📖 The Book of Ezra
Start reading →Old Testament · 10 chapters · History
Return, rebuilding, and reform — God restores his people.
Who wrote Ezra?
Author
Ezra
Written
c. 440 BC
Genre
History
Why Ezra was written
To record the return of Jewish exiles from Babylon, the rebuilding of the Temple, and Ezra's reform of the community through the law of God.
Outline of Ezra
- 11–6: The first return under Zerubbabel; the Temple rebuilt
- 27–10: Ezra's return; his teaching and reform of mixed marriages
Key verses
Ezra 1:1Ezra 7:10Ezra 9:6
How Ezra points to Christ
The return from exile is a new exodus — God bringing his people home. Ezra as scribe-priest who teaches the word of God points to Christ, who is both the living Word and the great High Priest.
How Ezra begins
1Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
Read Ezra 1 →