The Children of Jericho - Ezra 2:34

In the book of Ezra, Ezra shared about “the children of the province that went up out of the captivity” which included those who came with “Zerubabbel” among whom were “the men of Michmas, Bethel and Ai, and the children of Nebo, Magbish, the other Elam, Harim, Lod, Hadid and Ono”,and in chapter two and verse thirty-four of Ezra, Ezra shared about “the children of Jericho” where we read,

The children of Jericho, three hundred forty and five.

The verse reads, “The children of Jericho, ...” Ezra began with the words, “the children” which means “the offspring and progeny” “of Jericho” or “belonging to Jericho whose name means it's moon and was a city five miles (8 km) west of the Jordan and 7 miles (11.5 km) north of the Dead Sea and the first city conquered by the Israelites upon entering the promised land of Canaan”. Ezra shared how the offspring of Jericho returned to Jerusalem after being exiled in Babylon for seventy years. 

The verse goes on to say, “... three hundred forty and five.” Ezra continued with the words, “three hundred forty and five” or “there were three hundred and forty five descendants belonging to Jericho who went back to their homeland in Jerusalem”. Ezra accounted for three hundred and forty five offspring of “Jericho” who obeyed the commission of Jehovah God through Cyrus the king of Persia to return to their homeland in Judah. 

When we consider the words in this verse, we discover through Ezra about the family of “Jericho” who went back to Jerusalem after being exiled. God called these three hundred and forty five people, and they responded to His directive. God calls us today to receive His Son Jesus who came into the world to die on the cross for our sins, and when we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put within us a desire to go where He wants us to go and to do what He wants us to do whenever He shares His desires. 

Next time Ezra shares about, “the children of Senaah”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".