Priest, scribe, leader of return from exile
c. 480–440 BC · Old Testament
The priest and scribe who led the second wave of returning exiles from Babylon, taught the Law of Moses to Israel, and stood with Nehemiah for the spiritual restoration of Jerusalem.
Ezra was a priest, descended from Aaron through Zadok (Ezra 7:1-5), and a 'ready scribe in the law of Moses' (Ezra 7:6). About 80 years after the first return from Babylon under Zerubbabel (538 BC), Ezra led a second wave of returning exiles to Jerusalem (458 BC). King Artaxerxes of Persia granted him broad authority and resources (Ezra 7:11-26). Ezra 7:10 captures his life's purpose: 'Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.' Three movements — prepare, do, teach — in that order. When Ezra arrived in Jerusalem, he found that many of the returnees, including priests and Levites, had intermarried with foreigners and adopted their idolatry. Ezra was devastated: 'when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonied' (Ezra 9:3). His prayer of confession (Ezra 9:6-15) is one of the great corporate confessions in Scripture. The people, convicted, agreed to put away their foreign wives. The reform was painful but real. In Nehemiah's ministry (a generation later, c. 446 BC), Ezra reappears. After the walls were rebuilt in 52 days (Nehemiah 6:15), Ezra stood before the people in the square before the Water Gate and read the Law from morning till midday (Nehemiah 8:1-3). The people wept on hearing it. Ezra and Nehemiah led the people through the Feast of Tabernacles, confession, and a renewal of the covenant (Nehemiah 8-10). Ezra is traditionally considered the author of 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and possibly the compiler/editor of the Hebrew Scriptures in their canonical form. His ministry combined priestly office (offering sacrifices) with scribal vocation (teaching the Law). He is one of the foundational figures of post-exilic Judaism and the model of the Bible-teacher.
458 BC, ~1,500 men with families
Three movements
Devastated; prays corporate confession
Painful purification
After walls rebuilt
With Nehemiah
Ezra's significance: (1) He led the second return — restoring the priestly and scribal foundation. (2) His three-fold purpose — prepare, do, teach — is the model for every Bible teacher. (3) His public reading of the Law restored Scripture to the center of Israel's life. (4) Together with Nehemiah, he led the spiritual reformation that paralleled the physical rebuilding. (5) He is traditionally credited with major editorial work on the Hebrew Bible. (6) His ministry of teaching the Law foreshadowed the synagogue tradition and the rise of post-exilic Jewish piety.
“For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.”— Ezra 7:10
“O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head.”— Ezra 9:6
Ezra was a priest and 'ready scribe in the law of Moses' (Ezra 7:6) who led a second wave of exiles from Babylon back to Jerusalem in 458 BC. He led religious reform when he discovered Israelites had intermarried with idolaters (Ezra 9-10). With Nehemiah, he led the spiritual reformation of post-exilic Israel — publicly reading the Law (Nehemiah 8) and renewing the covenant. He is traditionally considered the author of Ezra and 1-2 Chronicles.
Ezra 7:10 — 'For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.' Three movements in order: seek (personal study), do (personal obedience), teach (public ministry). This verse is often cited as the model for every Bible teacher: don't teach what you haven't first sought and obeyed.
Ezra came first. He led the second wave of returnees from Babylon in 458 BC. Nehemiah came about 12 years later (446 BC) as governor to rebuild the walls. Their ministries overlapped during the rebuilding period. Ezra emphasized teaching the Law; Nehemiah emphasized practical leadership and reform. Together they led the spiritual and physical restoration of Jerusalem.
The Law of Moses — the Torah. Nehemiah 8 records him standing on a wooden platform in the square before the Water Gate, reading the book of the Law to the people 'from the morning until midday' (Nehemiah 8:3). The Levites helped explain. The people wept on hearing it. This event marks a major moment in the history of Scripture-centered Jewish piety and the future synagogue tradition.