Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / September 25 - Ezra 2

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September 25 - Ezra 2 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends. It's Sean here.
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  It's Wednesday. It's the 25th of September.
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  And boy, am I glad that you have tapped on play because we are
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  just setting out. Not only are we pilgrims on the
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  way up that mountain to Jerusalem, but we are pilgrims
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  heading out of Persia, back to Jerusalem to rebuild.
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  And the beautiful thing about this story is this is not just
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  some folk tale that happened in the imagination of, you know,
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  cultural historians. No, this is the story of actual
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  people like you and me who are being restored to their
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  homeland. This incredible, incredible long
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  dreamt about moment. And so this chapter, chapter 2
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  of Ezra talks about what actually happened the the facts
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  of that. Well, kind of like another
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  exodus back from exile back into their country.
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  So this is going to be a list 2 lists.
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  The 1st is the list of all of those families that headed back
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  and then the second list will speak about the priests who are
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  returning to serve in the temple.
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  So settle yourselves in and as you listen to this, don't get
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  bogged down on my my pronunciation of these names and
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  the names and the numbers, but just hear that this is a real
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  people group. These were people that the God
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  that you and I serve LED back after promising them to restore
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  them to their homeland. He comes good on that promise.
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  So let this story of God's presence and activity in our
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  world wash over you and encourage you that God still is
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  present and active today in our lives.
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  So come with me to the shocker, the very intimidating Ezra
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  chapter 2. Here is the list of the Jewish
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  exiles of the provinces who returned from their captivity.
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  King Nebuchadnezzar had deported them to Babylon, but now they
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  returned to Jerusalem and the towns in Judah where they
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  originally lived. Their leaders were Zerubbabel,
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  Jeshua, Nehemiah, Saraiya, Reliah, Mordecai, Bilshan,
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  Mizpah, Bigvi, Reyem, and Barna. This is the number of the men of
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  Israel who returned from exile. The family of Parosh, 2172.
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  The family of Sapatea, 372. The family of Ara, 775.
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  The family of Payhath Moab, descendants of Jeshua and Joab,
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  2812. The family of Elam, 1254.
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  The family of Zatu, 945. The family of Zakay, 760.
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  The family of Bainai, 642. The family of Babai, 623.
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  The family of Ascad, 1222. The family of Adonicum 666.
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  The family of Bigvi, 2056. The family of Aden, 454.
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  The family of ATA, descendants of Hezekiah 98.
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  The family of Bezai, 323. The family of Jorah, 112.
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  The family of Hashem 223. The family of Gibbah 95.
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  The people of Bethlehem 123. The people of Netafah 56.
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  The people of Anathoth 128 The people of Beth Asmaveth 42.
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  The people of Kiriathjiram, Kephara and Beroth 743 The
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  people of Rama and Gebba 621. The people of Mikmash 122.
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  The people of Bethel and I 223. The citizens of Nebo 52.
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  The citizens of Magbish, 156. The citizens of West Elam, 1254.
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  The citizens of Harem, 320. The citizens of Lod, Haddad and
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  Ono, 725. The citizens of Jericho, 345.
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  The citizens of Senna, 3630. These are the priests who
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  returned from exile the family of Judea through the line of
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  Jesua 973, the family of IMA, 1052, the family of Pashur 1247,
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  the family of Haram 1017. These are the Levites who
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  returned from exile, the families of Jesua and Cadmil,
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  descendants of Hodovaya. 74 the singers of the family of Asaph.
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  128 the gatekeepers of the families of Shalom, Eita,
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  Talmon, Aqab, Hetaita and Shobai. 139 The descendants of
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  the following temple servants returned from exile.
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  Zihar Hassafar, Tabayoth, Keros Sia Pedon Lebanon, Hagabah aqab
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  hagab Shalmai Hanan gidel gehar Raya resin nekada gazam uzza,
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  pasiya, besai, asna munum, nefusum, Bakbak, hakufa, Hahu,
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  Baslath, Mahida, Harsha, Bakos, Sisera, Tama, Naziah and
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  Hatifah. The descendants of these
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  servants of King Solomon returned from exile.
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  Sotai, Hasafarath, Peruda, Jala, Dhakon, Gidel, Shefataya, Hatal,
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  Pogarath, Hazabaim and AMI. In all, the temple servants and
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  the descendants of Solomon's servants numbered 392.
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  Another group returned at this time from the towns of Telmala,
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  Telhasha, Kerab, Adan and IMA. However, they could not prove
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  that they or their families were descendants of Israel.
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  This group included the families of Delaya, Tobiah and Nakoda, a
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  total of 652 people. Three families of priests,
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  Hobiah, Hakos, and Bazalai, also returned.
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  This Barzilai had married a woman who was a descendant of
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  Barzilai of Gilead, and he had taken her family name.
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  They searched for their names in the genealogical records, but
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  they were not found, so they were disqualified from serving
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  as priests. The governor told them not to
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  eat the priest's share of food from the sacrifices until a
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  priest could consult the Lord about the matter by using the
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  Urim and Thummim, the sacred lots.
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  So a total of 42,360 people returned to Judah, in addition
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  to 7337 servants and 200 singers, both men and women.
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  They took with them 736 horses, 245 mules, 435 camels and 6720
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  donkeys. When they arrived at the Temple
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  of the Lord in Jerusalem, some of the family leaders made
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  voluntary offerings toward the rebuilding of God's Temple on
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  its original site, and each leader gave as much as he could.
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  The total of their gifts came to 61,000 gold coins, 6250 lbs of
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  silver and 100 robes for the priests.
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  So the priests, the Levites, the singers, the gatekeepers, the
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  temple servants, and some of the common people settled in
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  villages near Jerusalem. The rest of the people return to
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  their own towns throughout Israel.
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  Lord, thank you for your word, Your word that details Your
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  faithfulness to Your promises, that these families, once
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  removed from their land because of their disobedience to you,
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  are each restored to their place, just as You promised they
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  would with the blessing of the ruler.
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  Lord, thank You that You remember Your promises to us and
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  that even though it feels sometimes like we are exiled far
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  from where we ought to be or where we feel like we should be,
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  You are faithful to us. And Lord, we look forward to
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  that time when this life of exile in this strange and
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  unforgiving place that we live this world, when you will call
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  us home from here to be with you.
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  But until then, we will build your temple where we are, and we
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  will worship you, our dependable, loving, ever
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  faithful God, who gave us His Son, whose name we pray.
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  All of this in Amen.