Ezra 1-2
We’re back to the Old Testament for a bit in the “Post-Exilic Period.” For context you might want to read the introductory notes in Search the Scriptures along with my post from 2023. I’ll wait…
What strikes me anew today is the first verse, Ezra 1:1, where we are told that “the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia…” You may recall that about 150 years earlier Isaiah prophesied that Cyrus would come on the scene:
[The LORD] says of Cyrus, “He is My shepherd,
Isaiah 44:28
and he shall fulfill all My purpose”;
saying of Jerusalem, “She shall be built,”
and of the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.”
That verse is followed immediately by Isaiah 45, which we would all do well to consider here. All of this — the return from Babylonian exile, the rebuilding of the Temple, the restoration of God’s people — is by the LORD’s hand. He is sovereign. He knows the end from the beginning and has everything under control.
He did then, and He does now.
See also: September 9 (2023) / Ezra 1-2.