Ezra

Ezra describes how God restored his spiritual kingdom to Israel (the Temple, the sacrifices, the priests, etc.), while Nehemiah describes how God restored his physical kingdom to Israel (the wall, the defenses, the city, etc.). Thus, these books complement one another and explain how the Jews restored their collective faith and their homeland.

They cover the period from 538 BC to 430 BC. The account begins in Ezra with the ~50,000 exiles returning to the land (Ezra 2:64-65) and Nehemiah serving in Jerusalem.^[1] This history is parallel with the prophetic ministries of Haggai and Zechariah.

Authorship

Ezra is most likely the author of this book. Jewish tradition held that Ezra wrote 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah (Baba Bathra 15a). Breneman^[2] states that many scholars concur, including Albright,[3] Bright,[4] Myers,[5] and Archer.[6] Furthermore, he writes, “Its unity is assumed by the Talmud, the Masoretes, probably the author of Ecclesiastes, the early LXX manuscripts, and the second century AD Christian canon of Melito of Sardis.”^[7] Indeed, he states that the earliest Hebrew manuscript to divide these books wasn’t until AD 1448. Yet, Yamauchi^[8] states that non-Hebrew translations split the books into two (e.g. LXX, Latin Vulgate, etc.).

Ezra was the descendant of Aaron the high priest, and therefore, he was from a priestly class (Ezra 7:5). He was “well versed” in the Bible, and therefore, literate and scholarly (v.6). Ezra probably wrote most of this book—especially the final chapters where he uses the first person “I” (Ezra 7-10). The Talmud held him in high regard: The rabbis state that he was the founder of the Great Assembly (Megilla 18b) and the reinstitution of the Law (Sukkah 20a).^[9]

Others like Yamauchi[10] hold to an anonymous “Chronicler” who wrote these books. It is argued that this anonymous author used the “Ezra Memoir” material and the “Nehemiah Memoir” material. This is possible, but he breaks from Ockham’s Razor. All things being equal, we shouldn’t multiply sources beyond necessity. Consequently, we hold that Ezra was the author.

Date and Chronological Difficulties

Breneman^[11] dates the book before 400 BC. Every event in the books takes place before this time, and there is no reason to think that the book post-dates that time.

Scholars question the chronology of the books of Ezra-Nehemiah. However, we hold the traditional view that Ezra entered Jerusalem in 458 BC. Critics of this view raise several questions and objections:

Why didn’t Ezra and Nehemiah work together? Actually, these two figures appear together in two passages (Ezra 8:8; Neh. 12:36). In response, critics claim these were textual additions. This is hard to believe. At first, the critic of this view states that these two powerful figures were agnostic of one another. But when shown biblical evidence to the contrary, they claim these are textual additions! Moreover, even though Haggai and Zechariah are contemporaries, neither mention one another. An argument from silence is only as strong as the conspicuousness of that silence.

Why did Ezra wait 13 years before he read the Law in Nehemiah 8? For one, this event in Nehemiah 8 may not have been the first reading of the Law. Perhaps it was the only recorded event. Indeed, when Ezra reads the Law, the people react with zeal to follow it. This could imply that they had read it beforehand, but this simply wasn’t recorded. Breneman writes, “The law was not read so much for the purpose of bringing a reform; that was already begun earlier by Ezra’s prayer and confession. Rather, the law was read as part of the liturgical celebration by the revived community.”^[12]

Why did Nehemiah need to address divorce if Ezra already fixed the problem in Ezra 10? Yet, anyone involved with Christian ministry and with a knowledge of human nature will know that people can very quickly fall into the same sins and problems. Moreover, Breneman writes, “Nehemiah was dealing with isolated cases. The main problem had been adequately taken care of under Ezra’s reform, but Nehemiah seemed to be responsible for bringing coherence and unity to the restoration.”^[13] He concludes, “It is much better to take the biblical text as it stands and maintain the traditional dating of 458 BC for Ezra and 445 BC for Nehemiah.”^[14]

Archaeological evidence: The Cyrus Cylinder

The Cyrus Cylinder is a cuneiform inscription on a clay barrel that was discovered in Babylon (1879-1882).^[15] This explained why Cyrus was so positive to the Jewish people and their resettlement of their land and rebuilding of their Temple (Ezra 1:1-5). Not only did God “move” the king’s heart, but Cyrus had a positive policy to neighboring nations regarding their local deities. The inscription states:

This fits quite well with the biblical account in Ezra 1.

Important Secular Kings

The Persian King Cyrus (son of Cambyses I) gave orders for the Jewish people to rebuild their Temple (Ezra 1:1). King Cyrus (Cyrus II) overthrew Astyages (549 BC), and he became the Persian emperor who founded the Achaemenid dynasty. He even ruled over Babylonia from 539-530 BC (fulfilling Isa. 44:28; 45:1ff). Achtemeier writes, “Cyrus’s military victories eventually put him in possession of the largest empire the world at that time had yet seen.”^[16] Cyrus died in battle in 530 BC, but his dynasty ruled over Babylon for two centuries (until Alexander the Great conquered them).^[17]

Cambyses II (the son of Cyrus II and grandson of Cambyses I) took over the throne after his father’s death, conquering Egypt and murdering his brother Smerdis to secure the Persian throne.

Darius I (521-486 BC) succeeded Cambyses, and the Bible mentions him in several books (Ezra 4-6; Haggai; Zech. 1-8). It was during Darius’ reign (520 BC) that Haggai and Zechariah came on the scene as prophets (Ezra 5-6).

Xerxes (also called Ahasuerus) took over the Persian throne from 486-465 BC (Ezra 4:6).

Artaxerxes I (also called Longimanus) was the son of Xerxes, and he ruled from 465-423 BC. He enters the biblical narrative in Ezra 7 and in the book of Nehemiah. Artaxerxes made Nehemiah the governor of Judah in 444 BC, giving him the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem (Neh. 2:1-8; Dan. 9:25).

Darius II (also called Darius the Persian) ruled from 423-404 BC. The Elephantine papyri were written during his reign “giving us a first-hand footnote to our story.”^[18] These papyri (specifically the “Passover Papyrus”) states that Darius II issued an order for the Jewish people to practice the Passover under the leadership of a Jewish provincial leader named Hananiah. This letter dates to 419 BC, and it concludes with the statement, “By order of King Darius.”^[19]

Consulted Commentaries

Edwin Yamauchi, “Ezra-Nehemiah,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1988).

Derek Kidner, Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979).

Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993).

^[1] Derek Kidner, Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), 15–16.

^[2] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 32–33.

[3] Albright, “The Date and Personality of the Chronicler,” JBL 40 (1921): 119–20.

[4] J. Bright, “The Date of Ezra’s Mission to Jerusalem,” in Yehezkel Kaufmann Jubilee Volume, ed. M. Haran (Jerusalem: Magnes, 1960), 81; cf. idem, A History of Israel [Philadelphia: Westminster, 1981), 398.

[5] Myers, Ezra, Nehemiah, xlviii.

[6] Archer, A Survey of Old Testament Introduction (Chicago: Moody, 1974), 405.

^[7] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 37.

^[8] Yamauchi writes, “The books now called Ezra and Nehemiah were known under the single title of Ezra in the earliest Hebrew MSS from the tenth century till the fifteenth century… Josephus (Contra Apion I, 40 [8]) and the Talmud (Baba Bathra 15a) also refer to the Book of Ezra, but not to a separate Book of Nehemiah.” Edwin Yamauchi, “Ezra-Nehemiah,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1988), 572.

^[9] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 58.

[10] E. A. Yamauchi, “Ezra-Nehemiah,” EBC (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1988), 4.577.

^[11] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 41.

^[12] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 44.

^[13] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 44–45.

^[14] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 43–46.

^[15] Mervin Breneman, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, electronic ed., vol. 10, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1993), 67.

^[16] Paul J. Achtemeier, Harper & Row and Society of Biblical Literature, Harper’s Bible Dictionary (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985), 200.

^[17] Paul J. Achtemeier, Harper & Row and Society of Biblical Literature, Harper’s Bible Dictionary (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985), 200

^[18] Derek Kidner, Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), 19.

^[19] Derek Kidner, Ezra and Nehemiah: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), 22.