Then I set apart twelve of the chiefs of the priests, even Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brothers with them, and weighed to them the silver, the gold, and the vessels, even the offering for the house of our God, which the king, his counselors, his princes, and all Israel there present, had offered. I weighed into their hand six hundred fifty talents of silver, one hundred talents of silver vessels; one hundred talents of gold, twenty bowls of gold weighing one thousand darics; and two vessels of fine bright bronze, precious as gold. I said to them, “You are holy to Yahweh, and the vessels are holy. The silver and the gold are a free will offering to Yahweh, the God of your fathers. Watch and keep them, until you weigh them before the chiefs of the priests and the Levites, and the princes of the fathers’ households of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the rooms of Yahweh’s house.”
So the priests and the Levites received the weight of the silver and the gold, and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem to the house of our God. Then we departed from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and the bandit by the way. We came to Jerusalem, and stayed there three days. On the fourth day the silver and the gold and the vessels were weighed in the house of our God into the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest; and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas; and with them was Jozabad the son of Jeshua, and Noadiah the son of Binnui, the Levite; everything by number and by weight; and all the weight was written at that time.
The children of the captivity, who had come out of exile, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and twelve male goats for a sin offering. All this was a burnt offering to Yahweh. They delivered the king’s commissions to the king’s local governors, and to the governors beyond the River. So they supported the people and God’s house.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv26, 27, 31, 33 Read 1 Kings 9:14.
Read 1 Kings 9:14.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv24–36 Ezr 8:24 Then I separated twelve of the chief…
Ezr 8:24 Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren with them,
Ver. 24. Then I separated twelve] I singled them and set them apart for this great trust, vide cui fidas. See the faith of these.
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Sherebiah, Hashabiah] Heb. With Sherebiah, Hashabiah (men of known integrity, Ezr 8:18-19),
and ten of their brethren with them] twenty-four in all, a complete company of faithful trustees.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv24, 27, 31, 35, 36 Or, and
Or, and
Sherebiah, & c., who were the Levites mentioned Ezr 8:18, who were jointly intrusted together with the priests with the charge of carrying these things carefully and safely. The particle and is oft understood.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv24, 31 We have here an account of the particular care…
We have here an account of the particular care which Ezra took of the treasure he had with him, that belonged to God's sanctuary, Observe, 1. Having committed the keeping of it to God, he committed the keeping of it to proper men, whose business it was to watch it, though without God they would have waked in vain. Note, Our prayers must always be seconded with our endeavours; the care of Christ's gospel, his church, and ordinances, must not be so left with him but that it must also be committed to faithful men, Ti2 2:2. 2. Having prayed to God to preserve all the substance they had with them, he shows himself especially solicitous for that part of it which belonged to the house of God and was an offering to him. Do we expect that God should, by his providence, keep that which belongs to us? Let us, by his grace, keep that which belongs to him. Let God's honour and interest be our care; and then we may expect that our lives and comforts will be his. Observe, (1.) The persons to whom he delivered the offerings of the house of God. Twelve chief priests, and as many Levites, he appointed to this trust (Ezr 8:24, Ezr 8:30), who were bound by their office to take care of the things of God, and were in a particular manner to have the benefit of these sacred treasures. Ezra tells them why he put those things into their hands (Ezr 8:28): You are holy unto the Lord, the vessels are holy also; and who so fit to take care of holy things as holy persons? Those that have the dignity and honour of the priesthood must take along with them the trust and duty of it. The prophet is foretelling the return of God's people and ministers out of Babylon, when he gives the solemn charge (Isa 52:11), Be you clean that bear the vessels of the Lord. (2.) The great exactness with which he lodged this trust in their hands: He weighed to them the silver, the gold, and the vessels (Ezr 8:25), because he expected to have it from them again by weight. In all trust, but especially sacred ones, we ought to be punctual, and preserve a right understanding on both sides. In Zerubbabel's time the vessels were delivered by number, here by weight, that all might be forth-coming and it might easily appear if any were missing, to intimate that such as are entrusted with holy things (as all the stewards of the mysteries of God are) are concerned to remember, both in receiving their trust and in discharging it, that they must shortly give a very particular account of it, that they may be faithful to it and so give up their account with joy. (3.) The charge he have them with these treasures (Ezr 8:29): "Watch you, and keep them, that they be not lost, nor embezzled, nor mingled with the other articles. Keep them together; keep them by themselves; keep them safely, till you weigh them in the temple, before the great men there," hereby intimating how much it was their concern to be careful and faithful and how much it would be their honour to be found so. Thus when Paul charges Timothy with the gospel treasure he bids him keep it until the appearing of Jesus Christ, and his appearing before him to give account of his trust, when his fidelity would be his crown.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv24–34 And I weighed unto them the silver, and the…
And I weighed unto them the silver, and the gold, and the vessels,.... When he delivered them to them; this he did as a proof of his own integrity and faithfulness, and as a security against any charge or accusation of embezzling any part of them, and to set them an example, and also that they might be under no temptation of acting such a part, and might be vindicated should they be charged with it: even
the offering of the house of our God; what was freely offered for the service of it:
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which the king and his counsellors, and his lords, and all Israel there present, had offered; as freewill offerings, see Ezr 7:15.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v35 Sin offering - For it is the atonement that…
Sin offering - For it is the atonement that secures every mercy to us, which will not be truly comfortable, unless iniquity be taken away, and our peace made with God. They offer twelve bullocks, twelve he-goats, and ninety six rams, (eight times twelve) signifying the union of the two kingdoms. They did not any longer go two tribes one way, and ten tribes another; but all the twelve met by their representatives at the same altar.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv26, 35, 36 Verse 26. Silver vessels a hundred talents] That is,…
Verse 26. Silver vessels a hundred talents] That is, The weight of all the silver vessels amounted to one hundred talents; not that there were one hundred vessels of silver, each a talent in weight.
Reckoning in round sums, 650 talents of silver at £450 the talent, amount to £292,500 sterling. Silver vessels, 100 talents, amount to £45,000; gold, 100 talents, at £7,000 per talent, amount to £700,000 independently of the 20 basons of gold, amounting to 1000 drachms. Now the golden drachm or daric was worth about 1£. 2s., therefore these basons were worth £1100; the whole amounting to £1,038,600 sterling. But these different weights and coins are variously computed; some making the silver talent only £353 11s. 10 ½d., and the talent of gold £5057 15s. 1 ½d., calculations which I have elsewhere introduced.
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Two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold] What these were we cannot tell. The Syriac translates [Persian] nechoso corinthio toba, to be vessels of the best Corinthian brass; so called from the brass found after the burning of Corinth by Lucius Mummius, which was brass, copper, gold, and silver, all melted together, as is generally supposed. But it was probably some factitious metal made there, that took the polish and assumed the brightness of gold, and because of its hardness was more durable. There is still a certain factitious metal of this kind, made among the Asiatics. I have seen this metal often made; it is as bright and fine as gold, takes a most exquisite polish, and will scarcely tarnish. I have kept this exposed to every variation of the air, even among old iron, brass, copper, c., for twenty years together, without being scarcely at all oxidized. It requires much art in the making, but the constituent materials are of small value. Vessels of this metal, because of their lustre and durability for ornamental and domestic uses, are in many respects more valuable than gold itself. The only difficulty is to get at first the true colour, which depends on the degree of heat, and the time employed in fusion but there are, however, proper rules to ascertain them. This metal is widely different from the or molu of France and England, is less expensive, and much more valuable.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv24, 25, 26, 28, 31, 34, 35, 36 Ezr 8:24. Then I separated twelve of the chief…
Ezr 8:24. Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests — With whom he might intrust the gifts that had been offered for the temple. Having committed the keeping of them to God, he also committed the keeping of them, under God, to proper men, whose business it should be to watch over and take care of them. Thus our prayers must always be seconded with our endeavours; the care of Christ’s gospel, his church and ordinances, must not be so left with him, but that it must also be committed to faithful men, 2Ti 2:2.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv27, 31, 35, 36 Twenty basons of gold, of a thousand drams -…
Twenty basons of gold, of a thousand drams - Not of a thousand drams (i. e., darics) each, but worth altogether a thousand darics. As the value of the daric was about 22 shillings of British money, each basin, or saucer, would have been worth (apart from the fashioning) 55 British pounds.
Of fine copper - The word translated “fine,” which occurs here only, is thought to mean either “yellow” or “glittering” (see the margin). Probably the vessels were of orichalcum, an amalgam which was either brass or something nearly approaching to brass, but which was very rarely produced in the ancient world, and, when produced, was regarded as highly valuable.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv26, 27, 35, 36 A hundred. Hebrew adds, "talents," vessels of silver. (Haydock)…
A hundred. Hebrew adds, "talents," vessels of silver. (Haydock) --- Some Rabbins suppose there were only 100, each of this weight, which is not probable. All the silver vessels, of different sizes, weighed 100 talents. There was the same quantity of golden vessels. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv24, 27, 31, 33 Then I separated twelve of the chief of the…
Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests . . . and weighed unto them the silver, &c.--The custody of the contributions and of the sacred vessels was, during the journey, committed to twelve of the chief priests, who, with the assistance of ten of their brethren, were to watch closely over them by the way, and deliver them into the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. The treasures in silver and gold, according to the value of the Babylonian talent, amounted to about £515,000 sterling.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 36 24. Twelve of the chief of the priests —…
24. Twelve of the chief of the priests — Not high priests, but leading men, specially distinguished for age or wisdom, among the priests that were with Ezra.
Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten — According to the English version, which follows the Sept. and Vulg., these were the twelve priests just mentioned; but from Ezr_8:18-19, and elsewhere, it appears that Sherebiah and Hashabiah were not priests, but Levites. And as our author is so careful to distinguish between priests and Levites in Ezr_8:15, we can hardly suppose he confounds them here. The Hebrew literally reads: I separated from the chief of the priests twelve unto (ל) Sherebiah, etc. That is, he appointed twelve priests in addition to Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and their ten brethren, so that there were twenty-four persons in all to whom the treasures were intrusted — twelve priests and twelve Levites. Compare Ezr_8:30.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv24–36 24–30. (b) Provision for the custody of the votive…
24–30. (b) Provision for the custody of the votive gifts and offerings during the march
24. twelve of the chief of the priests] R.V. twelve of the chiefs of the priests. Literally ‘twelve of the princes of the priests’. The R.V. margin adds, In Neh_12:24, Levites.
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Sherebiah, Hashabiah] R.V. even Sherebiah, Hashabiah. Marg. besides. The exact meaning is not very evident.
(a) The A.V. follows the Vulgate, “et separavi de principibus sacerdotum duodecim, Sarabiam et Hasabiam et cum eis de fratribus eorum decem”. The preposition which in the original stands before ‘Sherebiah’ is then treated (as in Ezr_8:16) as the sign of the object. The objection to this is that Sherebiah and Hashabiah seem to have been Levites.
(b) The LXX. translates the preposition as the sign of the dative, “And I assigned of the chiefs of the priests twelve unto Sherebiah, &c.” (καὶ διέστειλα … τῷ Σαραΐᾳ). The objection to be made to this rendering is that it represents the priests as placed in a subordinate position to those who were Levites.
(c) 1Es_8:54 and Eresibia (καὶ Ἐρεσιβίαν) suggests another reading (ו for ל), “And I separated … twelve and Sherebiah, &c.”
(d) The same result is obtained by the rendering of the R.V. margin, which is to be preferred, “I separated twelve of the chiefs of the priests, besides Sherebiah, Hashabiah and ten of their brethren with them”, i.e. 12 priests in addition to 12 Levites (Sherebiah, Hashabiah and their 10 brethren). Accepting this rendering, we see that Ezra selected two groups of twelve, one of priests, the other of Levites, to act as guardians of the treasure, which agrees with Ezr_8:30. The names of Sherebiah and Hashabiah are for some reason specially mentioned, either being the best known of the twenty-four, or perhaps alone recorded in the chronicle employed by the compiler. The only other explanation possible, that of the R.V. text, is that Sherebiah and Hashabiah were two of ‘the chiefs of the priests’ and not to be identified with the Levites of the same name in Neh_12:24. This gives a satisfactory meaning, according to which Ezra selected twelve ‘chiefs of priests’ to act as custodians. But (1) the clause ‘and ten of their brethren with them’, after the previous mention of the ‘twelve’, rather denotes a second group of the same number: (2) it is expressly stated in Ezr_8:30, ‘the priests and the Levites received the weight of the silver, &c.’, while according to the R.V. text the Levites were not of the number.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv24, 25, 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, 34, 36 (24) Sherebiah.—Rather, to Sherebiah—that is, these two Levites, alone…
(24) Sherebiah.—Rather, to Sherebiah—that is, these two Levites, alone mentioned, with ten others, were associated with an equal number of priests in the charge of the Temple treasure.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36 Then I separated twelve of the chief of the…
Then I separated twelve of the chief of the priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah, etc. Our translators, following the Vulgate, have omitted to render the preposition l, which occurs in the Hebrew text before the name of Sherebiah, and have thus represented Sherebiah and Hashabiah as priests, whereas they were not priests, but Levites, as appears from vers. 18, 19. The true sense is given by the LXX I assigned twelve of the chief priests to Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren; i.e. "then I appointed twelve chief priests to act with twelve chief Levites, of whom Sherebiah and Hashabiah were two, in the matter of the royal offering." Ezra seems to have considered, that as the gift of Artaxerxes was an offering to the house of God, it ought to be handed over at once to the custody of the ministers of religion, and not remain in secular hands (compare ver. 28).
The sacred trusts of life.
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I THE TRUST GIVEN. "And weighed unto them the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, even the offering of the house of our God" (ver. 25).
1. Their nature. As the men appointed by Ezra had costly and sacred vessels committed to their care, so men have given to them money, time, genius, and influence to carry through life.
2. Their purpose (ver. 28). These vessels of gold and silver were given for the use and adornment of the temple at Jerusalem. Men must hold their sacred trusts for God.
3. Their measure (ver. 26). The gold and silver given were carefully weighed; all the capabilities of men are weighed by God: to some he gives two talents, to others five talents; to each man according to his several ability.
4. Their responsibility. The comrades of Ezra had the responsible task of safely conveying the vessels of the temple to Jerusalem; human talent is a solemn gift.
5. Their registration (ver. 34). The gifts of man are written in the book of God.
II THE FIDELITY REQUIRED. "Watch ye, and keep them" (ver. 29).
1. Their peril. The men conveying the costly vessels of the temple would be exposed to many enemies by the way (ver. 22); men of talent are liable to many moral enemies pride, indolence, misuse, and neglect of culture.
2. Their safety. The prayers of these men were their protection. Ezra says, "So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was entreated of us" (ver. 23). Devotion is the safeguard of talent.
3. Their inspection. "Weighed in the house of our God" (ver. 33). At the last God will judge men for the use of their talents; then every man will be morally weighed in the unerring balance of truth.
4. Their fidelity. The comrades of Ezra were faithful to their trust; happy if at the close of life we are found faithful to the trusts we have received. E.
HOMILIES BY J.A. MACDONALD
Vers. 24-30.
The custody of the treasure.
After fasting and prayer, before the caravan moved from the halt on the banks of the Ahava, Ezra made arrangements for the custody of the offerings with which he was intrusted. Whatever is done under Divine direction is intended to instruct, and in these arrangements we may seek for matter of profitable meditation. Let us then consider
I THE TREASURE. The vessels which were for the service of the house of the Lord typified his saints (Act_9:15; 2Ti_2:20, 2Ti_2:21)
1. The treasure was various.
(1) Various in its qualities. Some vessels were of silver, some of gold, and some of "fine copper precious as gold." This last the Syriac, somewhat oddly, construes as best Corinthian brass, referring to the amalgam, formed by the fusion together of copper, brass, silver, and gold, found by Lucius Mummius after the burning of Corinth. More probably it was some factitious metal (see A. Clarke, in loc. ). Though all men have the attributes of each, yet these are variously developed. It should he our endeavour so to cultivate our powers that our service should be like gold, of the most valuable kind.
(2) Various in its sources. Some of the vessels were the free-will offerings of Jews. Some were from the Gentiles. So whether Jew or Greek now it matters not, for all believers are one in Christ. (Mat_8:11)
2. The treasure was precious.
(1) Gold, from its purity and costliness, has ever been taken as a symbol of preciousness. Silver also has the same signification, though in inferior degree. Here also were vessels of a "fine copper precious as gold.
(2) But what material substance can compare in value to the human spirit? (Isa_13:12)
(a) Immortal.
(b) Capable of God. (Job_28:19)
Redeemed by the Son of God. (1Pe_1:7)
3. The treasure was sacred.
(1) It was rendered so by being freely given to God. Having freely given ourselves, we have no right to resume the gift. What an anomalous position is that of the backslider from God!
(2) By virtue of God"s acceptance of a gift it becomes holy. When God receives a sinner he sanctifies him by his Spirit. As the Levites and Nethinims kept the vessels of the sanctuary clean, so are all the ordinances of religion designed to keep believers pure. Consider
II THE TREASURERS.
1. These were twelve in number.
(1) This number is sacred in Old Testament Scripture. There were the twelve sons of Jacob, and so the twelve tribes of Israel. (Gen_35:22 Gen_49:28) According to the number of these tribes were the twelve pillars built by Moses; the twelve stones in the breastplate of judgment; the twelve stones in the Jordan, and in the altar of Elijah (Exo_24:4 Exo_28:21; Jos_4:8; 1Ki_18:31) So the twelve cakes on the table of shewbread, etc.. (Lev_24:8)
(2) This number is no less sacred in the New Testament. Corresponding to the twelve patriarchs we have the twelve apostles. (Mat_10:2) Twelve thrones are to be assigned to the apostles for the judging of the tribes of Israel. Twelve and multiples of twelve are common measures in the Apocalypse in things pertaining to the Lamb. (Rev_12:1 Rev_21:12, Rev_21:14, 21 22:2)
2. They were of the chief of the priests.
(1) They had a consecration to God in their birth as sons of Aaron. So ministers of Christ who have the oversight of precious souls should be regenerate persons.
(2) They had also a consecration in their official separation. So ministers of Christ must have a vocation from Christ. God assigns special work to special men. (see Act_13:2) By this special service they become holy, though they were officially holy already (ver. 28). Every service we faithfully render to him God makes to react upon us with a sanctifying virtue.
III THEIR DUTIES.
1. They were duly to estimate the value of their c/large.
(1) To impress this upon them, they had all the precious things weighed.
(2) The value of the soul cannot thus be estimated, yet it may be considered and pondered until the very spirit of a minister is penetrated with a sense of the magnitude of his responsibility in those over whom he is placed in the Lord.
2. They were to watch over it.
(1) To see that it was not lost through neglect, or by becoming mixed with other property. Ministerial neglect has resulted in the loss of many a precious soul.
(2) To defend it from the cupidity of robbers. These infested the way: some openly, others stealthily. So are souls in danger of encountering those who would rob them of peace.
3. They were to present it in its integrity in the temple.
(1) Having kept it amidst the dangers of the journey by the blessing of God, the custodians present the treasure in the house of the Lord. It will be a happy thing for ministers if they can as completely fulfil their commission in leading their flock into the better Jerusalem. For parents with their children, etc.. (Eph_4:11-13)
(2) The balances of the sanctuary are true. The actions of all men will there be weighed up. May we not be found wanting in the great day of scrutiny. J.A.M.
HOMILIES BY W. CLARKSON Vers. 24-36.
Zionwards.
Ezra and the company he had gathered were now fairly on their way homewards, and we may look at them, looking also at ourselves, as
I TRAVELLERS TO JERUSALEM. "Then we departed to go unto Jerusalem" (ver. 31). They had come forth from a land of captivity and comparative privation, and were on their way to the land where they would no longer be bondsmen, and where every possible privilege would be theirs to enjoy: they were "going home;" to the land consecrated to their thought by innumerable hallowing associations; to the city whose walls should, to their fond imagining, shut them in to liberty, security, and joy. Onwards we move, we who have left the land of spiritual bondage behind us, to the land of our hope; our faces are steadfastly set toward the heavenly Jerusalem. We "seek a city yet to come." Every day we are travelling forward to its open gates; every night we pitch our tent "a day"s march nearer" this home on high.
II GUIDED AND GUARDED OF GOD UPON THE WAY. "The hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy," etc. (ver. 31). In answer to their earnest prayer (ver. 23) and to their humility (ver. 23), God gave them his guidance and guardianship along the road, and whatever enemies may have been near either refrained from attacking them or were easily repelled. In answer to our earnest prayer and our humility, God will be our guide and guardian along the heavenward way. He will
(a) show us the path we should take, saving us from error, and thus from evil, and
(b) defend us from our adversaries:
(1) those above us principalities and powers, etc.;
(2) those around us evil men, dangerous fascinations, worldly honours, pleasures of the flesh;
(3) those within us unholy propensities, wayward dispositions, tendencies towards pride, sensuality, selfishness, etc.
III THOSE CHARGED WITH SACRED TREASURE (vers. 24-30). Ezra put into the hands of some of the priests and Levites very precious treasure the gold, silver, vessels, etc., which had been contributed for the temple; they, as holy men, were to take charge of the holy things (ver. 28), to watch them and keep them intact, to be prepared to have them weighed when they reached their journey"s end (ver. 29). All of us who are spiritual pilgrims are men charged with treasure some with more than others. All of us have in charge that most valuable treasure more precious than the precious gold they carried (ver. 27) our own spirit, created in God"s likeness to bear his image, to dwell in his glorious presence. Each one of us must sedulously, scrupulously, devoutly watch and keep this unharmed, and be ready to have it "weighed in the balances" of God, not being found wanting then. To some of us parents, teachers, pastors God has intrusted the precious treasure of others" souls, and he bids us take earnest heed of them, "watching for them as those who must give account," doing our best in every way, publicly and privately, by direct solicitation and by prayer on their behalf, that they may be found whole and blameless "in that day.
IV AT THE END OF THEIR JOURNEY. They "came to Jerusalem" (ver. 32), and their arrival was marked by three things
(1) judgment (vers. 33, 34),
(2) presentation of sacrifice (ver. 35), and
(3) kindly reception by those across the river (ver. 36).
When we reach the end of our journey we shall find these three things
(1) Judgment, for we must all stand at the judgment seat, etc.. (2Co_5:10) God will bring every work into judgment. (Ecc_12:14)
(2) The offering of no more sacrifices as under the old dispensation, and no more pleading of the one great Sacrifice for sin; no sin offering at all (ver. 35), but the offering of praise and of holy service of our purified, renewed, perfected selves, whole and without blemish, vessels meet for the Master"s use even in the heavenly sanctuary; and
(3) welcome from those who are there. Those who are on that side the river will wait, with outstretched hands, with eager hearts, to receive us to those blessed shores, to lead us into that better land, to introduce us to that country which has no temple because it is a temple, full of the presence and the glory of the Lord. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv24, 28 And weighed unto them the silver and the gold,…
Ezr_8:24-30
And weighed unto them the silver and the gold, and the vessels.
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The guardianship of the sacred treasures
I. The treasures to be guarded.
1. Valuable in themselves.
2. Valuable as being consecrated to God.
3. Valuable as being the spontaneous gifts of friends and well wishers.
II. The guardians of the treasures.
III. The charge to the guardians of the treasures.
IV. The acceptance of the guardianship of the treasures. Conclusion--
1. Our subject speaks to ministers of the gospel (1Co_4:1-2; Tit_1:7; Tit_1:9; 1Ti_6:20; 2Ti_1:14).
2. To all who have charge of public funds or the property of others.
3. To all men (Mat_25:14-30). (William Jones.)
The charge of the pilgrim priests
Without being unduly fanciful, I think I may venture to take these words as a type of the injunctions which are given to us Christian people, and to see in them a picturesque representation of the duties that devolve upon us in the course of our journey across the desert to the temple-home above.
I. Consider: the precious treasure entrusted to our keeping.
1. The treasure is first our own selves, with all that we are and may be under the humiliating and quickening influence of His grace and spirit. That which we carry with us--the infinite possibilities of these awful spirits of ours, the tremendous faculties which are given to every human soul, and which, like a candle plunged into oxygen, are meant to burn far more brightly under the stimulus of Christian faith and the possession of Gods truth, are the rich deposit committed to our charge. The precious treasure of our own natures, our own hearts, our own understandings, wills, consciences, desires--keep these until they are weighed in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem.
2. The treasure is next--This great word of salvation, once delivered to the saints, and to be handed on without diminution or alteration to the generations that are to come. Possession involves responsibility always. The word of salvation is given to us. If we go tampering with it, by erroneous apprehension, by unfair usage, by failing to apply it to our own daily life, then it will fade and disappear from our grasp. It is given to us in order that we may keep it safe, and carry it high up across the desert as becomes the priests of the most high God.
II. Next, the command, the guardianship that is here set forth. Watch ye and keep them. That is to say, Watch in order that ye may keep. This involves--
1. Unslumbering vigilance.
2. Lowly trust.
3. Punctilious purity.
It was fitting that the priests should carry the things that belonged to the temple. No other hands but consecrated hands had a right to touch them. To none other guardianship but the guardianship of the possessors of a symbolic and ceremonial purity could the vessels of a symbolic and ceremonial worship be entrusted; and to none others but the possessors of real and spiritual holiness can the treasures of the true temple, of an inward and spiritual worship be entrusted, Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord, said Isaiah long after. The only way to keep our treasure undiminished and untarnished, is to keep ourselves pure and clean.
4. Constant use of the treasure. Although the vessels borne through the desert by those priests were used for no service during the march, they weighed just the same when they got to the end as at the beginning. But if we do not use the vessels that are entrusted to our care they will not weigh the same. There never was an unused talent yet, but when it was taken out and put into the scales it was lighter than when it was committed to the keeping of the earth. Gifts that are used fructify. Capacities that are strained to the uttermost increase. Service strengthens the power of service; and just as the reward of work is more work, the way for making ourselves fit for bigger things is to do the things that are lying by us. The blacksmiths arm, the sailors eye, the organs of any piece of handicraft, as we all know, are strengthened by exercise, and so it is in the higher region.
III. The weighing in the house of the Lord. Though it cannot be that we shall meet the trial and the weighing of that day without many a flaw and much loss, yet we may hope that by His precious help and His pitying acceptance we may lay ourselves down in peace at last, saying, I have kept the faith, and may be awakened by the word Well done, good and faithful servant. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
From Ahava to Jerusalem
This illustrates the pilgrimage of the Christian.
I. The setting out from ahava.
1. From captivity to liberty.
2. From exile to their ancestral home.
3. From the land of idolatry to the scene of true worship.
II. The progress on the journey.
III. The arrival at jerusalem. This was characterised by--
1. Grateful rest.
2. Joyful welcome. (William Jones.)
.
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On vv29, 31
Ezra
THE CHARGE OF THE PILGRIM PRIESTS
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Ezr 8:29.
The little band of Jews, seventeen hundred in number, returning from Babylon, had just started on that long pilgrimage, and made a brief halt in order to get everything in order for their transit across the desert; when their leader Ezra, taking count of his men, discovers that amongst them there are none of the priests or Levites. He then takes measures to reinforce his little army with a contingent of these, and entrusts to their special care a very valuable treasure in gold, and silver, and sacred vessels, which had been given to them for use in the house of the Lord. The words which I have taken as text are a portion of the charge which he gave to those twelve priestly guardians of the precious things, that were to be used in worship when they got back to the Temple. ‘Watch and keep them, until ye weigh them in the chambers of the house of the Lord.’
So I think I may venture, without being unduly fanciful, to take these words as a type of the injunctions which are given to us Christian people; and to see in them a striking and picturesque representation of the duties that devolve upon us in the course of our journey across the desert to the Temple-Home above.
And to begin with, let me remind you, for a moment or two, what the precious treasure is which is thus entrusted to our keeping and care. We can scarcely, in such a connection and with such a metaphor, forget the words of our Lord about a certain king that went to receive his kingdom, and to return; who called together his servants, and gave to each of them according to their several ability, with the injunction to trade upon that until he came. The same metaphor which our Master employed lies in this story before us-in the one case, sacrificial vessels and sacred treasures; in the other case, the talents out of the rich possessions of the departing king.
Nor can we forget either the other phase of the same figure which the Apostle employs when he says to his ‘own son’ and substitute, Timothy: ‘That good thing which was committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us,’ nor that other word to the same Timothy, which says: ‘O Timothy! keep that which was committed to thy trust, and avoid profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science, falsely so called.’ In these quotations, the treasure, and the rich deposit, is the faith once delivered to the saints; the solemn message of love and peace in Jesus Christ, which was entrusted, first of all to those preachers, but as truly to every one of Christ’s disciples.
So, then, the metaphor is capable of two applications. The first is to the rich treasure and solemn trust of our own nature, of our own souls; the faculties and capacities, precious beyond all count, rich beyond all else that a man has ever received. Nothing that you have is half so much as that which you are. The possession of a soul that knows and loves, and can obey; that trusts and desires; that can yearn and reach out to Jesus Christ, and to God in Christ; of a conscience that can yield to His command; and faculties of comprehending and understanding what comes to them from Jesus Christ-that is more than any other possession, treasure, or trust. That which you and I carry with us-the infinite possibilities of these awful spirits of ours-the tremendous faculties which are given to every human soul, and which, like a candle plunged into oxygen, are meant to burn far more brightly under the stimulus of Christian faith and the possession of God’s truth, are the rich deposit committed to our charge. You priests of the living God, you men and women, you say that you are Christ’ s, and therefore are consecrated to a nobler priesthood than any other-to you is given this solemn charge: ‘That good thing which is committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghost that dwelleth in you.’ The precious treasure of your own natures, your own hearts, your own understandings, wills, consciences, desires-keep these, until they are weighed in the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.
And in like manner, taking the other aspect of the metaphor-we have given to us, in order that we may do something with it, that great deposit and treasure of truth, which is all embodied and incarnated in Jesus Christ our Lord. It is bestowed upon us that we may use it for ourselves, and in order that we may carry it triumphantly all through the world. Possession involves responsibility always. The word of salvation is given to us. If we go tampering with it, by erroneous apprehension, by unfair usage, by failing to apply it to our own daily life; then it will fade and disappear from our grasp. It is given to us in order that we may keep it safe, and carry it high up across the desert, as becomes the priests of the most high God.
The treasure is first-our own selves-with all that we are and may be, under the stimulating and quickening influence of His grace and Spirit. The treasure is next-His great word of salvation, once delivered unto the saints, and to be handed on, without diminution or alteration in its fair perspective and manifold harmonies, to the generations that are to come. So, think of yourselves as the priests of God, journeying through the wilderness, with the treasures of the Temple and the vessels of the sacrifice for your special deposit and charge.
Further, I touch on the command, the guardianship that is here set forth. ‘Watch ye, and keep them.’ That is to say, I suppose, according to the ordinary idiom of the Old Testament, ‘Watch, in order that you may keep.’ Or to translate it into other words: The treasure which is given into our hands requires, for its safe preservation, unceasing vigilance. Take the picture of my text: These Jews were four months, according to the narrative, in travelling from their first station upon their journey to Jerusalem across the desert. There were enemies lying in wait for them by the way. With noble self-restraint and grand chivalry, the leader of the little band says: ‘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 that forsake Him.’ And so they would not go to him, cap in hand, and ask him to give them a guard to take care of them; but ‘We fasted and besought our God for this; and He was intreated of us.’
Thus the little company, without arms, without protection, with nothing but a prayer and a trust to make them strong, flung themselves into the pathless desert with all those precious things in their possession; and all the precaution which Ezra took was to lay hold of the priests in the little party, and to say: ‘Here! all through the march do you stick by these precious things. Whoever sleeps, do you watch. Whoever is careless, be you vigilant. Take these for your charge, and remember I weigh them here before we start, and they will be all weighed again when we get there. So be alert.’
And is not that exactly what Christ says to us? ‘Watch; keep them; be vigilant, that ye may keep; and keep them, because they will be weighed and registered when you arrive there.’
I cannot do more than touch upon two or three of the ways in which this charge may be worked out, in its application for ourselves, beginning with that first one which is implied in the words of the text-unslumbering vigilance; then trust, like the trust which is glorified in the context, depending only on ‘the good hand of our God upon us’; then purity, because, as Ezra said, ‘Ye are holy unto the Lord. The vessels are holy also’; and therefore ye are the fit persons to guard them. And besides these, there is, in our keeping our trust, a method which does not apply to the incident before us; namely, use, in order to their preservation.
That is to say, first of all, no slumber; not a moment’s relaxation; or some of those who lie in wait for us on the way will be down upon us, and some of the precious things will go. While all the rest of the wearied camp slept, the guardians of the treasure had to outwatch the stars. While others might straggle on the march, lingering here or there, or resting on some patch of green, they had to close up round their precious charge; others might let their eyes wander from the path, they had ever to look to their charge. For them the journey had a double burden, and unslumbering vigilance was their constant duty.
We likewise have unslumberingly and ceaselessly to watch over that which is committed to our charge. For, depend upon it, if for an instant we turn away our heads, the thievish birds that flutter over us will be down upon the precious seed that is in our basket, or that we have sown in the furrows, and it will be gone. Watch, that ye may keep.
And then, still further, see how in this story before us there are brought out very picturesquely, and very simply, deeper lessons still. It is not enough that a man shall be for ever keeping his eye upon his own character and his own faculties, and seeking sedulously to cultivate and improve them, as he that must give an account. There must be another look than that. Ezra said, in effect, ‘Not all the cohorts of Babylon can help us; and we do not want them. We have one strong hand that will keep us safe’; and so he, and his men, with all this mass of wealth, so tempting to the wild robbers that haunted the road, flung themselves into the desert, knowing that all along it there were, as he says, ‘such as lay in wait for them.’ His confidence was: ‘God will bring us all safe out to the end there; and we shall carry every glittering piece of the precious things that we brought out of Babylon right into the Temple of Jerusalem.’ Yet he says, ‘Watch ye and keep them.’
What does that come to in reference to our religious experience? Why this: ‘Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you, both to will and to do of His own good pleasure.’ You do not need these external helps. Fling yourself wholly upon His keeping hand, and also watch and keep yourselves. ‘I know in whom I have believed, and that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day,’ is the complement of the other words, ‘That good thing which was committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghost.’
So guardianship is, first, unceasing vigilance; and then it is lowly trust. And besides that, it is punctilious purity. ‘I said unto them, Ye are holy unto the Lord; the vessels are holy unto the Lord. Watch ye, and keep them.’
It was fitting that priests should carry the things that belonged to the Temple. No other hands but consecrated hands had a right to touch them. To none other guardianship but the guardianship of the possessors of a symbolic and ceremonial purity, could the vessels of a symbolic and ceremonial worship be entrusted; and to none others but the possessors of real and spiritual holiness can the treasures of the true Temple, of an inward and spiritual worship, be entrusted. ‘Be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord,’ said Isaiah using a kindred metaphor. The only way to keep our treasure undiminished and untarnished, is to keep ourselves pure and clean.
And, lastly, we have to exercise a guardianship which not only means unslumbering vigilance, lowly trust, punctilious purity, but also requires the constant use of the treasure.
‘Watch ye, and keep them.’ Although the vessels which those priests bore through the desert were used for no service during all the weary march, they weighed just the same when they got to the end as at the beginning; though, no doubt, even their fine gold had become dim and tarnished through disuse. But if we do not use the vessels that are entrusted to our care, they will not weigh the same. The man that wrapped up his talent in the napkin, and said, ‘Lo, there thou hast that is thine,’ was too sanguine. There was never an unused talent rolled up in a handkerchief yet, but when it was taken out and put into the scales it was lighter than when it was committed to the keeping of the earth. Gifts that are used fructify. Capacities that are strained to the uttermost increase. Service strengthens the power for service; and just as the reward for work is more work, the way for making ourselves fit for bigger things is to do the things that are lying by us. The blacksmith’s arm, the sailor’s eye, the organs of any piece of handicraft, as we all know, are strengthened by exercise; and so it is in this higher region.
And so, dear brethren, take these four words-vigilance, trust, purity, exercise. ‘Watch ye, and keep them, until they are weighed in the chambers of the House of the Lord.’
And, lastly, think of that weighing in the House of the Lord. Cannot you see the picture of the little band when they finally reach the goal of their pilgrimage; and three days after they arrived, as the narrative tells us, went up into the Temple, and there, by number and by weight, rendered up their charge, and were clear of their responsibility? ‘And the first came and said, Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. And he said, Well, thou good servant, because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.’
Oh! how that thought of the day when they would empty out the rich treasure upon the marble pavement, and clash the golden vessels into the scales, must have filled their hearts with vigilance during all the weary watches, when desert stars looked down upon the slumbering encampment, and they paced wakeful all the night. And how the thought, too, must have filled their hearts with joy, when they tried to picture to themselves the sigh of satisfaction, and the sense of relief with which, after all the perils, their ‘feet would stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem,’ and they would be able to say, ‘That which thou hast given us, we have kept, and nothing of it is lost.’
A lifetime would be a small expenditure to secure that; and though it cannot be that you and I will meet the trial and the weighing of that great day without many failures and much loss, yet we may say: ‘I know in whom I have believed, and that He is able to keep my deposit-whether it be in the sense of that which I have committed unto Him, or in the sense of that which He has committed unto me-against that day.’ We may hope that, by His gracious help and His pitying acceptance, even such careless stewards and negligent watchers as we are, may lay ourselves down in peace at the last, saying, ‘I have kept the faith,’ and may be awakened by the word, ‘Well done! good and faithful servant.’
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v31 first month
first month
i.e. April.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv24, 26, 28, 31, 33, 35 Sherebiah, Hashabiah
Sherebiah, Hashabiah
See how you translated these men's names in Esra 8:19. (See: How to Translate Names)
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translationWords
silver
gold
house of God
advice
Israel
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv25, 26, 31, 35 8:25 The items that the leaders were in charge…
8:25 The items that the leaders were in charge of transporting included offerings for the Temple and sacrifices. Because these gifts belonged to God and were holy (8:28), it was necessary that the priests care for them.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.