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| What We Believe |
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Name - Ezra is the first of the postexilic books, the others being Nehemiah, Esther, Haggai,
Zechariah, and Malachi. It takes its name from the Jewish patriot who exercised a profound
influence upon the religious and civic life of the remnant of Jews who returned to Palestine under
the edict of Cyrus. The traditional view is that it was written by Ezra; quite certainly he was the
author of the last four chapters (7-10), if not the entire book. It is immediately connected with
the closing records of the Second Book of Chronicles and covers the history of the Jews in
Palestine over a period variously estimated from 80 to 110 years. Theme - Ezra relates the story of the return of a group of Babylonian exiles under Zerubbabel soon after the decree of Cyrus granting this permission in 536 B.C., and of the laying of the foundation of the new temple. Subsequently, in 458 B.C., Ezra himself led a second expedition of Jews to Palestine, and under his leadership the law and ritual of worship was revived. Still later, a third expedition returned to Jerusalem under Nehemiah. Ezra's chief object in going to Jerusalem was to bring about a religious reformation and to re-establish the Mosaic institutions; he was imminently successful in both. Outline - The Book falls into two chief divisions: I. From the Decree of Cyrus in 536 B.C. to the Dedication of the New Temple in 515 B.C. (1:1-6:22) (A period of about sixty years is passed over in silence.) II. The Ministry of Ezra beginning in 458 B.C. (7:1-10:44) According to Ussher, the events recorded in Ezra cover a period of 80 years. |
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