Love Israel

Guest (Male): Shalom and welcome to V'ahavta Yisrael, a Hebrew phrase which means you shall love Israel. We hope you'll stay with us for the next 30 minutes as our teacher, Dr. Baruch, shares his expository teaching from the Bible. Dr. Baruch is the senior lecturer at the Zera Avraham Institute based in Israel. Although all courses are taught in Hebrew at the Institute, Dr. Baruch is pleased to share this weekly address in English. To find out more about our work in Israel, please visit us on the web at loveisrael.org. That's one word, loveisrael.org. Now, here's Baruch with today's lesson.

Dr. Baruch Korman: Well, in this portion of scripture, we're going to see in Ezra chapter five, the rebuilding of the temple. Now, we know that during the time of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, we find that two primary things happened. First and foremost, Jerusalem was destroyed and not only Jerusalem but also the temple in Jerusalem. And the second primary thing is that the people were carried into exile into Babylon.

And they remained there, and we know that they remained there until the days of Coresh. Now, Coresh or Cyrus, he was the king over this empire, this same empire, we can say Babylon as we're going to be taught today. But we also need to see that he was ruling over the Medes and the Persians as well. His empire was a vast one, a very large one, and this points to the fact that God blessed him because he gave the edict, and we'll talk more about that in our passage today. He gave the decree in order for the temple to be rebuilt, even though there were many who were against building the temple. And of course, when I say many, I'm talking about the enemies of Israel.

Well, let's begin. Look with me to chapter five of the book of Ezra. Now, this is in Aramaic, and it's difficult to read this, but we're going to do our very best to translate it properly and to do so in an effective way. So let's begin, Ezra chapter five and verse one, where it says: "And prophesied," who was prophesying? Well, first we see Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophets.

And they were prophesying concerning the Jews that were in Judah and in Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. So we see here that these two men, and I'm talking about Haggai and Zechariah, two prophets of Israel, we see that they were prophesying, and it was through their prophecy that the children of Israel were encouraged to do something. And what is that? It was to build the house of God and not just the house of God, also to complete the walls around Jerusalem for this protection.

Let's press on. Look if you would to verse two. "Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel got up, and Jeshua the son of Jehozadak, and they began to build the house of God that is in Jerusalem, and with them are the prophets." And it says that they were prophesying with them and doing something else. Now, many Bibles will say and constructing, but it's not the word constructing. It is a word for support. They were supporting them.

So we see that initially, it was prophecy that brought about this change, a wonderful change where the people did not mourn their loss, but what did they do? They began to rebuild what the enemy had torn down. And we're going to see that some of those enemies were not pleased by this behavior.

Let's press on to verse three where it says: "At the time came unto them Tattenai, the governor on the other side of the river, and another one and Shethar-bozenai and his companions, and they are saying to them basically, 'Who placed unto you a decree that this house to be built and the walls that they should be completed?'" So what are they opposed to? Very simply, it doesn't take any imagination.

We just read the text and we see there's opposition from these individuals. Look again, we see that there were individuals like Tattenai, the governor on the other side of the river, and also Shethar-bozenai and their companions, others as well, that said basically, "You have no right to be building this house again." But we're going to find out that it is indeed the will of God.

Let's press on. Look if you would to verse four. "Then accordingly we said to them from these names of the men that these are building, and building they're building the building." And it says why they're doing so. Look at the next verse, verse five. "And the eye of their God is over the elders of the Jews, and they did not cease unto the report to Darius, and it was given, then it was given a report or an answer through a letter, this letter concerning this."

So now what we're finding is that there is a response, a response concerning this charge that they have no right to build this temple. Well, they're going to provide proof from Cyrus or Coresh, the King of Persia. Let's move on. Look if you would to verse six. "A copy of the letter that was sent by Tattenai, the governor on the other side of the river, and Shethar-bozenai and his companions, who are the Apharsachites, and it says these are the ones on the other side of the river concerning Darius the king."

All of this is going to be documented in a very clear way that God is at move. He's at work and He's moving in order to have this temple once more built in its right place in Jerusalem. Let's move on, look if you could to verse seven where it says: "A copy was sent unto him, and accordingly it was written in it to Darius the king, all peace."

Verse eight, "Let it be known to the king that we went to the province of Judah, in the province of the house of God, and then we have the word 'rabba'. Many Bibles will translate this 'great', but if we look at it, rabba means 'abundant'. So it says basically in this verse, we're talking about in the province of the house of an abundant God, meaning without any limitations.

And this he basically instructed that stones be rolled and timber be laid for the walls and for this work, and something else that it be done diligently, this work be done diligently, and success was in their hands." So this is showing very clearly that God is blessing this rebuilding of the temple, that it's His will and He has provided everything and even has told a foreign king to be part of this building.

Now let's look if you would to verse nine. "Then we asked the elders that they should go thusly and we said to them from placing unto them a decree of this house that it should be built and the walls, these walls should be completed." Now, this is the will of God. He wants that temple in its right location in Jerusalem. This is what we're seeing.

Now let's look at verse 10. "And even their names we asked them to make informed of them or to you, that it be written the names of the men according to their heads." Meaning it gives more than just who's building but according to the heads, meaning what family they're from. So we learn more and more information, how precise this was in providing the names of the ones who were doing this work.

Now look at verse 11. "And thusly a copy was given saying that we are the ones doing the work, that this is the God of heaven and earth, and His house is being built that it's being built as it was formally, and it says that it was done so these years and then we have a mighty king of Israel and it says that he should build and he should complete." End of verse 11.

Now let's look at verse 12. "But from our fathers they provoked God, the God of heaven, to wrath, and it was given to them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon of Chaldeans, and the house, notice what it says, this house was destroyed and notice that the people, they were exiled to Babylon." So not good things are happening but there's a restoration, and this restoration is the outcome of redemption.

Now, what redemption am I talking about? The people returning back to the land. That brings about a restoration. This is what the scripture is saying. Look now if you would to verse 13. "However, in the first year of Cyrus the king of Babylon, Coresh the king there set a decree that the house of God, that this house would be built."

Verse 14, "And even the vessels of the house of God, vessels of gold and silver that Nebuchadnezzar that he took from the sanctuary that was in Jerusalem and he brought them to the sanctuary that was in Babylon and he took them they, Coresh the king did something, it says from the sanctuary that is in Babylon he gave them to Sheshbazzar who placed them in the elders there."

Verse 15, "And he said to him, 'These are the vessels, let them be lifted up and go and bring them down into the sanctuary that is in Jerusalem, the house of God, let it be built upon its location,' meaning the exact location that it was." So it's being very specific. "Then Sheshbazzar, what did he do? This Sheshbazzar, he came and he laid the foundations of the house of God that is in Jerusalem and from then until now it is being built but notice 'lo shelem', which means but not yet completed."

So many things are happening but this house has not yet been completed. But the good news is this: it's going to be completed. It's going to be done, made to a finish. But notice, we see for example in the prophecy of Haggai when the people looked at this house, they saw that it was lacking in comparison to the house that King Solomon had built.

Well, let's look at our last verse, verse 17. "And now if concerning the king it is good, let there be searched in the house of the treasury that there is the king, meaning King Coresh, the king that is in Babylon and it says let them come from Coresh the king and let them set a decree that the house of God be built that is in Jerusalem and the will of the king concerning this let it be sent unto them."

So we see something. We see how Coresh, a pagan king, but one that came to faith. So he had a pagan background but he had come to faith and he was instrumental in giving two things. Number one, giving the freedom for the Jewish people who were in Babylon and in those 127 provinces that were there, allowing them to go back to Judah.

And not only that, he did something else, that he was instrumental in supplying all the funds, all the supplies necessary that the temple be once more rebuilt in Jerusalem at that location. So we see over and over how God was moving in the life of this man Coresh or Cyrus in English in order that there is a restoration, a restoration that came back after this redemption, after this redeeming the people out of exile and placing them back in the land of Judah, specifically in the city of Jerusalem, that the temple would be rebuilt and what would happen?

Worship would take place. This is what God is desiring, that He be worshipped by humanity, not just by Jewish people, but by all of humanity. And what is God doing? He is moving among the nations and bringing a remnant from every nation, every tribe, every people, and every language. Now understand that language oftentimes relates to culture. Every language usually relates to a specific culture.

And that's what God's doing. He's bringing a redemption out of different cultures, different nations, different tribes, different people, and He's making them one in the Messiah. That is good news. And why is He doing that? Because He is faithful. He's doing it not because He has to, He's doing it because of who He is.

What we see over and over prophetically in the scripture is that God responds not because the people deserve it, they merit it. Not at all. God does this because of who He is, that He is a faithful God. And we see God's faithfulness being exemplified even today in our days. What is He doing? He's bringing the people back to the land of Israel.

This is happening right now, every day. There are planes that are landing in Israel and they're bringing what we could call refugees or those who came out of exile back to the land that they might live once more in the land of Judah and not just in the land of Judah but throughout all of biblical Israel. Now when I say biblical Israel, we have to make a distinction between the Israel of today and the Israel that will be during the millennial kingdom.

And what is that millennial kingdom going to be like? It is going to see Jerusalem expanded and Israel made larger. So we see that the borders are going to be from the river in Egypt to the Euphrates. Now there is a hint in the book of Second Samuel that under David's leadership we see something. We see how the nation expanded and almost fulfilled that promise that God had made.

But realize this, it is going to be fulfilled. When is it going to be fulfilled? It is going to be fulfilled in the last days. God is going to do something. He is going to give to His people rest from all their enemies. And when that happens, what do we know? Well, we know biblically, historically, there were three cities of refuge, we could say, west of the Jordan river.

But we need to remember that according to the scripture, there's going to be six cities of refuge, three on the western side of the Jordan river and three on the eastern side. And God is going to bring that about. And realize something, that when that happens, there's going to be Jewish people living in Lebanon, living in Jordan.

The borders are going to expand, they're going to get become larger. And why is that? Because more and more Jewish people are going to be returning back to the land of Israel. Why? It's connected to a promise we hear so frequently, the Promised Land. So understand what we're talking about. There is going to be a fulfillment of that promise to bring the people back to the land, specifically the land of Israel.

And when we look at it carefully, what does God say? God says, "I'm going to bring them back to their land." So important. That land belongs to the Jewish people. Now I realize that that is difficult for many people to get their minds around, but it's all connected to the faithfulness of God. That's what we need to be committed to, to realize that our God is a faithful God.

Therefore what He has promised, He is going to keep. We don't need to worry, we don't need to become anxious for any of this, just wait. God in His time will bring all of these things, everything that He promised, everything that He prophesied, He is going to bring about into a fulfillment because of who He is. Not because the people deserve it, not because they're doing things properly. Quite the contrary.

When we look, for example, at Ezekiel chapter 37, we see that in the last days, the Jewish people are going to be called as idol worshippers. God is not going to be pleased. They're not doing what God has commanded them to do. But nevertheless, because of who God is, He is going to bring them back to the land and He is going to have that land resettled.

That's what's happening right now in our days. We are living in prophetic times if you know the prophecies and where you should look. If you do, you can see the faithfulness of God, God's hand at work in this world, and He's going to fulfill all of His promises. He's going to see that temple rebuilt in Jerusalem. It's going to happen just as it did in the days of Ezra.

Despite the opposition, if God wants it, it will be built, and He wills that it is going to be rebuilt. Understand this is where we're heading again. Will the world like it? No. The world is going to stand in opposition to this. But what difference does it make? Our God is greater than this one who dwells in this world. I'm speaking about Satan, that that serpent of old, that dragon or the devil.

We're going to see that he is not going to have his way. He has already been defeated by the blood of Messiah. So be assured we don't need to worry, we don't need to be anxious. Just wait in faithfulness knowing that what God has promised He is going to bring about this fulfillment according to all the goodness of God. I'll close with that until next week. Shalom from Israel.

Guest (Male): Well, we hope you will benefit from today's message and share it with others. Please plan to join us each week at this time and on this channel for our broadcast of loveisrael.org. Again, to find out more about us, please visit our website, loveisrael.org. There you will find articles and numerous other lectures by Baruch. These teachings are in video form. You may download them or watch them in streaming video. Until next week, may the Lord bless you in our Messiah Yeshua, that is Jesus, as you walk with Him. Shalom from Israel.