Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20100905.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Ezra: Following God For Reconstruction After Group Defeat
Part III: Courageously Doing What Is BIBLICAL For Effective Reconstruction After Group Failure
(Ezra 2:59-63)
  1. Introduction
    1. Building after spiritual group failure in a marriage, home, business, church or society at large takes not only God's work in others to do His will, but for we ourselves to be committed to what is Biblical. Otherwise, there is no moral basis and hence no trust for rebuilding anything in human institutions!
    2. The presence of a commitment to doing what was Biblical at all costs was evident in the returning exiles in Ezra 2:59-63, and we view this truth for application to us today:
  2. Courageously Doing What Is BIBLICAL For Effective Reconstruction After Group Failure.
    1. Among the Hebrew exiles of the Babylonian Captivity who returned to the land of Israel, some were unable to prove their Hebrew lineage, and even some of the priests lacked such proof, Ezra 2:59-62a.
    2. Well, Scripture in Numbers 8:19 forbade all who were not of the priestly line to serve in holy places.
    3. However, the application of this Scripture passage in this case risked a significant political backlash:
      1. Some of the priests unable to prove their lineage had descended from a famous, godly believer:
        1. Some with doubtful priestly lineage came from a daughter of Barzillai the Gileadite, Ez. 2:59, 61c.
        2. Barzillai had proved to be a great, courageous, loyal, dedicated helper to David when he had fled from Absalom: (1) Barzillai had met David at Mahanaim across the Jordan, having brought many livelihood provisions for David's needy group, 2 Samuel 17:27c-29. (2) Such support had taken great courage, for had David not been victorious over Absalom, Barzillai would have lost his property and life. (3) Barzillai's courage was remarkable given the fact that he stood to lose a fortune, for he was a wealthy man, 2 Samuel 19:32c NIV. (4) Also, he was eighty years old when he helped David, making his trip from Robelim to Mahanaim to meet David, a distance of 27 miles overland and exposed to possible attack from Absalom's forces on his right flank a threatened endeavor, 2 Samuel 19:31-32; Aharoni & Avi-Yonah, The Macmillan Bible Atlas, p. 71, map 109.
        3. Thus, to decide that those descendants of such a remarkable believer who happened to be unable to prove their priestly lineage would be thus unable to participate in the holy place ministrations just to make sure they were heeding Numbers 8:19 would have risked a great political backlash in Israel!
      2. To compound the risk, the ruler making this very decision was a party who lacked such great heritage:
        1. The presiding ruler who was to make the decision regarding whether those with unproved lineage should be or should not be considered of that line was the Tirshatha (KJV), Ezra 2:63a, that is, the governor of the group assigned by the Gentile Persian government, cf. Ezra 2:63 NIV.
        2. He was called by the Persian name of Sheshbazzar, and his Hebrew name was Zerubbabel, the man who laid the temple foundation, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Ezra 1:8 with 5:16; Zech. 4:9.
        3. Well, this man had descended from wicked King Jeconiah, the king whose descendants God had cursed in announcing none of them would rule on David's throne due to Jeconiah's sin, Ibid., Ryrie; 1 Chron. 3:16-19 and Jeremiah 22:24-25, 30; Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Jeremiah 22:24-30.
      3. Thus, the descendant of the cursed line of evil king Jeconiah was to decide whether the descendants of godly Barzillai were eligible for priestly service due to the question of their priestly lineage!
    4. Nevertheless, the Tirshatha (Zerubbabel) courageously determined and told those with questionable lineage that they should not eat of the most holy things until a priest of unquestioned line found the will of God on the matter through use of the Urim and the Thummim in line with Scripture precedents, Ez. 2:63!
    5. This decision was accepted because it was right, and the nation Israel began to rebuild in unity, Ezra 3:1.
Lesson: Though Zerubbabel the governor who was to make the decision came from a cursed line, he yet courageously stayed close to SCRIPTURE to forbid those of even great, godly lineage but of questionable priestly lineage to serve in the holy things until God Biblically certified their genealogy.

Application: May we always chose the Biblical way in group decisions regardless of the short-term political costs; anything less only sabotages the moral basis and thus the trust the group needs to thrive.