Ezra

Composition

The book of Ezra is part of the biblical Old Testament. It follows 1 and 2 Chronicles and precedes the book of Nehemiah. Scholars often view these four books as being connected because they present a unified record of Jewish history during and after a period known as the Babylon exile. In 586 BCE, the Kingdom of Babylon captured Jerusalem and destroyed the city and the Jewish holy temple. Tens of thousands of Jews were forced to relocate to Babylon over a period of several years. In 537 BCE, Babylon fell to the Persians led by King Cyrus, who allowed the Jews to return to their homeland.

Ezra and Nehemiah are closely associated with each other, and in their early forms were connected into a single book. Many Roman Catholic scholars also viewed them as a single book, sometimes under the name of Esdras and Nehemias. In more-modern versions of the Bible, Ezra and Nehemiah are presented as separate books, but they are acknowledged and treated as closely connected in their topics and themes.

The books are quite likely also connected by authorship. Although the exact author of Ezra is unknown, scholars have many theories. Many believe that a single person, known as the “chronicler,” is responsible for the writing of the two Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. This theory derives from examining common traits between books, such as the opening and closing lines as well as the linguistic and writing styles the author(s) used. Some scholars believe that the book of Ezra was written wholly or at least partially by the historical figure of Ezra. This idea would leave open the possibility that he was the same person as the chronicler.

Despite the ambiguity of authorship, scholars have been able to reach some conclusions. The author or authors were most likely active at some period from 440 to 300 BCE, due to their familiarity with events such as the Babylonian exile and the subsequent actions of the Israelites. Ezra is mostly written in Hebrew, although some parts of it employ the Aramaic language, which was used at that time in the Persian Empire. This may indicate that the author was bilingual or that the book was written by multiple people or during periods in which political and linguistic changes took place.

Summary

The book of Ezra is closely connected with 1 and 2 Chronicles. The Chronicles use stories and genealogical lists to summarize the key people and events of the Old Testament, with a focus on the lineages of kings and priests. They also include lessons about how faith in God creates strong leaders and communities. The author closes 2 Chronicles with the story of King Cyrus, who is moved by God to allow the Israelites to end their long exile and return home. There, they could rebuild the city of Jerusalem and their sacred temple.

The end of 2 Chronicles dovetails into the beginning of the book of Ezra with the announcement by Cyrus. The narrative then proceeds to the life and deeds of Zerubbabel, one of the exiled Israelites who leads a large body of people back to Jerusalem, intent on rebuilding the temple. In Ezra 1–6, Zerubbabel represents the young Israelites who were born in Babylon during the exile (his name means “planted in Babylon” or “seed of Babylon”).

Zerubbabel’s faction makes it back home safely and quickly sets about rebuilding an altar and then the previously destroyed temple. The author focuses on the completion and dedication of the temple, which many Israelites expected would be a pivotal moment during which God would triumphantly appear to them. However, this does not occur, leading many to view the rebuilding of the temple as a crushing disappointment rather than a success.

In addition to this letdown, the Israelites face internal dissent and social tensions as well. Not all of the Israelites had been taken into exile; some had stayed behind in Jerusalem and continued their lives there. The descendants of this latter group are inspired by the hard work and faith of the newly returned Israelites, and volunteer to assist their rebuilding efforts. However, to their surprise and dismay, Zerubbabel rebuffs them. Although the leader later reconciled the factions, the episode marked another instance of disappointment, since the prophesies of unity and cooperation between all the peoples of Israel—and, ultimately, all the nations of the world—seemed to have eluded them.

The second part of Ezra, Ezra 7–10, deals with the book’s namesake, a scholar named Ezra, who had been a leader of the Israelites while in exile in Babylon. The Persian King Artaxerxes, like Cyrus in earlier times, enlists Ezra to bring more exiles back to Jerusalem. Complying with this plan, Ezra and his followers arrive in Jerusalem approximately sixty years after Zerubbabel had returned.

Ezra’s mission is to restore religious faith in the community and renew the Israelite’s society through teachings about God and the Torah. His fervor is dashed when he discovers that during the exiled Israelites’ several generations back in Jerusalem, many had intermarried with non-exiled Israelites as well as non-Jewish outsiders. Ezra viewed this intermarriage as a damning departure from the teachings of the Torah, which divided the blessed people of Israel from their lesser neighbors, the Canaanites, and forbade mixing of the bloodlines.

Ezra believed that the situation remained the same in the present circumstances, and that the formerly exiled Israelites were similarly bound by religious laws to eschew relationships with outsiders. He pushes for repentance from God and gathers support for a plan to coerce the mixed couples to divorce and to banish their mixed-race children from the community. Some people obey Ezra’s decrees, but others resist on the belief that Ezra was not working in accordance with the true will of God, and that God actually opposes the breaking of marriages.

Themes

Much of Ezra addresses Israelite history following the Babylonian exile, and the social and spiritual repercussions of the exile. The exile was a major chapter in Jewish history and left a deep mark on the psyche of the Jewish people. Many Jewish scholars and social and religious leaders lamented the conquest by Babylon as a sign that the Jewish people had failed in adhering to God’s law and had been forsaken by him.

In the coming years, the Babylonians took thousands of Jews back to Babylon. This tactic was a common strategy among Mesopotamian kingdoms as they thought it helped lessen the chance of local uprisings in the newly captured territory. The return of the Jews in successive waves in the late sixth and early fifth centuries BCE provides the background for the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, and their theme of rebuilding.

Another major theme of Ezra concerns prophesies. The author of Ezra presents the release of the Jews from exile as the fulfillment of a promise by the prophet Jeremiah, who believed that the exile was only a temporary obstacle for the Israelites. This example supports the author’s belief that other prophesies are valid and approaching their own inevitable fulfillment. Foremost among these are prophesies relating to the arrival of a messianic king, the rebuilding of the temple, the arrival of God in Jerusalem, and the beginning of God’s subsequent reign over all peoples.

The writer or writers of Ezra seek to use historic lessons to provide people of the present and future with hope that the Israelites will flourish, restore their faith, and experience the coming of God. The events of the book show that some very promising events may prove to be false starts, and that even in great disappointments and in the face of obstacles and opposition, the faithful must retain hopes for great developments ahead. These themes will continue into the next book, Nehemiah.

Ezra is also valuable for its sociological themes. The massive social changes that take place during the Babylonian exile, the return, and the plight of the returning Jews all provide insights into how the people viewed themselves and others. Different perspectives on “insiders” and “outsiders” caused social tensions, such as in Zerubbabel rebuffing the non-exiled Israelite volunteers, and Ezra demanding the divorces of the exiled Israelites. This shows that discrimination and even segregation may be deeply rooted in human culture. However, during the course of the narrative, the authors remind the faithful that God’s grand plan is for cooperation between all Israelite peoples and, ultimately, all the people of the world who will unite in worship of God.

Bibliography

Alstola, Tero. Judeans in Babylonia: A Study of Deportees in the Sixth and Fifth Centuries BCE. Leiden, Brill Publishing, 2020.

“Ezra.” Insight for Living Ministries, 2022, Insight.org/resources/bible/the-historical-books/ezra. Accessed 26 Apr. 2022.

Graham, Matt Patrick and Steven L. McKenzie. The Chronicler as Author: Studies in Text and Texture. A&C Black, 1999.

Hwang, Jerry. Exegetical Commentary on the Old Testament: A Discourse Analysis of the Hebrew Bible. Zondervan Academic, 2021.

“Introduction to the Book of Ezra.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/old-testament-seminary-teacher-manual/introduction-to-the-book-of-ezra?lang=eng. Accessed 26 Apr. 2022.

“The Jewish Temples: The Babylonian Exile.” Jewish Virtual Library, 2022, www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-babylonian-exile. Accessed 26 Apr. 2022.