For a description of the (Y2) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Rev. 7
Reflect on the description of the 144,000 (a symbolic number). What does this tell you about Jesus’ followers? I don’t know what the numbers mean, and I can’t say what the message in this vision is. One thing, though is very clear to me. Jesus is our salvation. Those in white robes – the clean and pure ones – were there before God’s throne because they acknowledged this. “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” (Rev. 7:14b). Remember, the Bible is the story of God’s plan for our redemption. And this book is the final revelation of Jesus as the fulfillment of that plan. Yes, there is work yet to be done. There is a final judgment coming. But even here we have God’s constant reminder of the peace that awaits those who endure.
Ezra 7-8
How is Ezra described, and what would you like to emulate? How did Ezra express his trust in God for the journey and his care for God’s reputation? What was the result? The writers of the Bible don’t always put things in chronological order. Quite confusing!! This is my first reading of Ezra in which I realized that the letter to king Artaxerxes mentioned back in chapter 4 was written just prior to Ezra’s return to Jerusalem recorded in these chapters. Artaxerxes’ initial response to the chapter 4 letter, sent at the start of his reign, was to halt the rebuilding of Jerusalem. At the time of these chapters, however, the king sent Ezra with a new decree. In that seven year span, he went from seeing the Jews as potential troublemakers to fearing the wrath of God and fully supporting the Jews and their rebuilding efforts.
So what happened in that seven years to turn the king’s heart? By Ezra’s own words, “God…put it into the kings’ heart to bring honor to the house of the LORD in Jerusalem” (Ez. 7:27). Well, I believe Ezra was one of the instruments God used to turn the king’s heart. Though we don’t know the context or the extent, we do know that Ezra and others bore witness of God to the king. “”We had told the king, ‘The gracious hand of our God Is on everyone who looks to Him, but His great anger is against all who forsake Him.’” (Ez. 8:22b). Interesting, then, that in his decree the king said of God, “Why should His wrath fall on the realm of the king and of his sons?” (Ez. 7:23b). It is amazing what God does when his faithful boldly and obediently speak His truth.