Ezra the priest and scribe
and his fellow Israelites
And I gathered them together to the river that runneth to Ahava; and there abode we in tents three days: and I viewed the people, and the priests, and found there none of the sons of Levi. Then sent I for Eliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib, and for Elnathan, and for Nathan, and for Zechariah, and for Meshullam, chief men; also for Joiarib, and for Elnathan, men of understanding. And I sent them with commandment unto Iddo the chief at the place Casiphia, and I told them what the should say unto Iddo, and to his brethren the Nethinims, at the place Casiphia, that they should bring unto us ministers for the house of our God. And by the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and his brethren, eighteen; and Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari, his brethren and their sons, twenty; Also of the Nethinims, whom David and the princes had appointed for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethinims: all of them were expressed by name. Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way: because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake him. So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us.-Ezra 8:15-23***Miriam and her younger brothers Aaron and Moses were born into the tribe of Levi to Amram and Jochebed, Israelites descended from Abraham (Abram the Hebrew) and Sarah (Sarai), Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob (Israel) and his 1st wife Leah, and Jacob and Leah's 3rd born son Levi. When Moses was 80 years old and Aaron was 83, the Lord God sent them to speak to the Israelite elders and Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. The elders believed the words of the Lord God that Aaron spoke to them. Pharaoh did not believe and he made the work of the enslaved Israelites more difficult. After the Lord God brought the 10th and final plague upon Pharaoh and Egypt, Pharaoh told Moses and Aaron to get the Israelites and their animals and go worship the Lord God. Moreover, Pharaoh told Moses and Aaron to bless him. Before Moses and Aaron led the Israelites, and those with them, away from Egypt, across the divinely parted Red Sea, into the desert wilderness of Shur, and the desert wilderness of Sin, the Israelites asked for and were given an abundance of valuable goods, fulfilling the words that the Lord God spoke to Abraham. In the desert wilderness of Sinai, in the region of Mount Sinai, the Israelites heard the voice of the Lord God proclaim the Ten Commandments to them, and the Lord God began giving Moses judgments, statutes and laws for the Israelites and the Lord God made a covenant with the Israelites, and the Israelites said they would obey the words of the Lord God. When Moses was upon Mount Sinai 40 days and nights with the Lord God, the Lord God gave Moses commands about the offering willing Israelites were to bring, and the Lord God described to Moses and showed Moses the likeness of the tabernacle, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the other sacred items the Israelites were commanded to make, and the Lord God told Moses that only Aaron, and Aaron's sons and the sons born to their descendants were to serve the Lord God as priests. Meanwhile, the Israelites thought they were abandoned and told Aaron to make gods to lead them. Aaron told the Israelites to bring him their gold earrings, and Aaron made a golden calf that the Israelites worshiped. The Lord God told Moses about the golden calf, and the Lord God gave Moses 2 stone tablets whereupon were written, with the finger of God, the Ten Commandments. When Moses saw the golden calf and the action of the Israelites, he burned and ground the golden calf, and questioned Aaron, and asked the Israelites a question. The Levites, the descendants of Levi's sons Gershon, Kohath and Merari, killed approximately 3,000 of their idol worshiping brethren, according to the command of the Lord God. Before the Israelites were led away from the Sinai region, the Lord God spoke to Moses about the Levites and gave Moses commands about the duties the Levites were to perform at the tabernacle as the only assistants to the priests. During the 40-year journey to Canaan, the Promised Land, Miriam the prophetess died and was buried in Kadesh, in the desert wilderness of Zin. Upon Mount Hor, 123-year-old Aaron the high priest died. Near the Promised Land, Moses began publicly recounting the commandments, judgments, statutes, and laws, and described the blessings that would come upon and overtake the Israelites if they listened to the voice of the Lord God and obeyed his commandments, and the curses that would come upon and overtake them if they did not listen to the voice of the Lord God and did not obey his commandments. When Moses went upon Mount Nebo, the Lord God showed Moses the Promised Land and 120-year-old Moses the prophet died, and was divinely buried. Joshua, Moses' aide and successor from the tribe of Ephraim, was descended from Jacob and his 2nd wife Rachel, their firstborn son Joseph and his wife Asenath, and Joseph and Asenath's 2nd born son Ephraim, whom Jacob proclaimed to be his own son. After the Lord God spoke to Joshua, and Joshua sent 2 spies to Canaan, and Rahab hid the spies, and the spies returned, Joshua led the Israelites across the divinely parted Jordan River and onto the land that the Lord God promised to give to Abraham, and Isaac, and to Jacob, and their descendants. After 110-year-old Joshua died, and was buried in his tribe's portion of the Promised Land, the Israelites were led by elders, judges and their own minds. When Samuel the priest, prophet and judge from the tribe of Levi was elderly, and his sons Joel (Vashni) and Abiah (Abijah) were not obeying the commands of the Lord God, and King Nahash and his Ammonite army were preparing to attack, the Israelite elders demanded that Samuel appoint a king to lead them, and Samuel anointed Saul, from the tribe of Jacob and Rachel's 2nd and last son Benjamin, to reign, according to the command of the Lord God. While Saul reigned, the Lord God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint David, from the tribe of Jacob and Leah's 4th born son Judah, to reign as king. When David was 30 years old, he began to reign only over the tribe of Judah, and when David was 37 1/2 years old, he began to rule over all of the Israelites. Solomon, a son born to David and Bathsheba, was the 3rd king. During the 4th year of his 40-year reign, Solomon began building the temple of the Lord, and in the 11th year, workers finished building the temple in Jerusalem. Rehoboam, the son born to Solomon and Naamah, was the 4th king to rule over all of the Israelites. After Rehoboam gave a specific answer, the Israelites split into 2 kingdoms, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of Solomon. Judah was the nation in the south, Jerusalem was the royal city and Rehoboam was the 1st king to reign. Israel was the northern nation, Samaria was the final royal city and Jeroboam, the son born to Nebat and Zeruah, was the 1st king to reign. King Pekah was the 18th king to rule over all of the Israelites in the northern nation of Israel. During Pekah's 20-year reign, the Assyrians invaded the kingdom and King Tiglath-pileser ruler of Assyria, began taking Israelites captive. In the 9th year of the reign of King Hoshea, the 19th king to rule the northern nation, the Assyrians conquered Samaria, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of the Israelites. Less than 125 years after Samaria was conquered, Rehoboam's great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson Jehoiakim (Eliakim) became the 17th king to rule Judah. During Jehoiakim's 11-year reign, the Babylonians (Chaldeans) invaded Judah and Jerusalem and King Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of Babylon, began looting the temple of the Lord. Jehoiachin (Jeconiah/Coniah), the son born to Jehoiakim and Nehushta, was the 18th king to rule Judah. During Jehoiachin's 3-month reign, the Babylonians took more prominent Israelites, including Jehoiachin, his wives and mother, to Babylon. In the 11th year of the reign of Jehoiakim's brother Zedekiah (Mattaniah), the 9th king to rule Judah, the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem, according to the will of the Lord God, due to the idolatry and other wickedness of the Israelites. The Babylonians burned the temple and other buildings, captured Zedekiah and his sons, made Zedekiah watch his sons being killed, removed Zedekiah's eyes, and took Zedekiah to Babylon. Less than 70 years after Jerusalem was conquered, King Cyrus, ruler of the Persian Empire, allowed Israelites to return to Judah and Jerusalem and build a temple, according to the will of the Lord God. Aaron's descendant Ezra, a priest and scribe, journeyed from Babylon to Jerusalem when King Artaxerxes was ruling the Persian Empire and the new temple in Jerusalem was already built. Ezra carried the letter Artaxerxes gave him, and Nethinims, the assistants to the Levites, were among those who went to Jerusalem with Ezra. Over 400 years after Ezra learned about that Israelites were married to some of the idol worshiping inhabitants living throughout the land, and Ezra prayed to the Lord God, and fasted, and addressed the Israelites, and publicly read the Book of the Law to the Israelites, John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, were born. John the Baptist was born into the tribe of Levi to Zechariah (Zacharias) the priest and his wife Elizabeth (Elisabeth). Jesus the Christ was conceived of the Holy Spirit in the womb of Elizabeth's relative Mary, a virgin, and Jesus was born in Bethlehem into the tribe of Judah to Mary, and her husband Joseph when Mary was a virgin. Approximately 30 years after John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ were born, Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. Jesus having prayed, the heavens tearing open, the Holy Spirit descended as a dove and lit upon Jesus. The Lord God in heaven audibly acknowledged his Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert wilderness. Jesus fasted 40 days and nights and was tempted. Afterwards, Jesus was tended to by angels, and Jesus went to the area near John the Baptist, and John the Baptist proclaimed Jesus to be the Lamb of God taking away the sin of the world, and testified that Jesus is the Son of God. In Galilee, Jesus told specific Israelite men to follow him, and Jesus began to preach, teach and perform miracles among the Israelites. The divinely inspired Scriptures of the Holy Bible reveal that Jesus taught his disciples and other listeners about fasting.
Reference Information
afflict = lehitannowt = anah = humble, chasten self
expressed = niqqebu/naqab = designated
intreated of us = wayyeater/athar = answered our prayer
Nethinims = Nathiyn/Nathuwn/Nathan = hannetinim = temple servants, one given
Reference Scriptures
Now the first inhabitants that dwelt in their possessions in their cities were, the Israelites, the priests, Levites, and the Nethinims.-1 Chronicles 9:2
Moreover the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel, unto the place over against the water gate toward the east, and the tower that lieth out.-Nehemiah 3:26
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