Summary

Despite God's warning to remain faithful to the Him, Judah did not listen and suffered the consequences of breaking the Covenant just like the northern kingdom.

In 597 B.C., Babylon besieged Jerusalem and carried King Jehoacahin, his family, the treasuries of the temple, and 10,000 captives (mighty men of valor and craftsmen leaving only the poorest in the land) back to Babylon (2 Kings 24:1-18). In 586 B.C, Babylon destroyed the walls of Jerusalem and the temple. They killed King Zedekiah's sons, put out his eyes, and took him captive along with others back to Babylon (2 Kings 25:1-21). Babylon took more captives in 582 B.C. (Jeremiah 52:28-30).

Ezekiel knew this was happening becasue God told him about it. Ezekiel reminded the people this was the consequences of breaking the Covenant. He also reminded them God was faithful and would keep His promises - even if they did not understand how that could happen after the fall of Jerusalem. Ezekiel even saw the temple of the New Heaven as a promise of what was to come.

Jeremiah described and lamented the destruction of Jerusalem in Lamentations. He held fast to faith in God's mercy and faithfulness to fulfill the Covenant by asking for His forgiveness and seeking to restore the Covenant relationship with God. Jeremiah also sent letters to the captives before he became an exile himself and reminded the people that God was in control. Through Jeremiah, God told the captives to "build houses...plant gardens...have children....pray for their new city...do not listen to the false prophets...I will bring you home in 70 years" (Jeremiah 29:4-14 ). Isaiah even prophesied King Cyrus who would be the one to release the people of Judah to return home to Jerusalem and rebuild their temple (Isaiah 44:28).

When Babylon carried off the captives, they taught the brightest of them to be wisemen - probably hoping to harness the power of their god for Babylon. Daniel and his friends were some of these captives serving in the king's palace. Daniel and his friends served the King yet never wavered in their faithfulness to God even when threatened with the furnace and the lion's den. God blessed them as a result - just as He promised in the Covenant with His people. God gave Daniel the ability to interpret dreams and gave him visions of the future including the coming of the Messiah. Daniel foretold events to come with amazing accuracy.

Esther tells the story of a young lady who became the queen of Persia "for such a time as this" to save her people from annihilation.

Through the midst of Israels' exile, God warned other nations they would be judged and suffer the consequences of their treatment toward His people. He told Edom, the descendants of Esau, through Obadiah they would be judged for not helping God's people and instead rejoicing over their destruction and actually helping the enemy.

Although God's people were in a foreign land, God still reigned. He continued the work to redeem this fallen world through the seed of Adam and Eve, Abraham, and David.

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The Facts

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Ezekiel 34-48 - ESV - KJV - NIV
Lamentations - ESV - KJV - NIV
Obadiah - ESV - KJV - NIV
Daniel - ESV - KJV - NIV
Esther - ESV - KJV - NIV

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Important People

Ezekiel, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednego, Esther

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Major Events/Accounts

Babylon took Judah into captivity.
Jeremiah laments the destruction of Jerusalem and capativity of its people by asking God's forgiveness and seeking to restore their relationship with God.
Ezekiel saw the presence of God leave the temple in a vision.
Ezekiel saw the new temple in a vision.
Daniel intrepreted dreams and fortold the future.
Esther saves her people from destruction.

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Key Words/Repeated Phrases

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Names of God

Jehovah Shammah: the LORD is There the last verse of Ezekiel

Exekiel 48:36 - The circumference of the city shall be 18,000 cubits. And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The LORD is There. Chrstians will dwell with God in eternity!

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Hide the Word in Your Heart

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Verses from the Account

Ezekiel 36:22-23

22 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, thus saith the Lord God; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went. 23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.

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Lamentations 3:21-24

21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
22 It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
24 The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.

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Verses to Share the Truths Taught through the Account

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Jesus in the Account

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Jesus is the Shepherd in Ezekiel 34:11-31.

Jesus is not like the human shepherds or leaders of Israel at the beginning of the chapter.

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Did You Know?

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According to Numbers 4, priests served in the temple from 30 to 50 years of age.

If the thirty years in Ezekiel 1:1 refer to Ezekiel's age when he received the first vision in the fifth year of the captivity (Ezekiel 1:2), then he would have been 50 when he received the final vision in the 25th year of the exile (Ezekiel 40:1) 20 years later - the same ages a priest would have served in the now destroyed temple.

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While the Assyrians sought to completely assimilate the nations they conquered into Assyrian culture, Babylon sought to take the best of each nation they conquered to make their nation stronger.

This is why Babylon took the mighty men and craftsmen as captives first. It is also why Daniel served as a wise man or advisor to the king and why the king of Babylon was willing to "listen" to a "foreign god" when Daniel spoke the words of God.

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Although the book of Esther never talks about God, Jews still celebrate Purim to remember the day God saved them through Esther.

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Although we do not know for certain, many scholars (and some Bible versions) think the king in Esther is Xerxes.

Xerxes' army fought against Greece in the Battle of Thermopylae, made famous by the 300 Spartans and King Leonidas.

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Daniel's prophesies parallel secular history with amazing accuracy. Some of his prophesies are yet to happen.

For example, Daniel said a mighty kingdom would be broken into four pieces (Daniel 11:3-4) which is exactly what happened to the vast kingdom of Alexander the Great when he suddenly died at a relatively young age. Daniel even prophesied when the Messiah would come (Daniel 9:24-27) - 70 weeks (7x7=49 years) and 62 weeks (7x62=434 years) after the command to rebuild Jerusalem in 457 B.C. takes us to A.D. 27 - the year Jesus began is ministry. Check out Daniel with a good history book for many more parallels.

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Discuss It

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1. What is the most interesting thing or something new you learned from reading and studying this account?
2. Summarize the account and its message in your own words.
3. What did you learn about God from reading and studying this account?
4. How does this account point to God's plan to redeem this world through the sacrifice and obedience of Jesus?
5. How can you apply the truth of what you learned from reading and studying this account in your own life?

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Teach It

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Coming in 2021!

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Share It

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Coming in 2021!

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Celebrate It

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Coming in 2021!

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