Nehemiah

The name Nehemiah means “comfort.” After the fall of the southern kingdom of Judah, God’s people were exiled to Babylon. Later, Babylon was conquered by Persia. With the Persian king’s permission, God’s exiled people returned to Jerusalem in several waves. Nehemiah, a member of the tribe of Judah, was a Jew born and raised in […]

Darius I

Darius I (c. 550–485 BC), also known as Darius the Great, was the third monarch of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, reigning from 521 to 485 BC. He is referred to as “大利乌” (Dàlìwū) in Chinese translations of the Bible. Records of Darius’s life primarily come from the Behistun Inscription, discovered in the Zagros Mountains of […]

Cambyses II

Ezra 4:7 states: “In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel and the rest of their associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes king of Persia. The letter was written in Aramaic script and in the Aramaic language.” “Artaxerxes” is a title for a Persian king meaning “his rule is through truth.” The Bible mentions two […]

Ezra’s Faith

[Ezra 8:21, 31] “Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods… Then we departed from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem, […]

The Second Moses: Ezra’s Compilation of the Old Testament

Ezra came from a priestly family (Ezra 7:1; 2 Kings 22:8) and was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses (Ezra 7:6). In 458 BC, he received a command from King Artaxerxes of Persia to lead the second group of Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem (Ezra 7:11-28). In Jerusalem, he taught the returning Jews […]

Ezra

Ezra (Hebrew: עזראהסופר), meaning “help,” is a significant figure in the Bible. Ezra was a direct descendant of Aaron, and specifically of Phinehas and Zadok the priests. As he came from an orthodox priestly family and also served as a scribe in the Persian court, he was called “a priest and a scribe” (Nehemiah 8:9). […]

Zerubbabel

The name Zerubbabel is likely an abbreviation of Zərua‘ Bāvel (Hebrew: זְרוּעַ בָּבֶל), meaning “seed of Babylon,” referring to a child conceived or born in Babylon; or Zərûy Bāvel (Hebrew: זְרוּי בָּבֶל), meaning “scattered of Babylon,” referring to being exiled to Babylon. Zerubbabel was the grandson of Jeconiah (Jehoiachin), the second to last king of […]

Background Introduction to Ezra-Nehemiah

In the Hebrew Bible, the books of Ezra and Nehemiah are traditionally considered a single book. Tradition attributes its authorship to Ezra, the priest and scribe. Shortly after the Greek Septuagint translation was completed, Jews divided this single book into 1 Ezra and 2 Ezra. Later, 2 Ezra became known as the Book of Nehemiah. […]

Archangel Gabriel

[Daniel 8:15-16] “When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I sought to understand it. And behold, there stood before me one having the appearance of a man. And I heard a human voice by the Ulai canal, which called, ‘Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.’” Gabriel is an archangel whose first appearance is in […]

The Maccabean Revolt and Hanukkah (Festival of Dedication)

The Maccabean Revolt was a major Jewish uprising between 167-160 BC, led by the Maccabean family, against the rule of Antiochus IV and the Hellenistic cultural assimilation. Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Dedication, the Festival of Lights, or the Maccabean Festival, commemorates the victory of the Jewish people in 165 BC against foreign […]