The Bible in Time...

Read |    Day 262 | Saturday | September 19   Nehemiah 7: 4-73a, 73b– 8: 12 Nehemiah By Russian Icon Painter (Greek and Russian Orthodox Icon) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Date: 445 BC Reading | Nehemiah, the governor, conducts a census of the people now living in Jerusalem - he says there are 42,360. Ezra the priest and teacher of the Law takes the Law out and reads to the people, they bowed down and worshiped the Lord. Levites helped in this instruction; Nehemiah declares a celebration with joy. Source | Tyndale | The One Year Chronological Bible NIV | ISBN 978-1-4143-5993-9  Next |  Day 263 | Sunday | September 20 | Nehemiah 8: 13-18  Nehemiah 9: 1-38  Nehemiah 10: 1-29, 30-39  +++ A Song of Creation Benedicite, omnia opera Domini Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65 Invocation Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, * praise him and highly exalt him for ever. In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord,...

Read |  Day 260 | Thursday | September 17   Ezra 9: 1-15  Ezra 10: 1-17, 18-44 Nehemiah 1: 1-11  Nehemiah 2: 1-10, 11-20 By Russian Icon Painter (Greek and Russian Orthodox Icon) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Background | Nehemiah |  The book of Nehemiah begins with King Artaxerxes sending Nehemiah to Jerusalem to rebuild its walls. Nehemiah 3 gives a detailed description of the various gates of the walls, which is the earliest such description scholars have, thereby helping them to understand something of the topography of Jerusalem at the time. As with Ezra’s reforms, there was opposition to rebuilding the wall, for a fortified Jerusalem would surely make the surrounding nations nervous. Despite this, the wall was still completed.  Nehemiah also includes a number of lists that are of interest to historians: a list of those who returned from Babylon, of those who agreed to the religious reforms initiated by Ezra reading the Torah in the ...

Read |  Day 259 | Wednesday | September 16   Ezra 4: 7-23  Ezra 7: 1-10, 11-26, 27-28  Ezra 8: 1-14, 15-36 Date: 464 BC thebiblehistorybooks.wordpress.com Reading | Ezra the Scribe - Letter to the Artaxerxes - they are rebuilding Jerusalem and the Temple; King says do NOT rebuild; King to Ezra rebuild the Temple and here is the funding; Ezra praises the Lord; listing of returning Exiles; Ezra's journey back and religious observance. Source | Tyndale | The One Year Chronological Bible NIV | ISBN 978-1-4143-5993-9  Next |    Day 260 | Thursday | September 17   Ezra 9: 1-15  Ezra 10: 1-17, 18-44 Nehemiah 1: 1-11  Nehemiah 2: 1-10, 11-20  +++ Suffrages A V. Show us your mercy, O Lord; R. And grant us your salvation. V. Clothe your ministers with righteousness; R. Let your people sing with joy. V. Give peace, O Lord, in all the world; R. For only in you can we live in safety. V. Lord, keep this nation under your car...

Read |  Day 257 | Monday | September 14 Ezra 6: 14b-18, 19-22  Ezra 4: 6  Esther 1: 1-9, 10-22  Esther 2: 1-14, 15-20, 21-23  Esther 3: 1-15  Esther 4: 1-17  Background |  Opposing Views on Esther | Click here The Bible in Time Esther saved the Jewish people from the Persian government   Esther was a Jewish woman who became the Queen of Persia during the reign of King Ahasuerus. Esther was an orphaned Jewish girl who was raised by her first cousin named Mordechai. She is recognized by the Jewish people as a prophet and a heroine because she saved the Jewish people from destruction by influencing the King to stop an anti-Semitic decree made by a court official named Haman. Queen of Persia In the third year of his reign, after killing his disobedient queen Vashti, King Ahasuerus conducted a massive beauty contest in search of a new queen. She was reluctant to join the beauty contest but had no choice in the matter. King Ahasue...

Read |    Day 255 | Saturday | September 12 Zechariah 6: 1-8, 9-15 Ezra 5: 3-17 Ezra 6: 1-14a Zechariah 7: 1-14 Zechariah 8: 1-23 Background | Chabad.org|  The story of   Ezra the Scribe   takes us back about 23 Ezra from  Guillaume Rouillé 's Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum  - Wikipedia centuries, to the time when the Jews had returned from the Babylonian exile, had rebuilt the   Beth Hamikdosh , and had begun to live a free life on their own native soil. In the year 3408, the construction of the Second   Beth   Hamikdosh in   Jerusalem   was under way. Jerusalem again became the center of Jewish life. But the era of the prophets was about to end. Hagai,   Zechariah   and   Malachi   were the last of the prophets. There were no more prophets after them, though there never ceased to appear men of wisdom and vision in   Israel   who were leaders and sages, and inspired their brethren with th...

Read |    Day 253 | Thursday | September 10   Daniel 10: 1– 11: 1  Daniel 11: 2-45  Daniel 12: 1-13  Ezra 4: 24– 5: 1  Haggai 1: 1-11, 12-15a  Background | Haggai - Bible Hub -  The book of Haggai is Narrative History and Prophetic Oracle. The prophet Haggai wrote it approximately 520 B.C. Haggai is among the most carefully and precisely dated books in the entire Bible. It is a post-exilic book, meaning it was written after (post)  the captivity  (exile)  in Babylon. Key personalities are Haggai, Zerubbabel, and Joshua. The purpose of this book was that Haggai was called by God to encourage the people to finish the construction of the temple in Jerusalem. The construction had ceased because of opposition and because the neighboring countries, and the Jews were frightened. More - click here Dates| 536 BC Reading | Daniel sees an angel  - his mouth is opened - of conquests and the people of God in the middl...

Read |    Day 252 | Wednesday | September 9   Ezra 2: 1-70  Ezra 3: 1-7, 8-13  Ezra 4: 1-5  1   Chronicles 3: 19b-24  Background | Ezra - Center for Biblical Studies -  Ezra and Nehemiah tell the story of Israel’s return from Babylonian exile and resettlement in the land. Ezra focuses on the rebuilding of the temple, while Nehemiah focuses on the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. It is fair to say that Ezra is focused more exclusively on religious reform and Nehemiah on political issues. However, these political issues are not at all devoid of some religious dimension—especially since it is impossible to divorce religion and state in ancient Israel. Judging by the names of the Persian rulers mentioned in Ezra-Nehemiah, the events of these books likely took place between 458 BC and 445 BC, with Ezra coming first. Some scholars suggest that Ezra came second, which would move his date to about 398 BC. Either way, Ezra and Nehemiah were c...