Read Deuteronomy 30:1-6. What promise was given here to the Hebrew people? What must this promise, among others like it, mean to men like Ezra and Nehemiah?

Ezra and Nehemiah knew the prophecies. They knew that God was going to bring the people back from captivity. We saw in Nehemiah 9 that they understood their history and the reasons for their troubles. At the same time, too, they knew God’s graciousness and leading, despite their sins.

Thus, they trusted in the Lord, that He would make the return from captivity successful. Those promises, however, didn’t mean that they would not face many challenges along the way. In much of this quarter so far, we have looked at the trials and tribulations that they faced, even amid the promises of God.

Read Ezra 8:16-23. What was the challenge here, and how did they respond to it?

Despite the promises, Ezra knew just how dangerous the journey was. Thus, the fasting and the humbling before God were ways of acknowledging just how dependent they were upon the Lord for their success. At this time, with so many dangers ahead of them, the idea of asking the king for help and protection had at least occurred to Ezra. But in the end, he chose not to do that, in contrast to Nehemiah (Neh. 2:9), who did have an escort to protect him. Ezra obviously felt that if he had asked, it would have brought dishonor to the Lord, for he had already said to the king, “The hand of our God is upon all those for good who seek Him, but His power and His wrath are against all those who forsake Him” (Ezra 8:22, NKJV). In this case, it worked out well for them, for he later wrote (Ezra 8:31) that the Lord had protected them, and they made it to their destination safely.

Amen!(1)

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No question — as we saw yesterday, it was an amazing fulfillment of prophecy that brought the Jews back from Babylon.

But as with anything that involves humans, problems existed. And one of the big problems was that, despite all the wonderful promises of restoration after the exile, many of the Jews did not want to return to the land of their ancestors. That is, they preferred to stay in Babylon.

Why would that be?

Read Ezra 8:1-15. Focus specifically on verse 15. What was the big concern here, and why would it be a concern for someone who wanted to re-establish the nation of Israel in its former homeland?

Image © Jeff Preston from GoodSalt.com

The fact is, not all the Jews in Babylon, including some Levites, wanted to return. Several factors could have been involved. Many of them had been born and brought up in the new land, and that was all they knew. Many might not have wanted to make the long and unquestionably dangerous trip back to a land that they had never known to begin with. Eventually, though, we know that they brought along enough Levites to minister in the Temple (see Thursday’s lesson), despite the challenges.

“By now, the Jews who remained in the land of exile had been there for almost a century and a half. Excavations of Nippur have brought to light numerous documents that show that many wealthy Jews lived in that region of Mesopotamia during the reign of Artaxerxes I. Hence, it may have been a difficult task for Ezra and his fellow leaders to convince as many to return as did accompany him. These returning colonists could expect only a hard pioneering life in the old homeland, with far fewer comforts than in Babylonia. In view of these considerations it is surprising to find that Ezra succeeded in persuading almost 2,000 families to cast in their lot with their brethren in the old homeland” – The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 3, p. 376.

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1. Lists and so forth. Be honest. Did you cringe just a bit when you saw “lists” as one of the topics for this week’s lesson? Do you remember memorizing long and painful lists of various kinds in classes you took? How often in your work and home life do you come across lists that make you groan? Or that excite you with joy? Our lesson reminds us that our God is a ruler of infinite details and gives us a fair number of lists to help us keep track of the most important ones. For example, what practical value does the listing of genealogies have for us modern-day Christians?
2. The God of history. Which of our Bible writers for this quarter, Ezra or Nehemiah, paid more attention to details? Consider Belteshazzar, the king of Babylon until his empire fell in one crash. Why the sudden fall of power? Was it because of Belteshazzar’s failure or because of the strength and power of the defeating Medo-Persian forces? Imagine seeing a huge human hand appearing in a room for celebrating, writing of the sure end of Belteshazzar. What was Daniel’s view of the event?
3. In their cities. We see in Ezra 2 and Nehemiah 7 a list of people who came with Zerubbabel and Joshua from Babylonian captivity to Jerusalem. Was this list boring to the survivors of the years in servitude in Babylon? What was its purpose? Imagine you are coming with fellow Israelites to the city of your heritage. Then imagine what it is like when that venerable monument to God’s glory, the second temple, is not only built, but remodeled, and made to be beautiful. Why were they so successful in accomplishing all of this?
4. Where are the priests? How easy is it to conclude that everybody came back to Jerusalem from Babylon? Why wouldn’t they all rejoice and come back? What about Levites, who served as priests in various ceremonial services? Why did they decide not to come back? Or was just it a minority of priests who did not return? What were some of the main reasons that many Israelites decided not to make the journey “back home”? What do you think would have been your choice if you’d been in that group of God’s children?
5. Humbled before God.  Yes, God did promise to bring His children back home from captivity. Did He also promise that it would be a pleasant journey? No trials or problems? Why didn’t Ezra beg God for an escort or an armed guard to protect him on the journey? Should he have? Why do you think that Nehemiah’s choice for assuring a safe journey was dramatically different? Is it a sign of indifference or disloyalty to depend on anyone except God and His people to help us when we’re in trouble?
6. In the Holy City. “Free at last, free at last, praise God almighty, I’m free at last.” Was that the cheer of those settling in Jerusalem and the surrounding area? Why were so many immigrants to Jerusalem eager to settle in the pleasant countryside rather than in the city? Can you blame them? What was the challenge about city life that God wanted His people to take on? Do you think that as last-day believers in the second coming, we should at least consider assuming a larger role in the highly populated areas of our countries so that we could lead more people to follow Jesus?  

Amen!(0)

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The first word in our Sabbath School lesson title brings us our first hymn:
“The Glory Song”, Hymn 435. The second word in the title, Tribulation, is found in:
Hymn 8, “We Gather Together”, verse 4 of
Hymn 348, “The Church Has One Foundation”,
Hymn 441, “I Saw One Weary”,
Hymn 532, “Day By Day” and
Hymn 632, “I Will Follow Thee”.

Luke 12:6, 7 (Sabbath afternoon) is shown in
Hymn 62, “How Lovely Is Thy Dwelling Place” where the sparrow finds her nest.

Sunday’s study of the God of History is found in
Hymn 97, “Lord of the Boundless Curves of Space”.

Sadly, many of the Levites could not be convinced to return to their homeland (Tuesday) as they did not see that “there is a land that is fairer than day, that is,
Hymn 428, “Sweet By and By”.

In Hymn 261, “The Spirit of the Lord Revealed” we seek to be Humbled Before God (Wednesday).

Ezra and Nehemiah had the people asking:
“Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah”, Hymn 538

Blessings for a Happy Sabbath singing.

2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

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You can view an in-depth discussion of “Trials, Tribulations and Lists” in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view:

You may download an MP4 video file, and audio file or a PDF lesson outline from the HopeSS site.

With thanks to Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.

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