Ezra

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Chapters in Ezra

1. Ezra 1: Cyrus Sends the Exiles Home

   In his first year, the Persian king Cyrus, moved by the LORD as Jeremiah had foretold, decrees that the Jews may go home and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Families whom God moves prepare to leave, neighbors give generous gifts, and Cyrus returns the temple vessels, which Sheshbazzar carries back to Jerusalem.

2. Ezra 2: The Exiles Who Returned

   A register lists the families, priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers and temple servants who came back from Babylon with Zerubbabel and Jeshua. Priests lacking family records are barred from serving until God’s will can be sought, family leaders give freewill gifts for the temple, and all settle in their towns.

3. Ezra 3: Altar Rebuilt and Temple Foundation Laid

   The returned exiles rebuild the altar in Jerusalem and resume daily sacrifices despite fear of their neighbors, then keep the Feast of Tabernacles. The temple foundation is laid in their second year back; priests and Levites praise God’s goodness, and elders who knew the first temple weep while others shout for joy.

4. Ezra 4: Opposition Halts the Temple Rebuilding

   Zerubbabel and the leaders refuse an offer of help from their adversaries, who then spend years discouraging and frightening the builders. A later letter to King Artaxerxes accuses Jerusalem of rebellion, the king orders the work stopped, and the temple project stands idle until Darius’s second year.

5. Ezra 5: Haggai and Zechariah Restart the Work

   Haggai and Zechariah prophesy and stir Zerubbabel and Jeshua to resume building the temple. Under God’s watchful care the work continues while Tattenai, the regional governor, writes to Darius, reporting the elders’ account of the exile and of Cyrus’s decree and asking for a search of the royal records.

6. Ezra 6: The Temple Completed and Dedicated

   Darius finds Cyrus’s decree, orders the officials to leave the builders alone, and pays for the work and the sacrifices. The temple is finished and dedicated with joy and offerings for all twelve tribes, and the people keep the Passover, rejoicing that God turned a king’s favor toward them.

7. Ezra 7: Ezra Comes to Jerusalem

   Ezra, a priest descended from Aaron and an expert in Moses’ Law, travels from Babylon to Jerusalem with God’s favor on him, devoted to learning, obeying, and teaching God’s Law. King Artaxerxes sends him with gifts, supplies, and authority to appoint judges, and Ezra praises God and gathers Israel’s leaders.

8. Ezra 8: Ezra’s Company Returns Safely

   Ezra records the families who return with him, recruits Levites for the temple, and leads a fast to seek God’s protection rather than asking the king for soldiers. He entrusts the temple treasure to priests, God guards the group on the road, and they arrive and offer sacrifices for all Israel.

9. Ezra 9: Ezra’s Prayer of Confession

   Ezra learns that many returned exiles, priests and leaders included, have married into neighbors with detestable practices, and he is overcome with grief. At the evening sacrifice he confesses the people’s sin as his own, thanks God for sparing a remnant, and admits they have no standing before a righteous God.

10. Ezra 10: The Covenant to Put Away Foreign Wives

    As Ezra weeps and prays, a large crowd gathers in sorrow, and Shecaniah urges a covenant to dismiss the foreign wives along with their children in keeping with the Law. The people gather in heavy rain, agree to Ezra’s call, and leaders examine each case, ending with a list of the men involved.