INTRODUCTION
It’s been quipped that passages like this have all the whimsy of curling up by the fire to read a phone book. While such passages might be a bit tedious for us, they are inspired words all the same. Thus, we shouldn’t be surprised that the Living Word is profitable for us even unfrequented corners of Scripture.
THE TEXT
Now these are the children of the province that went up out of the captivity, of those which had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away unto Babylon, and came again unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city […]
Ezra 2:1ff
SUMMARY OF THE TEXT
Ezra here provides us a detailed register of the returning exiles. An almost identical list will also show up again when we come to Nehemiah 7. In verses 1-2 we’re provided with the list of the eleven principle leaders of this first wave of returning saints, with Zerubbabel, the heir to David, being the principal leader along with the high priest Jeshua. If you know your Biblical symbolism, it is a bit odd to find just eleven leaders; it’s possible that this is meant to be a reminder that Israel has been broken apart. This return is wonderful, but it is incomplete.
Verses 3-35 record the families of not only returning “Judahites” but also other Israelites. Verses 36-39 records the priestly families who returned, then in verses 40-42 we find that the number of returning Levites was considerably few. Verses 43-54 reckons the families of the Nethinim, followed in verses 55-58 by the number of Solomon’s servants, the descendants of Canaanites which David and Solomon had subjugated to be bond-servants of the royal house (1 Ki. 9:20-22).
In verses 59-63, we learn there is a whole group, including some priests that had lost their genealogical pedigree. Thus, they could no longer fulfill their temple service, or receive their share of the offerings. This was not an instance of racial exclusivism. As we’ll see a few other times in Ezra/Nehemiah, the corrupted priesthood was a real moral problem that confronted the returning exiles (Ez. 10:18-44, Neh. 13:23-30).
The total returning remnant was 42,360 (v64), along with 7,337 servants, an additional 200 singers (v65), and considerable numbers of beasts of burden (v66-67). Upon arriving in Jerusalem, several of the chieftains made generous donations, according to their ability, to the project (vv68-69). Exile had, evidently, treated them surprisingly well. As one Bible teacher remarked on this display of wealth, “when the Jews get into business, it’s not easy for them to go back.” The chapter concludes with this remnant beginning the hard work of resettling their towns and villages (v70).
THE REMNANT
This chapter is more than just a rigid recitation of a population record. We see here that despite grievous sins which led to Israel’s exile, God in His mercy always preserves a remnant of the church. Here are some wonderful remarks by Jonathan Edwards on this glorious doctrine: “When the enemies of the church have done their utmost, and seem to have gained their point; when they have overthrown the church, so that its being is scarcely visible, but is like a living root hid under ground; there is in it a secret life that will cause it to flourish again, and to take root downward, and bear fruit upward.” The church is all too often reduced to a small number of faithful saints, but in God’s perfect timing and by means of this faithful remnant great revivals are brought about (2 Ki. 19:30).
Now, there are a few interesting tidbits here regarding this iteration of the remnant. We find that only 123 of those who belong to David’s hometown of Bethlehem returned, which confirms the prophet Micah’s description of Bethlehem as one of the smaller villages of Judah, but from which would come the King of all kings (Cf. Mic. 5:2, Mat. 2:6).
The prophet Jeremiah was from Anathoth of Benjamin (Jer. 1:1, 29:27). Jeremiah had been threatened with death by his own kinsmen for prophesying against Judah and Jerusalem; for this persecution, God promised to bring complete desolation upon the men of Anathoth (Jer. 11:21-23). But in this list we find a small group of exiles who trace their lineage back to Anathoth. How do we reconcile this with God’s promise to not leave a remnant of the men of Anathoth?
It is not mental gymnastics to affirm both that God in His justice wiped out those men of Anathoth entirely, and that God in His mercy spared some. In Adam all die, and yet only sons of Adam will be in heaven. God’s justice will not spare one wicked man, and His mercy will not overlook one of the elect. This is a glorious doctrine of comfort. God will judge the world, and God will save the world. There will ever be a remnant, and one day––in a glorious paradox––the remnant shall be an innumerable host.
SACRIFICIAL GIVING
These returning exiles had not only left the comfort of Babylon, but when they arrived they also contributed generously to the work itself. They weren’t free-loaders. They weren’t idle or lazy. They contributed, as they were able, millions of dollars worth of gold and silver to the project. One of the trademarks of a true revival is this sort of sacrificial courage and generosity. The work of rebuilding is not for the faint of heart. It is not for the stingy. It is not for those who like to keep their furniture clean. There are often charlatans trying to grift off of such generosity. However, we shouldn’t overlook that generous giving to the work of the Lord––in tithes, offerings, supporting faithful ministries and missionaries––is a hallmark of God being at work in His people. Your wealth is God’s. You are to understand your tithes and offerings as a confession of that truth.
POLLUTED PRIESTS AND UNLIKELY SAINTS
Some scholars see Ezra’s vendetta against the impurity of these priests as evidence of a growing racial vain-glory amongst the Jews. That certainly does develop later on as we see in the time of Christ. But that is not what Ezra and Nehemiah are up to. Here is one reason why: amongst these returning Jews are the Nethinim, faithful servants of tabernacle and temple. Think of them as the janitors of the church. If there was a racial vain-glory amongst this remnant it would have been more likely found by excluding these “devoted ones” who were not Hebrews by kinship.
The Nethinims, mentioned here, were more than likely the descendants of the Gibeonites (Jos. 9:27). Saul had persecuted the Gibeonites in a fervor of faux religious zeal (2 Samuel 21:1–6). It was David who discerned that by God’s providence, the Gibeonites had been covenantally joined to house of the Lord, and Saul had grievously wronged them in a hot-headed frenzy. David had restored the Nethinim to their work in temple service (Ezra 8:20). God did not reward the Gibeonites’ shrewd deception with death. He instead showered them with the kindness of being servants in His house.
Another set of unlikely saints found here. Amongst these returning saints are the descendants of the rebel Korah (Ez. 2:42). Korah was discontent with his role in Moses’ Israel. God brought him low, destroying him; but once again we find that some of his descendants who survived were tasked with being porters of the temple. Not only that but some of them composed Psalms which we sing to this day: “For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness (Psa 84:10).”
ZEAL FOR GOD’S HOUSE
So then, true zeal is not loss of self-control. It can look like faithful record keeping. It can look like excluding the self-righteous and prideful, and welcoming the humble repentant sinners. Saul thought he could please God with a hot-headed racial purity project. Some of the priests thought it didn’t matter that they had married idolatrous and unbelieving foreign wives. Their lineage was sufficient, they thought. But God desires a faithful people. As God stirs his people to rebuild the House of the Lord, we find Jews and Gentiles working hand in hand. While hot-headed purists and apathetic idolators find themselves put out (Cf. Mt. 8:11-12). This list of saints should put you in mind of two things. First, God raises up faithful saints from unfaithful fathers. Second, God expels unfaithful sons of faithful fathers. The question for you is: is your name listed amongst the faithful?