Ezra and some other israelitestemple servants, priests, singers, gatekeepers, levitestake around four or five months to journey to jerusalem. Ezra 1 niv cyrus helps the exiles to return in bible. By the end of the book, israel had renewed its covenant with god and had begun acting in obedience to him. The book of ezra covers the return from captivity to rebuild the temple up to the decree of artaxerxes, the event covered at the beginning of the book of nehemiah. This 1 page bible class book contains numerous charts and three color maps. The book features the carrying out of the decrees of cyrus, and other persian officials, which authorized the return of the exiles, the reformation of the jewish religious system, and the restoration of jerusalem. Ezra and nehemiah introduction theyre baack as the second book of kings ended, you thought it was all over for god and israel. Ezra bible book with full chapters king james version. Book of ezra overview insight for living ministries. The hebrew traditions treated the books of ezra and nehemiah is one book, although they were probably separated in the bible. Cyrus helps the exiles to return in the first year of cyrus king of persia, in order to fulfill the word of the lord spoken by jeremiah, the lord moved the heart of cyrus king of persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing. The oldest manuscripts of the septuagint the prechristian greek translation of the ot also treat ezra and nehemiah as one book. The book covers two time periods and divides into two sections. The bible book of ezra with full chapters, footnotes and bible commentary to aid your bible search, reading, and study.
The course provides an outline for each book of the bible and teaches outlining skills for expanding these basic outlines into more detailed studies of gods word. The book of ezra bears the name of an individual who was a descendent of the priest hilkiah who had helped initiate reforms in the time of josiah 2 kings 22. Composed in hebrew and aramaic, its subject is the return to zion following the close. Internal evidence points to the fact that ezra wrote the book, for in 7. At one time, however, ezra and nehemiah followed 1 and 2 chronicles and were generally considered to be the work of one and the same author known as the chronicler. Ezra took courage and acted on the kings order because, as he said, the hand of the lord my god was upon me ezra 7.
The holy bible book 15 ezra kjv dramatized audio duration. The book of 1 chronicles does not specifically name its author. Survey of ezra restoring the temple and the people philippe r. Ezra also contains one of the great intercessory prayers of the bible ezra 9. Banned from the bible, second ezra, the book of ezra. Bible survey ezra hebrew name etzra ezra greek name esdras greek form of the hebrew author ezra according to tradition date from 536456 bc approximately theme of ezra the return from the captivity types and shadows in ezra jesus is the one who led. Click here for an exhaustive list of content on ezra. Ezra is a book of narrative history and genealogies. It presents an overview of biblical history, geography, and life in bible times. Part of an ongoing series in a survey of the old testament, this section deals with the books of ezra, nehemiah, and esther. The book of 1 chronicles was likely written between 450 and 425 b.
Haggai was the main prophet in the day of ezra, and zechariah was the prophet in the day of nehemiah. According to the hebrew bible he was a descendant of sraya the last high priest to serve in the first temple 2 kings 25. Aug 25, 2016 why study the books of ezra and nehemiah. Congratulations, so proud of you, for making it to the 15th book of the bible. Book of ezra book of nehemiah book of esther the next group of old testament books we will survey are the books of history. The lord, the god of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has. Ezra set the tone of the postexilic community, and it was characterized by fidelity to the torah, judaisms authentic way of life. The book of ezranehemiah was always written as one scroll. In lamentations each chapter has 22 verses or a multiple of 22 verses. It records the military campaigns and the division of the land among the people. Key personalities include cyrus, ezra, haggai, zechariah, darius i, artaxerxes i, and zerubbabel. The last four books of the hebrew canon are ezra, nehemiah, and 1 and 2 chronicles, in that order. The book of nehemiah has been, since the 16th century, a separate book of the hebrew bible.
The book of ezra is named for the books principle character and author, the hebrew priest whose name means yahweh helps. The book of ezra continues the account left off from ii chronicles a. The book of esther is also set in the persian period of israels history, although the concern is for a different co for almost fifty years and for. In fact, ezra and nehemiah were originally regarded as one book by ancient jewish and early christian scribes. Old testament survey 07b ezra, nehemiah, esther youtube. Ezranehemiah resumes where chronicles finishes, by telling the story of the return of the israelites from exile to the promised land. The first 5 books of the bible are written by moses.
In the modern hebrew canon, the books of ezra and nehemiah are located in the third and last section known as the ketuvim writings, following the torah teachings or law, books of moses and the neviim prophets. The title of the book of ezra is taken from the name of one of the principle characters in the book. The book of ezra is part of the historical books of the bible. The tradition is that 1 and 2 chronicles were written by ezra. Nehemiah was written to the jewish people who had recently returned to jerusalem and the surrounding area. The period covered by the book is eighty years, from the first of cyrus, b. This free bible class book has questions for each section pdf file size. Jul 17, 2016 the holy bible book 15 ezra kjv dramatized audio duration. A big screen perspective historical books 12 in summary here well break this 12book section into. His leadership proved crucial to the jews spiritual advancement. Ezras purpose was to accurately record the events of the return from the babylonian exile, after a seventy. The book of ezra opens with the same wording that closes the book of chronicles 2 chronicles 36. Because of the fit between the end of ii chronicles and ezra and because of the style, it is assumed that i chronicles, ii chronicles and ezra were all written by the same person. The book of ezra is devoted to events occurring in the land of israel at the time of the return from the babylonian captivity and subsequent years, covering a period of approximately one century, beginning in 538 b.
In this 12week study, kathleen nielson shows readers gods mercy and faithfulness demonstrated in the books of ezra and nehemiah, encouraging christians toward sincere repentance and persevering hope. Joshua details how moses successor, joshua, led the people of israel into the promised land of canaan. Basic bible survey part one old testament harvestime. Renewal the message of ezra capitol hill baptist church.
The emphasis in ezra is on the rebuilding of the temple. In the hebrew bible ezra and nehemiah are regarded as one book. The book could not have been completed earlier than about 450 bc the date of the events recorded in 10. This is a guest post by kathleen nielson, author of ezra and nehemiah. This was written to the jewish people who had recently returned to jerusalem and the. The book of ezra does not name its author, but jewish tradition says ezra wrote it as well as the books of nehemiah and chronicles. Set in the persian empire, one of the greatest kingdoms the world has ever known, the stories contained in the books of ezra and nehemiah provide the most comprehensive scriptural account of the restored judean community after the babylonian exile. Ezra is the most likely author, as the book was originally probably written as a single text, following the passages contained in the book of ezra. The revival began with the reading of the word of god by ezra. This language of gods hand being upon someone is a favorite of ezra, where it appears six times out of eight times in the whole bible ezra 7. A practical study guide on how our bible came to us a journey of faith. Well work through this section a couple of times so be patient in your notetaking.
In the same way, god is patient with us and forgives our sin when we come to him in true repentance 1 john 1. Though the book does not specifically claim ezra as the author, the writing style changes from third person in chapters 16 to first person for the rest of the book. Chapters 1 to 6 describe the return of the first group of exiles and the rebuilding of the temple under zerubbabel. Mar 05, 2014 part of an ongoing series in a survey of the old testament, this section deals with the books of ezra, nehemiah, and esther. Also, ezra was probably the writer of 1 and 2 chronicles and psalm 119 the longest chapter in the bible. By far the most important portion, indeed is the work of nehemiah but other portions are either extracts from various chronicles and registers or supplementary narratives and reflections, some apparently by ezra, others, perhaps the work of the same person who inserted the latest, genealogical extracts from the public chronicles. Banned from the bible, second ezra, the book of ezra duration. Free old testament study guides and bible class books. May 02, 2020 the book of ezra covers the return from captivity to rebuild the temple up to the decree of artaxerxes, the event covered at the beginning of the book of nehemiah. The canonical book of ezra and book of nehemiah are the oldest sources for the activity of ezra, whereas many of the other books ascribed to ezra first esdras, 36 ezra are later literary works dependent on the canonical books of ezra and nehemiah. Ezra in the picture study bible the book of ezra with. The return to the promised land ezra part of the series. Before that date, it had been included in the book of ezra. Bible survey ezra hebrew name etzra ezra greek name esdras greek form of the hebrew author ezra according to tradition date from 536456 bc approximately theme of ezra the return from the captivity types and shadows in ezra jesus is the one who led the captives out.
The two became separated with the first printed rabbinic bibles of the early 16th century, following late medieval latin christian tradition. God had totally given up on his people after the babylonian conquest in circa 587 bce, allowing the babylonians destroy jerusalem and his temple, just like the prophets predicted. What follows is an an organized and curated list of content. A study of the life of moses a literary and theological analysis of the book of ezra. Like the preceding one of ezra, is clearly and certainly not all by the same hand. It is in this light that we can judge most fairly the work of ezra during the restoration. A detailed study of the 12 minor prophets of the old testament. Introductory matters ezra is possibly the author of the book. Ezra is the author of the book and is also the main character in the story starting in chapter 7 ezra 7. Ezra 710 picks up the story more than sixty years later, when ezra led the second group of exiles to israel 458 bc.
Ezra wants to study the law of god, practice it, and teach it to others. The events in ezra are set in jerusalem and the surrounding area. Nehemiah has always had an undisputed place in the canon, being included by the hebrews under the general head of the book of ezra, and, as jerome tells us in the prolog. The first 5 books of the bible are called the pentateuch. Sterling the book of ezra provides an account of the restoration of the place of worship and the people of god in the postexilic period. Lamentations is an acrostic arrangement which is a verse or arrangement of words in which certain letters in each line, as the first or last, when taken in order spell out a word, motto, etc.
This was written to the jewish people who had recently returned to jerusalem and the surrounding area following seventy years of exile. The books of ezra and nehemiah may have originally been written as a single text. Well ezra and nehemiah are named after their essential characters ezra and nehemiah. Basic bible survey introduces the bible and discusses its translations and various versions. The first 11 chapters of genesis cover about 2000 years of history. Separation from heathen is demanded and maintained, chapter 10 the books of haggai and zechariah ezra 5. Scroll to the bottom to view this video in its entirety. It consist of the contemporary historical journals kept from time to time, containing, chs. Ezra in the picture study bible the book of ezra with maps. Jun 06, 2012 ezra nehemiah resumes where chronicles finishes, by telling the story of the return of the israelites from exile to the promised land.