1. Welcome 6th grade students! While waiting for the class to start please review this lesson’s reading assignment Ezra 1, 3-7, 9, and 10:1-19 Nehemiah 2, 4, 5:1-13, and 9:32-37

2. Expectations for today 1.In the Royal Kingdom period, Israel looked like the fulfillment of God’s promises, but Solomon sins 2.The Kingdom divides: Israel in the North, and Judah in the South - the House of David is in peril 3.Assyria conquers Israel, deports them and sends pagans to live in what becomes Samaria 4.Babylonia destroys Jerusalem, the temple and exiles the tribe of Judea to Babylonia 5.After 70 years of exile in Babylonia, King Cyrus sends the Jews home to rebuild the temple 6.Will they put their TRUST in the Lord and be OBEDIENT or do what they think is best?

3. The Return The color is yellow because brighter days are ahead for the people of Judah as they return to Jerusalem after 70 years of exile in Babylon.

4. 12 PeriodsTimeColorMeaningMemory Early WorldCreation - 2000BCTurquoiseColor of earth from spaceThe Patriarchs2000 - 1700 BCBurgandyBlood of CovenantBible Egypt & Exodus1700-1280 BCRedRed Sea CrossingReminds us Desert Wanderings 1280 - 1240 BCTanColor of sand and desertThat Conquest & Judges 1240 - 1050 BCGreenLush hills of CanaanGod’s Royal Kingdom1050 - 930 BCPurpleRoyal kingdomPlan Divided Kingdom930 - 722 BCBlackDarknessBecomes Exile722 - 540 BCSky BlueSinging “blues”Salvation as we Return538 - 167 BCYellowBrighter daysYield Maccabean Revolt167 - 0 BCOrangeOil lamps of purified templeOurselves to Messianic Fulfillment 0 - 33GoldGifts of MagiGod’s The Church33 - ENDWhiteSpotless Bride of ChristWill Great Adventure Timeline tells ‘His Story’

5. The people come back in 3 separate journeys with 3 different leaders on 3 different missions 1.ZERUBBABEL 538 B.C. 2.EZRA 525-457 B.C. 3.NEHEMIAH 444 B.C. But only one is in the “line of David” And a new world power takes over ZERUBBABEL

6. What happened to Israel? The 10 tribes of the Israel (Northern Kingdom) are “lost” Assyria took Israel (Northern Kingdom) captive in 722 B.C. and moved them into cities in their kingdom. Then the king sent Assyrians back into Israel to live among the remaining Israelites, marry them, and “convert” them to the ways and worship of Assyria. The area becomes Samaria.

7. What about Judah? The people of the Southern Kingdom were deported to Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar. Persia then conquered Babylon and there is a new king over the people - King Cyrus The people are there for 70 years The older people have memories of Jerusalem and the Temple The younger people have never seen Jerusalem Because they are mainly from Judah, they are now called “Jews” Then something happens that was not expected

8. King Cyrus was a different kind of conquering king He was more of a liberator than a conqueror His kingdom was so large he had a different way to keep the people “under his rule.” He respected the customs and religions of the lands he conquered His kingdom was so large, he set up regional leaders to govern the people He freed many people from slavery He was a generous king

9. “We can go home!” King Cyrus said the Jews could go home. How did this happen? Ezra 1: 1-2 The spirit of the Lord God “stirred” his heart to build a “house” for the God of the Jews in Jerusalem.

10. This was like a new Exodus 50,000 people, young and old, priests and servants, travel to Jerusalem King Cyrus returns all the property of the Temple taken by Nebuchadnezzar Zerubbabel (“offspring of Babylon”) is their leader and Jeshua is their High Priest

11. Remember the Exodus? The Israelites left with gold and silver given by the Egyptians and free will gifts A census was taken to establish family histories The Israelites lived in tents for forty years - Feast of Booths was established to remember “God provided” God ordered the construction of the Tabernacle for His worship King Cyrus provided gold and silver and returned all the Temple property and free will gifts A census was taken to re- establish family history The exiles celebrated the Feast of Booths when they arrived back in Jerusalem The exiles started to re-build the destroyed Temple to once again worship the Lord God in His “house”

12. This won’t be easy The people of Samaria want to help in rebuilding the Temple. Seems like a good idea, right? Why not? The people face 2 challenges - 1st from Samaria and 2nd, among themselves What did Zerubbabel say? Ezra 4: 3 We alone will build it!

13. Weakness from within The people become more interested in their own homes and their comfort. What did the prophets say? Haggai 1: 3-9 (pg 1084) You won’t prosper until the work is finished!

14. The Temple is finished ! Worship resumes at the Temple and the Passover is celebrated

15. The Temple in Scripture - 4 views The physical Temple was built and people worshiped there to “meet” God - this is the first way we understand But this Temple points forward in time to Jesus. He is the TRUE Temple and IS the presence of God St. Paul in the New Testament says by faith, Jesus lives within us, then our bodies become a Temple of the Holy Spirit. If the Temple in Jerusalem was a sacred place, so our bodies become a sacred place and we should take care of our bodies to remain pure and holy like He is The last book of the Bible tells us when Jesus comes again, we will worship Him face to face in the “new” Temple When we read the Bible we must remember sometimes it is saying more than what we just read. We must learn to pray for and seek to understand what certain passages are saying about us and the Church today

16. Ezra is sent in the 2nd wave What was his mission? Ezra 7: 6 and 25 (p. 452) The next king of Persia is Artaxerxes. He lets Ezra and others go to worship in Jerusalem To teach the people the Law of the Lord

17. But what did he find? The people had inter-married with the pagans! And the priests and the leaders did nothing to stop it Ezra weeps and prays for a solution to the faithlessness of the people

18. The people repent and decide What did they decide? Ezra 10:3 (p. 454) To send away the foreign wives and children

19. 15 years later, back in Babylon.... Nehemiah hears of the problems in Jerusalem and the condition of the city and is sad Nehemiah identifies with the sinfulness of the people and, like Moses, prays to God confessing the sinfulness

20. The king notices Nehemiah is sad So King Artaxerxes asked Nehemiah what he wanted What did Nehemiah request? Nehemiah 2: 5 (p. 457) To go back to Jerusalem to rebuild it

21. God softens the heart of the Persian kings Nehemiah goes with letters and gifts, just like Zerubbabel and Ezra Zerubbabel has rebuilt the Temple Ezra has been teaching the people the Torah (the Law) But the city’s walls and gates are in ruins But what did he find? A city’s walls are protection and stability for the people

22. God’s work is never easy Jerusalem’s neighbors don’t want the city to be strong again or for the people to worship the Lord God Who opposed the Jews? ….the Samaritans. Sanballat and Tobiah (remember him) are leaders of the opposition. What was the solution? Nehemiah 4: 15-17 Nehemiah ordered the wall to be repaired, but be ready with swords, bows, and spears

23. Amazing! The walls are finished in just 52 days Things are going well: The Temple is rebuilt; people are worshiping the Lord. The people are instructed in the Law and aware of their past sinfulness. There is a renewal of the covenant. The walls are repaired and the people feel secure. Ezra’s prayer (Neh 9) is a short history of God’s plan from Creation to this renewal of covenant (Neh 10). The people are re-learning the lesson of the first Exodus. Or are they?

24. Amazing! The lesson learned is “short lived” When Ezra is “out of town,” the High Priest makes a place for Tobiah (an Ammonite from Samaria) in the Temple! To try to build the “economy,” men begin to work and sell goods on the Sabbath The enthusiasm for the renewed life begins to fade as the “busy-ness” of everyday life begins to take over people’s minds and hearts. Perhaps because of a shortage of women, the men begin to marry the women of the surrounding pagan regions This is a lesson for us today!!

25. This is critical as a new conqueror is about to enter the land in the next 100 years. Look at your timelines. Who is the next world power? And who is their leader? Will the people be ready to withstand another conquering nation? The next lesson will give you the answer!! The Maccabean Revolt Read 1 Macc 1,2 2 Macc 7

26. Prayer for THE RETURN “You brought the exiles back to Canaan, the land of Israel; they rebuilt the Temple and Jerusalem, and were taught once more from Your Law. Rebuild our hearts and lives as we return to you.” Our Father.... Hail Mary.... Check out the Wiki Space site for The Return!