Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro: A Rebuilt House

The Old Testament was laid out in its final form as a pedagogical method for teaching Theology to all who would read it.

There are three divisions in the OT: Pentateuch (Law/Covenant Given, Especially Deuteronomy), Prophets (Law/Covenant Broken and Prosecuted, both by God and his Prophets), Writings (How to Experience Covenant Blessings, Obey the Law, and Live in God’s Presence—by fulfilling the Law).

Ezra and Nehemiah were almost always treated as one book from antiquity.

It is in the last section of the Hebrew Canon, the Writings.

This will inform how we view the book as a whole, and how we interpret our passage today.

Theological considerations are the central part of the book.

If we were to give it a Genre, it would be history—but not how we do history.

It is history with a Theological Purpose.

The same is true with our list of names.

Our passage is repeated almost word-for-word in Ezra 2.

So, we are going to treat Ezra and Nehemiah as two parts of a whole for a second.

When I was growing up in the church, I learned about these two historical books this way: Ezra is about the post exilic Jews rebuilding the temple, and Nehemiah is about the post-exilic Jews rebuilding the walls.

This is not false . . .

But!

There is much more content in these two books than simply the building of the temple and the walls.

The sheer weight of these two books shows that the matter of rebuilding the Covenant People of God is central to the endeavor before both Ezra and Nehemiah.

Two concepts to prove what I am getting at:

First, which gets more attention?

The rebuilding of the structure, or the rebuilding of the people?

The answer is the people.

Second, what does the book say they are doing?

Rebuilding the house.

Rebuilding the House has three senses:

Rebuilding the House means rebuilding the Temple of God

Rebuilding the House means rebuilding the City of God (Jerusalem)

Rebuilding the House means rebuilding the People of God (Israel)

Because of the wide range of meaning, we can understand the answer to the question in the message title: Now What?

The temple was already rebuilt, the wall was rebuilt, the houses would start to be finished, but the “household of Israel” needs to be re-established as a Covenant Community.

The remaining parts of Nehemiah center on this theme, and it will guide us today.

I.

A Lamentable Return: The Need for Re-population

A. Expected Circumstances of the Return (Isaiah 62)

A Physically Rebuilt Temple

A Physically Glorious Jerusalem

A Restored, Righteous, Ethnically Pure People

B. Actual Circumstances of the Return

1.

A Weep-worthy Temple Ezra 3:10-13

2.

An Empty City Nehemiah 7:4

3. A Small, Temporary, Unrighteous People

Ezra makes it clear in the first chapter that the return from exile was viewed as another exodus.

However, comparing the numbers is revealing.

In the first exodus, over 600,000 men were present; Nehemiah records only 42,360.

Jerusalem during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah was far from the glorious return they expected.

What’s more is both Ezra and Nehemiah have to deal with people that have intermarried with other nations.

The blatant disregard for God’s law is telling.

God is Always Faithful to His Covenants; Humanity is Always Unfaithful

The main problem of Israel was not the missing temple, the missing walls, the small population, or even the evil actions of the surrounding nations!

The main problem for Israel was Covenant Unfaithfulness, and that problem was an inside job—not a result of their circumstances.

Each and every Israelite was wicked from birth.

The Covenant blessings, covenant community, and covenant Word can and did stay the people’s rebellion (both in quantity and quality) for a time, but ultimately the nation descended into chaos.

The solution wasn’t morality, ethnic purity, or willpower, but a perfect human substitute.

The returnees would have been looking for a Messianic figure, even as the temple and wall were being built; no such figure appeared and wouldn’t for around four hundred years.

They would not have known that a new kind of humanity, a new kind of Covenant, a new kind of city, and a new kind of community would be necessary to solve the issue of sin.

Application: You can survive unmet expectations

The Israel that found itself in the trenches of rebuilding and at the sharp end of opposition still faced unmet expectations.

Ezra would have been excited to return to the promised land to rebuild, and was clearly floored by the unfaithfulness of the people.

Nehemiah stood firm against strong opposition, and against the unfaithfulness of the people.

The community continued rebuilding amidst the perceived anti-climatic-ism of the return.

Their solace: human faithfulness is not the solution, but God’s faithfulness is.

II.

A Lasting Faithfulness: Returnees Numbered (Nehemiah 7:6-73)

In contrast to the unfaithfulness of people, God is endlessly faithful.

Application: Keep a record of God’s Faithfulness

The genealogies and records—indeed the whole book of Ezra/Nehemiah—was a wise endeavor.

They had a written, permanent reminder that God preserves a remnant, event through exile and moral decline.

Future generations including us benefit from such records.

God uses Ordinary People to accomplish his purposes

The list of names is essentially a list of unknown people.

Only a few are mentioned elsewhere.

The exception is in the heading of the record: Zerubbabel!

Who is that?

The heir to the Davidic throne.

God used ordinary people to maintain the Davidic line so the Messiah would have documentation of having fulfilled the prophecies.

God Uses Ministers to equip Regular People for the work of ministry

The goal of the work of the ministry and the Gospel is to rebuild the “house” of the Lord

People are being gathered by faith through the preaching of the word

The city of God is “seated in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”

The Temple is our bodies as we dwell and work in unity

Application: Be Equipped for the Work of Ministry

III.

A Longing for Better: God’s People Rebuilt?

God’s Method for Restoration begins with His Word

Rebuilding was put in writing for a reason.

God gave the Word primacy among his people.

Kings were subject to the Prophets.

The Law was binding on every Israelite, and was to be memorized and applied.

God gave the Word and only the Word to sustain his people for 400 years until the birth of Christ.

The Word accomplished what it was designed to do!

God’s Method for Restoration includes Covenant Renewal

The Wall is Done!

Why is there more Nehemiah?

The wall and the temple are not the point of the book.

Neither is the Ethnic Jewish nation the main thrust of the book.

Instead, the main goal of Ezra and Nehemiah is to add to the progressive revelation of the Covenant of Grace.

We can see this in two ways: first is the Covenant Renewal commanded in Deuteronomy and practiced in Nehemiah 8-10.

Deuteronomy is structured like a Suzerain/Vassal Covenant from the Ancient Near East.

The two parties in such a treaty are not equals, but one has power over the other one.

The Suzerain of the covenant set forth in Deuteronomy is God.

One major section of such a covenant is provisions for periodic reading and renewal of the covenant.