Now these are the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his city. Ezra 2:1
This chapter meticulously lists the survivors who went back to their homeland, grouped as follows: the leaders (Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum and Baanah), and priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants, and Solomon’s servants. A couple of special cases are noted regarding the lack of credentials, particularly among the sons of the priests, with special provisions made. Altogether 42,369 people, 7:337 male and female servants, and 200 additional “secular” singers returned on 736 horses, 245 mules, 435 camels, and 6,720 donkeys. These beasts of burden also carried at least 61,000 drachmas of gold, 5,000 silver minas, and 100 priestly garments. We know this because “heads of fathers households” offered this gold and silver, and these tunics “willingly for the house of God to restore it on its foundation.” (Ezra 2:68) The 5,490 temple articles (Ezra 1:11) went separately with Sheshbazzar, believed to be Zerubbabel’s uncle.
You read this and wonder what could possibly be applied in my life from this information?
Only God could organize and implement such a massive undertaking. The argument is “from the greater to the lesser.” If he can orchestrate this many people with the goal of rebuilding his temple in his city, can he not accomplish what is necessary in us to build and maintain his temple in us? Paul tells us, “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” 1 Corinthians 3:16
We can understand needing men like Zerrubabbel and Nehemiah to be his generals on the ground, and the priests and Levites, but the list of those returning includes singers, gatekeepers, and servants. Nothing gets done in the church without these people. It is especially noteworthy to me to include the singers, which I would assume includes musicians. There is more to worship than a building. It needs to be filled with a joyful noise.
It is worthy of mention the attention to detail in the Bible. Now there is always quibbling about numbers and dates, and the fact that Nehemiah has his own list of returnees (Nehemiah 7:7) invites comparison and potential debate, but simply notice the care taken to list everybody, and even to describe the methodology used to resolve credentialing issues. God cares about the little things and is our problem solver.
Then there is the accounting of the gold and silver accumulated to restore the temple. In today’s value, the gold alone amounted to more than $24 million, a sizable sum to reconstruct a 2,700 square foot building. As noted, the Lord pays for what he asks for.
Moving such a mass of people and livestock 900 miles along rivers and caravan routes back to Jerusalem was a massive undertaking. At least they were confined to a general area in Babylon to start. The Lord did it again in 1948 from all parts of the globe to close out his plan, and the stragglers are still coming. The true “holy city” and another temple play a key role in the Lord’s triumphant second return. A few more things have to fall in place though, including a construction project. But how long does it take to build a 2,700 square foot house?
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