BIBLE COURSE: Ezra/Nehemiah reading guide

EZRA/NEHEMIA Reading Guide (DLK)

1            :2-6 Letter of Koresh (Cyrus) re building of temple in Jerusalem  539 BCE

:7-11 List of released k’lei kodesh (“Sacred vessels”)

2            List of people returning  :36 Priests   :61 The disqualified priests

3            Altar built, priests and Z’rubavel  :4 Sukot     :10 Foundation of Temple 520?

:12 Wailing and shouting in joy

4            Z and priests reject offer of help from locals, who then become adversaries 

:6 Letters to and from Artachshasta/Artaxerxes, sedition, prohibition, trouble

5            Enter prophets Chagai, Z’charyah  :6 Tattenai informs Darius by letter that summarizes history of the temple           

6            Daryavesh (Darius) finds records that back up the Jews, orders Tattenai to help Jews

:15 Temple completed 515     :19  Pesach (Passover)

7            Ezra enters, 458 or 398?  11 Artachshast appointment of Ezra, hakohen hasofer, sofer divrey mitsvot Yah vchuqav al Yisrael (“the priest, the scribe, scribe of the commandments of Yah and His laws for Israel”) 

8            List of olim (“ascenders”) with E  :15 finding priests  :21 fasting and other preparations  :32 arrival, offerings, officials

9            Ezra shocked to hear about intermarriage!  Mourns and prays

10            Much weeping  :7 Required 3 day assembly – divorce!  :18 Court record

NEHEMIAH

1            Nehemiah in Susa, hears of troubles in Jerusalem, prays Deuteronomy theme  446

2            Artachshasta sends N to Jerusalem to rebuild  :11  N inspects the walls at night  :17 convinces officials to repair  :19 Sanbalat and allies scoff

3            Work report: who did what where  :33 S scoffs  :36 N counterprays    Work with a will

4            Sanb plots attack   :3 Counterprayer plus armed workers  :9 Organized work and defense

5            Complaints vs wealthy taking pledges from poor  :6 N reacts, calls great assembly

:14 N does not take governor’s due for reasons of conscience

6            Sanbalat etc. attempt to trap N  :5 Accuse N of rebellion  :10 N senses hired prophets

:15 Wall completed, enemies disheartened  :17 Alliances between nobles and enemy

7            Gate instructions, scant population  :5 Geneology, olim (“immigrants”) statistics            :26 Towns  :39 Kohanim and other officials  :61 olim of questionable descent, including kohanim  :66 Totals, population breakdown, livestock, gold, etc.  :72 Settled by the 7^th month

8            All gather, summon Ezra, Bring the TORAH!  Reads from daybreak to midday

:13 Torah study, Sukot

9            Day of fasting  :6 Ritual history, ~Deut.  :32 Confession of guilt

10            Covenant signers  :30 Conditions: marriage, Shabbat, Temple support – 1/3 shekel, first fruits, tithes

11            Lottery to populate Jerusalem  :4 Resident by family and numbers, officials

12            List of kohanim and other officials  :27 City wall dedication participants  :44 People are happy with the kohanim, etc, and gladly give

13            Halfbreeds purged  :4 N clears Toviah’s implements from Temple chamber  :6 N returns to Persia :10 N enforces portions to L’vi’im   :15 N halts commerce on Shabbat   :23 N sees mixed marriages even among Kohanim