Latest / The Chosen People / The Chosen People Return
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: Previously on The Chosen People.
- 0:03Speaker 2: He said we can go back and rebuild the temple.
- 0:07Speaker 2: We can go home?
- 0:08Speaker 1: Yes!
- 0:09Speaker 2: Can you believe it?
- 0:11Speaker 3: We'll finally see Jerusalem!
- 0:13Speaker 1: With that, men gathered their tools. Women packed their woven baskets.
- 0:19Speaker 1: Elders dusted off family scrolls and whispered prayers of gratitude
- 0:24Speaker 1: they hadn't thought would ever come. Children ran through alleyways wide-eyed,
- 0:30Speaker 1: overhearing talk of a city they'd only ever heard of
- 0:33Speaker 1: in stories. Jerusalem. The Temple Mount, once the dwelling place
- 0:40Speaker 1: of the Most High, stood in ghostly quiet. Its courtyards
- 0:45Speaker 1: were covered in ash and debris. The altar was gone,
- 0:49Speaker 1: desecrated long ago, leaving behind a scorched imprint in the dust.
- 0:55Speaker 1: where fire had once burned for the Lord.
- 0:58Speaker 2: Bring the rams, the goats, the sheep without blemish. We
- 1:02Speaker 2: begin and end each day with.
- 1:04Speaker 4: The ascension offering.
- 1:07Speaker 5: The entire sacrifice will be consumed on the fire of
- 1:10Speaker 5: the altar of the burnt.
- 1:11Speaker 6: Offering, and the fragrant aroma will be pleasing.
- 1:15Speaker 1: To the Lord. who represent our constant, diligent devotion and
- 1:19Speaker 1: dependence on him. The people eagerly obey Jeshua, their high priest,
- 1:26Speaker 1: as they re-establish the altar of burnt offering on the
- 1:29Speaker 1: temple mount, the roaring fire like the steadfast north star
- 1:34Speaker 1: that lights the way home in a vast cosmos of desolation.
- 1:45Speaker 1: The altar still burned stubbornly and brightly, that tiny speck
- 1:51Speaker 1: of light on the horizon of a vast and dark sea.
- 1:56Speaker 1: The temple around the altar remained a skeleton, half built,
- 2:00Speaker 1: half forgotten. Eighteen years had passed since the foundation was laid,
- 2:06Speaker 1: and the joy turned to silence in the hills of
- 2:09Speaker 1: Judah once more. But God had not gone quiet. nor
- 2:15Speaker 1: had he turned a deaf ear to the prayers of
- 2:17Speaker 1: his most steadfast, faithful followers. Despite the years of delay
- 2:23Speaker 1: and disappointment, he sent voices. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah
- 2:29Speaker 1: came to the city of Jerusalem and breathed new life
- 2:33Speaker 1: and newfound vigor into the people of God.
- 2:37Speaker 7: Is it time for you to live in paneled houses
- 2:39Speaker 7: while the house of the Lord lies in ruins? Build
- 2:43Speaker 7: the temple, that I may take pleasure in it.
- 2:47Speaker 2: Not by might, not by power, but by my spirit,
- 2:52Speaker 2: says the Lord.
- 2:53Speaker 1: Their words cracked through the complacency, and something stirred. Zerubbabel
- 3:00Speaker 1: stood again and once more rallied the people. Jeshua took
- 3:04Speaker 1: up his priestly robes with pride. The people, once afraid,
- 3:09Speaker 1: now remembered. They were not just survivors. They were builders.
- 3:15Speaker 1: But the enemies of the Jews picked up their scathing
- 3:18Speaker 1: correspondences and conniving schemes once more. Letters were sent to
- 3:25Speaker 1: the new king of Persia, King Darius. Reports that the
- 3:29Speaker 1: Jews were building again reached his palace. Was it rebellion?
- 3:34Speaker 1: The enemies of the Jews claimed that it was. They
- 3:38Speaker 1: stirred up trouble in all the ways they could. Concerned,
- 3:42Speaker 1: the new King Darius searched the records, but there, buried
- 3:47Speaker 1: in the archives of Persia, was the decree of the
- 3:50Speaker 1: former King Cyrus. Jeshua rushed from his living quarters to
- 3:57Speaker 1: where Zerubbabel stood at the Temple Mount, overseeing the reinvigorated workforce.
- 4:02Speaker 1: He was out of breath, but the exuberant expression on
- 4:06Speaker 1: the now elderly man's face tugged at a memory of
- 4:09Speaker 1: long ago in Zerubbabel's mind. He couldn't help but smile
- 4:14Speaker 1: at Jeshua's irritation at not being able to choke out
- 4:17Speaker 1: words after the exertion of running up the hill.
- 4:22Speaker 2: Zerubbabel, my old friend, you'll never believe... Oh, here, read it.
- 4:28Speaker 1: Zerubbabel bit back his laughter, but then took the parchment
- 4:32Speaker 1: and read aloud.
- 4:34Speaker 2: A decree of King Darius.
- 4:37Speaker 1: Zerubbabel's eyebrows shot up at Yeshua.
- 4:40Speaker 4: Just read it.
- 4:42Speaker 2: Therefore, you must stay away from that place. Atonai, governor
- 4:46Speaker 2: of the region west of the Euphrates River. I knew
- 4:50Speaker 2: our enemies would add it again.
- 4:52Speaker 1: Keep going.
- 4:54Speaker 2: Leave the construction of the house of God alone. Let
- 5:00Speaker 2: the governor and elders of the Jews rebuild this house
- 5:03Speaker 2: of God and its original site... I hereby issue a
- 5:06Speaker 2: decree concerning what you are to do... so that the
- 5:09Speaker 2: elders of the Jews can rebuild the house of God.
- 5:13Speaker 2: The cost is to be paid in full to these men...
- 5:15Speaker 2: out of the royal revenues from the taxes of the
- 5:18Speaker 2: region west of the Euphrates River... so that the work
- 5:21Speaker 2: will not stop. Whatever is needed... young bulls, rams, and
- 5:25Speaker 2: lambs for burnt offerings to the God of the heavens... wheat, salt, wine,
- 5:31Speaker 2: and oil as requested by the priests in Jerusalem... Let
- 5:34Speaker 2: it be given to them every day without fail so
- 5:36Speaker 2: that they can offer sacrifices of pleasing aroma to the
- 5:40Speaker 2: God of the heavens and pray for the life of
- 5:42Speaker 2: the king and his sons.
- 5:45Speaker 4: Joshua, I can't believe what I'm reading. Our God has
- 5:54Speaker 4: been influencing the very hand of the king.
- 5:56Speaker 2: I also issue a decree concerning any man who interferes
- 6:01Speaker 2: with this directive. Let a beam be torn from his
- 6:04Speaker 2: house and raised up. He will be impaled on it,
- 6:07Speaker 2: and his house will be made into a garbage dump
- 6:09Speaker 2: because of this offense. May the God who caused his
- 6:13Speaker 2: name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who
- 6:17Speaker 2: dares to harm or interfere with this house of God
- 6:19Speaker 2: in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have issued the decree. Let it
- 6:24Speaker 2: be carried out diligently. Never in all my years.
- 6:31Speaker 5: Would you have ever expected to have a king defend you?
- 6:36Speaker 3: The last one gave.
- 6:38Speaker 2: Us gold, and now this one will impale our enemies.
- 6:42Speaker 1: Zerubbabel and Jeshua, two very old friends now at this point,
- 6:48Speaker 1: then howled with laughter and disbelief. And with that, the
- 6:53Speaker 1: resistance faded, the work resumed, and the second temple collapsed.
- 6:58Speaker 1: under Zerubbabel's leadership, was finished at last. It wasn't Solomon's temple.
- 7:05Speaker 1: It didn't shine with gold, but it stood whole and
- 7:10Speaker 1: complete at long last. Decades passed. Jerusalem had a temple again,
- 7:19Speaker 1: but something was still missing, and many more Jews still
- 7:23Speaker 1: remained in exile in the far reaches of the Persian Empire.
- 7:28Speaker 1: They had been saved by the brave acts of Queen
- 7:31Speaker 1: Esther and sustained by the cleverness of Mordecai the Jew
- 7:35Speaker 1: in the years following the rebuilding of the temple. Eventually,
- 7:40Speaker 1: King Xerxes was replaced by King Artaxerxes, and a new
- 7:45Speaker 1: generation of leaders arose. And so, from the courts of
- 7:49Speaker 1: Persia came a new voice. He was a scribe of
- 7:53Speaker 1: the priestly line of Aaron. He was a man devoted
- 7:57Speaker 1: to the law of Moses, and the hand of the
- 7:59Speaker 1: Lord was upon him. His name was Ezra. Ezra was
- 8:05Speaker 1: a scholarly man, but he was no passive scribe. His
- 8:10Speaker 1: fiery devotion to the law of the Lord set him apart.
- 8:14Speaker 1: It could be polarizing, yes, but it also sparked something
- 8:19Speaker 1: in the hearts of the people. He taught with authority.
- 8:23Speaker 1: He called sin what it was, and he carried the
- 8:26Speaker 1: weight of their covenant as if it were bound to
- 8:29Speaker 1: his own soul. His passion stirred minds, moved hearts, and, inevitably,
- 8:36Speaker 1: caught the attention of the king. One day, Ezra was
- 8:40Speaker 1: summoned to the regal throne room of Babylon. He entered
- 8:45Speaker 1: wearing the simple robes of a scribe, threadbare, practical, ink-stained,
- 8:51Speaker 1: standing in stark contrast to the opulent grandeur that surrounded him.
- 8:56Speaker 1: gold pillars, polished floors, and rows of intimidating guards and
- 9:01Speaker 1: nobles in fine linen. Then the royal scepter was lifted.
- 9:07Speaker 1: Ezra straightened his spine, lifted his gaze, and summoned the
- 9:12Speaker 1: fire that burned within him. He stepped forward, not with entitlement,
- 9:18Speaker 1: but with authority born from conviction. He stood not only
- 9:23Speaker 1: as a servant of Artaxerxes, but as a messenger of
- 9:27Speaker 1: the living God.
- 9:29Speaker 7: Tell me, Ezra, for you have found favor with me.
- 9:34Speaker 7: What is it you desire more than anything else? I
- 9:38Speaker 7: will grant you anything you request.
- 9:42Speaker 1: Ezra stood, stunned. He held no title, no position in
- 9:48Speaker 1: the palace, but he carried something greater. The favor of
- 9:52Speaker 1: the Lord and the law of Moses etched deep into
- 9:56Speaker 1: his soul. He had studied it. He had lived it.
- 10:01Speaker 1: And now, more than anything, he longed to teach it,
- 10:05Speaker 1: to awaken his people to the truth they had forgotten.
- 10:09Speaker 8: My king, you, you honor me. This is my request.
- 10:14Speaker 8: Allow me to return to my people in Jerusalem. I
- 10:17Speaker 8: long to worship the Lord there at the rebuilt temple.
- 10:21Speaker 8: I also desire to bring the law of our prophet Moses.
- 10:25Speaker 8: I will bring spiritual revival to my people.
- 10:29Speaker 7: Then hear my decree, Ezra, priest and scribe of the
- 10:34Speaker 7: law of your God. I am sending you not just
- 10:38Speaker 7: as a servant, but as an ambassador of your people
- 10:43Speaker 7: and of your God. You may return to Jerusalem, and
- 10:47Speaker 7: any of your fellow Israelites who wish to go with you, priests, Levites, servants,
- 10:54Speaker 7: they may go as well. You are to evaluate the
- 10:57Speaker 7: state of Judah and Jerusalem according to the law you carry.
- 11:03Speaker 7: And you shall bring with you silver and gold from
- 11:06Speaker 7: my treasury, and from my counselors, given freely to the
- 11:10Speaker 7: God whose dwelling is in Jerusalem. Gather also whatever your
- 11:15Speaker 7: people offer freely, With it, purchase sacrifices, bulls, rams, lambs,
- 11:23Speaker 7: grain and drink offerings to present on the altar of
- 11:27Speaker 7: your god. And whatever remains, you may use as you
- 11:31Speaker 7: see fit, according to the wisdom of your god. Take
- 11:37Speaker 7: with you the sacred vessels given for the service of
- 11:39Speaker 7: the temple. And if you lack anything, draw from the
- 11:44Speaker 7: royal treasury without fear. Let the needs of your God's
- 11:48Speaker 7: house be met in full. May your God be honored.
- 11:54Speaker 7: For I desire no wrath to fall upon my realm
- 11:58Speaker 7: or my sons. Go in peace, priest of Jerusalem. May
- 12:04Speaker 7: the hand of your God be upon you.
- 12:08Speaker 1: Ezra fell to his knees, overcome with awe and gratitude.
- 12:13Speaker 1: He thanked the king with formal words, but his heart
- 12:17Speaker 1: poured thanks to the Lord alone. He knew exactly whose
- 12:22Speaker 1: hand had moved the heart of Persia. True to his word,
- 12:28Speaker 1: King Artaxerxes granted Ezra all that he asked, gold, silver,
- 12:34Speaker 1: livestock for sacrifice, and the freedom to appoint judges and
- 12:39Speaker 1: teach the law throughout the province. It was an extraordinary favor.
- 12:44Speaker 1: meant to secure peace, order and divine protection over the empire.
- 12:49Speaker 1: So Ezra gathered a second wave of exiles, among them
- 12:54Speaker 1: priests and Levites, temple servants and gatekeepers, singers and scribes,
- 13:00Speaker 1: families who still believed, elders who longed to see revival,
- 13:06Speaker 1: sons and daughters who longed to walk in the promises
- 13:10Speaker 1: of their ancestors. Before they departed, Ezra assembled them all
- 13:15Speaker 1: near the river Ahava. He looked upon the crowd, men, women, children,
- 13:22Speaker 1: young and old, and knew the road ahead would demand
- 13:26Speaker 1: more than travel. It would demand obedience and discipline.
- 13:30Speaker 6: You are not merely returning to a land.
- 13:34Speaker 5: You are returning to a covenant.
- 13:37Speaker 6: The road ahead will not be easy, but we do
- 13:39Speaker 6: not serve a God of ease. We serve the Lord
- 13:43Speaker 6: of heaven and earth who brought us out of Egypt,
- 13:47Speaker 6: who brought us through exile and now calls us back
- 13:51Speaker 6: to himself. Let no one walk this road lightly.
- 13:57Speaker 8: Purify your heart.
- 13:58Speaker 5: Prepare your hands.
- 14:00Speaker 6: We do not go home as we were.
- 14:03Speaker 2: We go home as a holy people.
- 14:07Speaker 1: The crowd gathered around him murmured with conviction. Some even
- 14:11Speaker 1: began weeping. Others nodded solemnly. Ezra gripped the worn scrolls
- 14:18Speaker 1: in his hand and lifted them overhead.
- 14:21Speaker 6: This is the word of the Lord, the law of Moses,
- 14:26Speaker 6: recorded here on these scrolls. This is what sets us
- 14:30Speaker 6: apart from every other nation. This is not just tradition.
- 14:35Speaker 5: It's our identity, our inheritance, our life.
- 14:40Speaker 2: Our brothers have.
- 14:41Speaker 6: Returned to the land of promise, and now we must
- 14:45Speaker 6: walk it once more.
- 14:47Speaker 5: Do you not remember the words of Moses before we.
- 14:50Speaker 3: First entered this land?
- 14:53Speaker 8: These are not idle words for you. They are your life.
- 14:57Speaker 5: He warned us not to turn aside, not to the
- 15:01Speaker 5: right or the left, And now, after all this exile,
- 15:07Speaker 5: after all this loss, we must not lose ourselves again.
- 15:11Speaker 2: We will keep his commands.
- 15:14Speaker 6: We will live by his word. And we will return,
- 15:19Speaker 6: not just to this land, but to our God.
- 15:23Speaker 1: And with that, they fasted and they prayed as they
- 15:27Speaker 1: prepared themselves for their long journey to Jerusalem. The generations
- 15:33Speaker 1: who remembered the first rounds of deportations from Judah had
- 15:37Speaker 1: long died out. So when Ezra and his second wave
- 15:42Speaker 1: of returning exiles crested the final hill a ways off
- 15:46Speaker 1: from the Jerusalem of their people's collective memory, they were astonished.
- 15:52Speaker 1: The land of promise, the land of their forefathers, the
- 15:57Speaker 1: city established by David. But when Ezra stepped into Jerusalem,
- 16:03Speaker 1: scrolls in hand, the city felt different. The city bustled,
- 16:09Speaker 1: but the spiritual pulse was faint. Sacrifices continued, but conviction
- 16:15Speaker 1: was missing. Ezra's heart sank as he walked the temple courts.
- 16:20Speaker 1: He watched men, priests even, walk hand in hand with
- 16:25Speaker 1: women from nations who worshipped false gods. He saw altars
- 16:29Speaker 1: in alleyways and up on high places, incense curling into
- 16:34Speaker 1: skies meant for Baal.
- 16:37Speaker 7: Lord, is this what we have come to?
- 16:40Speaker 6: A temple built with clean hands, defiled by divided hearts?
- 16:46Speaker 1: Ezra climbed the steps of the temple courtyard. He fell
- 16:50Speaker 1: to his knees before the altar. His hands clutched his
- 16:54Speaker 1: beard and tore at his garments. Crowds began to gather.
- 16:59Speaker 1: They knew that the king had sent them an ambassador.
- 17:02Speaker 1: They knew he would be a holy man, someone important.
- 17:07Speaker 1: But when they saw his anguished torment and broken heart
- 17:11Speaker 1: over their sins, their lack of conviction, the murmurs quieted.
- 17:16Speaker 1: No one had seen grief like this since the days
- 17:20Speaker 1: of exile. No one had seen profound godly grief like
- 17:25Speaker 1: this for lifetimes. Ezra, the man who was tasked with
- 17:30Speaker 1: bringing spiritual revival and reform to God's people, fell on
- 17:35Speaker 1: his face before them and before the Lord.
- 17:39Speaker 2: My God, I am ashamed, ashamed to lift my face
- 17:45Speaker 2: to you.
- 17:47Speaker 3: Our guilt has risen higher than our heads and our
- 17:53Speaker 3: sin like floodwaters.
- 17:56Speaker 7: They reached the heavens.
- 17:58Speaker 1: The people stilled further as they listened. They scarcely drew breath.
- 18:04Speaker 1: This favored official, this ambassador of the king, was lumping
- 18:09Speaker 1: himself in with their sin. He saw himself as one
- 18:13Speaker 1: of them. He knew that a failure for just one
- 18:17Speaker 1: of God's people was a failure for all. So special,
- 18:21Speaker 1: so prized, so loved were God's children. that it grieved
- 18:26Speaker 1: both the heart of God and his prophets and priests
- 18:30Speaker 1: on their behalf. Silence hung heavy and charged, fertile soil
- 18:35Speaker 1: for the seeds of conviction and repentance to take root.
- 18:39Speaker 8: From the days of our ancestors until now, we have
- 18:44Speaker 8: sinned again and again.
- 18:47Speaker 4: Yet you, O.
- 18:48Speaker 2: God, have not destroyed us.
- 18:51Speaker 7: You gave us remnant.
- 18:53Speaker 2: You gave us favor before kings.
- 18:57Speaker 7: You brought us home. You gave us hope.
- 19:01Speaker 5: And we, we, we have returned again.
- 19:06Speaker 1: What can we say?
- 19:09Speaker 8: We stand in our guilt, and yet here we are
- 19:14Speaker 8: because of your mercy.
- 19:16Speaker 1: The crowd stirred at his words. Some knelt. Others began
- 19:21Speaker 1: to weep.
- 19:22Speaker 7: We have been unfaithful. Is there still hope?
- 19:26Speaker 1: A man named Shekiniah stepped forward, his voice steady.
- 19:31Speaker 3: Let us make a covenant before our God to do
- 19:35Speaker 3: what is right, to send away these wives and their
- 19:39Speaker 3: children according to the law. Let it be done carefully, rightly,
- 19:44Speaker 3: but let it be done. Rise up, Ezra. This task
- 19:49Speaker 3: is yours. and we are with you.
- 19:52Speaker 1: The people murmured. Some sobbed. Others turned their faces to
- 19:57Speaker 1: the sky. One by one, heads of households began to nod,
- 20:03Speaker 1: then speak.
- 20:04Speaker 6: We were blind, but now we see.
- 20:09Speaker 2: Ezra Teach us again. Teach us all.
- 20:14Speaker 1: Ezra's eyes burned with unshed tears. He stood taller than before,
- 20:20Speaker 1: not because of pride, but purpose. The law wasn't just
- 20:25Speaker 1: in his hands. It was alive again in the hearts
- 20:28Speaker 1: of the people. And with humble, repentant hearts restored in
- 20:33Speaker 1: Israel once more, Ezra stood and began the difficult work
- 20:38Speaker 1: of reform. A thorough investigation followed, house by house, marriage
- 20:44Speaker 1: by marriage, name by name. Some left families behind, others
- 20:50Speaker 1: walked away from comfort. The process was painful, personal and
- 20:55Speaker 1: deeply complex. But it was also sacred, because they were
- 21:00Speaker 1: not just rebuilding a city, they were rebuilding a covenant.
- 21:06Speaker 1: They had returned to the land, rebuilt the altar and
- 21:09Speaker 1: laid the temple stone by stone. But now, at last,
- 21:15Speaker 1: they began to return to God, not just with their
- 21:19Speaker 1: hands or their rituals, but with their whole hearts. Spiritual
- 21:24Speaker 1: revival had come, not in the form of thunder or fire,
- 21:30Speaker 1: but through repentance, realignment and a return. The ruins of
- 21:35Speaker 1: their past were still visible and the scars of exile
- 21:39Speaker 1: had not fully faded. But something new had begun to
- 21:43Speaker 1: rise from the rubble, something deeper than stone or gold.
- 21:48Speaker 1: God was planting righteousness where rebellion once grew, restoring what
- 21:54Speaker 1: had been lost, exchanging ashes for beauty, mourning for joy.
- 22:01Speaker 1: And though the city's walls still lay in ruin, the
- 22:05Speaker 1: hearts of the people had begun to stand tall again.
- 22:09Speaker 1: Another return was still to come. Another rebuilding still awaited.
- 22:16Speaker 1: But the story of restoration was already in motion. Because
- 22:21Speaker 1: when God calls his people back, he doesn't just rebuild
- 22:26Speaker 1: what was. He restores what could be. He calls them
- 22:32Speaker 1: To return. This Pray.com production is only made possible by
- 22:38Speaker 1: our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Katina, Max Bard,
- 22:43Speaker 1: Zach Schellebarger, and Ben Gammon are the executive producers of
- 22:47Speaker 1: The Chosen People, narrated by Paul Coltofianu. Characters are voiced
- 22:51Speaker 1: by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwald,
- 22:58Speaker 1: Sylvia Zaradok, Thomas Copeland Jr., Rosanna Pilcher, and Mitch Lashinsky.
- 23:03Speaker 1: Music by Andrew Morgan Smith. Written by Aaron Salvato, Brie Rosely,
- 23:09Speaker 1: and Chris Baig. You can hear more Prey.com productions on
- 23:13Speaker 1: the Prey.com app, available on the Apple App Store and
- 23:16Speaker 1: Google Play Store. If you enjoyed The Chosen People, please
- 23:19Speaker 1: rate and leave a review.