Ezra 7:18 Study Bible: Whatever shall seem good to you and to your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, do that after the will of your God.

◄ Ezra 7:18 ►

You and your brothers may do whatever seems best with the rest of the silver and gold, according to the will of your God.

Study Bible

You and your brothers

Ezra and the fellow Jews traveling with him, especially the priests and Levites returning from Babylon, shared responsibility for restoring worship in Jerusalem.

2Ch 29:34 However, since there were not enough priests…
1Ch 23:28-32 but their duty was to assist the descendants of Aaron…

may do whatever seems best

Artaxerxes granted Ezra and his companions authority to use the funds wisely for the needs of the temple and its service.

Est 8:8 Now you may write in the king’s name regarding the Jews,…
2Ki 10:5 So the palace administrator, the overseer of the city…

with the rest of the silver and gold,

Additional resources remained available after the required offerings had been purchased, allowing for other legitimate needs connected with the temple.

Ezr 8:28 Then I told them, “You are holy to the LORD,…
1Ch 29:2-5 Now with all my ability I have made provision…

according to the will of your God.

Ezra’s decisions were to be governed by the law and worship of the God of Israel rather than personal preference or Persian custom.

Psa 40:8 I delight to do Your will, O my God; …
Heb 10:7 Then I said, ‘Here I am, it is written about Me…

Persons / Places / Events

1. Ezra
A scribe and priest, Ezra was a leader among the Jewish exiles returning from Babylon to Jerusalem. He was tasked with teaching the laws of God to the people of Israel.

2. Artaxerxes
The Persian king who issued a decree allowing Ezra and other Jews to return to Jerusalem. He provided resources and authority for Ezra's mission.

3. The Jews
The Jewish exiles who returned with Ezra to Jerusalem. They were tasked with rebuilding their community and religious practices according to the Law of Moses.

4. Jerusalem
The city to which Ezra and the exiles returned. It was the center of Jewish worship and the location of the Temple.

5. The Temple
The central place of worship for the Jews in Jerusalem. Ezra's mission included ensuring proper worship and adherence to the Law in the Temple.

Teaching Points

Stewardship and Responsibility
Ezra and the Jews were entrusted with resources and given the freedom to use them wisely. This teaches us about the responsibility of stewardship and making decisions that align with God's will.

Seeking God's Will
The phrase "according to the will of your God" emphasizes the importance of seeking and aligning with God's will in all decisions. This is a call for prayerful consideration and discernment in our lives.

Community and Collaboration
The involvement of "you and your fellow Jews" highlights the importance of community and collaboration in fulfilling God's purposes. We are reminded to work together with others in our faith communities.

Faith in Action
Ezra's leadership and the actions of the Jews demonstrate faith in action. We are encouraged to actively live out our faith through our decisions and actions.

Bible Study Questions

1. How does Ezra's role as a leader and scribe influence the way he approaches the task given to him by King Artaxerxes?

2. In what ways can we apply the principle of seeking God's will in our decision-making processes today?

3. How does the freedom given to Ezra and the Jews to use the resources "according to the will of your God" reflect the concept of stewardship in the New Testament?

4. What are some practical ways we can collaborate with others in our faith communities to fulfill God's purposes?

5. How can we ensure that our actions and decisions are a reflection of our faith in God, similar to Ezra's example?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Nehemiah 8
This chapter describes Ezra reading the Law to the people, emphasizing the importance of understanding and following God's commandments.

Proverbs 3:5-6
These verses highlight trusting in the Lord and acknowledging Him in all ways, which aligns with Ezra's reliance on God's will in handling the resources.

2 Corinthians 9:7
This verse speaks about giving willingly and cheerfully, which connects to the freedom given to Ezra and the Jews to use the resources as they saw fit according to God's will.

Sermons

Ezra's Commission from Artaxerxes	J.A. Macdonald	Ezra 7:11-26
Pagan Piety	W. Clarkson	Ezra 7:11-26
The Commission of Artaxerxes	William Jones.	Ezra 7:11-27
The Office and Duty of the Civil Magistrate	Philoclesius.	Ezra 7:11-27

People

Aaron, Abishua, Ahitub, Amariah, Artaxerxes, Azariah, Bukki, Eleazar, Ezra, Hilkiah, Israelites, Levites, Meraioth, Phinehas, Seraiah, Shallum, Uzzi, Zadok, Zerahiah

Places

Babylonia, Beyond the River, Jerusalem, Persia

Topics

Accordance, Best, Brethren, Brothers, Gold, Jews, Pleasing, Rest, Seem, Seems, Silver, Whatever, Whatsoever

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Ezra 7:18

8126 guidance, need for

Ezra 7:1-21

7464 teachers of the law

Ezra 7:12-18

4333 gold

Ezra 7:12-20

7505 Jews, the

Library

Appendix. The Apocryphal Books of the Old Testament.
1. The Greek word Apocrypha, hidden, that is, hidden or secret books, was early applied by the fathers of the Christian church to anonymous or spurious books that falsely laid claim to be a part of the inspired word. By some, as Jerome, the term was extended to all the books incorporated by the Alexandrine Jews, in their Greek version, into the proper canon of the Old Testament, a few of which books, though not inspired, are undoubtedly genuine. Another designation of the books in question …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Reading the Law with Tears and Joy
'And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded to Israel. 2. And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month. 3. And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate, from the morning until midday, before …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Rome and Ephesus
Corinth as portrayed in the Epistles of Paul gives us our simplest and least contaminated picture of the Hellenic Christianity which regarded itself as the cult of the Lord Jesus, who offered salvation--immortality--to those initiated in his mysteries. It had obvious weaknesses in the eyes of Jewish Christians, even when they were as Hellenised as Paul, since it offered little reason for a higher standard of conduct than heathenism, and its personal eschatology left no real place for the resurrection …
Kirsopp Lake—Landmarks in the History of Early Christianity

Authorship of the Pentateuch.
The term Pentateuch is composed of the two Greek words, pente, five, and teuchos, which in later Alexandrine usage signified book. It denotes, therefore, the collection of five books; or, the five books of the law considered as a whole. 1. In our inquiries respecting the authorship of the Pentateuch, we begin with the undisputed fact that it existed in its present form in the days of Christ and his apostles, and had so existed from the time of Ezra. When the translators of the Greek version, …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Of Antichrist, and his Ruin: and of the Slaying the Witnesses.
BY JOHN BUNYAN PREFATORY REMARKS BY THE EDITOR This important treatise was prepared for the press, and left by the author, at his decease, to the care of his surviving friend for publication. It first appeared in a collection of his works in folio, 1692; and although a subject of universal interest; most admirably elucidated; no edition has been published in a separate form. Antichrist has agitated the Christian world from the earliest ages; and his craft has been to mislead the thoughtless, by …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Brave Encouragements
'In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the Lord by the prophet Haggai, saying, 2. Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying, 3. Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing? 4. Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the Lord; and be strong, O Joshua, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

General Account of Jesus' Teaching.
^A Matt. IV. 17; ^B Mark I. 14, 15; ^C Luke IV. 14, 15. ^a 17 From that time Jesus began to preach [The time here indicated is that of John the Baptist's imprisonment and Jesus' return to Galilee. This time marked a new period in the public ministry of Jesus. Hitherto he had taught, but he now began to preach. When the voice of his messenger, John, was silenced, the King became his own herald. Paul quoted the Greeks as saying that preaching was "foolishness," but following the example here set by …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Section Chap. I. -iii.
The question which here above all engages our attention, and requires to be answered, is this: Whether that which is reported in these chapters did, or did not, actually and outwardly take place. The history of the inquiries connected with this question is found most fully in Marckius's "Diatribe de uxore fornicationum," Leyden, 1696, reprinted in the Commentary on the Minor Prophets by the same author. The various views may be divided into three classes. 1. It is maintained by very many interpreters, …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Formation and History of the Hebrew Canon.
1. The Greek word canon (originally a straight rod or pole, measuring-rod, then rule) denotes that collection of books which the churches receive as given by inspiration of God, and therefore as constituting for them a divine rule of faith and practice. To the books included in it the term canonical is applied. The Canon of the Old Testament, considered in reference to its constituent parts, was formed gradually; formed under divine superintendence by a process of growth extending through …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Appendix v. Rabbinic Theology and Literature
1. The Traditional Law. - The brief account given in vol. i. p. 100, of the character and authority claimed for the traditional law may here be supplemented by a chronological arrangement of the Halakhoth in the order of their supposed introduction or promulgation. In the first class, or Halakhoth of Moses from Sinai,' tradition enumerates fifty-five, [6370] which may be thus designated: religio-agrarian, four; [6371] ritual, including questions about clean and unclean,' twenty-three; [6372] concerning …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Historical Books.
1. In the Pentateuch we have the establishment of the Theocracy, with the preparatory and accompanying history pertaining to it. The province of the historical books is to unfold its practiced working, and to show how, under the divine superintendence and guidance, it accomplished the end for which it was given. They contain, therefore, primarily, a history of God's dealings with the covenant people under the economy which he had imposed upon them. They look at the course of human events on the …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Influences that Gave Rise to the Priestly Laws and Histories
[Sidenote: Influences in the exile that produced written ceremonial laws] The Babylonian exile gave a great opportunity and incentive to the further development of written law. While the temple stood, the ceremonial rites and customs received constant illustration, and were transmitted directly from father to son in the priestly families. Hence, there was little need of writing them down. But when most of the priests were carried captive to Babylonia, as in 597 B.C., and ten years later the temple …
Charles Foster Kent—The Origin & Permanent Value of the Old Testament

Ezra-Nehemiah
Some of the most complicated problems in Hebrew history as well as in the literary criticism of the Old Testament gather about the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Apart from these books, all that we know of the origin and early history of Judaism is inferential. They are our only historical sources for that period; and if in them we have, as we seem to have, authentic memoirs, fragmentary though they be, written by the two men who, more than any other, gave permanent shape and direction to Judaism, then …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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