Ezra 1:1-6
#449 Weekday Year I Context (Monday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time)
In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia,
in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah,
the Lord inspired King Cyrus of Persia
to issue this proclamation throughout his kingdom,
both by word of mouth and in writing:
“Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia:
‘All the kingdoms of the earth
the Lord, the God of heaven, has given to me,
and he has also charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem,
which is in Judah.
Therefore, whoever among you belongs to any part of his people,
let him go up, and may his God be with him!
Let everyone who has survived, in whatever place he may have dwelt,
be assisted by the people of that place
with silver, gold, goods, and cattle,
together with free-will offerings
for the house of God in Jerusalem.’”
Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin
and the priests and Levites–
everyone, that is, whom God had inspired to do so–
prepared to go up to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.
All their neighbors gave them help in every way,
with silver, gold, goods, and cattle,
and with many precious gifts
besides all their free-will offerings.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ezr 1:1-6
“The second book of Chronicles closed with an account of the fall of Jerusalem as a consequence of the city's repeated unfaithfulness to God (cf. 2 Chronicles 36:17-21), and with the news of Cyrus' calling, in God's name, for the rebuilding of the temple and the return of the exiles (cf. 2 Chronicles 36:22-23)."[1] The beginning of the Book of Ezra tells the story of the Hebrew return from exile and the instruction to build a temple in Jerusalem. From the beginning it is clear that this effort was communal. Along with Nehemiah, 1 and 2 Chronicles, this book is the first in the Hebrew canon.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ezra 6:7-8, 12b, 14-20
#450 Weekday Year I Context (Tuesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time)
King Darius issued an order to the officials
of West-of-Euphrates:
“Let the governor and the elders of the Jews
continue the work on that house of God;
they are to rebuild it on its former site.
I also issue this decree
concerning your dealing with these elders of the Jews
in the rebuilding of that house of God:
From the royal revenue, the taxes of West-of-Euphrates,
let these men be repaid for their expenses, in full and without delay.
I, Darius, have issued this decree;
let it be carefully executed.”
The elders of the Jews continued to make progress in the building,
supported by the message of the prophets,
Haggai and Zechariah, son of Iddo.
They finished the building according to the command
of the God of Israel
and the decrees of Cyrus and Darius
and of Artaxerxes, king of Persia.
They completed this house on the third day of the month Adar,
in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
The children of Israel–priests, Levites,
and the other returned exiles–
celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy.
For the dedication of this house of God,
they offered one hundred bulls,
two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs,
together with twelve he-goats as a sin-offering for all Israel,
in keeping with the number of the tribes of Israel.
Finally, they set up the priests in their classes
and the Levites in their divisions
for the service of God in Jerusalem,
as is prescribed in the book of Moses.
The exiles kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.
The Levites, every one of whom had purified himself for the occasion,
sacrificed the Passover for the rest of the exiles,
for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ezr 6:7-8, 12b, 14-20
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ezra 9:5-9
#451 Weekday Year I Context (Wednesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time)
At the time of the evening sacrifice, I, Ezra, rose in my wretchedness,
and with cloak and mantle torn I fell on my knees,
stretching out my hands to the LORD, my God.
I said: “My God, I am too ashamed and confounded to raise my face to you,
O my God, for our wicked deeds are heaped up above our heads
and our guilt reaches up to heaven.
From the time of our fathers even to this day
great has been our guilt,
and for our wicked deeds we have been delivered up,
we and our kings and our priests,
to the will of the kings of foreign lands,
to the sword, to captivity, to pillage, and to disgrace,
as is the case today.
“And now, but a short time ago, mercy came to us from the LORD, our God,
who left us a remnant and gave us a stake in his holy place;
thus our God has brightened our eyes
and given us relief in our servitude.
For slaves we are, but in our servitude our God has not abandoned us;
rather, he has turned the good will
of the kings of Persia toward us.
Thus he has given us new life
to raise again the house of our God and restore its ruins,
and has granted us a fence in Judah and Jerusalem.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ezr 9:5-9
This passage from the Book of Ezra is a prayer of atonement lamenting the situation in Jerusalem. The prophet takes personal responsibility for the sin of the residents of the city as he expresses the corporate guilt of all people for the sins of some of its membership. The prayer recalls the unworthiness of the Jews in all of their sinful acts, and praises the mercy of God who brought them back to Jerusalem and Judah.
CCC: Ezr 9:6-15 2585
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fin
[1] The Navarre Bible: “Chrnicles-Maccabees”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, p 213.
#449 Weekday Year I Context (Monday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time)
In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia,
in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah,
the Lord inspired King Cyrus of Persia
to issue this proclamation throughout his kingdom,
both by word of mouth and in writing:
“Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia:
‘All the kingdoms of the earth
the Lord, the God of heaven, has given to me,
and he has also charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem,
which is in Judah.
Therefore, whoever among you belongs to any part of his people,
let him go up, and may his God be with him!
Let everyone who has survived, in whatever place he may have dwelt,
be assisted by the people of that place
with silver, gold, goods, and cattle,
together with free-will offerings
for the house of God in Jerusalem.’”
Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin
and the priests and Levites–
everyone, that is, whom God had inspired to do so–
prepared to go up to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.
All their neighbors gave them help in every way,
with silver, gold, goods, and cattle,
and with many precious gifts
besides all their free-will offerings.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ezr 1:1-6
“The second book of Chronicles closed with an account of the fall of Jerusalem as a consequence of the city's repeated unfaithfulness to God (cf. 2 Chronicles 36:17-21), and with the news of Cyrus' calling, in God's name, for the rebuilding of the temple and the return of the exiles (cf. 2 Chronicles 36:22-23)."[1] The beginning of the Book of Ezra tells the story of the Hebrew return from exile and the instruction to build a temple in Jerusalem. From the beginning it is clear that this effort was communal. Along with Nehemiah, 1 and 2 Chronicles, this book is the first in the Hebrew canon.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ezra 6:7-8, 12b, 14-20
#450 Weekday Year I Context (Tuesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time)
King Darius issued an order to the officials
of West-of-Euphrates:
“Let the governor and the elders of the Jews
continue the work on that house of God;
they are to rebuild it on its former site.
I also issue this decree
concerning your dealing with these elders of the Jews
in the rebuilding of that house of God:
From the royal revenue, the taxes of West-of-Euphrates,
let these men be repaid for their expenses, in full and without delay.
I, Darius, have issued this decree;
let it be carefully executed.”
The elders of the Jews continued to make progress in the building,
supported by the message of the prophets,
Haggai and Zechariah, son of Iddo.
They finished the building according to the command
of the God of Israel
and the decrees of Cyrus and Darius
and of Artaxerxes, king of Persia.
They completed this house on the third day of the month Adar,
in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
The children of Israel–priests, Levites,
and the other returned exiles–
celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy.
For the dedication of this house of God,
they offered one hundred bulls,
two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs,
together with twelve he-goats as a sin-offering for all Israel,
in keeping with the number of the tribes of Israel.
Finally, they set up the priests in their classes
and the Levites in their divisions
for the service of God in Jerusalem,
as is prescribed in the book of Moses.
The exiles kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.
The Levites, every one of whom had purified himself for the occasion,
sacrificed the Passover for the rest of the exiles,
for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ezr 6:7-8, 12b, 14-20
This passage from the book of Ezra reports the completion of the great work of rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem (although there is recognition that this hastily reconstructed [in only 5 years] structure was a far cry from Solomon’s great work). Following Mosaic laws, Israel reestablished the infrastructure of the faith community and celebrated the first great feast, Passover.
The restoration of the temple (which was not a new temple but a continuation of the old) was important to focus and revitalize the worship of those returning from the diaspora. "Therefore, my beloved friends, if we wish to celebrate with joy the dedication of the temple, we must not destroy the living temple of God within us by evildoing. I will say it in a way that everybody can understand we must prepare our souls in the same way as we would like the church to be prepared when we enter it" (St Caesarius of Arles, "Sermons", 229, 3).
Ezra 9:5-9
#451 Weekday Year I Context (Wednesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time)
At the time of the evening sacrifice, I, Ezra, rose in my wretchedness,
and with cloak and mantle torn I fell on my knees,
stretching out my hands to the LORD, my God.
I said: “My God, I am too ashamed and confounded to raise my face to you,
O my God, for our wicked deeds are heaped up above our heads
and our guilt reaches up to heaven.
From the time of our fathers even to this day
great has been our guilt,
and for our wicked deeds we have been delivered up,
we and our kings and our priests,
to the will of the kings of foreign lands,
to the sword, to captivity, to pillage, and to disgrace,
as is the case today.
“And now, but a short time ago, mercy came to us from the LORD, our God,
who left us a remnant and gave us a stake in his holy place;
thus our God has brightened our eyes
and given us relief in our servitude.
For slaves we are, but in our servitude our God has not abandoned us;
rather, he has turned the good will
of the kings of Persia toward us.
Thus he has given us new life
to raise again the house of our God and restore its ruins,
and has granted us a fence in Judah and Jerusalem.”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Ezr 9:5-9
This passage from the Book of Ezra is a prayer of atonement lamenting the situation in Jerusalem. The prophet takes personal responsibility for the sin of the residents of the city as he expresses the corporate guilt of all people for the sins of some of its membership. The prayer recalls the unworthiness of the Jews in all of their sinful acts, and praises the mercy of God who brought them back to Jerusalem and Judah.
CCC: Ezr 9:6-15 2585
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fin
[1] The Navarre Bible: “Chrnicles-Maccabees”, Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, p 213.
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