Ezra 5:1-5

TEXT AND VERSE-BY-VERSE COMMENT

C. The work is resumed by the reign of Darius.
1. The work gets under way.

TEXT, Ezra 5:1-5

1

When the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them,

2

then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them supporting them.

3

At that time Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai and their colleagues came to them and spoke to them thus, Who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure?

4

Then we told them accordingly what the names of the men were who were reconstructing this building.

5

But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until a report should come to Darius, and then a written reply be returned concerning it.

COMMENT

Ezra 5:1 mentions the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah which prodded the people into resumption of the Temple reconstruction. To see how this was accomplished, read the books which bear these prophets-' names, especially Haggai 1:4-11 and Zechariah 1:16-17. Zechariah is called the son of Iddo; actually he was his grandson (Zechariah 1:1). This word, son, is used in this way frequently in genealogies. Note again that the meaning of the word, prophesy, is not restricted to foretelling, but has to do with the conveying of the total message of God: with being God's spokesman.

Speaking in God's name, as is mentioned here, meant more than affixing His name to the proclamation. Name indicates character in the Bible; to know one's name signifies a knowledge of one's character. The message of Haggai and Zechariah, then, reflected the character of God, according to Ezra's statement.
This verse is peculiar in that it contains several names for God's people: Jews, Judah, Jerusalem, and Israel, all used interchangeably. This could not have been done in every age, especially during the Divided Monarchy, but it was done from Ezra's time on; therefore it is the policy we will follow herein.

Some cultists today try to distinguish between Judah and Israel. They contend that the Jews rejected Jesus but Israel did not; they attempt to link the British (and Americans) with Israel, genealogically, and to say these are God's Chosen People today. It is obvious that Ezra knew nothing of such a distinction. Many other passages in Ezra call the returnees by the name of Israel (or Sons of Israel): see Ezra 2:2; Ezra 2:59; Ezra 2:70; Ezra 3:1; Ezra 3:11; Ezra 4:3; Ezra 6:16; Ezra 6:21. He even calls them all Israel in Ezra 6:17, which see. We gather from the N.T. (Revelation 3:9) that God is not pleased with those who call themselves Jews and are not. Or Israelites, or Christians, we presume.

Those who returned from captivity were predominantly of the former tribe of Judah, with a healthy sprinkling of persons from the tribes of Benjamin and Levi. It is reasonable to suppose that many from Israel who were carried away by the Assyrians also joined the returnees from Babylon, particularly in the later expeditions. Even without these, however, the company of Judah contained representatives of the other tribes of Israel, who had not been able to go along with the Northern Kingdom's corrupted religious practices during the period of the Divided Monarchy, and who therefore fled to the Southern Kingdom of Judah long before the Captivity had begun (2 Chronicles 15:9).

This terminology is continued in the N.T., where Matthew (Ezra 3:5) tells us that all Jerusalem and Judea went up to hear John the Baptist, and Luke (Acts 13:24) speaks of John the Baptist's preaching to Israel; and Paul, of the tribe of Benjamin, still refers to himself as an Israelite (Romans 11:1).

For an explanation of the meaning of these names, see the Word Studies at the end of this chapter.

The main import of Ezra 5:2 is that the influence of four persons, Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Haggai, and Zechariah, was combined to resume the rebuilding of the House of God. One of the events of history that probably affected it was that Darius had become king of Persia, as noted in Ezra 4:24. He was a man of much greater stature and nobility than the previous two; he was more in the mold of Cyrus, a decade earlier.[30] This may have fostered a confidence that they would receive more generous treatment and support in the future.

[30] Historians are particularly generous in their estimates of Darius-' reign. For a discussion of the comparative merits of these four rulers in Ezra, see Will Durant, Story of Civilization, Our Oriental Heritage, p. 353, where Darius is called the greatest monarch whom Persia ever produced. In the National Geographic Society's Everyday Life in Bible Times, p. 291, it is said that at his death he left the greatest empire the world had ever known.

In Ezra 5:3 Tattenai and Shethar-bozenai are both known from, and their names and offices verified by, contemporary Aramaic correspondence.[31] Tattenai was governor of all the province west and south of the Euphrates River; on a map this triangle of land would include everything from the border of Babylon to the northeastern tip of the Mediterranean Sea, and down to the border of Egypt. The governors of Syria, Samaria (former Israel), and several other lands would be under his supervision. Shethar-bozenai seems to have been his secretary. The nature of their question was apparently not so much censure as a request for information. Governmental systems such as the Persians are always embarrassed if something is accomplished without their direction and control.

[31] Interpreter's Bible, Vol. III, p. 608.

The reply, in Ezra 5:4, indicates the Jews-' willingness to reveal the names of their leaders, with no effort to escape the consequences of their actions. The we in this passage is a puzzle, since Ezra was not involved at that stage. One suggestion is that this should be amended to they; there would be only a slight difference in the Aramaic, and the change could be accounted for as a scribal error. Or Ezra may be copying official accounts here, and the we may be the original participants. Or Ezra may be speaking of his nation as including himself; as a sports fan may say of his team, We won the game. The fact is, the language of the O.T. abounds in such changes in the use of pronouns; the people did not make the precise differentiations which we are accustomed to in English. An example would be Psalms 23, with its switch from third to second person and back to third person again.

Translations differ also on whether the reference to the names of the men is a statement or a question, as in the KJV. If a question, then it would appear to be saying that they gave adequate answer, and then listed the question which they answered. The text indicates that they were asked the name of the person who authorized the construction; they replied with the names of the builders in charge of the reconstruction. Ezra 5:9-10 will show that both questions were asked by Tattenai.

Ezra 5:5 relates that it was God's approval and power which was basically responsible for the continuation of the work without obstruction. All was being done under His watchful eye. They were determined now to continue their work unless prevented by official action of Darius in written form. Tattenai therefore allowed the work to go on while he continued his investigation.

WORD STUDIES

PEACE: Aramaic, Shelam; Hebrew, Shalom: Ezra 5:7. The main idea is wholeness; the verb form is used of being whole, sound, safe, secure, or perfect. Some verses where it is used emphasize health; some, completion; some, peace or friendship; and others, prosperity or reward. Thus the whole round of things, physical and spiritual, that comprise one's well-being, are included in this word.

JERUSALEM: the name was possibly derived from a phrase meaning either Possession of Peace or Foundation of Peace. Some also suggest that the first part of the word may come from the word, light. Abraham's home town of Ur had this as its name, possibly from the light of many windows, or of fires where people gathered to form a community: It became the word for city; coupled with the word just discussed above, it would mean, City of Peace.
JEW: Yehudi: the adjective form of JUDAH: Yehudah. It means, celebrated, lauded, praised (of God).
ISRAEL: Warrior (soldier) of God. The first three letters mean to set in a row: hence, when used of people, to strive or contend (as rows of soldiers do). The ending, El, is the title, God. The person who would set-' troops in rows would be their chief, or prince: hence the name can mean, Prince of God, or, God is Chief.

In two locations (Deuteronomy 32:15; Deuteronomy 33:5; Deuteronomy 33:26; Isaiah 44:2), Israel is called by a nickname: JESHURUN. In Israel's early alphabet both names would begin with the same letters. The word, Jeshurun, means, Little straight ones. There may be a contrast between the straightness in this word, and the crookedness in the name, Jacob, which follows.

JACOB: the basic meaning is heel. It was used of one who took another by the heel to trip him up in order to supplant him. Since the heel is where there is a crook in the foot, it also meant crooked, deceiver, one who defrauds. Also, since the heel is the last part of the body to leave a spot, it meant, end, wages, recompense. So Jacob, who took his brother by the heel to supplant him, became a deceiver and eventually received the natural recompense: he himself was deceived. After this happened, he wrestled with God's messenger and was straightened out. Perhaps the O.T. shows us similarities between the man and the nation which descended from him: first in their relations with God, and then in their history.

HEBREW: this word comes from the preposition, beyond, appearing for example in Ezra 4:10; hence it describes the people who came from beyond (the Euphrates, Abraham's original home; Genesis 14:13). The name is derived also from Eber (Genesis 10:24 f.) who was one of Abraham's ancestors. The verb form means to pass over; appropriately enough, God had allowed them to pass over the Red Sea and the Jordan River in going from Egypt to the Promised Land. Now once more they were coming from beyond the Euphrates.

The name is used interchangeably with Israel, except that the term, Hebrew, appears to be the name by which they were known to foreigners, and Israel was the name which they called themselves.
The last two terms, Jacob and Hebrew, do not appear in this chapter directly, but are discussed here to give a complete picture.