In the book of Ezra, Ezra said, “the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy, ...”, and in chapter six and verse seventeen of Ezra, Ezra shared what the people of Israel, “offered at the dedication of this house of God” where we read,
And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.
The verse reads, “And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs;” Ezra began with the words, “and offered at the dedication” which means “and approached, drew near and gave at the time of the consecration” “of this house of God” or “pertaining to this habitation, abode and dwelling place belonging to the Supreme Deity” “an hundred bullocks” or “one hundred bulls or oxen”, “two hundred rams”which means “two hundred male ram animals”, “four hundred lambs” or “four hundred lamb animals”. Ezra shared how the spiritual leaders of Israel sacrificed one hundred bulls, two hundred male rams and four hundred lambs at the consecration of the temple of Jehovah God.
The verse continues, “and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.” Ezra added the words, “and for a sin offering” which means “and on behalf of a sacrifice for the penalty of missing the mark and error” “for all Israel” or “on behalf of the whole of Israel whose name means God prevails and is the name of the descendants and nation of the descendants of Jacob”, “twelve he goats” which means “twelve male goats”, “according to the number of the tribes” or “in keeping with the pertaining to the clans” “of Israel” which means “belonging to Israel whose name means God prevails and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob”. Ezra shared how the spiritual leaders of Israel gave and sacrificed twelve male goats, one for each of the clans belonging to Israel, for the penalty of offenses and errors.
When we think through the words in this verse, we learn through Ezra that the people of Israel gave burnt sacrifices of bulls, rams and lambs at the time for the consecration of the completed temple of Jehovah God. They also sacrificed twelve male goats which represented the twelve clans or family groups of Israel. The idea was that God was over them and was worthy to be worshiped and adored as a priority when the temple was finished. God loves the people of Israel, and He loves us. He sacrificed His Only Begotten Son Jesus on the cross for the sins of all mankind, and when we put our faith and trust in Him as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put within us a desire to keep Him first and as the priority of our worship and consecration.
Next time Ezra shares how the people of Israel, “set priests in their divisions”, 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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