INTRODUCTION
EZRA AND NEHEMIAH ARE ADJOINING BOOKS, RECORDING THIS GRAND SAGA OF RE-BUILDING ISRAEL AFTER AROUND 100 YEARS OF BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY. A NEW ERA IS DAWNING FOR THE JEWISH PEOPLE AFTER BEING REMOVED FROM THEIR HOMELAND AND DEPRIVED OF THE TEMPLE AND ITS SERVICES AND ALL THE VITAL SPIRITUAL AND PHYSICAL BENEFITS AND BLESSINGS THAT CAME FROM IT. REMEMBER YAHUAH ORCHESTRATED THIS JUDGMENT AGAINST HIS CHOSEN PEOPLE OF JUDAH FOR THEIR ABOMINABLE WHORING AGAINST HIM (WHICH HASN'T STOPPED!)
THE FIRST GROUP OF JEWS TO RETURN TO JERUSALEM WAS UNDER ZERUBBABEL AND IT WAS NO MORE THAN 50,000 PEOPLE, AND WHILE THAT IS NOT A SMALL NUMBER IT'S ONLY A FRACTION OF THE 2 MILLION OR MORE JEWS WHO WERE LIVING IN THE PERSIAN EMPIRE AT THAT TIME. THE TEMPLE WAS EVENTUALLY BUILT UNDER DURESS BUT THE PROJECT WAS HAULTED FOR MANY YEARS WHICH IS WHY WE FOUND DANIEL UPSET AND PRAYING TO YAHUAH FOR 21 DAYS (THE TIME GABRIEL WAS DELAYED) . . .
THAT'S RIGHT! ... THEY'D FORGET THEIR PROMISED LAND AND WERE NOW CONTENT AS `SLAVES' IN BABYLON, IN JUST 100 YEARS!
100 YEARS IS ACTUALLY A LONG TIME !!
AROUND 5 GENERATIONS OF PEOPLE LIVED DURING THAT CENTURY SO THERE WAS NO DIRECT MEMORY OF ISRAEL IN THE YOUNGER GENERATIONS.
BEING `A JEW' MEANT SOMETHING DIFFERENT TOO!
THEN WITH THE PASSING OF TIME WE PREPARE TO FOLLOW THE UBER-PASSIONATE AND ZEALOUS EZRA AS HE LEADS AN ENTHUSIASTIC GROUP BACK TO JERUSALEM, TO RENOVATE THE TEMPLE SERVICES AND OPERATION BACK TO THE PROPER AUTHORITY OF THE LEVITE PRIESTHOOD, AND BRING BACK THE SACRIFICIAL SYSTEM AS GIVEN TO MOSES. THIS GROUP REPRESENTED A SMALL FRACTION (PERHAPS 5%) OF ALL JEWS WHO LIVED IN THE BABYLONIAN/PERSIAN EMPIRE. WHY SO FEW? THE MAJORITY HAD ADAPTED TO THEIR NEW HOMES AND FELT NO NEED TO MIGRATE TO A PLACE THEY'D NEVER EVEN SEEN, OR TO RECAPTURE A TORAH AND TEMPLE-BASED HEBREW LIFESTYLE THAT MOST HAD NEVER EVEN KNOWN . . .
THE MAJORITY OF JEWISH PEOPLE WHO WERE ALIVE IN EZRA’S DAY HAD NO PERSONAL ATTACHMENT TO THE LAND OF JUDAH, HAVING BEEN INTER-MARRIED AND ASSIMILATED INTO THE CULTURE OF THE BABYLONIANS - EVEN THE LANGUAGES HAD SHIFTED. AFTER MUCH MOCKERY AND VILE TAUNTS, THE JEWS BANNED THE USE OF THEIR OWN ALAHIM'S NAME FROM COMING OFF THEIR LIPS:
SAYING 'YAHUAH' WAS FORBIDDEN!
THE MEANING OF THE WORD `JEW’ HAD CHANGED DURING THIS TIME ALSO. ORIGINALLY 'A JEW' WAS SOMEONE FROM THE TRIBE OF JUDAH, BUT NOW THE TERM HAD EVOLVED TO INDICATE SOME ILL-DEFINED COMBINATION OF HEBREW-BELIEF, ETHNICITY, AND MAINLY A POLITICAL AFFILIATION AND ALLEGIANCE LOOSELY BASED ON RELIGION.
THE BIRTH OF JUDAISM - A NEW TOWER IN BABEL!
YAHUAH HAD RIPPED HIS PRESENCE, BLESSINGS AND TRUTH AWAY FROM ISRAEL. SO THE WAY THE JEWS CHOSE TO WORSHIP IN BABYLON LOOKED VERY DIFFERENT, BECAUSE PREVIOUSLY, THE CENTRE OF ALL HEBREW WORSHIP (SINCE MOSES) HAD BEEN THE HOUSE OF YAHUAH: THE TABERNACLE AND THEN THE TEMPLE. BUT THE TEMPLE LAY IN RUINS AND THE PRIESTHOOD HAD BEEN DISBANDED. YET, DESPITE THE SPIRIT & TRUTH BEING TAKEN AND HIDDEN FROM THEM, THESE EXILED JEWS STILL WOULDN'T REPENT, BUT INSTEAD IMPROVISED AND ADAPTED. THEY APPOINTED THEIR OWN NEW RELIGIOUS LEADERS WHO WERE NOT LEVITES. THEY FOUND WAYS AROUND THEIR INABILITY TO SACRIFICE TO ATONE FOR SIN (THEY THOUGHT THEY DID ANYWAY) AND THEY EVENTUALLY SET-UP NEW PLACES TO ASSEMBLE AND WORSHIP THAT IN TIME WERE CALLED SYNAGOGUES.
SO THE JEW'S NEW FORM OF LIFELESS, MAN-MADE RITUAL BORE LITTLE TO NO RESEMBLANCE TO HOW THEIR GREAT-GRANDPARENTS WORSHIPPED, BRINGING THEIR SHEEP AND GOAT SACRIFICES TO THE ALTAR AT THE SET-APART TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM. AND WHILE IT WAS NOT CALLED SO AT THAT TIME, THIS NEW FORM OF HEBREW RELIGION WOULD CREATE SO MANY NEW ELEMENTS AND PRACTICES THAT EVENTUALLY IT GOT ITS OWN NAME: JUDAISM: ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF MANKIND REFUSING TO REPENT AND BE OBEDIENT, AND DETERMINED TO 'GET ON WITH BUSINESS AS USUAL', EVEN AFTER YAHUAH HAS TAKEN HIS PRESENCE, BLESSING AND TRUTH AWAY FROM THEM.
COME OUT FROM AMONG HER MY PEOPLE!
JUST AS IT WAS IN EZRA’S TIME, SO IT IS TODAY! - MANY FEEL THAT SOMETHING IS WRONG, SOMETHING SEEMS INCOMPLETE OR MISSING, THERE'S GOTTA BE MORE, AN END, A TRUTH, A PEACE, A JOY, A FREEDOM IN YAHUSHA. MANY YEARN TO COME OUT OF MAN-MADE RELIGION AGAIN - EVEN THOSE WHO'VE BEEN IMMERSED IN HIS REAL NAME! THIS IS SO MUCH LIKE THE JEWS LIVING IN EZRA’S DAY, WHO WEREN’T THE ONES WHO'D LEFT JUDAH AND THE TEMPLE BEHIND - THEY HAD BEEN BORN IN THE BABYLONIAN AND THEN PERSIAN EMPIRES UNDER CIRCUMSTANCES NOT OF THEIR OWN MAKING (JUST LIKE US ALL). EVEN IF THEY HAD SOME VAGUE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TORAH-LIFESTYLE OF THEIR FOREFATHERS, IT DIDN’T MATTER BECAUSE THEY WERE CURRENTLY PRACTICING A DEAD-FORM OF IT - A SHADOW-LITURGY THAT APARANTLY WORKED FOR THEIR CURRENT LOCATION, SITUATION AND ENVIRONMENT. IT SEEMED TO FULFIL THEIR SPIRITUAL NEEDS. MISERY BECAME NORMALITY!
WITH NO ANIMAL BLOOD-SACRIFICE THEIR SINS WERE NOT BEING FORGIVEN - SO THEY WERE TOTALLY DELUDED !
AND YET WITH EZRA AS THEIR SPIRITUAL LEADER, A TINY MINORITY OF THESE SAME PERSIAN JEWS THOUGHT IT RIGHT TO LEAVE THE COMFORT OF WHAT THEY'D KNOWN ALL THEIR LIVES, TO TURN THEIR BACKS ON THEIR HOMES, UPBRINGING AND THE PRACTICES THAT THEIR FRIENDS AND FELLOW JEWS FOUND PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE AND WORTHY, IN ORDER TO TRY TO REDISCOVER THE PURE BELIEF AND BEHAVIOUR OF THE SCRIPTURE AND TO BRING IT BACK INTO THEIR LIVES - A FRESH REVIVAL OF HIS TRUTH!
AND WHAT WE FIND IS THAT THEIR VENTURE WAS LARGELY UNWELCOME ... (???) IT WAS FIERCELY FOUGHT AGAINST AND SABOTAGED ... (???) AND IT TOOK MANY YEARS TO ACCOMPLISH WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN DONE IN MONTHS. SOUND FAMILIAR ??? EZRA AND HIS MATES WERE SO EXCITED AND JUST COULDN’T UNDERSTAND WHY THEIR FELLOW JEWS WOULD KNOWINGLY WANT TO CONTINUE PRACTICING SOMETHING THAT WAS BUT A LUKE-WARM, DEAD, INFERIOR BAND-AID PLACED OVER A HUGE PROBLEM (NO LAND AND NO TEMPLE FOR WORSHIP, INSTRUCTION AND ATONEMENT) - THE PROBLEM HAD EVEN BEEN RECTIFIED SOME YEARS EARLIER, FOR BY THE TIME EZRA ARRIVED ON THE SCENE THE TEMPLE WAS ACTUALLY BUILT AGAIN BUT THE TRUTH AND CORRECT OBEDIENT ORDER NEEDED TO COME BACK!
EZRA’S DAY AND TODAY
THE PARALLELS BETWEEN EZRA AND TODAY WILL BECOME UNMISTAKABLE. EZRA AND NEHEMIAH AND THEIR FOLLOWERS REPRESENTED A TINY MINORITY OF JEWS (JUST LIKE THE OBEDIENT-BRIDE TODAY IS VERY SMALL). THEIR DESIRE AND ACTIONS TO RE-ESTABLISH THE TEMPLE AND PRIESTHOOD WEREN’T WELCOMED BY MANY AT ALL. MOST JEWS SAW THEM AS MISGUIDED TROUBLE-MAKERS, DIVISIVE, A THREAT (PAUL WAS ACCUSED OF THIS TOO). OTHERS WERE BEWILDERED WHY EZRA AND HIS FOLLOWERS COULDN’T JUST SHUT UP AND ACCEPT THE JUDAISM (RELIGION - STATUS QUO) THAT WAS ALREADY THERE, SINCE IT SEEMED PERFECTLY FINE AS-IS. AND (AS IS THE WAY OF HUMANITY) IF THE 5% DIFFER WITH THE 95%, THEN WHO IS DEEMED TO BE RIGHT? OBVIOUSLY IT MUST BE THE MAJORITY - AND THE 5% ARE WEIRDOS, CULTISTS, TROUBLE-MAKERS AND REBELS WHO NEED TO BE REELED IN AND REFORMED OR THROWN OUT COMPLETELY. THOSE WITH THE POWER AND MONEY AND MAJORITY MUST BE RIGHT ... RIGHT ?!?
SCRIPTURE HOLDS UP EZRA AND NEHEMIAH AS DOING YAHUAH’S WILL AND UPHOLDING YAHUAH’S PRINCIPLES. NATURALLY THOSE TWO ARE APPLAUDED BY YAHUAH AND IT WAS NO DIFFERENT WHEN YAHUSHA CAME AND MADE HIS FIRST DISCIPLES. THOSE WHO FOLLOWED YAHUSHA WERE SEEN AS MISGUIDED REBELS AND TRAITORS TO THE INSTITUTIONAL JUDAISM (RELIGION / CUSTOMS) OF THE DAY - AND THEY PAID A PRICE. MANY WERE SHUNNED BY THEIR COMMUNITIES AND THEIR FAMILIES. SO MUCH SO THAT YAHUSHA HAD TO REMIND HIS FOLLOWERS THAT:
MATTHEW 10:37 “WHOEVER LOVES HIS FATHER OR MOTHER MORE THAN ME IS NOT WORTHY OF ME - ANYONE WHO LOVES HIS SON OR DAUGHTER MORE THAN ME IS NOT WORTHY OF ME”.
LUKE 14:26 "IF ANYONE COMES TO ME AND DOES NOT HATE HIS FATHER, MOTHER, WIFE, CHILDREN, BROTHERS AND SISTERS - YES, EVEN HIS OWN LIFE, HE CANNOT BE MY FOLLOWERS". (TO LOVE LESS - NOT ACTUALLY HATE THEM!!) ...
RESTORATION OF
THE SUPERNATURAL
IF THESE REVOLUTIONARIES (EZRA AND NEHEMIAH) AND THE FEW THOUSAND OF THEIR SUPPORTERS HAD NOT BEEN WILLING TO SWIM UPSTREAM AND BRAVE THE OPPOSING CURRENT, THE STAGE COULD NEVER HAVE BEEN SET FOR THE ARRIVAL OF YAHUSHA OUR MESSIAH. IT WOULD HAVE FALLEN TO ANOTHER GROUP AND SET OF LEADERS WHO WERE WILLING TO GIVE UP EVERYTHING TO LISTEN AND FOLLOW YAHUAH.
BOTH THE REBUILDING OF THE TEMPLE AND THE PRIESTHOOD, AND THE RESTORATION OF MOSES' LAWS WERE PROPHETICALLY NEEDED FOR MESSIAH’S COMING.
AND SO IT'S THE SAME TODAY THAT MANY BELIEVERS ARE WAKING UP TO SEEK A NEW AWAKENING OF THE PURE SCRIPTURE-DRIVEN BELIEF AND THE BEHAVIOUR THAT RELIES ON A SUPERNATURAL HEART-OPERATION AND RELATIONSHIP.
HAGGAI & ZECHARIAH ?
IN THE TIME OF EZRA AND NEHEMIAH, THE PROPHETS HAGGAI AND ZECHARIAH WERE FRONT AND CENTER AND SPOKE DIRECTLY TO THE RENO OF THE TEMPLE AND THE LAW OF MOSES, REVEALING A MORE SPIRITUAL VIEW OF WHAT'S HAPPENING, WHILE EZRA & NEHEMIAH MAINLY GIVE THE HISTORICAL DETAILS.
BUILT AGAIN NEW
THE TEMPLE WAS ACTUALLY COMPLETED IN 516 B.C (57 YEARS BEFORE EZRA'S ARRIVAL TO JUDAH). SO EZRA’S GOAL WOULD NOT BE TO ACTUALLY FINISH THE REBUILD OF THE TEMPLE, BUT TO STRAIGHTEN OUT WHAT HE SAW AS IMPROPER TEMPLE SERVICES,((((WORSHIP-BEHAVIOUR)))) AND TO RE-INSTITUTE THE LAW OF MOSES AS THE LEGAL CONSTITUTION AND BEHAVIOUR FOR THE LAND THAT APPLIED TO COMMONERS AND PRIESTS
EZRA WAS AMONG THE FEW WHO RECOGNISED THAT LIVING A SUPERNATURAL REDEEMED LIFE COULD ONLY BE ACHIEVED BY COMING BACK TO YAHUAH'S COVENANT, AND THEY WERE IN NO WAY LIVING UP TO THEIR END OF THE AGREEMENT, EVEN THOUGH THEY OBVIOUSLY FELT THAT THEIR NEWLY-INVENTED SYNAGOGUE-WORSHIP PRACTICES OUGHT TO SUFFICE (SOUND FAMILIAR?) EZRA KNEW OTHERWISE AND PASSIONATELY URGED HIS FELLOW JEWS TO RETURN AND TAKE UP THE TRUE TORAH AND TEMPLE-BASED SACRIFICE BEHAVIOUR ONCE AGAIN.
REMEMBER, THOSE WHO RETURNED TO JUDAH ALSO TOOK THEIR MAN-MADE RELIGIOUS “JUDAISM” (BORN IN BABYLON) BACK WITH THEM, AND IT BECAME WOVEN INTO THE VERY BEHAVIOUR AND OBSERVANCES OF BOTH THE COMMON JEWS AND THE PRIESTHOOD. THE GREATEST PROOF OF THIS IS IN THE FACT THAT THE RELIGIOUS SYNAGOGUE SYSTEM WAS EVENTUALLY BROUGHT BACK TO ISRAEL TO WORK ALONGSIDE THE TEMPLE - AND NOTHING OF THE SORT WAS EVER ENVISIONED IN THE TORAH.
BOTH JUDAISM - CHRISTIANITY - AND ALL GLOBAL RELIGIONS, COMMERCE, CUSTOMS, EMPIRES, GOVERNMENT & BEHAVIOUR IS FROM BABYLON THE GREAT WHORE WHO MAKES THE WHOLE WORLD DRUNK ON THE WINE OF FILTH AND EVIL.
EZRA.1
1During the first year that Cyrus was King of Persia, YAHUAH caused him to make an announcement. It was written down, and Cyrus ordered that it be read throughout his Kingdom. This was done so that what YAHUAH had told Jeremiah (years before) would now happen. This was the announcement:
2From King Cyrus of Persia: YAHUAH, the Alahim of Heaven, gave all the Kingdoms on earth to me.
And He chose me to build a Temple for Him at Jerusalem in the country of Judah. 3If any of Alahim’s people are living among you, I pray Alahim will bless them. You must let them go to Jerusalem in the country of Judah. You must let them go build the Temple of YAHUAH, the Alahim of Israel, the Alahim Who is in Jerusalem. 4And so in any place where there might be survivors from Israel, the men in that place must support these survivors.
Give them silver, gold, animals and other things. Give them gifts for Alahim’s Temple in Jerusalem.
5So the family leaders from the Tribes of Judah and Benjamin prepared to go up to Jerusalem. They were going to Jerusalem to build YAHUAH’S Temple. Also everyone who Alahim had encouraged prepared to go to Jerusalem. 6All their neighbours gave them many gifts. They gave them silver, gold, animals,
and other expensive things. Their neighbours
(BOTH JEWS & GENTILES) freely gave them all those things.
PROVING ONCE AGAIN THAT THE TRUE TEMPLE OF YAHUSHA (LIVING DWELLINGS) WILL BE BUILT (FORMED IN) BOTH JEW & GENTILE - ANYONE WHO REPENTS AND HAS A DIVINE HEART OPERATION WITH ETERNAL INCORRUPTIBLE SEED PLANTED.
7Also, King Cyrus brought out the things that belonged in YAHUAH’S Temple that Nebuchadnezzar had taken away from Jerusalem. He had put them in his Temple where he kept his false deities. 8King Cyrus of Persia told Mithredath, the man who keeps his money, to bring those things out. So Mithredath brought them out to Sheshbazzar, Judah's leader (ZERUBBABEL'S UNCLE).
9This is what Mithredath brought out for YAHUAH’S Temple: 30 gold dishes, 1000 silver dishes, 29 knives and pans, 1030 gold bowls, 410 silver bowls similar to the gold bowls, and 1000 other dishes. 11All together, there were 5400 things made from gold and silver.
Sheshbazzar brought them all with him when the prisoners left Babylon and went back to Jerusalem.
ABOVE IT SAYS THAT CYRUS MADE HIS DECREE IN ORDER "TO MAKE WHAT YAHUAH SAID TO JEREMIAH NOW HAPPEN", AND AS AMAZING AS JEREMIAH’S ACCURACY WAS IN HIS 70 YEAR PROPHESY OF JUDAH’S CAPTIVITY IN BABYLON, ISAIAH’S WAS EVEN MORE JAW-DROPPING, SINCE HE WAS ALIVE AT A TIME WHEN ISRAEL HADN'T EVEN BEEN CONQUERED AND TAKEN CAPTIVE BY KING NEB. ISAIAH NOT ONLY PREDICTS THAT JUDAH WILL RETURN FROM FOREIGN EXILE, HE SAYS THAT THE KING WHO WILL FREE HIS PEOPLE AND SEND THEM BACK TO JUDAH TO BUILD UP THE TEMPLE AGAIN IS NAMED CYRUS. AND OF COURSE, SOME 150 TO 200 YEARS LATER WE ARE READING IN THE BOOK OF EZRA THE ACCOUNT OF A KING NAMED CYRUS DOING EXACTLY THAT!
DANIEL WAS STILL ALIVE DURING THE DAYS OF CYRUS. IN FACT HE WAS DIRECTLY SERVING KING DARIUS, WHO WAS SUBORDINATE TO KING CYRUS. SO IT IS ENTIRELY REALISTIC TO SEE THAT DANIEL HIMSELF HAD A HAND IN CRAFTING THIS PERSIAN DECREE (OBVIOUSLY A KING DIDN’T DO IT HIMSELF, HIS STAFF DID IT AND HE JUST SIGNED IT). AND SINCE THIS DIRECTLY INVOLVED THE JEWS, AND THE MOST PROMINENT AND NOTEWORTHY AND TRUSTED JEW IN THE CAPITAL WAS DANIEL, IT’S HARD TO IMAGINE THAT DANIEL WAS NOT INVOLVED IN THIS IN SOME WAY.
Everything we're about to see Ezra and Nehemiah go through to build afresh the proper Temple-system of sacrifice and praise (and the walls to protect it all) .... is A SHADOW of what Yahusha is doing in these last days. The Jews invented their own religion and it still stands today. Christianity invented their own religion based on Babylonian sun-worship ... and it also still stands today!
SINCE THE DAYS OF SOLOMON, THE TRUTH HAS BEEN LOST TO THESE PEOPLE - YAHUSHA BROUGHT IT BACK BUT IT DIED OUT AFTER THE FIRST GENERATION OF DISCIPLES DIED.
Now ... Many have COME OUT from among both these camps - into a Hebrew-Roots / Messianic / Natsarim Movement which takes all the systems from both and mixes them into a swill of shadow-hebrew-immature behaviour - clinging onto ancient traditions and teachings that YAHUSHA CAME AND FULFILLED, raising up a New Blood-Covenant for anyone willing to enter the supernatural abstract of a NEW LIVING TEMPLE DWELLING WITH HIM INSIDE THEM - being able to hear His voice, know that our prayers are heard as we are trained and matured into Him ... with the resulting behaviour of love - and an end of all strife and fear.
Yahusha is raising up a small few in these last days who (like Ezra) are willing fight through the hatred, pressure and persecution from the majority who wish to remain asleep in the Babylonian swill of behaviour and lifestyle ... and come out from among the masses ... to be a part of the new and living Temple Behaviour once again.
PURITY IS A MUST AND WE MUST GUARD HIS LIVING WORD IN OUR HEARTS TO BE SET-APART FOR HIM!
GUARD (hebrew Understanding):
Watch, arrest/imprison (thoughts), ward-off, protect, lifeguardsman, slaughter, watch very closely, diligence, cherish, obey, maintain, reveal the hidden thing, break down, run, hedge-about, beware, attend ...
ARE YOU GUARDING HIS WORD ??
