22. Artaxerxes, Ezra, and Nehemiah

The last great king of the Persians, Artaxerxes I, authorized the return of Ezra to the Holy Land to deal with deficiencies in the practice of worship among the people of God, and Nehemiah, who dealt with political problems, and oversaw the rebuilding of the walls of the city of Jerusalem. Later Malachi brought the last prophetic word to God's people before the lengthy 'intertestamental period' that would end with the ministry of John the Baptist. For more free resources, please visit www.brucegore.com.

[@JAHtony1111]

Cant believe this is free. I take that back. Thank you for charitably providing these lectures to the general population. 😊. Much love. Mad respect. One.

[@charlissmurph2129]

Got to give mad respect, word.

[@draperlawson796]

I receive so much joy an understanding in these studies. Praise the Lord

[@jasonbowers130]

Finding this channel is an answer to much prayer and fasting. I thank you deeply for all of your work.

[@GoreBruce]

Thank you for the encouragement!

[@ChrisPyle]

Amen!

[@brianlynnthomas9881]

Great Sunday school lesson, spoke to my heart. Now, with God's help, I will test God as Malachi(Italiano) suggest thank you

[@samwright285]

Thank you 🙌🙏

[@nyreedix1765]

Excellent thank you for combining bible history and world history! Great teacher

[@GoreBruce]

Thank you!

[@samwright285]

Exactly my thoughts too

[@Okieshowedem]

May Father YAHweh bless your understanding.

[@brucedressel8873]

Yahwey is a desert pagan god.

[@jayems332]

Wonderful teachings as usual Mr Gore. Thanks again for making this available.

[@toferg.8264]

Thank you!

[@rickmiller8893]

It's funny how history DOES repeat itself as Egypt did with the Delian league and many years later, did the same thing with Rome against Antioch IV.

[@Yasasperera2024]

Thank you

[@rickmiller8893]

I have to watch your videos over and over as things go over my head a lot, or click later with something else. Your closing statements were great. It reminded me of something I heard a long time ago I thought I'd share with you. It goes something like, "a man was sailing in the ocean, and his boat sank and he's in his life raft. A boat comes by and the capitan yells if he needed help. To which the man replied "No, no..GOD WILL SAVE ME!"..So the boat leaves. Later, a helicopter comes by and the pilot shouts if he needed help. To which the man replied "No, no..GOD WILL SAVE ME!". So the helicopter leaves. Later a seaplane lands and pilot asks if the man needs help. To which the man replied "No..no..GOD WILL SAVE ME!"..So the plane leaves. Later a storm comes and the man drowns. He gets to Heaven and God asks if he has any questions about his life. The man almost mad, replied "Stranded at sea, I had all of this faith in you that I even confessed verbally that you would save me! What happened!?". To which God replied, "I sent you a boat, a helicopter, and a plane! What more did you want!?".

[@GoreBruce]

Yeah, there's some truth to it!

[@danielsangobiyi9322]

Sir, You are a teacher.

[@markstrayer5191]

Excellent!@!

[@meloon5876]

Can pls dont play music towards e end? It's so hard to try listen to what you are saying. Or pls tune down the volume. Thk u. So glad i found yr videos. Now history and bible makes timeline sense.

[@vincentho3964]

Very good lessons. Thanks you very much ! But just a minor input : towards the end of the talk, when Bruce gives his usual important summary, there is no need for this "background music" to be turned on. It competes with his talk and is quite uncalled for and irritating. We want to pay full attention to his summary without being distracted by this "music".

[@evabrown2099]

I enjoy your teachings very much, for that thank you. Although I got a little bit annoyed almost at the end of your class for the competition of the loud music and my desire to hear what you had to say, otherwise great lesson.

[@allenwolfkill2781]

As brilliant as this man appears, why does he not keep Saturday as the Sabbath?

[@snicko6872]

Probably because he is not a member of a cult.

[@BertGraef]

Because hes not Jewish.

[@alonzoasenjo5980]

So the God of the Bible, the Father of Jesus ordered His followers to do cultists things in opposition to pantheistic romanism. Mat 5:17-20 KJV 17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

[@brucedressel8873]

Because he is not a Hebrew roots old covenant heretic.

[@Daniel-cl2zm]

In this perspective, as it were, Faith in your God is essentially everything. Naturally. Thank you for your perspective Mr. Gore.

[@andrewtannenbaum1]

I learned a lot. I think his wife should have given him a piece of her mind afterwards.

[@GoreBruce]

Oh, she does that routinely. Thanks!

[@andrewtannenbaum1]

Appreciate the perspective.

[@lechandler4041]

Question;: Ezra comes to town and orders you to put aside your wife and family since they are not Hebrews. Do you comply, after all Jeremiah had no problem with the same situation?

[@GoreBruce]

+Kenneth N. Shortlidge Can you be more specific as to the reference to Jeremiah?

[@lechandler4041]

+Bruce Gore If I remember my biblical history correctly, I believe it was Jeremiah who told the Hebrews in Babylon to settle down, work, marry and raise families. I don't remember any restriction on whom they could marry. A more specific question is why did the returning Hebrews from Babylon turn so conservative if not fanatical (or at least Ezra). I suppose some allowance can be made for a struggling minority, but it does seem extreme and unnecessary. It's not like intermarriage was unknown to the Hebrews.

[@GoreBruce]

+Kenneth N. Shortlidge The Hebrews were forbidden to marry outside their faith. That would be implicit in the instruction of Jeremiah (Jer. 29). Ezra was enforcing a law that traced to the time of Moses.

[@lechandler4041]

+Bruce Gore Thanks for the correction. I will go back as far as Moses to find the relevant instructions. I will observe this rule seems to have been selective as Rahab, Ruth and even Esther illustrate. Also Carroll Quigley in his seminal book, "The Evolution of Civilizations," comments on the increasingly conservative outlook of the returning Hebrews. Incidentally, I love your lectures and am learning infinite information I never knew.

[@GoreBruce]

+Kenneth N. Shortlidge As I mentioned, the restriction on marriage was religious, not racial. Anyone could proselyte into the Jewish community, and were certainly free to marry within that community having done so. Rahab and Ruth are examples of this. I grant the story of Esther appears to represent an exception, especially if the husband of Esther was Xerxes the Great, a man not known for his sterling moral character! Thanks for your kind remarks on the lectures. I'm honored to have you with us!

[@scullyfox4271]

Ezra is fresh out of captivity. One of Israel's sins was making alliances with other nations when God through the prophets told them not to. To make these alliances meant Israel was trusting in foreign gods for deliverance. Ezra was wise not to repeat this.

[@gracebayan6914]

Come on Men Too War.

[@moorek1967]

The Behistun Inscription gives the detail the night that Darius I took the throne back from Belshazzar. Except the name is in Persian. He called him Gaumata Also this is recorded in the Nabonidus Scroll.

[@str.77]

No, the Behistun Inscription tells how Darius I took the throne from Pseudo-Smerdis/Bardiya/Gaumata in 522. Darius has no contact with Belshazzar, who was crown prince of Babylon under his father Nabonid until 538.

[@ChrisPyle]

@@str.77I think the Bible says something about Darius the Mede in 539 doesn’t it?

[@str.77]

@@ChrisPyle It does. But whoever he is, he is not the Great King Darius I, son of Hystaspes, who had the Behistun inscription written. Nor is Gaumata the same as Belshazzar. Gaumata took the Persian throne from Cambyses in 522, claiming to be Cambyses's brother Smerdis/Bardija. Darius and his six co-conspirators ousted Gaumata. Belshazzar and his father Nabonidus reigned in Babylon and were defeated in 539 by Cyrus the Great, who died in 529 and was succeeded by his Don Cambyses.

[@charlissmurph2129]

Ezra did not have authority from God to dedicate those walls, and God did not say to get divorced, Sanballot asked them by what authority are you rebuilding the temple, they were told to worship on Mt. Gerizim Deut 27 I think.

[@BrittardWatts]

We don’t understand that xexeres family and himself stop human sacfrice in the region thus why we don’t hear about them CAuse ethe Greek empire lied

[@user-kv6ux8to3b]

Greetings Sir, would you pls. Tell me where's the land of Ophir? I really don't know

[@GoreBruce]

There is no consensus on that point.

[@user-kv6ux8to3b]

@@GoreBruce aww too bad

[@charlissmurph2129]

Could it be that Nehemiah was not authorized by God to rebuild the Temple? Why was Sanballot trying to stop him then? And who gave Ezra the authority to make the priests seperate from their familys? Did the 2nd Temple have the Ark the eternal flame or the Holy Ghost? Because they were not in the Holy of Holies when the veil was torn in half for all to see, why doesnt Nehemiah mention the temple on Mt. Gerizim that John Hrycanus destroyed, any why did he destroy it?

[@leemary4833]

One verse speaks of “king of Babylon” for Artaxerxes. Think he resided in Babylon.

[@annchovey2089]

Why is there doubt about the existence of Darius? How do we know he was real?

[@GoreBruce]

You'll find an excellent scholarly (but very readable) treatment of Darius and other Persian rulers in Edwin Yamauchi: Persia and the Bible. www.amazon.com/Persia-Bible-Edwin-M-Yamauchi/dp/0801021081/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=edwin+yamauchi&qid=1652791105&sprefix=edwin+ya%2Caps%2C236&sr=8-6

[@sidneysmith3426]

Thank you for this information. Although I have some concerns about the dates of these Kings verses what is in the Bible. Specifically king Artaxerxes. In Ezra 4:12-16 is a letter to King Artaxerxes from his officials concerning the Israelites rebuilding the temple and to persuade him to decree that they stop. And Artaxerxes replies from 4:18-22 saying that he wanted an end to the building. Verses 23 and 24 say that as soon as the letter was received the secretary and associates forced them to stop. And that the building had stopped until the 2 year of the rain of King Darius.... You showed the list of Kings and when they had reigned. So if we go by that we can see that King Artaxerxes was after Darius... and King Cyrus died in 530 b.c and his son was king for several years before Darius and again going by your listing Artaxerxes was not king after Cambyses. Pseudo smerdis was. Then it was Darius... so where did Artaxerxes come from? This doesn’t make any sense. If we say The account of Nehemiah happened first then the events in Ezra it could, but still again something is missing because of the historical accounts. I looked up the definition of what a king actually is they are different than an emperor. So if Artaxerxes was king over a certain country of the Persian empire it could also make sense. But they call king Cyrus, “king” and not emperor.... if you or someone else could provide clear information on this it would be greatly appreciated

[@GoreBruce]

Yes, the naming conventions in Ezra have presented some challenges to scholars. I have followed a generally accepted account of the names and chronology, which you may find summarized and defended in the excellent work of Dr. Edwin M. Yamauchi (Persia and the Bible). www.amazon.com/Persia-Bible-Edwin-M-Yamauchi/dp/0801021081/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=yamauchi&qid=1552676774&s=gateway&sr=8-4 Thanks for your interest.

[@mcgeorgerl]

Well, I wish that I could. I've got all sort of books around here and if one thing is certain, it's that nobody can synch the Medeo-Persian group in scripture to Ptolemy's Canon of Kings to the satisfaction of all of the other experts. They wind up with all sorts of reasoned theories as to why Darius the Persian is Artaxerxes and Ahasuerus but could also be called Cyrus. It gives Biblical Chronologists fits because they are forced to accept histories written well after the events and assigning accurate B.C. dates to everything is impossible because there was nobody in these families keeping their "Franklin Planners" and birth certificates for posterity. Not to confuse you but look at the events of Ezra 6:19 and Ezra 7:1. Now try to find anyone who can PROVE the length of time between those two events. There are lots of opinions (Up to 57 years between those verses) because none of our best and brightest can prove it to change the minds of others who also have a claim as to what's correct. My suggestion is to study the scriptures and trust in the information in your hands. If Cambyses isn't mentioned by name, so what? Apparently, the good Lord doesn't think the name Cambyses matters. So, what can we tell from scripture? 1. Babylon was taken by Darius the Mede, a man of about 62 years of age, the son of Ahasuerus (Dan 5:31 and Dan 9:1). 2. Then we have Cyrus, King of Persia and King of Babylon (Isaiah 44:28, 2 Chron 36:22-23, Ezra 5:13, Dan 10:1). 3. Then we pick up Darius the Persian (All over Ezra, Nehemiah, Zechariah, Haggai). 4. We have one mention of an Ahasuerus in Ezra 4:6. 5. Esther has numerous references to king Ahasuerus, but there isn't any internal evidence that I know of that that identifies him as the Ahasuerus above. But we know he is the specific Ahasuerus that reigns over 127 provinces from Egypt to India (Esther 1:1). 6. Next we have Artaxerxes, King of Persia in Ezra and Nehemiah. The Old Testament canon ends with the Artaxerxes above. To get more, we're forced outside of scripture.

[@stickemuppunkitsthefunlovi4733]

Isn't it funny when a man can have SOOOOO much knowledge stored in his brain that it makes him forget simple words like "beast" lmao....

[@yoshkebenstadapandora1181]

Daniel 9 is the most abused and misinterpreted passage in the Bible. It is also the most important cornerstone of Old Testament prophecy giving the exact time of the Messiah's arrivals and what Jesus would accomplish. If more Christians would examine the so-called 7 year tribulation derived from a perversion of Daniel 9's 490 year prophecy, Christian Zionism would disappear and America would be healed of this abominable doctrine.

[@toddkallenbach3904]

Zurubbabel and Ezra rebuilt the second Temple.....Nehemiah rebuilt the walls.....all in the City of David where ALL of the Temples stood, just as scripture states.....over the Gihon Spring.

[@mylucidlife495]

Malachi....the Italian prophet. 😂

[@williamschlegel2242]

This is Sparta

[@williamschlegel2242]

Persians should have stayed in Persia! It was safer!!