NOTES for Ezr 8:21-36

Before beginning the return to Jerusalem, the travelers devote time to fasting and prayer. Much comes together in this fast: prayerful unity with the Lord, hope in His protection, a desire to be purified before meeting the Promised Land, and the need to gather themselves spiritually before the journey. Ezra’s words quoted here, “that we might humble ourselves,” give us a glimpse into his inner world: Ezra does not set himself apart from his companions or exalt himself above them, but regards himself in the same way as the others. His refusal to ask the king for an armed escort follows naturally from Ezra’s mission: he is going to serve the Lord, and the Lord is a more reliable Protector than any armed force.

On the same page we find both the account of the fast and a businesslike inventory of the valuables and sacrificial animals intended for the Temple. There is no contradiction here: standing before God is not an abstract soaring in the empyrean; it is real life itself. Beginning with what can be seen, we can direct our hearts toward what is invisible and incomprehensible.