The important part of this Scripture is not what is said, but rather the space of time between when the building of the Temple stopped and it was restarted. For it was 16 years that no work was done at the building site. How many people do you think looked at the Temple foundation year after year and considered all the work a loss? We will all have setbacks in life…times when our forward motion is hampered or even stopped for a season… and we don’t know why. This delay is not a time to declare defeat…for with God, any setback is only temporary in His timetable. And if we have faith and persevere, any delay will have success in the end.
Tag: ezra
Nehemiah 8:2-3 ” So on the first day of the seventh month Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, which was made up of men and women and all who were able to understand. He read it aloud from daybreak till noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate in the presence of the men, women and others who could understand. “
The Israelites had gathered together and asked Ezra to read the Law. Many had never heard the reading of the Word, for they had been born and raised in Babylonian captivity. The Lord had been faithful in rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem…He had miraculously aided them in rebuilding the crumbled walls…but now it was time to rebuild His people. The Lord is wanting to rebuild His people again…to reclaim, restore, and re-establish Believers for His glory. Now is the time for you to break off the chains of captivity and allow God to begin a new rebuilding project in you.
Ezra 4:24 ” Thus the work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a stand-still until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.”
The book of Ezra recounts the efforts of the Jewish exiles who returned from Babylon to rebuild the Temple. Sixteen years would pass between the laying of the foundation and when work would take up again. God gave them the vision for the Temple…it was started…but then suspended. Just like the exiles, we too hear from God and plunge forward only to be sometimes detained. Sadly, it’s usually at that stoppage we throw in the towel and claim failure. But just because there’s a delay doesn’t mean it’s a defeat. The Lord never goes back on His promises, and any vision He’s given you…even if it’s been years…is still viable in His eyes. Remember, a delay doesn’t mean a defeat.
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