Ezra 2 (Part 2) Bible Study (The Exiles Return) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (11/7/25)

Father, we thank you for gathering us this night to be able to look forward to and anticipate week after week, Time in the Word with a with a people who love you is a gift in itself, and we give you glory for it. And we ask now that you would assist us and guide us through these passages in a way that would make everything and everyone disappear, that he will pull out of us greater affection and devotion, and that we would leave your awestruck infinite glory. Only by the spirit can such a thing be possible. But we pray in faith that you would move in great power, and that we would leave here knowing that God was surely in this place. We don't rely on any personality.

We don't rely on any equipment. We don't even rely on any knowledge. We come to you admitting that we need your grace to rest upon this time, and we trust that you will make it known. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

You know, as I was thinking about this time together earlier today, my heart quickly became swollen with encouragement. Because, I really just thought about it, I am in a few hours about to gather with people who will fill a church sanctuary to study an ancient genealogy on a Friday night. It seems strange, doesn't it? But we know that we're not here just looking at any ordinary historical record. We've come because we realize that this document is found in God's written word.

This is divine revelation And we believe that even a list of names and cities and numbers have something for us, for our spiritual growth, for the increase of our worship, for our sanctification. And if you were not here last week, then perhaps you didn't taste that. How we just carefully looked at this registry and realized that there was so many profound truths for us to feast on and to be nourished by. And in case you weren't there last week, we began Ezra chapter two. And in Ezra chapter two, we looked at the first steps of a faithful remnant, who chose to return from exile and to go back to a desolate city called Jerusalem, located in a ruined state called Judea.

And what we saw in those steps were many groups of people who have collected their faith and made this effort together. And although one can organize these different peoples, and names, and families, in various manners, we chose to look at them through the lens of a total of eight categories. Eight categories of people who made the bold step of going back to the promised land. Does anybody remember the first three that we covered in our study last time? You can say it if you know it.

The leaders are number one. Number two, the men of Israel, or in parenthesis, the families of Israel. And lastly, very good. The priest and the Levites. And, we paused that verse 40 of Ezra two last week, and we'll now pick up right where we left off to see the fourth group that the spirit of God draws our attention to.

Let's read one verse to begin with. In Ezra two, forty one. The singers, the sons of Asaph, a 128. Even if you are a diligent student of the Bible, this could be the first time you've discovered that there is actually a designated group of people who were called to sing at this time. Now, what's interesting is that their origins go back to King David, who set apart different groups of ministers in preparation for the temple to be built later by his son, Solomon.

And among those different groups of ministers were musicians and vocalists. And, the details of their designation are found in another obscure part of the Bible, first Chronicles chapter 25, and I just want to read to you, unless you want to turn there to see it with your own eyes, I just want to read to you the first verse of that chapter, because there is something very important regarding it. Here's what it says. First Chronicles twenty five one. David and the chiefs of the service also set apart for the service the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jegethon, who prophesied with liars, with harps, and with cymbals, the list of those who did the work of their duties was.

And it goes on to list the names of the singers. Three families were chosen by David, who was evidently led by the Spirit of God, to facilitate the music, and the choirs and the singing in the house of God known as the temple. Why is that important? Because we only learn of one of these families who chose to return to Jerusalem, the sons of Asaph. And for reasons not explained to us, we don't know why the two other families did not go back.

But what's in focus here is Asaph and his descendants. Asaph should be familiar to us. You know why? Because if you read through the book of Psalms, you have looked at 12 of his own writings, his own pieces. He's attributed 12.

And the Spirit of God has preserved his songs, his journal entries, his poems, if you will, in the salter. And perhaps he is most known for the soul bearing transparent work in Psalm 73. Psalm 73 is really Asaph's confession of a crisis of faith. And the thing that he was really wrestling with was, how is it that the wicked can prosper, that evildoers can enjoy life, while those who are righteous and committed to the truth suffer? And he even admits at the beginning of that Psalm that these doubts were so intense that they almost derailed him from his walk with God altogether.

Do you remember what he said in Psalm 73 verse two? He mentions, but as for me, my feet had almost stumbled. My steps had nearly slipped. I couldn't make sense of this to the degree that I was willing to walk away from all of it. This is a minister.

This is a praise team leader. This is a man of reputation. This is a man that people knew, who were blessed by. And at one point in his walk with the Lord, he said, I was ready to give up on everything. But praise God, he made a choice.

And in the very last verse of that Psalm, he gives us another but. He says in verse 28 of Psalm 73, but for me it is good to be near God. It is good to be near God. I have made the Lord God my refuge that I may tell of all your works. That's the punctuation mark of that Psalm.

I'm gonna stay near God, which implies something. It's possible not to be near God. I didn't mean to say this, but it's worth asking right away. Are you near God tonight? I pray that this Bible study would draw you closer if you're not.

Asaph said, I I want to be near him. And here's what I want to argue. I'm convinced that Asaph's decision, with this crisis of faith, had generational consequences. That's not something I'm inferring. That's not something I'm trying to make happen in the text.

Remember I told you first Chronicles 25 is a chapter that tells us about the beginnings of this ministry group known as the singers in the temple. Asaph is named there, among others, but there's this interesting verse in verse six of first Chronicles 25. Don't turn there, but listen to what it says. They were all under the direction of their father in music in the house of the Lord. Speaking about the sons of these worship leaders.

They were all under the direction of their father, including Asaph. Asaph was not just a dad to his sons. He was a ministry team leader. He was a spiritual guide. He was again a man of great reputation in the land.

And you can only imagine what would have happened if Asaph had turned away from his faith. What if he had decided to walk away? Or what if he had decided to diminish his zeal to give God half of his heart because he couldn't reconcile the dilemma that was ever before him? What if he recanted? What if he became apostate?

What if he became worldly? What if he had never concluded it is good for me to be near God? What would have happened to his sons who took his direction? Who trusted in him? Who watched him, who were inspired by him.

But I believe because this man vowed to declare his works, not just to the nation, but to his own family. When it came to the point that the sons of Asaph were taken into exile and the opportunity arose for them to return, they thought to themselves, we're going back. We're going back. You know, Asaph said it is good to be near God. Physically, we're not near God here in Babylon.

Let's go back. Let's go back. Listen, never underestimate the far reaching glorious consequences of your choice every single day to walk close to God. It may be the very reason why your children will choose to walk close to God even when you're no longer around. Your consecration and mine carries consequences beyond our own lives.

I'd love to see that, that a 128 of the descendants of Asaph chose to go back to Jerusalem and be near his presence again. And it could be that Asaph's decision to be near God while he was still alive made a mark on them. Now, there's one more thing I'd like to highlight about these singers before we move on. Did you know that these exiles in Babylon made a different kind of vow while in captivity? They vowed that they would never sing God's songs while in captivity.

Did you know that? Actually, there's an entire Psalm about it. There is a Psalm in the Psalter written by the exiles while they were in Babylon. Did you know that? Well, now you do.

Psalm one thirty seven. Look at it. Now, let's turn there. I want you to see it from verse one down to verse six. This is marvelous.

Psalm one thirty seven verse one. By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept when we remembered Zion. On the willows there, we hung up our liars. For there, our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors mirth saying, sing us one of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?

If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill. Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy. Oh, the vast amount of insights and principles concerning worship and praise in these verses. One thing that stands out to me is how these exiles refused to sing God's songs merely for entertainment's sake. Even though they were pressured, even though there was a demand to sing these holy songs, these holy lyrics, just to please some people who are outside of covenant with God, they said we will not do that.

And unfortunately today we're seeing an entire industry in Christendom moving in the opposite direction. Catering supposed worship music for the carnal mind, for the one who is not in covenant with Christ. No hesitation whatsoever to capitalize on the Lord's songs. This is tragic. This may offend some people, so be it.

I believe a lot of what we call worship today has been infected by a Babylonian mindset. But what we find here is a group of people who refused. This belongs to the Lord. This is holy. This is this is for His pleasure.

Everything that we organize, everything that we write is for his ears primarily. But that's not why I brought you to the Psalm. The main thing I want to show you is how, according to these verses, sin robs us of the soul enriching experience of singing to the Lord. They're writing this while in captivity. We will not sing.

We cannot sing. No one can truly sing. It's amazing how human nature is wired to belt out things. If you think singing is just a Christian exercise, there are stadiums filled with people who will repeat lyrics and even lift their hands to those who are rejoicing over sin, and evil, and darkness, and what is that? What makes people want to sing?

We're wired that way. But to sing the songs of God truly and genuinely is impossible while you're in captivity. Is impossible while you're in bondage to sin. In Proverbs twenty nine six, it says that the evil man is ensnared in his transgression, but a righteous man, what does he do? He sings and rejoices.

Only when men who's been truly suffering from the shackles of sin can really sing. And that's why I think highlighting the singers in Ezra two is helpful and insightful because it shows us that one of the things that we recover when we are restored to the Lord, when when we rebuild our relationship with Christ, is our singing. And the joy and the pleasure that comes with it. So, this is what we see with the singers. But we move on now to the fifth group according to verse 42.

The sons of the gatekeepers, the sons of Shalom, the sons of Eitar, the sons of Talman, the sons of Akub, the sons of Hatita, and the sons of Shobai, and all a 139. The fifth group are the gatekeepers. Who are the gatekeepers? They are essentially the bodyguards of the temple. Their responsibilities included opening the entrance into the temple, monitoring who comes in and who leaves, ensuring that the utilities that go out and come in are are are fine, that they're still there, they're up to date, they're they're clean, they're preserved, And other menial tasks like this, they were they were essentially just supervising the temple grounds.

And at first glance, when you look at the gatekeepers, and what they're called to do, and compare them with the priests and the Levites and the singers, their duties don't really seem that impressive, rather ordinary. And that's what makes this so special. So you had the priests who interceded, you had the Levites who taught, you had the singers who moved the hearts of people with their prophetic songs. And what about the gatekeepers? They just had a clipboard at the front, making sure that the right people were coming in, and making sure that nothing was taken out.

It's not very glamorous. In fact, we might say it's easily replaceable. And yet, when it came to this genealogy, the Lord recognized the gatekeepers. The Lord highlights these ministers and he rewards them. He applauds them.

He inscribes their names in our Bibles to say, In my eyes, O gatekeepers, you are so valuable. You are very much needed for the operations of my house, my dwelling place on the earth. I do not overlook you. I I place you among those who truly play a part in my kingdom. So, I told you that in first Chronicles 25 is is the chapter where we learn about the singers.

Well, in the very next chapter in first Chronicles 26, we learn about the designation of the gatekeepers. The people associated with it, the people who are in charge of it, their descendants, And then you find this verse, as you read through those names of first Chronicles 26, as though to reassure the gatekeepers of the significance of their ministry. Just listen. First Chronicles 26 verse 12. These divisions of the gatekeepers corresponding to their chief men had duties just as their brothers did, ministering in the house of the Lord.

Isn't that precious? That moved me. No matter how menial, how practical your service in the church of Christ may be, Do you see what the Lord is saying in this verse? Make no mistake, you are ministering in the house of God. You are important.

God requires your participation, your involvement. So, maybe you serve in the sound and visual team, and you think that you just come here on Fridays and Sundays to push some buttons. Ministering in the house of God. Maybe you're with the hospitality team. Maybe you've been recruited by the hospitality team to do what?

Clean those tables and sweet those floors. You think Alright. God, I'm waiting for you to call me to something and maybe he does have something in mind for you, but do you not understand that even in that, you're offering service to the Lord, to God Almighty in his house. Here's the Lord going out of his way to say, you gatekeepers, you have duties just like your other brothers. Yeah.

Just like the priests, and just like the Levites, and just like the singers. You are ministers in my sight. These are the gatekeepers. But now, we come to another group in our main text. Let's look at verse 43, and we're gonna listen now, you have to pay attention because we're gonna read through these names down to verse 58.

The temple servants. The temple servants. This is the sixth group that we're looking at of the returnees back to the Promised Land. The temple servants, the son of, sons of Zeeha, the sons of Hasufah, the sons of Tabaoth, the sons of Keros, the sons of Siah, the sons of Padan, the sons of Libana, the sons of Hagaba, the sons of Akub, the sons of Hagib, the sons of Shemlai, the sons of Hanan, the sons of Gedel, the sons of Gehar, the sons of Rehah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nikodah, the sons of Gazem, the sons of Uzzah, the sons of Pesia, the sons of Besai, the sons of Asna, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nefesim, the sons of Baghbuk, the sons of Hakufa, the sons of Harhur, the sons of Basluth, the sons of Meheda, the sons of Harsha, the sons of Barcos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Tema, the sons of Niziah, and the sons of Hatiphah, the sons of Solomon's servants, the sons of Sothai, the sons of Hesophareth, the sons of Peruta, the sons of Ja'ala, the sons of Darkin, the sons of Gedel, the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hatil, the sons of Pokareth, Hazabaim, the sons of Ami.

All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon's servants were 392. So, we looked at the singers, we looked at the gatekeepers, we briefly touched on their origins. Who are the temple servants? Is it even important asking? I think it is.

Does anybody here read the new King James or the King James translation? Do you have that in your hands here tonight? Anybody? Is everybody few. Do you see the temple servants or do you see something else mentioned?

Another name? Say that again. Nethanim. If you have the King James and the New King James, the temple servants are not identified. Instead, you have this title, the Nethaneem.

Why is that? Because those translations chose to use a transliteration of the Hebrew word, nethanim. Whereas the ESV and NASB, for example, opted to translate the function of this group of people. And the word nethanim essentially means to be given. Given to others.

And so, the idea here is that they are given ones. They are, they are consecrated and they are brought forth to someone else for a specific purpose. So, both really mean the same thing. And when we understand the role of these temple servants, the name makes perfect sense. This group, the temple servants in the original word are found in first Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah.

And when you look at where they're mentioned, you realized who they were in more detail. So we're sticking in Ezra now. Fast forward and go to Ezra chapter eight, and look at verse 20. This is gonna give us a clear understanding of who we're looking at here. Ezra eight verse 20.

Besides 220 of the temple servants, the same group of people, whom David and his officials had set apart to attend the Levites, these were all mentioned by name. Let's backtrack for a moment. The priests, were they Levites? Good. Yes.

But, from which family line? The sons of Aaron. That means not every Levite was a priest. So, you had the sons of Aaron from the tribe of Levi who were set apart to be the priestly line. The Levites were given to assist the sons of Aaron to perform their priestly duties.

We understood that. Right? But there's another layer to this now. So, you have the sons of Aaron, the Levites who assist them in their priestly role, But now we learn about these temple servants who are given to help who? The Levites.

Interesting. Now, we understand what they're supposed to do, but we still haven't answered the question who they are. Do we have any clues where they come from? Well, we can determine one thing. Right?

Are the temple servants Levites or not Levites? They're not Levites. Why? Because they're assisting the Levites. So the outside of the Levitical tribe, so we're one step closer now.

But there isn't any explicit text that shows us really their origins. But there is one place in all of the Bible that gives us a very strong clue of their ancestry. Who here remembers the Gibeonites? You would remember if you were with us when we went through the book of Joshua. The Gibeonites were Canaanites.

The Canaanites who lived in the Promised Land before Israel entered in to conquer were destined to be judged by God for their centuries upon centuries of iniquity and rebellion. These Gibeonites heard about Moses, heard about the miracles and heard that now Moses' successor Joshua is leading this nation into our own land to take over everything. They're terrified. And so they come up with a plan. Let's pretend that we're coming from a distant land, approach Joshua and the leaders, convince them that we are not among the Canaanites, and make a covenant with them.

And once they make a covenant with us, because remember, a promise back then, a whole different way than it does today. We're coming up to that in a moment here. We are going to trick them to believe that we are their allies and we'll make a pact, we'll make a treaty, and we'll be safe. So they did it. Joshua and the leaders did not seek the Lord, according to Joshua chapter nine.

They make this covenant and it didn't take very long before they realized we've been lied to. We've been tricked. We've been hoodwinked. And so, they approached the Gibeonites saying, you lied to us. You deceived us.

And the Gibeonites say, well, okay look, we we heard about who you are, we heard about your God, this is how he responded to do with us as you please. And Joshua was a man of integrity. And so he decided not to slay them, not to kill them. Why? Because they're protected by this oath.

And so what does he do? He assigned to them permanent servitude. That as long as they would remain with the people of God for generations upon generations, they would be servants. To what capacity? Let me show you.

In Joshua nine verse 23. Now, therefore, Joshua speaking, now therefore you are cursed and some of you shall never be anything but servants, cutters of wood, and drawers of water for what? For the house of my God. He emphasizes this in verse 27 in Joshua nine. But Joshua made them that day cutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord.

To this day, in the place that he should choose, I believe the non Levitical background and the responsibilities of the Gibeonites align perfectly with this group known as the temple servants. In other words, it's a high possibility that the temple servants are Gibeonites. And, it could be that over time, they were formally given to the Levites to assist them in their labor. And with that, the Nethenim, in some of your translations, became their official title as a group. Case solved, in my estimation, at least.

But there's still more to understand from this. What do they have to teach us? What spiritual lessons do they have to offer us as Christians, as followers of Christ? And I was meditating on this. I was thinking, now that I know something about their history, and here we are in Ezra, if the temple servants are indeed the Gibeonites, they're now in a brand new land.

They're in Babylon. There's different rules here. In other words, imagine being in their shoes, where as long as you were under this government, you did not have the freedom to choose your own career. You you couldn't explore and dream about your kids becoming this or becoming that. You were held by an oath that for the rest of your life and for generations to come, you would disciple your kids to know how to cut wood and draw water efficiently in order to help the Levites better do their work, so that they can help the priests better do their work.

That is all that you are known for. That is all you have to look forward to. You are servants forever. But then one day, Babylon comes knocking on the door, takes you and everybody else. Now there's no more temple.

Now there's really no more people, at least for seventy years. Blank slate. A brand new opportunity, not just for you, but for your descendants, for your progeny. And now Cyrus speaks and he says, whoever wants to go back, go back. I wonder what some of these temple servants thought.

Why would we go back to that? Cutting wood and drawing water? We have a brand new life here. Do you see what I'm saying? And then you come to Ezra two, and you read that the temple servants, along with Solomon's servants, packed their bags and made their way back to a destroyed temple to do their part, to resurrect it, to go back to their duties.

How do you make sense of this? I think there's only one logical answer. Covenant. Covenant. These temple servants understood that they were joined to the people of God and they benefited from the people of God and the promises that they inherited from God.

And so, they were they were bound to this God and this people. And even though they could have started all over, even though they could technically make an excuse and not be blamed for staying in Babylon, they said no, no, no, no, no. We are part of this group. We are part of this nation. We serve this God.

We're going back. Even if we have to cut wood and draw water. This is a remarkable display of unbreakable faithfulness. What you have with the temple servants is a marvelous example of keeping your word. It's a lost art today.

Did you know that one of the marks of a citizen of the kingdom of God according to Jesus Christ is how we make and keep oaths? Did you know that? Read the Sermon on the Mount carefully. Our Lord, our Savior, our Christ desires of us to have such trustworthy character that you would not even need to rely on a promise. You would have to rely on elaborate kind of vow.

All it would require of you is a yes or no. Imagine that. Imagine living to a degree of trustworthiness, where nobody has to squeeze out of you. Do you promise? Do you swear on this?

Do you swear on that? I just I just said yes. That's it. Well, we want to be discipled. Right?

This is discipleship. This is discipleship. Making oaths and keeping them. And this is what we find here. You have here this group of people who did not really have the most impressive tasks, who are really stuck, but they made a promise.

They made a promise. Today, it's more common for people to break their promises. It's actually not even surprising anymore. People break their promises all the time. They said yes at the altar when they got married and all it takes is a few years for that to mean nothing anymore.

People say yes in memberships when they become members of it, and it takes very little for them to no longer hold up to their covenant. It's it's becoming a lost reality and here's a Bible study to remind us how beautiful it is when somebody says yes and they mean it, even for generations to come. May the Lord convict us. And I say us, including myself. Who knew that you can learn something from the temple servants?

These men of menial jobs, but giant character. They convicted me. That's group number six. We still have two more. Let's come now to group number seven.

This is probably the most intriguing group listed in this genealogy, which we can label as the following. The unidentified. The unidentified. Let's read from verse 59 down to verse 63. The following were those who came up from Tel Mila, Telharsha, Kirab, Adan, and Eomer, though they could not prove their father's houses or their descent, whether they belong to Israel.

The sons of Deliah, the sons of Tobiah, and the sons of Nechoedah, 652. Also of the sons of the priests, the sons of Habaiah, the sons of Hakoz, and the sons of Birzeeli, who had taken a wife from the daughters of Birzalai, the Gileadite, and was called by their name. These sought their registration among those enrolled in the genealogies, but they were not found there. So, they were excluded from the priesthood as unclean. The governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy food until there should be a priest to consult Urim and Thummim.

The unidentified. The most important part of this whole section is how these individuals and families could not prove their father's houses or their descent, whether they were part of Israel or not. Now, whether they lost their family records while in exile, or they were pretenders, or a mixture of both, is not exactly clear. However, what the Holy Spirit wants to underscore is the vital importance of being able to prove your status and their inability to do so. They couldn't.

So the call was out, we're going back to Jerusalem. All the people of God, pack your bags, make your way, and you have some who came to the leaders and says, we want to go, but we don't know which family line we come from. Hold on, you don't know? And and they and what's more staggering are some of the priests, who when they looked at the registration, were like, we can't find you here. And so, they weren't outright rejected, but they were severely limited.

What's the lesson here? Here's the spiritual lesson. This is a staggering picture of those who cannot give a clear testimony of their salvation. This is a strong illustration of professing Christians who do not know how to prove that they are really of Christ. And we have many like this who exist in our churches, by the way.

They long to be part of the community of God's people. They can even recount their background growing up in church. They might even show how they have been involved in some level of ministry. But upon closer examination, there's a troubling lack of spiritual evidence that they actually belong to God's family. And this is more common than you think.

I can't tell you the amount of conversations I've had with other pastors, and even other serious Christians, and maybe a name or we discover mutual friends. And at some point the question is asked, is so and so a believer? And the horrific answers that surface along the lines of, you know what? I don't know. I mean, they come to church from time to time, and they seem nice and, but when you talk to them it just, it's not that obvious.

And sadly, this is something that's becoming also far too common, and I want to ask you, is that something that people say about your faith? Would that be said of you by those who know you or who observe your life? I have to say that there are far too many people in Christendom who make it very difficult to confirm their testimony. Because you look at their choices, and you look at their social media, and you look at their priorities, and you hear how they speak, and you you're, I think you are, but I don't know if you are. I've been to those funerals.

Those are the worst funerals, and I've mentioned this before. Where the person has enough churchianity in their history, but you don't know if they really been been born of God. And you're wondering, how confident do I have to be behind that pulpit when I give this eulogy about where this person is? This is exactly you have an old testament picture of that today. Are you in Israel?

I think so. I mean, my mom is this, and what about Okay. But, yeah. I visited Israel before. I've been there.

I actually did some mission trips here and there. But what I need concrete proof, most because you don't know if you're saved. You might have been coming here week after week, and you're like, I just like hearing interesting thoughts from the Bible. But you don't know if your heart has really been transformed by the Spirit of God. And maybe that's troubled you.

I hope that's troubled you. I understand that there are those who have a very sensitive conscience, and they are godly, and they they, you can smell the fruit of the Spirit off their lives, and and this, and Satan torn I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about when you look at your own life, you can't really determine I'm a follower of Christ. Can I let you know something? There is instruction here for you.

There are so many things that we can pull out of this text, but I want us to look at what the governor told the priest in verse 63. Look at verse 63 again. The governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy food until there should be a priest to consult Urim and Thummim. What are Urim and Thummim? They're gemstones according to the book of Exodus, that were kept by the high priest, and were used to make decisions, or get clarity in a supernatural way by God in cases such like this.

We're not told anywhere how the Urim and the Thummim worked. There isn't this, you know, explanation or protocol of what they would do. So there's debate about how this worked. Were there were there markings on it that would shine? Would would one turn this way in another way?

We we don't have that and I think that's by God's wisdom. Because there's a lot of superstitious people out there who might try to copy this. So it's veiled. And another thing that's important is that you see no such practice in the New Testament or any encouragement to seek God's will in this way. You priests, or at least those who claim to be priests, you cannot partake in the holy food of the temple, or function as priests, until we figure out by God through the and the tomb if you are truly his.

You and I don't have access to such things, but we have another thing at our disposal to confirm our status, the Bible, The Word of God. Did you know that the Bible wants you to know with absolute certainty that you're a child of God? The Bible, God's Word, does not want you to doubt for a moment. So the same man who wrote the gospel of John with the intent of seeing people say by recognizing this Jesus Christ of Nazareth is indeed the Son of God, wrote another epistle called first John. And in first John, he's not writing so that people could believe, he's writing to the believers so that they would know that they have eternal life.

Here's a reference, first John five thirteen. Notice what John says in first John five thirteen. He writes here, I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. Let me give you this. In case anybody approaches you the way I've been approached, there are different people on the spectrum of doubts that I have talked to.

That sometimes they even come trembling, eyes filled with tears. Other people come dragging their feet just curious. Hey, how do I know if I'm really a Christian? Again, more more people were broken in that, but I give them the same instructions. You go to first John and you read from cover to cover.

It should take you no longer than fifteen minutes. And ask yourself this, can I amen all that John says about those who are born of God? Just read it and read it again. And check off every box, because John uses this kind of language. Those who are born of God, fill in the blank.

What you need to do is come before that book and say, yes, that's true of me. Yes, that is me. Yes, I know that that happened to me two years ago. That was a turning point. And if you can pass that test, you can know that you have eternal life.

The Bible wants you to know. Don't be like those who don't know, because it is crippling. Notice that the priest could not function as priest. You know, missionaries and pastors of old would not hire people on their teams, unless those people knew for certainty that all their sins have been forgiven. Did you know that was one of the requirements?

That if anybody want to be a missionary, if anybody want to be an evangelist, with these men who have changed history through their ministries, they had to know, I have been forgiven of all my sins. Because if you're not convinced, what what are you going to convey to those that you're preaching to? So, the Bible wants us to be totally assured. And when you do doubt, even as a sincere believer, you don't stay there. You fight for that assurance with the truth and God will bring you there.

Because if you don't, it's going to impact your ministry, it's going to impact your testimony, it's going to impact your joy, which in fact impacts your testimony. So the the unidentified is the seventh group. But now we come to the eighth group, and this is an interesting one as well. I call them the assets. The assets.

Look at verse 64. The whole assembly together was 42,360, besides their male and female servants, of whom there were 7,337. And, they had 200 male and female singers, not the same singers as the ones in the temple. Their horses were 736, their mules were 245, their camels were 435, and their donkeys were 6,720. Some of the heads of the families, when they came to the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem, made free will offerings for the house of God to erect it on its site.

According to their ability, they gave to the treasury of the work. 61,000 derricks of gold, 5,000 minas of silver, and 100 priests garments. So the Holy Spirit now wants to tell us also the resources that join the people who went back. The total number of people in this first wave, remember this is just the first cycle of returnees. We're still going to look at two more in our future studies.

Total that what? 42,360. Now, besides that we learned that there are just over 7,000 male and female servants. What does that tell you? What does that tell you about your social status if you have a servant?

You're wealthy. So, it looks like some of these families in Babylon became wealthy, and they brought their servants with them, which tells us that their riches and their possessions did not hinder them from prioritizing God's house. As much as riches and promotion and growth and economy is a snare to many, it's possible in this life to be successful and spiritual. It just takes an incredible amount of discipline, and you constantly asking God to satisfy your heart, so that you're not tempted for other things to attempt to satisfy your heart. These people with their services, we're going back.

Oh, you can imagine their estate. You can imagine their land. You can imagine their comfort. But no, no, no. We're going back to the rubble, and we're gonna do what we can to build God's house.

May God raise up more businessmen like that in this place. May God raise up more entrepreneurs like that in this place. We don't get caught up in their own success, but use their success for the advancement of an eternal thing. But not everybody was so successful. Look at the numbers of the mules, and the horses, and the camels.

When you add them all up, it's just over maybe 8,000, but for 42,000 people, it's clear that wealth and resources were unevenly distributed. So, you have a mixed crowd of faithful returnees here, yet some who are more wealthy, others who are not so, and yet the Lord highlights something that is so incredibly encouraging about their first investments for the house of God once they came back to Jerusalem. Do you realize now that we're back in the promised land at the end of Ezra two? This phrase, soothe my soul. Look here at verse 69 again.

According to their ability, they gave to the treasury of the work. According to their ability. That's what God looked for. For those who really want to do great things for God, for those who have prayed, Lord, how how can I give myself more to you? That's a wonderful thing to desire and request.

But you have to be careful. You have to be careful that what you are doing for the Lord with with the best of your ability is not discounted in your own sight, or worse, thinking that God doesn't see it as valuable and as beautiful. There was a change in my own heart if I can be transparent when I finally realized early in my walk what Christ really asked of me. Because I remember being handed books of revivalists, and missionaries, and people who won thousands to Christ, and and the things that they endured, and the persecution that they evaded, and the steadfastness of their faith, though they were being tortured. And I thought, what am I do?

I'm a I'm a 20 year old studying creative advertising in Toronto, Canada. Who am I? Lord, launch me somewhere. I'll drop out right now, actually. Just put me wherever you want to put me.

Let me do something for you. I'm limited here. I'm trying to do the best I can. And then the sweetness of the guidance of the Spirit began to show me things in his word that made me realize exactly what God was asking of me. And the clearest memory I had was what Jesus said of Mary of Bethany shortly before he would be killed.

You know this story very well, that Jesus and his disciples are having dinner. Mary and her siblings are in attendance. Spontaneously, Mary goes out and she gets this bottle of perfume and she breaks it open. It doesn't open it. She breaks the neck, meaning I'm not taking a draw back.

And she pours it on Christ from head to toe. And if you look at the Gospel accounts carefully, Judas was the first one to criticize. What are you doing? And then, we're told another Gospel account that all the disciples criticize because complaining is contagious. Isn't it?

And Mary, what I love so much about Mary is wherever you see her in the New Testament, she's at the feet of Jesus. In every scenario, she's at the feet of Jesus. And in this final one, she she gives this extravagant sacrifice. She's being criticized. She does not speak up for herself.

Christ defends her. And I wanna read to you. Don't turn to just soak this in. I wanna read to you what Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God said about this woman in her attempt to show honor to her Christ before he would die. He says in Mark fourteen six, leave her alone.

Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. She has done a beautiful thing to me. And you could think, okay. So, Lord, if if you want me to do a beautiful thing to you, do you want me to just like empty my bank account and give it to my local church?

What is it that What is beautiful to your sight? And then you read on, verse seven. For you always have the poor with you and whenever you want you can do good for them, but you will not always have me. And here it is in verse eight. She has done what she could.

That's the phrase. She has done what she could. She has anointed my body beforehand for burial. What was beautiful in the sight of Christ? Mary doing what she could.

So you might be sitting here and thinking, I only have so much time. My body can handle only so much. I only really have one gift that I think God has given me, but I look over there and that person has five, and that person, it's like, no matter what they do it, it turns into gold. I just have this. If you're not careful, you can think to yourself, I don't know if this really means much to the Lord.

You find it in the old, you find it in the new, all Christ is looking for is for you to do what you can. And if in the sincerity of your heart you are doing it with all that you can, Though you may have all these restrictions and obstacles, it will be beautiful to him. Do you understand this? It will be beautiful to him. The last verse of Ezra, just as a conclusion of chapter two.

Now the priests, the Levites, some of the people, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived in their towns, and all the rest of Israel in their towns. What stands out to you about that verse? Who came back to Jerusalem? A remnant from primarily two tribes, Judah and Benjamin. What does the Holy Spirit say?

The rest of Israel. Wait a minute. Israel was taken by the Assyrians many years before this. So, what's going on here? We have another instance where Ezra by the Spirit speaks of all Israel, not just Judah, because it reminds us that in God's eyes, even though the small remnant comes back, he has in view the eventual restoration of all of his covenant people.

Let's pray. Thank you, Lord, that you have used these two weeks to show us the glory of this genealogy. Thank you that we have put in the depths of our hearts these gems from these different groups. Thank you, Lord, that you showed us multiple ways how we can honor you, and you've warned us in multiple ways as well. Lord, we are, as you know, a very forgetful people.

And Lord, if we forget much of what we've learned these past two Fridays, help us remember this, that whenever we encounter genealogy in your word, to not dismiss it, but to believe that your voice is there, that inspiration is there, that gold is there, and that you're ready to speak to us and furnish us through a list of names and numbers. Oh, Lord, we we just end with the final thought of our study. Remind us that you were just after what we can give you. I pray that that would comfort the mom of four. I pray that that would comfort the man working two jobs.

I pray that that would comfort the one who has a disability. Show us what you ask of us, and Lord, may we trust that it is pleasing in your sight. We worship you because we've heard you today. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Amen. If you want to remain seated and respond to any of these truths from your heart, you're free to do that. If you wanna stand and join the praising to sing to the Lord, you're invited to do that as well. But whatever you do, take these next few minutes to really speak to the Lord and give him your heart.