June 16, 2025

Ezra and Nehemiah – More Than Leadership Lessons

Ezra and Nehemiah – More Than Leadership Lessons

Episode 2.13


They’re not miracle workers, prophets, or kings—so why do Ezra and Nehemiah matter? In this kickoff episode of our new series, Michael and Zach explore why these often-overlooked books are anything but boring. Too often reduced to leadership manuals, the real story is far richer: faithful men giving everything to restore God’s people… and still falling short.


We unpack the structure, timeline, and purpose of Ezra–Nehemiah, showing how the three movements of the book mirror one another with deep theological intent. Each begins with hope, faces opposition, and ends with mixed results. Through it all, we see God’s sovereignty, human failure, and the aching need for a better Savior. These books don’t just teach leadership—they point forward to Christ.


Whether you're new to Ezra and Nehemiah or revisiting them with fresh eyes, this episode lays the groundwork for a deeper journey through two books that belong together and tell one story of longing, faith, and future hope.


Find our videocast here: https://youtu.be/6RObE1DjgjM


Merch here: https://take-2-podcast.printify.me/


Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

⁠https://uppbeat.io/t/reakt-music/deep-stone⁠

License code: 2QZOZ2YHZ5UTE7C8


Find more Take 2 Theology content at http://www.take2theology.com

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Well, right.
So my in laws were in town.

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Yeah, big.
Weekend.

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Big weekend, Yeah.
Lydia graduated.

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We were recording several, so
this is going to come out

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several, you know, weeks after.
Yeah, just graduate.

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But at the time of recording,
Lydia has just graduated.

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And I don't know the contest
because I wasn't there for the

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conversation.
But apparently my in laws were,

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you know, my my mother-in-law
likes to keep track of everyone.

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She's always asking like, who's
this?

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Who's this?
And I'll remind me their names

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because if they think she wants
to be personable and, you know,

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be able to come up and, you
know, talk to you about your

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family.
And if there's new people, she's

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wanting to find them out.
But one of them asked about you,

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Zach.
And the the question was, oh, is

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he the one with the beard?
Oh wow, I'll take that.

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And So what?
This is Jill's mother.

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Jill's mom.
Yeah.

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Yeah.
Which I you know, Jill's mom, I

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don't know why you asked that
because she probably watches

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this routinely on YouTube
because you could see the

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progression, right?
And I was.

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Kidding.
And then I don't remember who

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else it was.
I have a feeling it was Clay or

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Jonathan White.
I can't remember but they asked

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if you were going after that
reformer 0.

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Jonathan White, because he told
me the same thing at Goldie's

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graduation party.
The beard, the I, I mean, I, and

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I don't know if you know the
nomenclature.

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Technically, this is not a
goatee.

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Do you know this?
This is this.

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Part this is a goatee.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

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On the chin's a goatee.
Technically, it's a circle

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beard.
If it's beard, which I'm gonna

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say what I can get.
OK, Yeah, Google this.

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I need this because I can't
throw a full beard.

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I thought below the lips was
goat, but together was goatee.

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Oh, see, maybe we're looking at
different sources.

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My understanding is circle
beard, if you have like the

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mustache and the goatee and
they're not connected, that's

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called a Van Dyke.
Have you heard this?

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You should just just just just
just look this up, look this up.

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And or if you know our associate
pastor, assistant Pastor Danny,

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he does what we like to call the
sideburns.

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And I say that because I've had
a conversation.

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I don't.
I think his wife has never seen

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the side of his face like he's
at sideburns.

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At least they known each other,
which is amazing.

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Now that you bring this up,
yeah, I have to, I have to say

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this.
Did you ever play Mike Tysons

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Punch Out?
I I'm familiar, I never really

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played it.
Yeah.

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So one of the characters that
you fight against, his name is

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Piston Honda.
And he had these big sideburns

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and kind of looked a little bit
like Elvis Presley.

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But whenever I see Danny,
sometimes I'm like, oh, he

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looked just like Piston Hot.
I'm going to look.

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It's amazing.
Facial aid is great.

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I'm getting a lot of comments on
my facial aid, which I'm loving.

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I'm just going to keep growing
it out.

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Yeah, Jonathan's like a former
beard, Matt Gilbert said.

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I had a ferocious beard and I
was like, I like, I was like

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Matt Gilbert.
Oh yeah, yeah.

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Yeah, hopefully he'll be on the
podcast one day.

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And yeah, so I mean, people,
it's very polarizing.

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People are like, oh, I love it.
Mostly guys, girls, other way.

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Like like how does your wife, I
mean, like they'll be like, does

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your wife like facial hair?
But I think that's more of a

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maybe a facial hair thing versus
like, I'm just growing it out.

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But what?
What's she got it?

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Says Goatee.
A small, narrow vertical strip

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of hair centered below the lower
lip.

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OK, hair on the chin so it has
goat tea and then also goatee

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and circle beard.
Circle beard is mustache

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connected to a rounded goatee
forming a full circle around the

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mouth.
Goatee is hair on the chin only,

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no mustache.
Variants may include a connected

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mustache.
So it's like.

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Yeah, yeah, yeah.
It's kind of given some leeway

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for probably people miscalling
it, but it seems like you you

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were on the money.
So goatee is, you know, below

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the lips.
Don't.

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Say goatee.
Yeah, yeah.

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Circle beard.
Sounds more manly because I have

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trouble growing the full the
full beard.

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But man, I've got I'm getting a
little bit.

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I do have a little bit.
I've got the salt and pepper

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goatee getting a little more,
you know, so it's.

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Coming easy, how fast it starts
coming in and like before you

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know it, it's like white and I
don't feel that old, but I guess

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that's what people always say no
matter what the.

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Class is like, that's when you
know you're old, when you're

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like, I don't feel that old.
Bingo, you.

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Made it.
But yeah, my, I have talked

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about, you know, Jonathan White
does this thing where he will

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completely shaved once a year.
OK, Yeah, I don't know if he's

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done that recently, but there
for a while.

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And I told you I was like, I
should probably do that.

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Oh, yeah.
And she's like, no, do not, do

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not do that.
So anyway, maybe.

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If you've had the beard for a
while, like a long time, yeah.

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When was the last time?
I got out of the Navy 2006

104
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immediately started growing.
A goatee went to because I had

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to go to college.
So yeah, yeah, yeah.

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You know, out of the Navy, you
know, in the Navy, obviously

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clean shaving.
I've seen a lot of people in

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uniform with facial hair.
Yeah, I don't.

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I've got to go check out the
regs.

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Like, how are these people doing
it?

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Because it doesn't seem like
it's just a no shave permission

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slip.
I I said permission slip because

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the actual word is chit, CHIT.
But, you know, it's very close

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to another word.
So no shave chit.

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OK, yeah, but five times fast.
Say it.

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Yeah, but so anyways, I've
probably had a beard since

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20/10/2009.
Wow, rocket truck.

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See I really can only grow the
goatee really well.

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Basically on the side does not
come in well.

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People just associate me with a
goatee like what?

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I will go queen shaving.
People are like not freaked out,

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but they're like, you know, I'm
like I I shave my face a lot of

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times, like once a week or twice
a week or something.

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But it just like the way it
grows in is like just a goatee.

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So I feel like people
perpetually or circle beard

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think I've got the circle beard
going on, but no one's a circle

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beard.
So we had no.

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One says circle beard.
Yeah, I'm trying to make it, you

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know, make it normalize circle
beards.

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That should be a new that should
be new merch.

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Make circle beards great again.
Nice, great.

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We also have some Stewart's
orange and cream and get the

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stuff at, you know, Cracker
Barrel and the Light.

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So, you know, classic.
So this tastes like, like a

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orange cream.
So I want to taste hints of

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vanilla and orange.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

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All right.
Cheers.

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Cheers.
Oh, yeah.

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Yeah.
You.

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Got you Got a cheer from it's
class file for sure.

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Oh yeah, that's very nice.
It is good.

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That is very nice.
You heard it here first.

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Now sponsored by Stewart.
Blackstone and Stewart's get

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just get on on on the train.
But I like when Jonathan

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Reformer, he was like, yeah, you
know, I I got that.

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I'm I'm going to stick to it
because what?

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The reformer Tat.
That's right.

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I'm just going to go.
Yeah, we missed an opportunity

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because last time we recorded
you were wearing.

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A tank top, Yeah.
So that would have, you know,

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given us some access.
I don't know if I've ever

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actually seen your Wow.
Yeah, yeah.

153
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Should have should have showed
showed everyone your tattoo.

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Man, next I'm wearing the tank.
I don't know if I'll do it

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again.
I I, it was a spur of the moment

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decision.
Michael was wearing his merch.

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I was like, oh, I got I got the
tank tops.

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So I put it on.
But I normally I like work out

159
00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:08,680
in it or do something, but I've
got the noticeable what, what do

160
00:07:08,680 --> 00:07:10,000
you call it?
The farmer's tan?

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00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:13,120
It's pretty bad and and the tank
top, you see the farmer's tan

162
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coming through.
So farmer's tan.

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Coach's tan.
Yeah, yeah.

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Anyone who's got sleeves out in
the sunlight tan, Yeah.

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Yeah, well, today we're starting
a new series.

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I I wonder what facial hair Ezra
or do you might have?

167
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Yeah.
Or did they drink orange?

168
00:07:31,360 --> 00:07:33,400
Orange cream soda, Yeah, I don't
know, Maybe when we get.

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Can't wait to, you know, get get
to the afterlife and, you know,

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ask them all about it.
But I'm excited for this new

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series.
Maybe, I don't know, for

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episodes, something like that.
But hopefully as we do this

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podcast too, we're doing all
different things, apologetics.

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We talk a lot obviously about
scripture.

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Maybe we'll start covering, you
know, over the course of time,

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different swaths of scripture.
So basically.

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Eventually we cover 66 different
books.

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Wow, I was that bad.
Did you just pull it out of thin

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air?
So let's go ahead and take it to

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the next level from the hearts
of the low country in South

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Carolina.
It's the Take Two podcast where

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we take theology to the next
level.

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Well, I'm excited, Michael, for
this series when we went through

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Ezra and Nehemiah, an impact
maybe like actually it was last

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summer a year ago and it was
super edifying.

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Loved it a ton.
And the way I started out the

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class was I just had everyone
like, who's your favorite?

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Let's start naming like the top
20 Bible character of everyone

189
00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:45,640
in here.
And I bet neither one of no one

190
00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:48,480
named Ezra and Neiman.
No, it's like Moses, Elijah,

191
00:08:48,640 --> 00:08:53,560
Jesus, Apostle Paul, John.
Yeah, it's it's it's almost like

192
00:08:53,600 --> 00:08:57,320
everyone except for Ezra
Nehemiah doesn't get a lot of

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00:08:57,320 --> 00:08:58,600
play.
Anyone, Samuel?

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00:08:58,880 --> 00:08:59,480
Samuel.
Yeah.

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00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:00,800
Samuel.
Like I mean like, I mean, I

196
00:09:00,800 --> 00:09:03,120
don't I can't remember the exact
list, so maybe no one, but I'm

197
00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:06,560
just saying it was like
everyone, a lot of patriarchs,

198
00:09:06,560 --> 00:09:08,560
Genesis, like all those guys
are, are taken.

199
00:09:09,080 --> 00:09:10,440
So maybe not Samuel, I don't
know.

200
00:09:10,440 --> 00:09:14,760
But it's it's one of those
neglected areas.

201
00:09:14,760 --> 00:09:17,640
I don't know when the, you know,
everyone's different, but when

202
00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:20,680
the last time you heard a good
sermon series on Ezra or

203
00:09:20,680 --> 00:09:23,320
something like that, But it's
something you know, maybe not

204
00:09:23,320 --> 00:09:27,480
typically that you hear a ton.
Yeah, I'm trying to think we

205
00:09:27,800 --> 00:09:29,920
obviously we kind of hit Ezra
sometimes when we're talking

206
00:09:29,920 --> 00:09:32,480
about history of of Israel.
Yeah.

207
00:09:33,040 --> 00:09:36,160
So maybe not a sermon series on
Ezra did.

208
00:09:36,160 --> 00:09:38,560
Did you ever?
Not since I've.

209
00:09:38,560 --> 00:09:39,600
Been.
Yeah, I know you've.

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00:09:39,680 --> 00:09:42,160
Been here like twice as long.
So sometimes you get a sermon

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00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:46,200
series on Nehemiah because it's
like the 40 days build the wall,

212
00:09:46,200 --> 00:09:49,640
you know, that type of focus,
leadership, rah, rah, rah type

213
00:09:49,640 --> 00:09:50,320
of stuff.
Yeah.

214
00:09:50,480 --> 00:09:53,880
And and when you when you look
at Ezra Nehemiah, no miracles.

215
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So that like rules out like the
fun factor a little bit like,

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nothing super crazy happens.
No one's getting a nail put to

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this either head.
Yeah, exactly.

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Ezra's really just someone who
loves the Torah, loves the

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Bible, loves the worship, no
signs and wonders.

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He's just trying to be serious
to God's word and encouraging

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other people to as well.
Nehemiah, talk about building a

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wall, glorified construction
worker.

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Like that's like kind of, it's
like it's not Moses or these

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things.
Jesus talks a lot about Isaiah,

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talks, quotes Deuteronomy a lot,
never talks about Ezra and

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Nehemiah.
That might be part of the reason

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we don't talk about, you know,
he talks about Dave, he talks

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about Solomon.
And, you know, most people are

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probably familiar with the story
in some capacity and know that

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it's like, it's good, it's in
Scripture, but it's not Moses or

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Joshua or Elijah or the
apostles.

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So it just kind of gets pushed
to the side a little bit, not on

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purpose.
I don't think people are like, I

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hate Ezra.
It's just not as important.

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Do you think that, Well, there
was a time when I was younger,

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maybe 10th, 11th grade, and
someone went through the

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structure of the Bible with us.
It was our pastorate time on

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Wednesday night.
And I don't guess I had, I had

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known at before that time.
You know, you get Genesis

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through Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther.
Those are all history books.

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And then they're separated by
our poetic, poetic books.

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And then we start our prophets.
But those prophets overlap the

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timing, the timing is, is the
same.

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And, and I think probably
everyone knows, you know, the

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story of creation, the story of
the fall, the story of the

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flood, the story of Abraham, and
maybe even up to the divided

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Kingdom and then the divided
Kingdom.

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And the more hazy there's always
good kings and bad kings and

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yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, you.

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Know and so I think it probably
just gets lost in the the

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history and then an important
role that these two played in

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00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:03,360
kind of bringing helping be
bring Israel back right before

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the New Testament.
I, I think you're exactly right.

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And so I, I think for that
reason, it's important to be

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acclimated with it just because
it's probably a blind spot for a

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lot of people.
And then when you zoom out

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popping up the end.
This might go together really

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well if we're doing a Kingdom of
guide episode in the future and

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looking at some of this, how it
just where it's placed in

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Scripture is is pretty amazing.
Some of the facts I have about

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here.
If you look up like on Amazon

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00:12:29,200 --> 00:12:33,080
bookstores, like books on Ezra
and Nehemiah, almost all of them

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00:12:33,080 --> 00:12:34,560
about leaders are like be a good
leader.

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Like you want to be like
Nehemiah rally the troops.

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We were in a church planning
meeting.

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Someone's like you need your
Nehemiah.

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00:12:39,880 --> 00:12:41,640
Do you remember this like they
were like, you need a Nehemiah

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00:12:41,640 --> 00:12:44,320
figure to spearhead this or it's
not going to be successful.

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00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:46,240
It's a very common thing.
I'm not saying that's wrong.

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I think Ezra Nehemiah portrayed
as very good leaders, but the

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story is.
Actually Ezra be like someone

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who dares to speak up to the
king cause normally that's an

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Ester.
Oh yeah, yeah.

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You know, but when Ezra is in
front of the king, he's the one

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that's the cupbearer, right?
And the king says, what's the

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00:13:04,080 --> 00:13:06,600
matter that is.
Nehemiah.

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I think Nehemiah is the
cupbearer.

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00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:10,120
You got to TuneIn.
We don't know.

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00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:12,400
We don't even know.
Yeah, maybe that's This is why

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00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:14,320
we need to do this study.
This is.

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But this is the beautiful thing.
Like let let me read sections of

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00:13:19,360 --> 00:13:22,000
the end of Nehemiah because this
is like frame like we all think

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00:13:22,040 --> 00:13:25,320
when I before go into this, I
thought like, Oh yeah, great

284
00:13:25,320 --> 00:13:27,840
leaders build the wall.
Don't know a lot more about it.

285
00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:30,920
But if you're looking at
Nehemiah 13, last chapter in

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00:13:30,920 --> 00:13:33,880
Nehemiah, this is basically how
the book ends.

287
00:13:33,880 --> 00:13:38,120
In those days, he saw these
different Jews and I confronted

288
00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:40,960
them and cursed them and beat
some of them and pulled out

289
00:13:40,960 --> 00:13:43,640
their hair.
And I may think an 0 saying that

290
00:13:43,640 --> 00:13:45,720
you don't don't give your
daughters to marry these sons.

291
00:13:46,720 --> 00:13:49,880
And so the book basically ends
on a major downer.

292
00:13:50,160 --> 00:13:53,600
This guy who, you know, brought
people back or built the wall

293
00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:57,360
between Ezra name eyes rippable.
It kind of ends in a bad spot.

294
00:13:57,360 --> 00:13:59,840
It's not like what you would
look at this great leader and

295
00:13:59,840 --> 00:14:03,320
things flourished.
It's like actually, this didn't

296
00:14:03,320 --> 00:14:05,360
turn out how I thought it would
turn out.

297
00:14:05,360 --> 00:14:07,520
And I think that's a big part of
the story.

298
00:14:08,640 --> 00:14:13,640
They build a temple, they build
a wall, worships restored, but

299
00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:17,280
there's not not a good king that
kind of takes them into that

300
00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:19,040
next chapter.
They're looking for the Messiah.

301
00:14:19,040 --> 00:14:22,560
Maybe they're kind of the
original already, not yet kind

302
00:14:22,560 --> 00:14:24,160
of they're looking forward.
They're not in our spot.

303
00:14:24,440 --> 00:14:27,360
But I think when you think about
that and where it fits, it's

304
00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:30,040
like, wow, the author is trying
to tell us something.

305
00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:33,680
It's help helps us think about
our faith much more.

306
00:14:33,680 --> 00:14:37,680
And one thing I did want to hit
is English Bible versus the

307
00:14:37,680 --> 00:14:40,280
Jewish Bible.
It's laid out differently and I

308
00:14:40,280 --> 00:14:42,000
think it plays a role.
Like I think we'd be more

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00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:45,240
familiar with Ezron Nehemiah if
we read like the Tanak if we

310
00:14:45,240 --> 00:14:47,480
were Jewish.
It would just stand out more

311
00:14:47,880 --> 00:14:51,320
'cause it's kind of lost, like
you were saying in the shuffle.

312
00:14:52,400 --> 00:14:53,680
So how's it different?
Can you?

313
00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:56,760
So you you might know this
better than I do, but the Tanakh

314
00:14:57,240 --> 00:15:01,440
T for Torah N is like the nevium
nevi.

315
00:15:01,440 --> 00:15:04,040
I don't know what the I I took
a.

316
00:15:04,040 --> 00:15:07,000
If you want to look this up,
look up the Tanakh.

317
00:15:07,320 --> 00:15:10,600
And then the last one's like
Kabithim I don't know but it's

318
00:15:10,600 --> 00:15:15,920
basically Torah, prophets,
writings, histories, whatever.

319
00:15:16,320 --> 00:15:20,440
And Ezra Nehemiah a.
Theater nuclear operations

320
00:15:20,440 --> 00:15:21,960
course, is that, is that what
we're talking?

321
00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:24,600
About maybe on the next tab, I
don't know.

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00:15:26,480 --> 00:15:30,240
But what's interesting is the
Old Testament in the Jewish

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00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:32,960
Bible ends with Ezra Nehemiah on
Chronicles.

324
00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,040
And that's on purpose.
That's like the trajectory of

325
00:15:36,040 --> 00:15:37,840
the Bible.
Ezra Nehemiah kind of leaves you

326
00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:40,720
with a downer a little bit.
You read first Chronicles and in

327
00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:43,440
the ways of Downers, these kings
aren't great, but it's it's,

328
00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:45,800
it's, it's anticipating
something much, much more.

329
00:15:46,120 --> 00:15:48,440
And I think there's good reason
for the way our Bible's laid out

330
00:15:48,440 --> 00:15:49,720
too.
Maybe we talked about that one

331
00:15:49,720 --> 00:15:51,960
time.
I think it's like the year 1000

332
00:15:51,960 --> 00:15:53,960
or 1100.
We kind of get maybe maybe it

333
00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:56,040
was your boy Aquinas who did
something because I don't know.

334
00:15:56,040 --> 00:15:57,320
I don't know.
I can't remember when he was

335
00:15:57,320 --> 00:16:00,360
born, but it's like we don't
different where the whole

336
00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:02,640
trajectory.
We kind of get this like downer

337
00:16:02,640 --> 00:16:05,400
and as our name.
I then a little bit on a upswing

338
00:16:05,400 --> 00:16:07,720
because there's a little bit of
hope at the universe Chronicles

339
00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:10,400
as we're waiting.
And then the New Testament

340
00:16:10,400 --> 00:16:13,440
beautifully comes in with this,
you know, all these genealogies

341
00:16:13,440 --> 00:16:15,360
in the gospels.
It kind of fits really cool with

342
00:16:15,360 --> 00:16:18,480
Chronicles, but that's just not
how our English Bibles are laid

343
00:16:18,480 --> 00:16:19,480
out.
But anyway, I don't know if you

344
00:16:19,480 --> 00:16:21,480
have information on the Tanakh,
how it's.

345
00:16:23,440 --> 00:16:27,160
I've found some, but I have.
It's an acronym for the three

346
00:16:27,160 --> 00:16:30,600
sections of the Canon, the
Torah, the first five books of

347
00:16:30,600 --> 00:16:37,960
Moses, the Naveem, the Prophets,
and the Ketuvim, the writings.

348
00:16:38,520 --> 00:16:41,800
So the first library of the
Jewish people contains many

349
00:16:41,840 --> 00:16:44,080
genres, narrative history, law,
poetry.

350
00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:47,120
So yeah, so those 3.
And I'm gonna advocate for this

351
00:16:47,760 --> 00:16:50,480
also what we find in this
Hanoch, Ezra Nehemiah, that's

352
00:16:50,480 --> 00:16:53,000
one scroll.
Meaning we probably should read

353
00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:55,200
those together.
They're not 2 separate books

354
00:16:55,200 --> 00:16:57,680
like how we have them.
And I think when we look at the

355
00:16:57,680 --> 00:17:00,560
overall content and structure of
the book, we're gonna see, oh,

356
00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:04,280
the author have these theme,
have have these themes and

357
00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:06,920
parallel movements that we're
supposed to read these together.

358
00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:09,440
That's important.
If you don't, I don't get this

359
00:17:09,440 --> 00:17:10,599
now.
I'll, I'll try to break it up so

360
00:17:10,599 --> 00:17:12,560
you can understand it.
It's like reading the second

361
00:17:12,640 --> 00:17:14,720
Lord of the Rings book before
you read the first.

362
00:17:14,720 --> 00:17:16,920
You can probably.
Still understand the story, but

363
00:17:16,920 --> 00:17:18,200
you.
Admit it's like you're not

364
00:17:18,200 --> 00:17:22,040
getting the full picture.
So anyway, you alluded to like

365
00:17:22,040 --> 00:17:24,119
timeline context.
That's when we normally hear

366
00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:27,480
about these people.
We kind of talk through that

367
00:17:27,480 --> 00:17:30,000
because I think even I've gone
over this a lot of times and

368
00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:33,560
it's still, it's not like 1776
like you know what I mean?

369
00:17:33,560 --> 00:17:36,040
Like some of these dates maybe
are, but it's I think it is hard

370
00:17:36,040 --> 00:17:38,680
to get the flow when these
profits lived and it it's kind

371
00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:40,280
of tricky.
That's good.

372
00:17:40,280 --> 00:17:42,120
So you want to go over some of
this timeline stuff?

373
00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:45,720
Let's do it.
So if you are trying to

374
00:17:45,720 --> 00:17:48,600
understand like one major date,
what do you think that major

375
00:17:48,600 --> 00:17:55,280
date would be?
Well, you don't have the one I

376
00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:57,320
was put on here, 586.
Oh, I, I do.

377
00:17:57,360 --> 00:17:59,320
Are you, are you on my notes?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

378
00:17:59,720 --> 00:18:00,800
I if you.
So what does?

379
00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:05,760
At 7:22 when the Northern
Kingdom went to Syria, is that

380
00:18:05,760 --> 00:18:06,400
right?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

381
00:18:06,400 --> 00:18:08,760
So probably those two.
So Northern, whatever that

382
00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:10,640
northern, I think it's around
7:22.

383
00:18:10,640 --> 00:18:11,680
I think you.
Nailed it.

384
00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:17,480
Yeah, Northern Kingdom is
spread, taken captive by Assyria

385
00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:19,840
and spread abroad, abroad and
so-called loss.

386
00:18:19,840 --> 00:18:23,200
And then the second you know,
kind of go hand in hand, the 586

387
00:18:23,200 --> 00:18:28,680
which yeah you do have on here
is when Jerusalem, those people

388
00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:32,760
are taken captive into Babylon.
So huge, huge turning point for

389
00:18:32,760 --> 00:18:37,480
God's chosen people because from
Egypt through that, that date,

390
00:18:37,920 --> 00:18:39,800
you know, they've kind of been a
sovereign nation.

391
00:18:39,800 --> 00:18:41,760
And now that now they're,
they're not so much.

392
00:18:41,960 --> 00:18:43,720
Exactly right.
So there's one day that you

393
00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:45,600
should know, and you've probably
heard us, probably that date.

394
00:18:46,200 --> 00:18:50,680
You Fast forward about 50 years,
you know, you know, some of this

395
00:18:50,680 --> 00:18:54,320
is a little all over the place.
530-8539 and 539.

396
00:18:54,320 --> 00:18:57,760
Babylon falls to Cyrus and the
Persians and Persia had a little

397
00:18:57,760 --> 00:19:00,080
bit different structure than the
Babylons did.

398
00:19:01,040 --> 00:19:04,160
Babylon took people into exile.
Cyrus kind of allowed people to

399
00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:05,640
do what they want.
He kind of wanted to keep all

400
00:19:05,640 --> 00:19:08,000
the gods kind of happy.
He was like, oh, you know,

401
00:19:08,000 --> 00:19:10,040
great, go serve your God.
Let's get some favor there.

402
00:19:10,280 --> 00:19:11,440
I want people to worship your
own gods.

403
00:19:11,440 --> 00:19:12,640
This is what I'm going to start
doing.

404
00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:16,840
So in 538 or around that time,
we have the decree of Cyrus.

405
00:19:16,840 --> 00:19:21,760
So about 50 years after the fall
of the temple and then 516, not

406
00:19:21,760 --> 00:19:25,080
that much farther down the road,
we have the temple rebuilt.

407
00:19:25,800 --> 00:19:28,200
I think what's really
interesting as well, you just go

408
00:19:28,200 --> 00:19:31,160
a little bit in the future, you
know, whatever that is, 25 years

409
00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:33,680
we have Esther.
So Esther's like kind of in the

410
00:19:33,680 --> 00:19:37,880
thick of this too.
Ezra comes on the scene about 20

411
00:19:37,880 --> 00:19:44,120
years after Esther in 458 and
Nehemiah comes on the scene 445

412
00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:49,000
But the book of ever opens up
with this decree of Cyrus about

413
00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:53,440
you know, I don't know, I'm not
not great at math, but a a good

414
00:19:53,520 --> 00:19:55,880
amount before Ezra comes on the
scene.

415
00:19:55,880 --> 00:19:58,680
So 'cause you might be thinking,
Ezra, that's not where the book

416
00:19:58,680 --> 00:20:01,000
starts, you know.
So anyway.

417
00:20:01,400 --> 00:20:04,920
And so through here we would
have, you know, Daniel would

418
00:20:04,920 --> 00:20:09,400
have come over and Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego AKA

419
00:20:09,720 --> 00:20:13,800
Hananiah, Azariah, Michel, but
they would have.

420
00:20:13,960 --> 00:20:16,520
Where did you place them?
Because they'd be a little

421
00:20:16,520 --> 00:20:17,120
before.
Like what?

422
00:20:17,120 --> 00:20:18,320
They would be before them,
right?

423
00:20:18,320 --> 00:20:22,920
So they would have, they would
have been young, maybe 12 during

424
00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:24,400
the fall of Babylon.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

425
00:20:24,400 --> 00:20:29,120
So they're, they're probably
born, you know, right at 600 BC

426
00:20:29,120 --> 00:20:30,760
ish.
Yeah, I think that's probably.

427
00:20:30,760 --> 00:20:35,120
Nailing and then came over, you
know, during the fall of

428
00:20:35,120 --> 00:20:38,560
Jerusalem and then.
So Daniel is going to live a

429
00:20:38,560 --> 00:20:41,280
good long time.
So he's probably going to live

430
00:20:41,280 --> 00:20:46,400
till, I don't know, 520 BC 5
somewhere in that range.

431
00:20:46,560 --> 00:20:48,400
So he's like seeing.
Some of this.

432
00:20:48,400 --> 00:20:50,960
Through so some overlap.
And what's tricky too, I don't

433
00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:53,280
have this on the time when we'll
talk about this in subsequent

434
00:20:53,280 --> 00:20:57,120
episodes, but it's like Haggai
Zechariah, contemporaries of

435
00:20:57,120 --> 00:20:58,520
this time.
They're writing prophecies,

436
00:20:58,520 --> 00:21:00,600
they're talking, they're
engaging with these people.

437
00:21:00,800 --> 00:21:02,840
Ezekiel too some he's somewhere
in.

438
00:21:02,840 --> 00:21:06,000
This Ezekiel and Jeremiah are
contemporaries and if you don't

439
00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:07,960
understand the book of Jeremiah,
guess what?

440
00:21:08,200 --> 00:21:10,400
You're not gonna understand
Cyrus and this book.

441
00:21:10,400 --> 00:21:14,640
So there's a lot of overlap
where it's like all these things

442
00:21:14,640 --> 00:21:18,200
kind of collide in Ezra and
Nehemiah, which makes it very,

443
00:21:18,200 --> 00:21:22,320
it's just fascinating cause most
of us, no, Daniel, we know, you

444
00:21:22,320 --> 00:21:24,200
know, but more so than Ezra,
Nehemiah.

445
00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:28,560
So it's like, oh, it's, it's
good to fill in the gaps here

446
00:21:28,960 --> 00:21:31,560
looking at authorship, just like
everywhere else.

447
00:21:31,560 --> 00:21:32,800
There's like thoughts all over
the place.

448
00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:38,560
I think Tradition Patch review
Ezra as being the author of Ezra

449
00:21:38,560 --> 00:21:41,480
Nehemiah and maybe versus Saint
Chronicles or Chronicles as it

450
00:21:41,480 --> 00:21:46,000
is in the Jewish you know Bible.
Yeah, I'll just say I, I think

451
00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:48,480
I've said this before, but you
know, you mentioned it and it's

452
00:21:48,480 --> 00:21:51,920
good to be repeating.
Whenever I do my chronological

453
00:21:52,560 --> 00:21:57,600
read through the Bible and they
put they just like chop up kings

454
00:21:57,600 --> 00:21:58,920
and chronicles.
Kings and Chronicles.

455
00:21:58,920 --> 00:22:00,560
I'm like, I wish you wouldn't do
that.

456
00:22:01,360 --> 00:22:05,080
Just give me Chronicles, you
know, with, you know, Ezra

457
00:22:05,080 --> 00:22:08,120
Nehemiah because it's supposed
to be a recap, like a looking

458
00:22:08,120 --> 00:22:08,840
back.
It's not.

459
00:22:08,960 --> 00:22:10,280
Yeah, It's on purposely looking
back.

460
00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:11,400
That's smart.
Yeah, that's good.

461
00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:14,760
Go ahead.
I like that you read Ezra

462
00:22:14,760 --> 00:22:16,040
Nehemiah.
Some isn't the first person,

463
00:22:16,040 --> 00:22:18,560
some isn't the third person.
So it gets a little bit tricky.

464
00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:22,200
But Ezra usually is given over,
as you know, he's the one who

465
00:22:22,200 --> 00:22:23,440
studies the law, all of this
stuff.

466
00:22:23,440 --> 00:22:25,960
He writes it, you know, Ezra a
lot isn't the first person.

467
00:22:26,560 --> 00:22:30,080
Ezra one through 6 happens a
long time before Ezra's life,

468
00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:34,080
really 538 or 515, or at least
before he really gets in the

469
00:22:34,080 --> 00:22:37,560
ministry.
Ezra 7 through Nehemiah, 13.

470
00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:40,640
Those overlap more or less.
Ezra and Nehemiah are are pretty

471
00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:42,120
close contemporaries of each
other.

472
00:22:42,120 --> 00:22:46,200
And 4:58 to 4:33 kind of range.
And you look through this, you

473
00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:48,440
can kind of tell Ezra is clearly
writing some of this.

474
00:22:48,680 --> 00:22:51,520
Sometimes he's writing in the
first person, third person.

475
00:22:51,520 --> 00:22:55,800
So anyway, that I think a good
take away is Ezra Nehemiah, one

476
00:22:55,800 --> 00:22:58,560
scroll.
This story is a span of about

477
00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:00,240
100 years.
If it kind of gets you where it

478
00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:03,440
starts, where it finishes, maybe
not quite, but it's it's not

479
00:23:03,440 --> 00:23:04,840
like all this happens in 20
years.

480
00:23:04,960 --> 00:23:08,720
You know, they kind of get out,
get a feel for it.

481
00:23:09,080 --> 00:23:11,960
And really, what I want, what I
want to set up in this episode,

482
00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:16,080
is broad strokes.
There's three parallel movements

483
00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:20,480
that more or less mimic each
other where you're like, OK,

484
00:23:20,480 --> 00:23:23,920
we're seeing the same kind of
story here, here and here.

485
00:23:24,160 --> 00:23:26,080
This was all in one scroll.
It's probably trying to

486
00:23:26,080 --> 00:23:28,680
reinforce the same kinds of
things.

487
00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:32,360
These three movements all have a
Persian king that helps them go

488
00:23:32,360 --> 00:23:34,800
back.
Each movement has a different

489
00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:38,560
leader, you know, as we will
focus on the temple, Ezra on the

490
00:23:38,560 --> 00:23:42,240
law, Nehemiah on the wall, each
movement has this great

491
00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:44,680
anticipation, this great hope.
It's so exciting.

492
00:23:44,680 --> 00:23:47,760
They're coming home from exile.
They can build this.

493
00:23:47,880 --> 00:23:51,720
You're gonna read Zechariah and
Haggai and some of this,

494
00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:53,520
especially Zechariah talks about
this temple.

495
00:23:54,200 --> 00:23:56,840
Speaking of Ezekiel, it's like
all about this temple with like

496
00:23:56,840 --> 00:23:59,000
specific measurements.
The measurements actually kind

497
00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:01,840
of don't make sense.
You know, these are like these

498
00:24:01,840 --> 00:24:04,440
don't these don't fit.
And then it ends talking about

499
00:24:04,440 --> 00:24:06,200
God being with his people.
And you're kind of like, OK,

500
00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:08,080
what's going on?
There's a lot of hope, much of

501
00:24:08,080 --> 00:24:09,720
excitement.
If you're reading Jeremiah,

502
00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:11,520
you're like, oh, there's a new
covenant coming.

503
00:24:11,520 --> 00:24:13,280
We gotta it's like everyone's
like pumped.

504
00:24:14,200 --> 00:24:18,360
They'd be familiar with this.
But then each movement ends with

505
00:24:18,360 --> 00:24:20,200
a little bit of good, but a a
lot of bad too.

506
00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:21,560
And you're like, that's kind of
weird.

507
00:24:21,600 --> 00:24:23,960
You feel like this would be like
the consummation in a way.

508
00:24:24,200 --> 00:24:26,440
Yeah, yeah.
I remember like these people

509
00:24:26,440 --> 00:24:30,800
marrying some foreign wives and,
you know, being very upset and

510
00:24:30,800 --> 00:24:33,280
then some of the bad stuff
that's in there.

511
00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:36,840
Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right.
There's some room that some guys

512
00:24:36,840 --> 00:24:39,880
basically has that he's misusing
in the temple.

513
00:24:40,120 --> 00:24:42,840
And it's like what?
And it's crazy because like Ezra

514
00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:47,160
has just come temple, like
worships re establish right

515
00:24:47,160 --> 00:24:50,000
after all these things happen.
It's like they're being misused

516
00:24:50,000 --> 00:24:51,720
and Ezra Nehemiah, the only ones
doing what's right.

517
00:24:51,720 --> 00:24:54,680
They're like, you guys don't see
this and they've got to, you

518
00:24:54,680 --> 00:24:56,760
know, weed their people back.
But it's it's kind of

519
00:24:56,760 --> 00:24:59,840
disheartening because all the
Old Testament is pointing to

520
00:24:59,840 --> 00:25:04,000
this, like new city, this great
king and Ezra Nehemiah seem to

521
00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:06,360
be doing what's right, but it's
not paying off.

522
00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:11,560
So Ezra one through 6 focuses on
King Cyrus, focuses on durable

523
00:25:11,560 --> 00:25:14,320
building the temple.
And again, some people are

524
00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:16,080
happy, but the people that
remember the temple are like,

525
00:25:16,240 --> 00:25:17,880
this is not like Solomon's
temple.

526
00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:22,200
Ezra 7 through 10, you have King
Artaxyrxes and Ezra is the

527
00:25:22,200 --> 00:25:24,440
leader restoring worship and
Torah to the temple.

528
00:25:24,720 --> 00:25:29,920
Again, mixed results.
And then Nehemiah, it's a lot,

529
00:25:30,440 --> 00:25:32,200
you know, some people say it's
like 1 big movement with a

530
00:25:32,200 --> 00:25:34,680
couple of sub movements where
you have king art exertes again,

531
00:25:34,680 --> 00:25:36,960
they're contemporaries.
Nehemiah, it's coming back a

532
00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:38,560
little bit after Ezra to build
the wall.

533
00:25:38,880 --> 00:25:41,440
And then we have this little sub
movement where there's like the

534
00:25:41,440 --> 00:25:44,200
covenant's renewed, all the
people are like contrite,

535
00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:46,160
there's tears, there's
rejoicing.

536
00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:49,480
And then there is this major
failure where the Temple's

537
00:25:49,480 --> 00:25:51,800
neglected, the walls design or
Torah's ignored.

538
00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:54,240
And it kind of ends with him
pulling people's hair out.

539
00:25:54,760 --> 00:25:57,160
That's a different kind of
laying on hands than we're used

540
00:25:57,160 --> 00:25:59,280
to in the New Testament shirts.
I made that joke and killed.

541
00:25:59,280 --> 00:26:01,280
And in fact, it was great.
He's like physically lit.

542
00:26:01,280 --> 00:26:03,560
It's like, that's like so insane
that.

543
00:26:03,920 --> 00:26:06,760
Is good.
And so you kind of zoom back and

544
00:26:06,760 --> 00:26:09,480
you think, you know what, what's
the point of this?

545
00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:14,280
What what are we to learn about
these books?

546
00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:16,400
And there there's a lot.
This is not exhaustive, but a

547
00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:19,680
few things that I tried to key
on was, you know, God's

548
00:26:19,680 --> 00:26:22,840
sovereignty is throughout all of
this where he's like turning

549
00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:24,840
King's hearts to like build a
temple.

550
00:26:25,120 --> 00:26:27,080
They're giving money.
Hey, here's my bodyguards.

551
00:26:27,080 --> 00:26:29,400
I want to make sure you're safe.
That's insane.

552
00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:34,800
It points to human failures.
Even good humans who try hard,

553
00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:37,200
Nehemiah, Ezra, don't want to
paint them as bad people.

554
00:26:37,200 --> 00:26:40,080
They overall are painted very
positively.

555
00:26:40,920 --> 00:26:43,960
We see God and his faithfulness
over and over, even when

556
00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:47,680
humanity isn't.
And really, I think a big part

557
00:26:47,680 --> 00:26:51,600
of it is political and social
reforms are good.

558
00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:53,760
Like you want things to be good,
but they only can get you so

559
00:26:53,760 --> 00:26:55,480
far.
You can have the city, the

560
00:26:55,480 --> 00:26:59,840
temple, the word of God center.
And people don't do what they're

561
00:26:59,840 --> 00:27:01,800
supposed to do because their
hearts aren't affected.

562
00:27:01,800 --> 00:27:03,760
What Jeremiah wrote about what
they thought they were going to

563
00:27:03,760 --> 00:27:07,760
get had not come yet.
And it just kind of just keeps

564
00:27:07,760 --> 00:27:13,120
you in that anticipation more,
more and more as kind of that

565
00:27:13,120 --> 00:27:15,240
Hebrew Bible kind of comes to
the end.

566
00:27:15,240 --> 00:27:17,120
So I'm sure in the future, we'll
talk about Jeremiah 30 when

567
00:27:17,120 --> 00:27:20,080
we'll talk about Ezekiel 26.
Because they didn't just need a

568
00:27:20,080 --> 00:27:22,600
new city and a new wall, new
temple, but they needed a new

569
00:27:22,600 --> 00:27:24,160
heart.
And that's like what they didn't

570
00:27:24,160 --> 00:27:25,320
have.
That's good.

571
00:27:25,760 --> 00:27:29,280
So just looking over your
timeline.

572
00:27:30,240 --> 00:27:33,840
So if you look at the Bible,
like Esther comes last after

573
00:27:33,840 --> 00:27:39,000
these two books, but on the
timeline, you have some of the

574
00:27:39,000 --> 00:27:45,600
events of these books happening
before Esther and then Esther

575
00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:47,440
happening.
Because this is, I only ask

576
00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:49,520
because this has always been a
confusing thing to me because

577
00:27:49,520 --> 00:27:52,560
there's this there's this line
that talks about the Queen

578
00:27:52,560 --> 00:27:55,560
Mother kind of helping.
And I've always wondered, is

579
00:27:55,560 --> 00:27:58,360
that Esther, or is Esther
somehow having an influence

580
00:27:58,360 --> 00:28:03,040
because of her position to help
get some of the stuff going?

581
00:28:03,040 --> 00:28:04,440
Maybe we'll I'm blanking a
little bit.

582
00:28:04,440 --> 00:28:06,440
Maybe we'll come across it
because there is like a part

583
00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:09,760
where they are in whatever says
whatever.

584
00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:12,640
Yeah.
And and there is a lot of maybe

585
00:28:12,640 --> 00:28:14,840
we this be a separate spinoff
where we can address it.

586
00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:18,800
Kings are This is where critics
of the Bible will point to this

587
00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:22,240
section and be like King
Artaxerxes What or ah, Jesus or

588
00:28:22,320 --> 00:28:24,200
whatever.
And, and a lot of them a.

589
00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:26,960
Hazarous yeah.
Are like, you know, are these

590
00:28:26,960 --> 00:28:30,560
titles or these specific people?
Can you have like a hazardous

591
00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:33,600
was a title and there's like 3A
hazardous, you know, And so the

592
00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:36,520
timeline is a little bit funky
and we might want to deep dive

593
00:28:36,520 --> 00:28:39,960
on it because, you know, I've
looked at it and it's like air,

594
00:28:40,000 --> 00:28:43,080
you know, there's different ways
to reconcile it, but it's not

595
00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:46,920
for the faint of heart.
And there is trickery where it's

596
00:28:46,920 --> 00:28:48,120
like, oh, is Arctic Zercy's
here?

597
00:28:48,120 --> 00:28:50,200
Or was this just a title that
could have applied to like 5

598
00:28:50,200 --> 00:28:51,480
different kings?
You know what I mean?

599
00:28:51,600 --> 00:28:53,160
So it could be like more than
one Caesar.

600
00:28:53,640 --> 00:28:54,920
Or.
More than one czar.

601
00:28:55,040 --> 00:28:57,680
That that's the thing.
So that might be something to

602
00:28:57,680 --> 00:28:59,720
look at.
If you look at my notes, we're

603
00:28:59,720 --> 00:29:00,760
not going to go through my
notes.

604
00:29:00,760 --> 00:29:03,240
If you scroll, I don't know how
I have like maybe 60 pages

605
00:29:03,240 --> 00:29:05,520
because I did like a 15 week
series on this that we're not

606
00:29:05,520 --> 00:29:08,120
going to do on the podcast.
And a lot of it is text that I

607
00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:10,720
would just like copy in here and
we can and I have summaries of

608
00:29:10,720 --> 00:29:13,480
the text.
So I I'm trying to parse it down

609
00:29:13,800 --> 00:29:16,600
to what's like manageable
because I'm, I love this series,

610
00:29:16,600 --> 00:29:19,000
but I know our listeners
probably don't want 20 episodes

611
00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:22,440
on Ezra Nehemiah.
I mean, let us know if you want

612
00:29:22,440 --> 00:29:25,920
us to go, you know, in the, the
very deep deep dive.

613
00:29:25,920 --> 00:29:27,800
I mean, we've got the material
here to do it.

614
00:29:28,040 --> 00:29:29,520
And what we'll we'll see what
happens.

615
00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:31,800
But my vision, this is like the
intro episode.

616
00:29:32,280 --> 00:29:34,480
We can at least have one episode
for each different movement.

617
00:29:34,720 --> 00:29:37,240
Nehemiah has a lot to chew off
because that's like one

618
00:29:37,240 --> 00:29:38,680
movement.
We might make that like one or

619
00:29:38,680 --> 00:29:41,440
two or maybe there's a wrap up,
but probably 4 to 6 episodes.

620
00:29:41,440 --> 00:29:45,280
We can, we can do it justice
without belaboring the point.

621
00:29:45,280 --> 00:29:48,040
Cause one other thing I did
learn, if there's you wanna get,

622
00:29:48,040 --> 00:29:51,640
you wanna work on your pride,
just read Ezra Nehemiah out loud

623
00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:54,040
because it's like a bajillion
names and they're all hard to

624
00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:56,760
pronounce and you're just
reading Jewish names and it's,

625
00:29:57,000 --> 00:29:58,720
it's great, you know, So
everyone's like, don't call on

626
00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:00,520
me.
You know, I think there's

627
00:30:00,520 --> 00:30:07,240
something like, well, so if you
look at a color for long enough,

628
00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:11,800
you know, your eyes, that's a
chemical biochemical process and

629
00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:15,880
your eyes get tired of that.
And, you know, you look away and

630
00:30:15,880 --> 00:30:19,720
you see the opposite of that
because those those cones and

631
00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:23,000
rods are are resting.
And it seems like whenever I

632
00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:25,640
launch into a list of names.
Like.

633
00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:28,000
For the 1st 20 seconds, I'm
good.

634
00:30:28,000 --> 00:30:30,120
I'm like, man, I'm killing these
names.

635
00:30:30,880 --> 00:30:34,280
And then it's like you're, it's
like the ability of your brain

636
00:30:34,280 --> 00:30:37,800
to like, like see that brain,
that name and try to parse it

637
00:30:37,800 --> 00:30:40,120
and come up.
It like gets tired and you're

638
00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,080
like, I can't read any more of
these names.

639
00:30:42,120 --> 00:30:43,600
It just like goes.
Goes over.

640
00:30:43,760 --> 00:30:46,520
It's literally like 6 paragraph
straight of names.

641
00:30:46,520 --> 00:30:49,920
You're like, is this a joke?
And it's actually Nehemiah will

642
00:30:49,920 --> 00:30:52,680
repeat the list of names in Ezra
'cause they're like when Zuruba

643
00:30:52,680 --> 00:30:55,520
will up to these people now, you
know, it's like just recounting

644
00:30:55,520 --> 00:30:57,080
stuff.
What Ezra, Nehemiah does a great

645
00:30:57,080 --> 00:30:59,600
job of is it'll go back and talk
about Moses.

646
00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:02,600
It like recounts everything up
into the day where the people

647
00:31:02,600 --> 00:31:05,200
have failed over and over and
over again.

648
00:31:05,520 --> 00:31:09,080
One last thing I should know
just 'cause it's going to get

649
00:31:09,080 --> 00:31:12,160
sources credit.
I love the ESB study Bibles

650
00:31:12,160 --> 00:31:13,320
because it's easy.
I like it a lot.

651
00:31:13,320 --> 00:31:14,600
They help me a lot with like
timelines.

652
00:31:14,600 --> 00:31:16,520
That's what I realized was like.
They probably know what they're

653
00:31:16,520 --> 00:31:20,040
talking about when I when I have
a trying to like figure it out

654
00:31:20,040 --> 00:31:21,280
and I have to like just probably
get.

655
00:31:21,280 --> 00:31:25,000
NASB study Bibles better, but
we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll defer

656
00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:27,000
to these.
We'll let it slide because when

657
00:31:27,000 --> 00:31:30,760
you do look at the kings and
stuff there is there, there are

658
00:31:31,320 --> 00:31:33,360
10 different views of what could
have happened.

659
00:31:33,360 --> 00:31:36,480
So some of that is like nailing
down the dates are off by four

660
00:31:36,480 --> 00:31:39,920
or five years here and there.
I really like this series.

661
00:31:40,400 --> 00:31:43,320
It's the new studies in Biblical
Theology.

662
00:31:43,680 --> 00:31:46,920
It's like a series of like 40
books that the series editor is

663
00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:49,520
DA Carson.
He had this big initiative for

664
00:31:49,520 --> 00:31:53,080
biblical theology.
And they're like little books

665
00:31:53,480 --> 00:31:56,760
that are like, they're not
superficial, but they're not

666
00:31:56,760 --> 00:31:59,120
like overly academic, like
they're a little academic.

667
00:31:59,120 --> 00:32:01,760
It's like a good sweet spot.
For they're not superficial, but

668
00:32:01,760 --> 00:32:05,040
they are a little official.
Beautiful.

669
00:32:05,040 --> 00:32:07,320
Yeah, I love it.
And I use that a lot.

670
00:32:07,320 --> 00:32:11,880
And then I also, I, I like
listening to a Bible project a

671
00:32:11,880 --> 00:32:15,440
lot with like Old Testament
contexts 'cause I think they're

672
00:32:15,440 --> 00:32:19,160
good at setting.
What did a Jew think in this

673
00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:21,440
time?
Should then you listen to Did

674
00:32:21,440 --> 00:32:24,040
you say Bible?
Podcast, Sorry, Bible Project is

675
00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:28,080
what I say 'cause I think
they're, I think they excel at

676
00:32:28,080 --> 00:32:29,960
context.
I think they missed the mark

677
00:32:29,960 --> 00:32:32,840
when they do some theology.
So I would not say, hey, go to

678
00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:35,640
all your theology through them.
But I think when they're like,

679
00:32:35,680 --> 00:32:37,360
oh, what was going on in this
time frame?

680
00:32:37,360 --> 00:32:39,160
What, what kind of things would
they be thinking?

681
00:32:39,160 --> 00:32:40,600
They're they're better at that
kind of thing.

682
00:32:40,760 --> 00:32:44,480
Yeah, I I have listened to more
than one of their Bible book

683
00:32:44,560 --> 00:32:47,800
overviews, and they do a good
job of even if I don't agree

684
00:32:47,800 --> 00:32:50,040
with how they land on
everything, at least it gives

685
00:32:50,040 --> 00:32:53,480
me, oh, here's at least how
someone else views this.

686
00:32:53,480 --> 00:32:53,960
That's right.
Yeah.

687
00:32:54,080 --> 00:32:56,600
And maybe I'm not gonna make it
as important as they do, but oh,

688
00:32:56,600 --> 00:32:58,840
here's another facet of it.
'Cause I think that's where they

689
00:32:58,840 --> 00:33:01,160
go wrong.
They know so much about Jewish

690
00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:03,000
context and culture.
They might sometimes make that

691
00:33:03,000 --> 00:33:05,080
the main thing.
And they're like, oh, they

692
00:33:05,080 --> 00:33:06,400
would.
And it's like, oh, you're kind

693
00:33:06,400 --> 00:33:08,440
of like deemphasizing and
overemphasizing.

694
00:33:08,440 --> 00:33:11,400
But I think that that helps
paint.

695
00:33:11,480 --> 00:33:16,240
Paint a picture for the so next
week we'll kind of get into

696
00:33:16,360 --> 00:33:20,240
maybe the first half of Ezra
that first movements and just

697
00:33:20,240 --> 00:33:23,840
take take it little by little.
Yeah, I'm excited to read it and

698
00:33:23,840 --> 00:33:27,280
find out because both Ezra and
Nehemiah were in service to some

699
00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:28,920
king, right?
Is that that's true or am I

700
00:33:28,920 --> 00:33:30,360
crazy?
To to some king.

701
00:33:30,440 --> 00:33:31,520
Yeah, Yeah, yeah, yeah.
OK.

702
00:33:31,600 --> 00:33:33,520
OK, yeah.
And Ezra and Nehemiah, same

703
00:33:33,520 --> 00:33:35,080
king, observable, different
king.

704
00:33:35,320 --> 00:33:36,120
So this is good all.
Right.

705
00:33:36,120 --> 00:33:36,520
Good.
Good.

706
00:33:36,640 --> 00:33:38,360
Yeah.
I mean, I have read these books

707
00:33:38,360 --> 00:33:38,960
before.
Oh yeah.

708
00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:41,400
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, but like you said, they're

709
00:33:41,400 --> 00:33:44,040
they're probably not the the
books that people would just go

710
00:33:44,040 --> 00:33:45,160
to like, oh, I need to read
this.

711
00:33:45,240 --> 00:33:46,280
It's again.
Yeah, it's.

712
00:33:46,280 --> 00:33:47,320
Not that you know what I'm
saying.

713
00:33:47,360 --> 00:33:49,200
Yeah.
Exactly, and it's like, you

714
00:33:49,200 --> 00:33:52,080
know, probably don't want to
spend more time here than you do

715
00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:55,080
in Romans, you know, but whole
council of God, it's great and I

716
00:33:55,080 --> 00:33:58,040
think it is it has edifying.
So that's what I got out.

717
00:33:58,040 --> 00:34:00,000
You got any parting words?
No, I'm good.

718
00:34:00,840 --> 00:34:04,080
That's our take.
Thanks for listening to Take

719
00:34:04,080 --> 00:34:06,280
Two.
Find us wherever you find

720
00:34:06,280 --> 00:34:08,800
podcasts and on YouTube for
those who want to watch our

721
00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:09,480
video cast.