Ezra / Esther / Nehemiah / Haggai / Zechariah / Malachi
The Final Sprint
If you have your Bibles, we are in a sprint—a final sprint through the final six books of our Old Testament. We have been through quite a bit over the previous weeks, if not months, and we have two more charts to cover. If you are new with us, we are teaching Genesis to Revelation in overview form, and we create charts for every week to walk through. We have two charts for our time together this week that will cover six different books: Ezra, Haggai, Zechariah, Esther, Nehemiah, and Malachi.
If you look on the left side of the chart, we have put a timeline together for you. It is the first timeline we have introduced that has some parallel figures in world history to bring some familiarity to this era. Previously, we could have said, “This took place in whatever BC,” and you would think, Who cares? But now we find ourselves alongside historical figures you may recognize. In this era, Confucius comes on the scene in the 500s BC. Buddha arrives around 520 BC. King Leonidas—probably best known from the movie 300—steps onto the scene in 480 BC when the Spartans battle Xerxes and the Persian army we are going to talk about today. Socrates arrives in the mid-400s, Plato comes on the scene right in this window, and just off our chart around 400 BC, Aristotle arrives. We are in very familiar historical territory.
To set this up, remember that the Babylonian Empire has fallen and the Persians have taken over. Turn for a moment to 2 Chronicles 36. I want to show you something tucked deep inside a book we covered weeks ago, which we intentionally saved to set up this exact moment. The author of Chronicles is writing about the next world ruler. Typically, we have been talking about kings of Israel or kings of Judah, but this is Cyrus, king of Persia.
2 Chronicles 36:22-23 (NASB)
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia– in order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah– the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and also [put it] in writing, saying, ’Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may the LORD his God be with him, and let him go up!’’
Isaiah actually talks about King Cyrus and calls him God’s “Anointed One”—a title typically reserved for the Mashiach, the Messiah. Why call a pagan king the anointed one? Because God used this man in an incredible way. While the people of Israel were captive in Babylon and Persia conquered Babylon, God stirred this king’s heart to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Cyrus recognized the sovereignty of God. Now, I do not think Cyrus was a true believer—he was likely polytheistic—but he recognized God’s absolute power. He said, “The Lord has charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem… Whoever is among all of his people, let him go up.”
Rebuilding the Foundation
Open to the book of Ezra. Ezra chapters 1 through 6 records the beginning of that resettlement. Cyrus gave the green light for anyone who wanted to return to go. The disappointing irony is that you would expect all of them to pack their bags and head home, but they had spent seventy years in captivity.
Think about how long you have lived in your home. If I told you today, “Hey, how many of you want to pack up and move?” you would say, “Honestly, I would rather pull my tongue out than move. Moving is awful.” Now imagine seventy years of roots. By this time, you have a steady job. Your kids are in the local schools. They are playing on the neighborhood basketball team. They have made friends with the Persian kid down the street. Now suddenly the word comes: Go. Go where? Go to Jerusalem. “Great, tell me about Jerusalem!” Well, there is no temple; it was destroyed. There is no city; it was burned to rubble. There is no protective wall; it was torn down. Who wants to go? Very few people went. Only a faithful remnant packed their bags, led by a man named Zerubbabel.
Ezra divides cleanly into two sections: chapters 1 through 6, which Ezra records historically, and chapters 7 through 10, which Ezra participates in personally. In chapter 2, you see a roster of those who returned. An interesting side note: the most underrepresented tribe was Levi. Back in the Pentateuch, the Levites were appointed to be the priests. They had just received royal permission to go rebuild the house of God, and the priests were the least interested in going. But the remnant went, and in chapter 3, construction began.
They started with limited resources. Lowe’s had not moved into the neighborhood yet. They had nowhere to buy supplies, so they did the best they could with what the king provided. When they finally laid the foundation of the temple, a remarkable scene unfolded.
Ezra 3:11-13 (NASB)
They sang, praising and giving thanks to the LORD, [saying], ‘For He is good, for His lovingkindness is upon Israel forever.’ And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the LORD because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. Yet many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ [households], the old men who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud voice when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, while many shouted aloud for joy, so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the shout of joy from the sound of the weeping of the people, for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the sound was heard far away.
Why were the older men weeping? Because they had seen Solomon’s temple in all its splendor before it was destroyed. When they looked at this tiny foundation compared to what once stood, their hearts broke and they wept aloud. But the younger generation, who had only known captivity in Babylon, were shouting for joy. This foundation was the greatest thing they had ever seen. There was this profound tension between the joy of the young and the grief of the old. But the foundation was laid.
For Such a Time as This
In Ezra chapter 4, intense opposition arose and the work ground to a complete halt. It was during this exact era, under King Ahasuerus—also known as Xerxes—that the events of the book of Esther took place.
Esther is a fascinating book. The name of God is never mentioned once, which drives some people crazy, yet the hand of God is everywhere on every page. It is a book loaded with divine irony. Queen Vashti refused the king’s inappropriate demand to parade herself before his drunken banquet, so she was deposed. In chapter 2, Xerxes searched for a new queen, and a young Jewish orphan living in exile named Esther was elevated to the Persian throne.
A wicked official named Haman rose to power and orchestrated a genocidal plot in chapter 3 to exterminate every Jewish person in the empire for no reason at all. Throughout history, the Jewish people have faced unprovoked hatred, and here it surfaced again. When Esther hesitated to intervene because approaching the king uninvited carried a potential death penalty, her uncle Mordecai sent her a message packed with rock-solid theology.
Esther 4:14 (NASB)
‘For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?’
Mordecai knew that God is always faithful to deliver His people. God can choose to use you, or He can raise up deliverance from somewhere else, but His promises will never fail. Mordecai told her, “God’s plan does not rise or fall on you. You can step into what God is doing, or He will bring in a backup and accomplish His purpose anyway. But who knows whether you were brought into the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Have you ever experienced a “for such a time as this” moment? A situation where a crisis erupted, you looked around, found yourself right in the middle of it, and realized, Maybe God placed me right here for this exact moment. That is where Esther stood. She courageously stepped forward, exposed Haman’s wicked scheme, and Haman was ultimately hanged on the very gallows he had built for Mordecai. The Jewish people were granted the right to defend themselves, God delivered them, and they instituted the Feast of Purim to celebrate His deliverance.
Consider Your Ways
While the temple work in Jerusalem remained stalled in Ezra 4, God raised up two fiery prophets: Haggai and Zechariah. Haggai is only two chapters long, but it is two chapters of pure fastball. The man did not mess around. The people had laid the temple foundation, high-fived each other, and then walked away when things got difficult. In the meantime, everyone started building their own luxury homes.
Haggai 1:4-9 (NASB)
‘Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house [lies] desolate?’ Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, ’Consider your ways! ‘You have sown much, but harvest little; [you] eat, but [there is] not [enough] to be satisfied; [you] drink, but [there is] not [enough] to become drunk; [you] put on clothing, but no one is warm [enough]; and he who earns, earns wages [to put] into a purse with holes.’ Thus says the LORD of hosts, ’Consider your ways! ‘Go up to the mountains, bring wood and rebuild the temple, that I may be pleased with it and be glorified,’ says the LORD. ‘[You] look for much, but behold, [it comes] to little; when you bring [it] home, I blow it [away]. Why?’ declares the LORD of hosts, ’Because of My house which [lies] desolate, while each of you runs to his own house.
Haggai told them, “Consider your ways! Get your mind right! You are pouring all your energy into your own houses while God’s house sits in ruins. You eat, but you are never full. You earn wages only to put them in pockets full of holes.” Have you ever poured your entire life into your career, thinking, I just need to pick up one more shift, work a little more overtime, hit one more commission goal, yet even after the bonus check arrives, it still feels empty? When we invest our time, talent, and treasure solely into accumulating comfort for ourselves while neglecting God, that is precisely what happens. God told them to get up into the hills, get the timber, and put Him first again.
At the very same time, Zechariah began prophesying. If Haggai provided the structural blueprint, Zechariah provided the spiritual interior decorating. Zechariah is filled with eight vivid night visions—angels waking him up and asking, “What do you see?”—all calling the people back to authentic covenant worship. But chapters 9 through 14 contain some of the clearest messianic prophecies in the entire Old Testament, second only to Isaiah. Zechariah told them to finish the temple because the true King was coming.
Zechariah 12:10 (NASB)
’I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.
Zechariah looked centuries into the future and saw Jesus Christ—the One pierced for our transgressions, over whom the nations will mourn.
Stirred by Haggai and Zechariah, the people resumed construction in Ezra chapter 5, and by chapter 6, the temple was finally finished. Years later, in Ezra 7, Ezra himself arrived in Jerusalem on a second wave of return. Ezra was a scribe with a clear life mission.
Ezra 7:10 (NASB)
For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice [it], and to teach [His] statutes and ordinances in Israel.
There is no higher calling for a follower of God: study the Word, practice what you study, and teach it to others. That is the essence of true discipleship.
When Ezra arrived, he uncovered widespread spiritual compromise. The people had intermarried with the surrounding pagan nations and adopted their idolatrous practices. Just as it took forty years of wilderness wandering to get Egypt out of Israel after the Exodus, it was proving painfully difficult to get Babylon and Persia out of the hearts of the returned exiles. Ezra confronted their sin, and the people wept and turned back to God in repentance.
A Holy Discontent
Next comes the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah served as cupbearer to Artaxerxes, the king of Persia. He lived in absolute luxury in the capital city, tasting the finest wine at the royal table. One day, his brother arrived with a report from Jerusalem: the city walls were broken down, the gates were burned, and the people were living in vulnerability and disgrace.
Nehemiah 1:4 (NASB)
When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
Nehemiah experienced what you might call a dislocated heart. Something broke inside him. He did not say, “Man, somebody really ought to do something about that.” He moved from “someone should do something” to “I think God is calling me to do something.” He developed a holy discontent. He prayed, fasted, and asked the king for permission and resources to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he went on a secret nighttime inspection to survey the damage.
Nehemiah 2:11-12 (NASB)
So I came to Jerusalem and was there three days. And I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God was putting into my mind to do for Jerusalem and there was no animal with me except the animal on which I was riding.
Like a wise leader, he assessed the brokenness before announcing his plans. In chapter 3, the work began, and immediately opposition arose from neighboring governors who did not want Jerusalem fortified. When threats of violence escalated, Nehemiah armed the builders. He stationed families at the lowest, most vulnerable parts of the wall right behind their own homes, essentially saying, “Fathers, you want to defend your city? Defend your family. Keep your sword ready.” The people worked with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other, keeping their eyes open and ready to fight.
Despite fierce opposition from the outside and economic oppression from the inside, the wall was completed in just fifty-two days. It was an absolute construction miracle.
Rebuilding the People
Rebuilding the wall was the easy part; chapters 8 through 13 were about rebuilding the people. In Nehemiah 8, the people gathered and asked Ezra to bring out the Book of the Law. They built a high wooden platform in the city square, Ezra opened the Scriptures, and the entire congregation stood on their feet out of reverence for the Word of God.
Ezra read the Scriptures aloud from morning until midday. As he read, Levites moved through the crowd like small-group leaders, explaining the text so everyone could understand it. The Word penetrated their hearts, leading to deep repentance, the renewal of the covenant, and the joyful celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles.
After dedicating the city walls, Nehemiah returned to Persia to report back to the king. While he was away, compromise rushed right back in. During that spiritual slide, the prophet Malachi spoke God’s final words of the Old Testament.
Malachi confronted a corrupt priesthood that offered blemished, half-hearted sacrifices. God spoke through Malachi with stunning bluntness.
Malachi 1:10 (NASB)
‘Oh that there were one among you who would shut the gates, that you might not uselessly kindle [fire on] My altar! I am not pleased with you,’ says the LORD of hosts, ’nor will I accept an offering from you.
God told them, “I wish one of you would just lock the temple doors so you stop offering fake, empty worship!” He confronted them for walking out on their marriage covenants through unbiblical divorce, and for robbing God by withholding their tithes and offerings. Malachi closed his prophecy by pointing backward to the law of Moses and forward to the coming of a prophet like Elijah who would prepare the way for the Lord.
Malachi 4:4-6 (NASB)
’Remember the law of Moses My servant, [even the] statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel. ’Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. ‘He will restore the hearts of the fathers to [their] children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.’
When Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem in Nehemiah 13, he found the exact corruption Malachi condemned. Nehemiah was so furious that he threw the belongings of pagan enemies out of the temple chambers, rebuked the leaders, and literally pulled out the beards of men who had broken covenant with God. He demanded that they remember God’s law and purify themselves.
With that, the Old Testament story ends, and heaven falls silent for four hundred years.
The One It All Points To
For four centuries, God’s people waited in the silence. They did not know when the promised messenger would arrive; they only knew God had promised he would come.
So what is the ultimate takeaway from these six books—and indeed, from the entire Old Testament from Genesis to Malachi? Jesus gave us the answer directly in the Gospel of John.
John 5:39-40 (NASB)
’You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.
Why was the Old Testament given to us? Was it written simply to provide moral examples or a checklist of rules so God would love us? No. It was written to reveal our desperate need for a Savior and to point us to Jesus Christ.
Jesus is the seed of the woman in Genesis 3:15. He is the true Passover Lamb of Exodus, the Holy One of Leviticus, and the Prophet greater than Moses in Deuteronomy 18. He is the true King foreshadowed in the historical books, the righteous Branch of David, the Lord who suddenly comes to His temple in Malachi, and the pierced Messiah of Zechariah. Every sacrifice, every ceremony, and every prophet pointed directly to Him.
The Old Testament points forward to the cross like a brilliant neon sign. The New Testament looks back at the cross in the rearview mirror. The absolute focal point of all human history is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
As we close the Old Testament, the question is simple: Have you come to Jesus to find life? You will not find eternal life in Abraham, Moses, David, Ezra, or Nehemiah. They all point beyond themselves to King Jesus. Come to Him, embrace His finished work on the cross, and find your righteousness, your hope, and your rest in Him alone.
Let’s pray together.
Father, we pray that we, Your people, would be drawn continually back to You. As we look across the sweep of the Old Testament from Genesis through Malachi, help us to see the person and work of Jesus Christ clearly. Keep us from ever believing that our own good behavior earns Your favor. Instead, may we rest entirely in the Savior You have provided. We thank You that the finished work of Jesus covers all our sin, and that through His resurrection, we have eternal life. Anchor our hearts in Your truth. In Jesus’ name, Amen.