In the book of Ezra, Ezra said, “Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub, the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki ...”, and in chapter seven and verse five of Ezra, Ezra continued to share his lineage with the words, “the son of Abishua, Phinehas, Eleazar and Aaron the chief priest” where we read,
The son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest.
The verse reads, “The son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, ...” Ezra began with the words, “the son of Abishua” which means “the offspring and progeny belonging to Abishua whose name means my father is rescue or safety or opulence”, “the son of Phinehas” which means “the offspring and progeny belonging to Phinehas whose name means mouth of brass and was the father of a helper of Ezra”. Ezra shared how he also descended from “Abishua and Phinehas” whose names meant “my father is rescue and mouth of brass”.
The verse continues, “ … the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest.” Ezra added the words, “the son” which means “the offspring and progeny” “of Eleazar” or “belonging to Eleazar whose name means God has helped and was the high priest son of Aaron”, “the son of Aaron” which means “the offspring and progeny belonging to Aaron whose name means light bringer and was the brother of Moses and a Levite and the first high priest” “the chief priest” or “the head, summit and top spiritual spokesman and leader”. Ezra shared how his lineage included “Eleazar and Aaron” who was the first “chief or high priest” in the time of Moses.
When we consider the words in this verse, we learn through Ezra more about his ancestors. “Abishua, Phinehas, Eleazar and Aaron” were all in the lineage of “Ezra” which set him up for the purpose of God during the time of the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem under “Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes”. God has a plan for everyone's life, and He was and is responsible for their heritage. Because “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God”, (See Romans 3:23) God sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind. “Whosoever”, including us, “believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life”. (See John 3:16) God wants a personal relationship with all of us, and when we surrender our lives to Him, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and bring us into His purposes which were thought of well before we were even born.
Next time Ezra shares how, “Ezra went up from Babylon”, 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".
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