Do What Seems Good with the Silver and Gold - Ezra 7:18

In the book of Ezra, Ezra shared how king Artaxerxes of Persia wrote in a letter to him, “all the silver and gold that you can find in all the province of Babylon, with the freewill offering of the people, and of the priests, offering willingly for the house of their God which is in Jerusalem. That you may buy speedily with this money bullocks, rams, lambs, with their meat offerings and their drink offerings, and offer them upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerusalem”, and in chapter seven and verse eighteen of Ezra, Ezra shared how Artaxerxes wrote, “whatsoever shall seem good … do with the rest of the silver and gold” where we read,

And whatsoever shall seem good to you, and to your brethren, to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, that do after the will of your God.

The verse reads, “And whatsoever shall seem good to you, and to your brethren, to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, ...” Ezra began with the words, “and whatsoever” which means “whatever” “shall seem good to you” which means “will appear pleasant and agreeable to you, Ezra”, “and to your brethren” or “and to your, Ezra's, fellows and associates”, “to do with the rest” which means “to perform, execute and carry out by the use of the remainder” “of the silver and gold” or “pertaining to the silver and gold metal”. Ezra shared how “Artaxerxes” told him to use the remainder of the “silver and gold” metal in whatever they considered pleasant to them. 

The verse goes on to say, “… that do after the will of your God.” Ezra continued with the words, “that do after the will”which means “so perform, execute and carry on according to the good pleasure and desire” “of your God” or “belonging to your, Ezra's, Supreme Deity”. Ezra shared how “Artaxerxes” instructed him to buy whatever he thought necessary according his Supreme Deity's desire. 

When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we discover through Ezra how “king Artaxerxes” commissioned him to use the “silver and gold” to purchase whatever he and his fellow associates deemed necessary. God not only supplied sacrificial offerings for their worship through “Artaxerxes”, but He also gave Ezra and the people of Israel “whatever”they needed. God loves the people of Israel, and His desire was for them to return to their homeland and to reestablish worship of Him. God wants us to make Him first in our lives, and He sent His Son Jesus into the world to be crucified on the cross for the sins of all mankind to make that possible. When we surrender our lives, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and abundantly give to us according to His purpose and will. (See Ephesians 3:20)

Next time Ezra shares how Artaxerxes wrote what to do with, “the vessels also that are given you”, 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".