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Class Notes on Sacred History
Volume II: First Samuel through Nehemiah.
J. W. McGarvey (1893)
Table of Contents
- Part First. The Captivity Ended and the Temple Rebuilt. Ezra 1:1-6:22.
- Part Second. The Return of Ezra, and His Public Labors. Ezra 7:1-10:44.
- Review.
EZRA.
PART FIRST.
THE CAPTIVITY ENDED AND THE TEMPLE REBUILT.
i. 1-vi. 22.
§ I. A CARAVAN OF THE CAPTIVES RETURN. i. 1-ii. 70.
1. The Decree of Cyrus. i. 1-4.
- Who was Cyrus? 1.
- What word by Jeremiah? 1.
- How had Jehovah charged him? 2, cf. Is. xliv. 24-xlv. 7.
- How had he obtained his accurate information? Cf. Dan. ix. 2, 3.
- Who permitted to go? 3, 4.
- Why expect his subjects to make offerings? 4.
2. A Caravan Formed and Presents Given Them. 5-11.
- Why men of Judah, Benjamin and Levi, first to move? 5.
- Meaning of, "they that were round about them"? 6.
- How had the holy vessels been preserved so long? 7.
- Why so many of them?
- Who was Sheshbazzar? 8, cf. v. 2.
- Do the figures agree? 11, cf. 9, 10.
3. The Families Named and Numbered. ii. 1-67.
- Why these given?
- The care as to genealogies? 59-63.
- Whole number of persons? 64, 65.
- Why the preponderance of asses among their animals? 66, 67.
- How does the number of persons compare with numbers previously given?
- Cause of the discrepancy? [124]
4. They Make Offerings for the Temple, and Return to Their
Former Cities. 68-70.
- What is a daric? 6, cf. I. Chron. xxix. 7.
- What is a pound?
- How able to make such offerings?
- Why go at once to their cities? 70.
- Who the Nethinim? 70.
§ II. WORSHIP RENEWED AND THE TEMPLE BEGUN. iii. 1-13. 1. The Offerings and Festivals Renewed. iii. 1-7.
- Why wait till the seventh month? 1, cf. ii. 70.
- Who the chief priest? 2.
- What altar? 3, cf. 2.
- How could they conduct the services without a temple?
2. The Foundation of the Temple Laid. 8-13.
- Why wait till the second year and second month? 8.
- Why from twenty years and upward? 8.
- Why the music and rejoicing?
- What psalm? 11, cf. II. Chron. v. 13; Ps. cxxxvi. 1-26.
- Why the weeping? 12.
- Who of them had seen the first house? 12.
§ III. THE WORK SUSPENDED. iv. 1-24. 1. A Proposal from the Samaritans Rejected. iv. 1-6.
- Why the proposal rejected?
- Why the subsequent enmity?
- Why their appeal to Ahasuerus ineffectual? 6.
2. The Adversaries Appeal to Artaxerxes. 7-17.
- Who was this king? See Rawlinson, cf. Bible Commentary, Ezekiel, IV.
- Meaning of, "eat the salt of the palace"? 14.
- Was it true that the Jews were building the city? 12.
- What [125] truth in their account of the city? 15.
- Meaning of, "no portion beyond the river"? 16.
3. An Order for Suspension. 18-24.
- How long the suspension? See Rawlinson.
- What inferred as to national records?
§ IV. THE WORK RESUMED AND COMPLETED. v. 1-vi. 22. 1. The Prophets Exhort and the Work Is Resumed. v. 1-5.
- What had the two prophets to say on the subject? See Hag. i. 1-11; ii. 1-9, 10-19; Zech. i. 1-vi. 8.
- Eight encouraging visions.
- Time between the two prophets? Hag. i. 1, cf. Zech. i. 1.
- Confusion in the text. 4, cf. v. 10; and margin of 4.
2. A Letter of Inquiry Sent to Darius. 6-17.
- Who was Tatnai? 6.
- Difference from the letter to Artaxerxes? Cf. vi. 7-16.
3. The King's Reply. vi. 1-12.
- Meaning of, "house of the archives"? 1.
- Where was Achmetha? and why was the roll there? 2.
- Why was Darius so favorable to the Jews?
4. The House Completed and Dedicated. 13-18.
- What Artaxerxes? and what had he to do with it? 14, cf. vii. 22.
- How long since the foundation was laid? 15, cf. iii. 8. [Cyrus; 7 y's. - 2 y.'s = 5 y's. + Cambyses; 7½ y's. + Gomates; ½ + Darius; 6 y's. = 19 y's.]
5. The Passover Kept. 19-22. [126]
- Why did the priests and Levites now kill the passover? 20.
- What two classes of Israelites took part? 21.
- Why is Darius here called, "the king of Assyria"? 22, cf. iv. 22.
PART SECOND.
THE RETURN OF EZRA, AND HIS PUBLIC LABORS.
vii. 1-x. 44.
§ I. HE IS COMMISSIONED TO RE-ESTABLISH THE LAW IN
JUDAH. vii. 1-28.1. An Account of Ezra and His Journey. vii. 1-10.
- Is the genealogy full? 1-5, cf. I. Chron. vi. 50-52; iv. 15.
- What of Seraiah? 1, cf. II. Ki. xxv. 18-21.
- Meaning of, "ready scribe in the law of Moses"? 6.
- How long this after finishing the temple? 7. [See note under vi. 15, and add Darius, 30 y's. + Xerxes, 21 y's. + Artaxerxes, 6 ys. = 57 y's.]
- How long on the journey? 9.
- His special purpose in returning? 10.
- Meaning of, "seek the law of Jehovah"? 10.
HAGGAI AND ZECHARIAH (1.) Haggai's First Message. Hag. i. 1-11.
- Was this before or after the decree of Darius? 1, cf. Ez. v. 1-3.
- Why rebuke the delay, when the king had ordered them to stop? 4, cf. Ez. iv. 24.
- Why should the drought put them to [127] building? 4-6.
- Meaning of reference to a bag with holes. 6.
(2.) Effect on the People. 12-15.
- How long after the prophet's message? 15, cf. 1.
- Had they yet heard from Darius?
(3.) A Second Message, Predicting the Superior Glory of This
House. ii. 1-9.
- How long after work renewed? 1.
- Why in their eyes as nothing? 3; Ez. iii. 11-13.
- Force of, "Yet once"? 6, cf. Heb. xii. 27.
- Why the latter glory greater than the former? 9.
(4.) A Third Message Promising Abundance. 10-19.
- What the interval? 10, cf. 1.
- What the condition of the crops? 16.
- Why the people unclean? 11-14.
- Meaning of 16?
(5.) A Fourth Message the Same Day. 20-23.
- Meaning of this?
(6.) Zechariah's First Message. Zech. i. 1-6.
- Why called son of Iddo in Ezra? 1, cf. Ez. v. 1.
- Main thought of the message?
- Connection of time with Haggai? 1, cf. Hag. i. 1; ii. 1, 10.
(7.) Eight Visions to Encourage the Building. i. 7-vi. 8.
- Time? i. 7.
((1.)) Vision of horses, showing peace in the earth, and mercy
toward Jerusalem. i. 7-17.((2.)) Vision of four horns, and four smiths. 18-21.
((3.)) Vision of a man with a measuring line. ii. 1-13. [128]
- Zechariah's age? 4.
- Figure of, "apple of his eye"? 8.
((4.)) Vision of Joshua and Satan. iii. 1-10.
- Significance?
((5.)) Vision of the lamps and olive trees. iv. 1-14.
- Significance?
((6.)) Vision of a flying roll. v. 1-4.
- Why this especial warning of thieves and perjurers?
((7.)) Vision of the ephah. 5-11.
- How could the woman sit in the ephah? 7.
- Why taken to the land of Shinar? 11.
((8.)) Vision of the four chariots. vi. 1-8.
- What meant by these?
2. Ezra's Letter of Authority. 11-26.
- The language of this letter? 12, cf. margin.
- Whence had he obtained the law of God? 14.
- How did the king know so much about the ritual of the temple? vii. 27, 24, cf. viii. 22.
- What prompted his liberality? 21, 22, cf. 23.
- Why the exemption from taxation? 24.
- How could he risk the enforcement of God's law? 25, 26.
3. Ezra's Thanksgiving. 27, 28.
- What does this indicate as to the authorship of this book?
- What gather "chief men" to go with him? 28. [129]
§ II. HIS CARAVAN AND HIS JOURNEY. viii. 1-36.
1. The Families of His Caravan. viii. 1-14.
- How many males? [Ans. One thousand four hundred and ninety-six.]
2. Some Levites Enlisted. 15-20.
- How many? [Thirty-eight Levites and two hundred and twenty Nethinim.]
- Why slow to move?
- Where was Ahava? and why the halt? 15, 21. [It was eighty miles up the river.]
3. A Fast, and Prayer for a Prosperous Journey. 21-33.
- Why did they fast? 21.
- Did he reason correctly about the military escort? 22.
4. Twelve Treasurers Appointed. 24-30.
- Why was this done?
5. The Journey Completed, and the Accounts Rendered.
31-36.
- How did God deliver them? 31.
- How was the account tested? 33, 34.
- Purpose of the offerings? 35.
- How was Israel regarded by neighboring rulers? 36.
§ III. EZRA SUPPRESSES UNLAWFUL MARRIAGES. ix. 1-x. 44. 1. Unlawful Marriages Are Reported to Him. ix. 1-4.
- What class of princes made the report? 1, cf. 4.
- Why Ezra's desperation? 3.
2. Ezra's Confession of the People's Guilt. 5-15.
- Why no petition in the prayer? [130]
3. A Reformation Proposed by Shechaniah. x. 1-5.
- Why so ready a response from the people? 1, 4.
4. The Reformation Effected. 6-17.
- Why the great rain? 9.
- Why did all tremble? 9.
- Why must the elders and judges come? 14.
- Why did four oppose the movement? 15.
- How long to complete the work? 16.
5. The Names of Those Who Put Away Their Wives. 18-44.
- Could this reform have been effected, had the law been newly devised by Ezra?
REVIEW.
EZRA.
- Into what parts is the book divided? and what interval of time between them?
- What circumstances led to the movement of the first caravan?
- How long was this after the captivity of Jehoiachin?
- What given to them by Cyrus? and why?
- Number in the caravan?
- What was first done toward the restoration of the worship?
- Describe the laying of the foundation of the temple.
- What the machinations of the Samaritans, and their success?
- What led to the renewal of the work?
- What, to the royal approval?
- Time occupied in building?
- When was the passover renewed?
[CNSH2 124-132]
- Who was Ezra?
- With what purpose? and under what [131] commission did he return to Jerusalem?
- Was it the religious, or the civil code of Moses, which he came to re-establish?
- How did his caravan compare in numbers with that under Zerubbabel?
- How did he reason in regard to safety on the journey?
- What precaution did he take in regard to the treasures which he brought?
- What was the first violated law that he enforced?
- What distress in regard to it? and why?
- Why did the people consent? [132]
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