Thurs.’s Devo - The Return of the Captives

Read: Ezra 1:1-2:70; 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5; Psalm 27:7-14; Proverbs 20:22-23 The first year Cyrus came to rule, God stirred his heart to send the Israelites back to their land to build a Temple to the Lord. God moved the heart of an unbeliever to fulfill his Word for his people. That should encourage us all. Cyrus not only blessed them to return to their land but he gave back all the articles from the Temple that Nebuchadnezzar had taken. Cyrus told his treasurer to give these items to Sheshbazzar, the leader of the exiles. Sheshbazzar was Zerubbabel’s Persian name. There were 5,400 articles of gold and silver. Cyrus set the captives free to return to their homes after 70 years in Babylon. The meanings of the names of the leaders read like this: The ones who had been born in Babylon, God will save. God’s consolation for them is that he has prevailed and made His enemy tremble. The bitterness of God’s oppressed and slandered have been numbered and God is compassionate in their affliction. The meanings of the other names describe the different kinds of people that came out of Babylon. It is everything from the blessed to the maimed. Many were Priests and Levites who had to prove their genealogy so they could serve as priests. There were also the Nethinim who were temple servants under Solomon’s rule. They were not Levites or priests but servants given to the Levites to help in serving in the temple. They were given special quarters in Jerusalem to live in a district near the Temple. The people who returned also gave gifts and were very prosperous just like Jeremiah had told them they would be. They gave freely to their nation and the Temple. The priests, Levites and Nethinim settled near Jerusalem and the others went to the towns of their ancestors. Corinth reminds me of what we are living in in America. Sin and debauchery are all around us and we are trying to walk upright for the Lord. Paul explains it so well. We look like fools to the philosophers and scholars and the word’s brilliant debaters. Our doctrine looks silly that we would still believe that a man who died 2,000 years ago rose from the dead and we will rise with him because we believe. But, it makes perfect sense to us because we have been blessed to have spiritual eyes that see. In Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. The plan of God is wiser than the wisest plan of human’s and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. Lord, we do not put our trust in human wisdom but in Your power. Lead us where we are to go and show us what we are to see and tell us what we are to do.