“And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came to the house of the Lord which is at Jerusalem, offered freely for the house of God to set it up in his place.” — Ezra 2:68

Back in the early 1950s, advertising executives approached a young evangelist, offering him a Sunday afternoon time slot for a religious broadcast that would air nationwide for thirteen weeks. While the young preacher was convinced that religious broadcasting could be an effective tool for reaching souls, the price tag of $92,000 was totally out of reach. 

However, the ad executives kept up the pressure, and finally, the young preacher told them that the final decision was the Lord’s. He said that if $25,000 of the total amount came into his hands by midnight that night, he would take it that God was leading him to begin a radio ministry. He knew a sum that large would take a miracle, because the largest single donation he had ever received up to that time was for $500. 

The evangelist was scheduled to preach in Portland, Oregon, that night, and during the evening service, he told the audience that he had been approached regarding a nationwide radio broadcast but had refused because of the cost. At the close of the service, those present—like the Jerusalem fathers in our focus verse—“offered freely.” Donations and pledges were handed to one of his helpers, who stuffed them all into an old shoe box. When the money was counted, it totaled $23,500! Those present were amazed, saying it was a miracle, but the young evangelist had asked the Lord for $25,000, and he would settle for no less as a confirmation that God wanted him to begin a radio ministry. 

Upon arriving back at his hotel that evening, he picked up his mail from the hotel desk. There were three letters for him, and each contained a check: one for $1000 and two for $250 each, bringing the total received that night to exactly $25,000! That was the starting point for Billy Graham’s Hour of Decision radio broadcast which ultimately was syndicated across 581 stations in the United States, as well as over 400 other stations around the world. 

Reverend Graham received offerings when he had a need, and he gave to other ministries when they had a need. In his later years, he occasionally visited the island of Saint Martin in the Caribbean for vacation, and on one of those trips, he came across the Apostolic Faith Church in Sandy Ground. Not wanting to disrupt the services by attending in person, he would sit outside our church there and listen to the music, testimonies, and preaching. 

When one of our ministers and his wife visited the Sandy Ground church as representatives of the Portland headquarters, they met with the pastor, who gave them a tour of the building. Upstairs, the pastor pointed out the church’s roof, which was constructed by Reverend Graham’s team after the original was blown off during Hurricane Luis in 1995. He also noted that after Reverend Graham’s passing, his son Franklin directed their team to help again in 2017 after Hurricane Irma destroyed much of the church. Seemingly the Grahams felt a burden for this church because Reverend Graham had enjoyed sitting outside and listening to the services there. People had supported his ministry financially over the years, and no doubt he and his descendants wanted to pass on that blessing. 

And so, the Gospel work continues. When God’s people give freely, He blesses freely and the work goes forward. May God help each of us to learn from the “chief of the fathers” who contributed in Ezra’s day, and those in years since who have given of their resources, and do our parts to advance God’s message on this earth.

BACKGROUND

This chapter continues the explanation of the return of the exiles to Judah that began in Ezra chapter 1. Babylon, the once mighty empire that had taken the people of Judah into captivity, had been overthrown. Persia was the new world power, and under the Persian King Cyrus’ foreign policy, captured people were allowed to return to their homelands. The seventy years of captivity prophesied by Jeremiah had ended, and God provided the opportunity for Zerubbabel to lead the first group of captives back to Judah. (There were two subsequent groups of returnees: in 458 B.C., two thousand men and their families led by Ezra went back to Judah, and in 445 B.C., a small group returned under the leadership of Nehemiah.) 

Zerubbabel was joined by nearly fifty thousand individuals in this first homeward trek. The key leaders who accompanied Zerubbabel are identified in verses 1-2 of chapter 2, and some of those who came with them are categorized by families and places of residence (verses 3-35). The priests and Levites are recorded (verses 36-54), followed by the descendants of Solomon’s servants (verses 55-58), and other returnees (verses 59-63). The total number is given in verses 64-67, and the chapter concludes with a description of the offerings made by the Jewish leaders upon their arrival in Jerusalem in verses 68-70. 

This record of names is repeated in Nehemiah 7:6-73. Both lists were likely taken from a register of those families and categories made at the time of the return and preserved in official records. Bible scholars note that any Jew whose ancestors were noted in this registry would have considered the document of inestimable value because it named and thus honored the first rebuilders of their country after it had been laid waste by the Babylonians. 

The phrase “children of the province” in verse 1 reflects the fact that Judah—once a distinguished kingdom—was now merely a province that was subject to and dependent upon another governing power. The statement that the returnees went “every one to his city” means that each went to the city that had been theirs in the former settlement by Joshua. 

Jeshua, the high priest referenced in verse 2, was the son of Jozadak, the former high priest (see Ezra 3:2 and Haggai 1:1). He is referred to as Joshua in Zechariah 3:1-9 and 6:1l. The Nehemiah mentioned in verse 2 is not the Nehemiah who rebuilt Jerusalem’s wall some decades later, nor is the Mordecai listed the Mordecai who appears in the Book of Esther. Tirshatha, mentioned in verse 63, was the title given the governor of Judea under the Persians. 

No description is given of the exiles’ journey back to Jerusalem. However, the trip likely took Zerubbabel and the caravan he led around four months, as the distance between Babylon and Jerusalem was nearly nine hundred miles. An army could have traveled much faster, but Zerubbabel’s entourage probably included children and elderly people. 

Verses 64-67 give totals of those who returned with Zerubbabel. The sum of individuals in named categories is 29,818, and the total number of returnees was 42,360. So seemingly there were over 12,000 exiles who did not know what family or city they were from, but knew they were Israelites. Whatever their lineage, by returning to the land of Israel from Babylon, the returnees indicated their trust in God’s promise to restore them as a people.

Verses 68-70 record that upon arrival, the leaders of the group gave of their resources “after their ability”—as much as they were able—to be used for the reconstruction of the Temple.

AMPLIFIED OUTLINE

I. The reconstruction under Zerubbabel
    A. The return under Zerubbabel
         3. The list of those who returned (2:1-67)
              a. The leaders (2:1-2)
              b. The people (2:3-35)
              c. The priests (2:36-39)
              d. The Levites (2:40-54)
              e. The descendants of Solomon’s servants (2:55-58)
              f. Other returnees (2:59-63)
              g. The total number (2:64-67)
         4. The gifts of those who returned (2:68-70)

A CLOSER LOOK

1. According to verse 1, who was the king of Babylon at the time the Israelites were “carried away” and led into captivity in Babylon?
2. Some of the children of the priests were considered polluted and “put from the priesthood” (verses 61-62). Why do you think this policy was implemented?
3. The accuracy of the family names, genealogy, and details of the exact number of people on this pilgrimage are evidence that God knows us individually. In what ways has God shown that He is concerned with the details of your life?

CONCLUSION

Like the leaders of Israel who “gave after their ability unto the treasure of the work,” we want to support God’s work generously and wholeheartedly.