From the beginning, the book of Ezra is incredible because “the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing...The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah” (1:1,2). Moreover, 42,360 came out captivity, who were of the exiles taken captive to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar, thus fulfilling God’s promise to restore his people using Cryus.
Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed...For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I name you, though you do not know me. I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other. (Isaiah 45:1,4-6)
As as the narrative continues, the Israelites began rebuilding the temple and are making progress until the Samaritans set out to stop them and are successful at it. I don't know about you but, whenever I set out to obey God and huge obstacles get in my way, I start to wonder if I heard God wrong. However, I've come realize that God doesn't promise smooth sailing. In fact, the obstacles we face help us and other realize that we aren't successful in our own power. God gets all the Glory! Our struggles keep us dependent on him. The Israelites do eventually rebuild the temple and you too, through God's grace and power, will triumph.
God is not a man that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not make it good?
Numbers 23:19
-Sydney
and executive director of Uprise.
Find her music at sydneyandpaige.com
Post a Comment