Chapter 4 here momentarily, but as we as we leave chapter 3 There were four outstanding Characteristics of these children of Israel as they As they went back to Jerusalem and as they were focused on uh, their responsibilities there, this remnant of a remnant. And so I wanted to ask as we, as we leave that, but not, we don't want to forget that. I wanted to ask three questions based on the outline. Uh, there in that chapter, uh, we looked at verse one, they gathered together as one man to Jerusalem. And so we look at that and we note that there was unity among the people. So the question that I would have for us is, what is the basis of unity among Christian people? What is the basis of that? And then secondly, these folks were, um, they were obedient to the Lord. And we see this in verse two, actually all through chapter three, we see their obedience and we see evidence of their zeal and evidence of their unity and on and on. But Thinking particularly about obedience, they were offering burnt offerings. It says, as it is written in the law of Moses, that's in verse two at the very end. So they were being obedient to the Lord. So what does obedience look like for your life? What does obedience look like for the Christian? OK, so think about that. Just we're just make it personal to you and to me. What does that obedience look like? And then The Bible says they were zealous. We could say it this way, they had their priorities where they need to be. So verse three, the Bible says they set up, so they set up the altar on its foundation. So that was the number one thing. The first thing they did before they started thinking about a temple or anything else, they're thinking about this altar So what does this say about the priority of worship? What should our priority be in worship or in life as Christian people? Our focus. So maybe that's a better way to put it. Where should our focus be? And your reference here is the altar. And there was no worship without an altar. So there's something indispensable to our worship. And then, let's see, there was one other. I noted that, and I don't think we had noted this before, but in rereading, I noted that they were organized. There in verse eight, they began the work. Bible says there at the end of that, lengthy bursts since they began the work and appointed the Levites from 20 years and older to oversee the work of the house of the Lord. So there was organization. So I was thinking they were organized because they had life. If there's no life there, if nobody's there, there's nothing to organize. So there, the life always begs for structure, not the other way around is what I would say. And then worship, um, versus 10 and following the Bible tells us they were singing. They were, they had trumpets. They were at symbols. They were praising the Lord. They were, they sang verse 11, praising and giving thanks to the Lord saying for he is good for his loving kindness is upon Israel forever. So I thought, just to make it personal, what are some songs that really minister to your heart? What do you think about? Do you have a song on your lips during the day? What do you think? Like a song or a psalm. Well, I hope you have a song or two on your heart. So we just tried to, you know, just think about that. And then we're going forward in chapter four. And interesting chapter, and like these folks needed problems. I mean, they didn't need problems, but this is what they're facing. So we'll read it. And every now and then I'll pause, I think, and just maybe say a couple things. It's a long chapter. So verse one, now when the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the people of the exile were building a temple to the Lord God of Israel, they approached Zerubbabel in the heads of father's households and said to them, let us build with you for we, like you, seek your God and we have been sacrificing to him since the days of Esar Haddon king of Syria Assyria who brought us up here But Zerubbabel and Jeshua the rest of the heads of fathers households of Israel said to them you have nothing in common with us and building a house to our God but we ourselves will together build to the Lord God of Israel as King Cyrus and the king of Persia has commanded us and So this is striking to us, I think. This remnant of a remnant, I'm thinking they're a little bit short of manpower, and they're being offered help in this endeavor. And Zerubbabel says, basically, we have nothing in common with you. What have we to do with you? We don't need your help, basically. He says, we ourselves will together build to the Lord God of Israel as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded us. And this, I think, relates back to unity there in chapter three, verse one, when they were as one man. They rose together, gathered together as one man to Jerusalem, and we see unity there. But then here, they're unified, but they're not gonna unite with these folks that are offering to help. And we looked up 2 Kings 17, 24 and following last time, but the reason was because they had, they did, they tried to honor God, but the problem was they were honoring all the gods. So it was a mix, and they were going to stay separate. That's what we gleaned from this. So they refused the offer of help. Now what do you think's gonna happen? Well, it just gets worse. So here's the way I looked at it was, so if they would have accepted the help, they are, Compromising, if you want to use that word, they're compromising. And then they're going to have problems from within because things aren't going to be blessed in that way. But when they refused, the people that they refused are going to cause problems for them from without. So which problems do you want? Within or without? Well, probably from without based on their template here for living and building a life, a life of worship. So we see the refusal there in verses one through three, and then beginning in verse four, what happens in the aftermath of that refusal of help. Then the people of the land, discouraged the people of Judah and frightened them from building. So to discourage means to weaken the hands, to weaken the hands. So all the insults, the ridicule, what have you, the mockery, it takes the momentum away. It weakens the hands. And the Bible says it right out. And I love the honesty of the scriptures. These people were afraid, right there, and frightened them from building. So they must have really been laying it on pretty thick. How How bad did they want to hinder these people? Well, verse 5 tells you everything you need to know, those first three words. And hired counselors against them to frustrate their counsel all the days of Cyrus, king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius, king of Persia. So they, these people were so intent on making the remnant of the remnant miserable and of defeating their ambitions to build a temple, build an altar, raise this up, that they hired, actually hired people, so the professionals, to stop their progress. I wonder what happens. Well, So verse 6, from verse 6 all the way down to verse 23, it helps to put those verses in brackets. Because this is going to tell us what goes on for the next 16 years. So we'll read it. This is what takes place. Now in the reign of Ahasuerus, We think that's Artaxerxes, if I'm not mistaken, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. OK, so they've got hired professionals and they're writing accusations against these. The remnant of God. And in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithridath, Tabil, and the rest of his colleagues wrote to Artaxerxes, king of Persia, and the text of the letter was written in Aramaic and translated from Aramaic. And that's interesting about the book of Ezra. There are two portions that are in Aramaic. And this is the first one. So evidently they write a letter And they wrote this and addressed this to the king of Persia. I wonder if they're gonna speak well of the remnant. Probably not. And they're going way above their head, right? They're going right to the king. We're gonna use as much clout as we can to stop this thing. I mean, they're not building a life wise academy, but they are. They have drawn the ire of unbelievers. That's what happened. They are. Some of these are, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, they had mixed with the Syrians and they mixed with their gods and their worship. And yeah, that's it. Yeah. Very well. So verse eight, the saga continues. Rahum, the commander, and Shem-shei, the scribe, wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows. So we have it right here. Then wrote Rahim, the commander, and Shem Sheai, the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues, the judges, and the lesser governors, the officials, the secretaries, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the Elamites, and the rest of the nations, which the great and honorable Asnapar deported and settled in the city of Samaria and in the rest of the region beyond the river. Sounds like they've got everybody on the bandwagon for this one. I mean, this is not some little thing. The nations, they've gotten everybody on board against this remnant. Now, this is the copy of the letter which they sent to him. To King Artaxerxes, your servants, the men in the region beyond the river, and now let it be known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us at Jerusalem. They are rebuilding the rebellious and evil city and are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. Now, let it be known to the king that if that city is rebuilt and the walls are finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and it will damage the revenue of the kings. It's going to hit you right in the pocketbook, kings. You don't see it coming, but we see it coming. You need to know this. My, my, my. Now, because we are in the service of the palace. And it is not fitting for us to see the king's dishonor. Therefore, we have sent and informed the king so that a search may be made in the record books of your fathers. And you will discover in the record books and learn that that city is a rebellious city and damaging to kings and provinces and that they have incited revolt Within it, in past days, therefore that city was laid waste. We inform the king that if that city is rebuilt and the walls finished as a result, you will have no possession in the province beyond the river." Well, they're just spewing all kinds of speculation and lies to the king. They want this work stopped." So now the king replies. Then the king sent an answer to Rahim, the commander, to Shemshei, the scribe, and to the rest of their colleagues who live in Samaria and in the rest of the provinces beyond the river. Peace. And now the document which you sent to us has been translated and read before me. A decree has been issued by me and a search has been made and it has been discovered. that that city has risen up against the kings in past days, that rebellion and revolt have been perpetrated in it, that mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem, governing all the provinces beyond the river, and that tribute, custom and toll, were paid to them. So now, issue a decree to make these men stop work. that this city may not be rebuilt until a decree is issued by me. Beware of being negligent in carrying out this matter. Why should damage increase to the detriment of the kings? You're saying what's about to take place down here is just to your disadvantage, kings. It helps you in no way, and you need to stop the work. We want a decree to put this to a stop. Then, as soon as the copy of King Artaxerxes' document was read before Rahim and Shemshei, the scribe and their colleagues, they went in haste to Jerusalem, to the Jews, and stopped them by force of arms. So that's where the next bracket would go right there. Verse 24, then work on the house of God in Jerusalem ceased and it was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius, king of Persia. So you could read verse five in chapter four and then verse 24 and those would, they go right together. And we have documented for us this letter and this is, And we have a stoppage, a work stoppage for 16 years. So the work on the temple stopped. So what we have, I got a three point outline. First, we have the refusal of help to build. Then we have trouble, trouble. And I think Christians, often find trouble or trouble finds them. And the outcome, I call it a debacle, a disaster. Because anytime God's people are involved in doing his work to stop that work, is just, it just doesn't make sense when God's people stop the work for whatever reason. And really here, we don't read, we read the work stop, but we don't read that they got down on their knees and started praying. We don't read that they sought a word from God. We don't read any of that. We just read that was it. Listen, no matter the trouble and no matter the intensity of the trouble that we might find ourselves in as believers, persecution, what have you, you always have a prayer, always have a prayer. You can always bow your head and pray. You can always whisper a prayer. You can always encourage another believer. I never stopped the work. You can always share your faith. You can always do that. You can always worship your God. Always. It might be it might have to be real quiet. So be it. Worship God. Don't stop the work. So verse 24, then the work on the house of God in Jerusalem ceased and it was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius. King of Persia. So I was looking, somebody have, do you have your, the first little timeline that I gave you? Some of you have that. So look down there where it's 536 BC. We have the temple building starts and stops, and that's in Ezra three and four. And then you go down to 520, BC. Temple building restarts after a break of 16 years. So we're going to have a restart in Ezra 5. But you have a stoppage of 16 years. Okay? So And then in 515 BC, the temple is completed. So Ezra six, Ezra chapter six, the total number of years from beginning to end, including the break of 16 years was 21 years. And the temple was finally rebuilt. I think about 70 years after its destruction. So the timing in this chapter is what's important to get that 16-year stoppage is what we want to make sure we get. Then to know that the persecution, all of the ridicule, and the scorn, and the wrath of these enemies, that was persistent through the 16 years. I'm sure it ebbed and flowed, but it was there. They did not want this temple rebuilt. So we can move forward here in chapter five. We'll read the first five verses. I mean, we don't want to stop at a stop. We want to see them work. Now, the ministry of Haggai, so that two chapter prophecy from Haggai, he's talking to these folks. He's encouraging them. And that's important. You might want to go back and read Haggai and read Zechariah and Malachi. when the time comes, but here it is. Chapter five, verse one, when the prophets Haggai, the prophet and Zechariah, the son of Ido prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. Then Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel and Joshua, the son of Josedach arose and began to rebuild the house of God, which is in Jerusalem. and the prophets of God were with them, supporting them. So here, I think there's a great contrast. The persecution that came from the enemies, their words, their accusations, and then, and the work stopped. Here, we see immediately, we get to this wonderful chapter 5, and we have the prophets, we have Haggai, we have Zechariah, and the Bible says they were prophesying to the Jews, and they were there in the name of the God of Israel. And at that point, with these prophets speaking words of life and instruction to the people, then Zerubbabel. Can you imagine? Zerubbabel was he was the leader the whole time. And he's part of he's part of the of God's people. He's one small part, but he's the leader. And even he stopped working on the temple. But the word of the prophet, what I would like to stress here is the importance of the public proclamation of the Word of God. It's really important to hear the Word of God. And we see right here, the prophecies come through Haggai, through Zechariah, and the work begins. I'm not so sure their circumstances changed. I think they still have enemies. Because Oh yeah, that's right. We'll see enemies all the way from chapter 4 in Ezra, all the way to the end of Nehemiah. Enemies. They're all over the place. but there has to be the word of God, there has to be life spoken to God's people. And so they arose, right there it is in verse two, and they began to rebuild the house of God, which is in Jerusalem, and the prophets of God were with them, supporting them. At that time, Tatanei, well, if we read, we're trying to end on a positive, but boy, we keep reading and it gets, you know, There's going to be enemies. At that time, Tatanei, the governor of the province beyond the river, and Sheethar Bosanei and their colleagues came to them and spoke to them thus, who issued you a decree to rebuild this temple and to finish this structure? Oh, who authorized this rebuilding? What are we doing here? And it says, Then we told them accordingly what the names of the men were who were reconstructing this building. Oh boy, we're starting to name names now. But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews and they did not stop them until a report could come to Darius and then a written reply be returned concerning it. We'll stop there. But the importance of the Word of God in the midst of confusion and strife and enemies and spiritual warfare, if you want to call it that, the spiritual warfare, the physical challenges of life, the Word of God provides instruction and help and uplift in our lives, and it's indispensable for the growth of God's people. So we give him praise that we have an open Bible before us tonight. Let's pray and we'll be dismissed. Father in heaven, we thank you for this day. We thank you for your good grace toward us poured out. We thank you for your mercies. They're new every morning and and they're right there for us. And Lord, we just thank you for your word. We thank you for the encouragement that comes through your word. And Lord, cause this your word to dwell in our hearts. And Lord, as we leave tonight, we pray that you would fill us with your spirit, that we would walk before you humbly, that you would strengthen the bonds of brothers and sisters. Lord, that we would stand and that we would, by your strength and through your wisdom, that we would continue the work that you have for us to do. that we would not be discouraged, that we would not feel the heat of the world, so to speak, but that we would we would gain life from you and that we would have clarity of vision and thought before you and that we would just continue to build. Help us to persevere and all to your glory and to your honor. We pray these things in Jesus name. Amen.