December 1924
T H E K I N G ’ S - B U S I N E S S
802
First, Cyrus with his proclamation (2 Chron. 36:22, 23); then the laymen (the chief of the fathers); then the people, then the priests, all working together for one object— the carrying out of God’s holy will. Cyrus did not ask the Jews to do what he was not willing to do himself for Jehovah. He set an example. He took the holy vessels which had been carried away by Nebuchad nezzar, and gave them to Sheshbazzar to be returned to the rebuilt temple of Jehovah. God is not done with Israel (read the prophecies), and never have there been so many marked evidences of His pur pose to fulfil His promise of their return as today when in their own land, with a Jew as their governor, they are pre paring the way for the further fulfilment of God’s Word. There was sin, punishment, forgiveness, and restoration, for them then. There was sin, again, in their rejection of Christ; punishment in their scattering. There is fulfilment of prophecy in their gathering now, but there must yefc be the saddest of all the days they have ever known; and then the day of all days will come -When Christ shall reign as their king, and again it will be— Jerusalem the center, and the Jews the earthly people of God. (3) THE PROPHETS ENCOURAGE THE PEOPLE, 3:8- 13. “ And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the Lord,” v. 11. The second chapter gives a long list of the remnant re turning from captivity-—representatives from all of the tribes, but mostly from Judah and Benjamin. The account of the first return, B. C. 536, is found in Ezra 1-6 and recorded in Haggai and Zechariah; the second under Ezra, in B. C. 458, is recorded in Ezra 7-10; the third, fourteen years later, under Nehemiah, is found in Neh. 2:1-5. When the seventh month came the altar was set up (3:2, 3). This was the first essential for Israel, and it is the first essential in every believer’s home— an altar to the Lord, a family altar, where the family (if there is one) may gather in praise and prayer. Think of the joy they experienced as they kept the Feast of Tabernacles, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atone ment, and commenced the daily burnt offerings! Get the picture of the priests in their priestly robes, the Levites and Sons of Asaph with their cymbals, and the multitude sing ing and praising God together and shouting for joy as they laid the foundations for the Temple. Some who had seen the first temple wept with a loud voice, and praise and lamentation combined (Psa. 106). God had not forgotten Israel. His Word cannot be broken. The religious life of the true Israel was a joyful life. Read the story of the feast days. In 1 Chron. 6:16-30 we have the choir listed which David appointed (v. 31): “ And these are they whom David set over the service of song in the house of the Lord, after that the ark had rest.” And in 1 Chron. 16:4-43 we have the great Hallelujah Chorus composed by David, in one verse of which he calls upon the earth to “ Sing unto the Lord, * * * shew forth from day to day his salvation.” And the spirit of praise is the voice of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 5:19, 20). The lesson is clear. God’s people should be a trustful, restful, prayerful, praiseful people. We belong to our Father in Heaven, and He belongs to us. He never sleeps. His eye is upon us. His love is unchanging. Topics for Study (1) Does the God of Heaven own all the kingdoms of this earth ? (Continued on page 841)
(1) THE PROCLAMATION, 1:1, 2. “ Cyrus, king of Persia ****made a proclamation,” v. 1 . God’s Word is true. The Bible is inspired. This lesson will afford an opportunity to prove this fact to the scholars, and that fact, fastened upon their minds, is of far greater importance than any of the details of the lesson. Every where, in church and school, the Bible is being belittled, and the word of so-called scientists believed. Here is the illustration to use with emphasis: Seventy years before God had said: “ This whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonish ment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. “And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accom plished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the Lord, for their iniquity” (Jer. 25:11, 12). And now He is fulfilling His promise. God had named Cyrus a hundred years before his birth, as He had named Josiah three hundred years before his birth (1 Ki. 13:2). God moved upon the spirit of Cyrus. Perhaps this was brought about by Daniel calling the king’s attention to the prophecy of Jeremiah (Dan. 6:28). God put it into the heart of Cyrus to help His people. God uses human means. He does not have to, but it is His plan, and we find it verified all through the Bible and through the history of the church and of nations. God is a living God. He hears prayer. He responds to the call of His people. We need to believe this and to look to Him, to rely upon Him to supply our needs, and to fur ther His work through us (Psa. 34:15): “ The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.” Cyrus recognizes and acknowledges God as his Ruler, and as having put him in power, and tells it to the ends of the earth, as did Darius (Dan. 6:26). God had named Cyrus as His shepherd (Isa. 44:28): “ That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall per form all my pleasure.” This is the only instance in which this term is applied to a Gentile. Israel were His sheep, Cyrus was His shepherd, and that because God’s appointed shepherds had been false • to their trust. Cyrus believed God’s Word concerning him. What a com ment is this when today, with the testimony of two thousand years to verify God’s Word, that Word is derided and denied by professing preachers and teachers. God pity them! Cyrus acknowledges the position given him by God’s grace, and that he is still under authority. (Matt. 8:9.) Throughout his kingdom were these Israelites, many of whom were rich and prosperous, whom he is urging to return to their own land. In doing this, he is voluntarily relinquishing taxes for his own treasury, and men who had become desirable, loyal citizens. But, remember, he is being guided as Jehovah’s “shepherd for Israel’s good. There is but one place for Israel, and that is Jerusalem. There is but one place of worship for Israel, and that is the temple. There has never been any rest for this people, and there never will be until they recognize the Messiah. (2) THE PREPARATION AND PROSECUTION OF THE WORK, 1:5-11. “ And all they that were about them strengthened their hands,” v. 6 . The response to the call is first by the laymen— the chief of thè fathers of Judah and Benjamin. The head of the movement was Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah (v. 8 ), better known as Zerubbabel. iZech. 4:9, 10). This is the old story. There must always be a leader, and how often in the history of the church have laymen taken the lead.
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