10. Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, c.—His reigning desire had been to study the divine law—its principles, institutions, privileges, and requirements and now from love and zeal, he devoted himself, as the business of his life, to the work of instructing, reforming, and edifying others. :-. GRACIOUS COMMISSION OF ARTAXERXES. read more
11. this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave—The measure which this document authorized, and the remarkable interest in the Jews displayed in it, were most probably owing to the influence of Esther, who is thought to have been raised to the high position of queen a few months previous to the departure of Ezra [HALES]. According to others, who adopt a different chronology, it was more probably pressed upon the attention of the Persian court by Ezra, who, like Daniel, showed... read more
12. Artaxerxes, king of kings—That title might have been assumed as, with literal truth, applicable to him, since many of the tributary princes of his empire still retained the name and authority of kings. But it was a probably a mere Orientalism, denoting a great and powerful prince, as the heaven of heavens signified the highest heaven, and vanity of vanities, the greatest vanity. This vainglorious title was assumed by the kings of Assyria, from whom it passed to the sovereigns of Persia.... read more
Ezra’s background 7:1-10"These things" (Ezra 7:1) refers to the events of the first return that the writer described in chapters 1-6.Ezra’s genealogy (Ezra 7:1-5) shows that he was a man of importance whom his fellow Jews would have respected. His name is a shortened form of "Azariah," meaning "Yahweh helps." He was a descendant of Aaron, the first high priest of Israel (Ezra 7:5). There are gaps in this genealogy (cf. 1 Chronicles 6:3-15). "Son of" occasionally means "descendant of," as... read more
Artaxerxes’ decree 7:11-26This decree appears in Aramaic, the official language of the Persian Empire, in the Hebrew Bible.The king appointed Ezra as the person responsible to him for the affairs conducted in the Jewish community in Judah. He held a position in the Persian court equivalent to Secretary of State for Jewish Affairs. [Note: Whitcomb, p. 430; Bright, p. 370.] This decree encouraged any Jews in exile to return to their land (Ezra 7:12-13)."The Persians had respect for the laws of... read more
The Journey of Ezra to Jerusalem1. Now after.. Artaxerxes] The interval of time here implied amounted to more than fifty years, from the sixth year of Darius (516 b.c.) to the seventh year of Artaxerxes Longimanus (458 b.c.). Between the reign of Darius and Artaxerxes there intervened the reign of Xerxes (485-464 b.c.), to which belong the incidents related in the book of Esther. In the early years of his successor Artaxerxes an effort was made to surround Jerusalem, with a wall (see Ezra... read more
(10) For Ezra had prepared his heart.—It must be remembered that the providence of God over him immediately precedes—not as the reward of his preparing his heart, but as the reason of it. First, he gave himself to study the law, then to practise it himself, and lastly to teach its positive statutes or ordinances and its moral judgments or precepts—a perfect description of a teacher in the congregation. There is nothing discordant in Ezra saying of himself that he had thus “set his heart.” read more
(11) Even a scribe.—In the case of Ezra the function of scribe was more important than that of priest. The word scribe originally meant the writer or copier of the law; but now it meant the expositor of its general moral commandments and of its special ceremonial statutes. It is with the latter more especially that the commission of Ezra had to do. read more
(11-26) Credentials and commission of Ezra. After the general statement the particulars are given, beginning with the letter of authorisation, in which we discern throughout the hand of Ezra. read more
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Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Ezra 7:11
THE LETTER OF ARTAXERXES COMMISSIONING EZRA (Ezra 7:11-16)"Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest, the scribe, even the scribe of the words of the commandments of Jehovah, and of his statutes to Israel: Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect, and so forth."Beginning with Ezra 7:12, the letter of Artaxerxes is written in Aramaic, following which, in Ezra 7:27, Ezra again wrote in... read more