12) SECOND ESDRAS (EZRA) By Metropolitan Ephraim of Boston This book, Second Esdras, and the book that follows it — Neemias — were originally one book. The division into two books took place only in the post-Christian years, but exactly when this came to pass is largely unknown. Origen, Jerome, and Melito of Sardis make mention of it as one continuous work that concerns the events of approximately one century, 538 B.C. to 431 B.C. By the end of the third century A.D., the Septuagint text of Second Esdras had been divided into two books. This division was implemented in other subsequent translations, as well as in the Hebrew Masoretic text (at least, by A.D. 1448). The book’s purpose is to set forth the most important events of this period. Thus, Second Esdras records events from 538 B.C. until 458 B.C. The most important event, which took place as God promised, that is, the return of many thousands of Jews of the tribes of Benjamin and Judah from the Babylonian Captivity in 537 B.C., is described. The re-foundation and re-organization of Jewish life is recorded with the re-building of the Temple and the walls of Jerusalem in the midst of many difficulties. King Darius’ decree of 537 B.C. concerning the return is described, as well as the return of the Temple’s sacred vessels to Sasabasar (Sheshbazzer), a prince of Judah. An extended list is documented of those who returned — including Zorobabel, a descendant of King Jechonias, as well as the High Priest Jesus (Yeshua). We are told the history of the building of the altar of the whole-burnt offerings and the foundations of the Temple, the schemes and attacks of the Samaritans to stop this work, the continuation of this briefly-halted work at the encouragement of the Prophets Aggaeus (Haggai) and Zacharias (Zechariah). In the sixth year of King Darius’ reign (516 B.C.), the Temple was completed and consecrated. In the seventh year of the reign of King Artaxerxes the First (458 B.C.), the wise and pious Priest Esdras returned from Babylon with 1500 exiles to Jerusalem, and thus began the re-establishment of the political and religious life of the Jewish people. One of Esdras’ main exhortations was the cessation, or even dissolution, of all mixed marriages: “Give not your daughters to their sons [the sons of the pagans], and take not their daughters for your sons …. And separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the women of strangers” (Es. 9:12–10:11). All these events are deeply poignant, for they refer to the ultimate desire of the Jewish people to return — in the midst of many difficulties — to their ancestral land; they are also instructive for they demonstrate God’s loving guidance and direction for the Jewish people through their pious and capable leaders. 13) NEEMIAS (NEHEMIAH) Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel assembled with fasting, and in sackcloths, and with ashes on their head…. And they stood in their place, and read in the Book of the Law of the Lord their God: and they confessed their sins to the Lord, and worshipped the Lord their God. (Neemias 9:1, 3) Commenting on this, the Venerable Bede writes the following: One should note the devotion of the people reformed after the [Babylonian] Captivity: when the feast that had been commanded by the Lord’s Law had been duly completed, after just one day’s intermission, they immediately came together of their own accord with fasting and with repentance… “And they rose up to stand, and they read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God…. they confessed and prayed to the Lord their God.” For who would not be amazed that such a great people had such extraordinary concern for devotion that …. at the first hour of the morning, the third, the sixth, and the ninth, when time was to be made for prayer and psalmody, they gave themselves over to listening to the Divine Law in order to renew their mind in God and come back purer and more devout for imploring His mercy; but also …. at night they would shake off their sleepiness and get up in order to confess their sins and to beg pardon. From this example, I think, a most beautiful custom has developed in the Church, namely, that through each hour of daily psalmody a passage from the Old or New Testaments is recited by heart for all to hear, and thus strengthened by the words of the Apostles or the Prophets, they bend their knees to perseverance in prayer, but also at night, when people cease from the labors of doing good works, they turn willing ears to listen to divine readings. (On Ezra and Neemiah 3.28) [1] There must be something about slavery — or rather, the deliverance from slavery — that helps focus the mind. This is what helped the Jews rebuild the Temple and the walls of Jerusalem. More important, adversity is what strengthens and fortifies the human soul so that, by grace, it may reconstruct in itself the Heavenly City of God. This is Neemias’ message. This book, a continuation of Second Esdras, tells us chiefly about the work that Neemias and Esdras accomplished in Jerusalem. Their first goal was to protect the Jewish people from the attacks of the enemies that were in the region, and secondly, to oversee the religious edification of the newly-returned exiles. A man of faith and virtue, Neemias served as a trusted court official and wine-bearer of the Persian King Artaxerxes who, in 458 B.C., had issued the order for the re-building of Jerusalem and had sent Esdras to Judea for this purpose. Since he was in Susa (Shusan), [2] near the king, Neemias learned all the news about the difficulties the Jews were having in defenseless Jerusalem, and so he prayed fervently to the Lord to look with mercy upon His people and grant them security. By God’s grace, the king was pleased to grant permission in 445 B.C. that the walls of Jerusalem should be reconstructed. He assigned this task to Neemias, and for the accomplishment of this work, he armed him with letters to the local Persian governors in Palestine, ordering them to assist Neemias and provide him with what he needed. On his arrival in Jerusalem, Neemias invited all the Israelites, from the greatest to the least, to help him. And indeed, moved by his fine example, all labored earnestly at the re-building of the walls. However, their enemies in the region continued to obstruct them and were determined to stop this work. Consequently, Neemias divided the Jews into two groups: while one group labored at building the walls, the other group, armed to the teeth, guarded the first group. Thus, in fifty-two days, the building of the walls was finished! After this, Neemias and Esdras turned their attention to the spiritual re-building of the people of Israel and their advancement in their observance of the covenant they had with God. They appealed to, and succeeded in convincing, the money-lenders to abolish all debts and the practice of usury and to restore public justice and hospitality. On the first day of the seventh month, which day coincided with the completion of the city walls of Jerusalem, Esdras read Moses’ Law to all the people. All listened with attention, wept for their failings and besought God’s mercy. The Law was read again publicly during the seven days of the feast of Tabernacles, which was celebrated reverently. On the eighth day, the Day of Atonement, the repentant people begged God for forgiveness and protection; they promised to observe God’s commandments, and thus the covenant between them and God was renewed. After an absence of twelve years in Jerusalem, Neemias returned to Susa, as he had promised Artaxerxes. He returned later once again to Jerusalem as its appointed governor and took appropriate measures concerning the mixed marriages (between the Israelites and pagans), the keeping of the Sabbath, the correction of abuses in the priesthood and among the people, etc. End notes: [1] Copyright Translated Texts for Historians, ed. by G. Clark, M. Gibson, and M. Whitby, Liverpool University Press, Liverpool, 1985. [2] Near today’s Tehran in Iran.
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 22:01:16 +0000
Trending Topics
© 2015