of the Chronicler Ch.2 is a list of returnees. Ch.3 records the resumption of worship in Jerusalem & the laying of the foundations of a new Temple. There is a deeply felt poignancy in vv.12-13. Ch.4 tells of the breach between the returning Hebrews & the adjacent Samaritans, remnants of the former Israel inter-married with others settled in Samaria by the Assyrians a century or so before. That continuing breach will feature in the Gospels. Ch.5 & 6 record this dispute leading to the Samaritans telling tales about the loyalty of the Hebrews at the court of the next two Persian rulers, persuading them the Hebrews are in the process of rebelling. As a result of their lobbying King Artaxerxes orders the re-building stopped, the Samaritans forcibly do the stopping, & the re-building of the Temple remains on hold for some years (N4). When Darius becomes king & rebuilding starts again the Samaritans do their best to subvert the project once more. But after having the state archives searched Darius rules that what the Hebrews are doing is absolutely legitimate on the orders originally issued by Cyrus & orders the Samaritans to desist in their obstruction! The Temple is then eventually completed & dedicated. Ch.7-10 go on to tell of the arrival on the scene of Ezra, a scribe or legal scholar given sweeping powers by the Persian king & the consequences of the strict regime Ezra, a real hard-liner is authorised to institute. A major one is the dissolving of all marriages to non-Jewish partners, including those of many leading citizens. Their names are recorded in the Chronicler's lists! (N5)

NEHEMIAH

In Ch.1 Nehemiah is being called by YHWH to sort things out back in Jerusalem. Ch.2 tells us he is butler to Artaxerxes, a well trusted position with access to the king. Seeing how downcast he is at goings on (or not goings-on!) he's heard of from travellers returning from Jerusalem, the king sends Nehemiah back there as a 'Mr. Fixit' with authority to put things to rights. Under him (Ch.3-4) the walls of the city are rebuilt methodically & the Samaritans kept at bay!  In Ch.5 Nehemiah has to deal with challenging social issues before the walls are finished in Ch.6. Ch.7 deals with more administrative matters followed by more family records. Ch.8 brings us the significant & far reaching public reading of the Law of Moses by Ezra followed by great celebrations, not just of what's been achieved but also because a new direction is now set in motion for the future of Judaism. Ch.9, largely in poetry, we might call a long public confession of failing to keep the Law in so many ways, then in Ch.10 come more records & more spelling out of rules, while Ch.11 is about the re-populating of Jerusalem itself & listing those involved, & CH.12 continues the record keeping followed by the ceremonial & liturgical dedication of the newly completed walls. The book ends with Ch.13 beginning with a slab of Nehemiah's own memoirs detailing the widening gulf between Israel & not-Israel, setting the scene for religious, racial, & cultural exclusivism to come. But that's another story...44: Queen Who Never Was?              

(N1) Ezra & Nehemiah were once a continuation of the books of Chronicles. The time-line & text are very complicated & not always clear. Esdras, an Apocryphal book also exists & some scholars believe it more reliable than Ezra. Ezra himself seems to have returned in the second group of returnees years later. (N2) Some count the exile from the first invasion by Babylon in 606 BC [JR: 25:11]). (N3) seemingly also known as Zerrubbabel. (N4) We'll later see another biblical writer, Haggai. blaming this also on the indifference of returnees! (N5) The NJB states: 'Ezra is the real father of Judaism with his three dominant conceptions: the chosen race, the Temple, & the Law'. [NJB p. 510]    
Q: Have we / do we set down memoirs of our own? Could they be made public?