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EZRA (Person)
1. Religious reformer following Israel’s return from exile. Ezra’s genealogy (Ezr 7:1-5; cf. 1 Chr 6:3-15) places him in the high priestly Aaron-Zadok family line, which accounts for the importance of his scribal and priestly activities. He is called “priest” (Ezr 10:10, 16; Neh 8:2), “scribe” (Ezr 7:6; Neh 12:36), and “priest and scribe” (Ezr 7:11-12; Neh 8:9; 12:26). The OT scribe was not a mere copyist, as in Christ’s time, but a profound student of God’s laws and commandments (Ezr 7:11-12; Jer 8:8). In the commission of the Persian king Artaxerxes to Ezra, the king described him as “priest” and “scribe” (Ezr 7:6-11). It was Ezra who began the traditional view of the scribe as a religious leader, a “bookman”; the view lasted until 200 BC. Scribes were qualified to teach and preach the Scriptures as well as interpret them, but by the first century AD, the scribe’s function was more specialized.
Ezra’s Journey to Jerusalem
Ezra led a second group of exiles back to Judah and Jerusalem about 80 years after the first group. He traveled the dangerous route without military escort (Ezr 8:22), but the people prayed and, under Ezra’s godly leadership, arrived safely in Jerusalem after several months.
As “Secretary of State for Jewish Affairs” in the Persian Empire, Ezra visited Jerusalem about 458 BC, and on his return reported his findings. Little was done, however, until Nehemiah went to Jerusalem in 445. Once the city walls had been rebuilt, Ezra instituted a religious reformation in which the ancient Torah (the Law) was made the norm for Jewish life. He also demanded that Jews who had married foreigners must divorce them to maintain the Jewish purity the Torah required. Ezra set an example of piety and dedication through prayer and fasting, and this placed his reforming zeal in proper spiritual perspective. He set the pattern for life in the postexilic Jewish commonwealth, making God’s Word and worship central features. The date and place of his death are unknown.
See also Ezra, Book of; Postexilic Period.
2. KJV rendering of Ezrah in 1 Chronicles 4:17. See Ezrah.