Who Is There Among God's People? - Ezra 1:3

In the book of Ezra, Ezra wrote, “Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, thus says Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he has charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah” and in chapter one and verse three of Ezra, Ezra shared how King Cyrus asked, “Who is there among you of all his people?” where we read,

Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.

The verse reads, “Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, ...” Ezra began with the words, “who is there among you” or “what person exist in the midst and middle of you, the people of Israel” “of all his people” which means “belonging to each, every, the whole and everyone of his, Jehovah God's, human beings”? “His God be with him” or “his, the person who is of Jehovah God's people, Supreme Deity accompany and exist beside him, that person”, “and let him go up to Jerusalem” which means “and allow and permit him, the person who is of Jehovah God's people, depart, rise and ascend to Jerusalem whose name means teaching of peace and is the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split”,“which is in Judah” or “that is located within Judah whose name means praised and is the kingdom comprised of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin which occupied the southern part of Canaan after the nation split upon the death of Solomon”. Ezra shared how Cyrus the king of Persia questioned who among the people belonged to Jehovah God, and he directed them to ascend to “Jerusalem in Judah” with their Supreme Deity accompanying them as they proceed to do the following. 

The verse continues, “... and build the house of the LORD God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.” Ezra added the words, “and build” or “and establish, repair and rebuild” “the house of the LORD God” which means “the dwelling place, habitation, abode and temple belonging to Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God who is the Supreme Deity” “of Israel” or “belonging to Israel whose name means ”, (“he is the God,”) which means “(he, Jehovah God, exists as the Supreme Deity)”, “which is in Jerusalem” or “that exists within Jerusalem whose name means teaching of peace and is the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split”. Ezra shared how Cyrus directed the people to rebuild the dwelling place and temple of Jehovah God who is the Supreme Deity that exists within “Jerusalem”.

When we think through the words in this verse, we learn through Ezra how king “Cyrus” of “Persia” was obedient to the commission given to him by Jehovah God, and he inquired as to who the people were that belonged to Israel and Jerusalem. He instructed them to ascend to “Jerusalem” accompanied by Jehovah God whom he knew was the Supreme Deity there, and they were to rebuild the temple of God. God spoke to this pagan king to fulfill His prophesy and promise to the people of Israel, and because God desires a personal intimate relationship with everyone, He has spoken through His Son Jesus who came into the world to die on the cross for all mankind and thereby fulfilled His promise of salvation. When we humble ourselves, repent of our sins and receive Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and demonstrate over and over again how He is for the people of Israel and us and has demonstrated it through His prophecies, promises and people. 

Next time Ezra shares how Cyrus says, “let the men of his place help him”, 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".