6:1, 2 Many clay and papyrus documents recording business transactions and historical data have been discovered in this area (near present-day Syria). A great library and archives with thousands of such records have been discovered at Ebla in Syria.
6:14 Ezra carefully pointed out that rebuilding the Temple was commanded first by God and then by the kings, who were his instruments. How ironic and wonderful that God’s work was carried on by the discovery of a lost paragraph in a pagan library. All the opposition of powerful forces was stopped by a clause in a legal document. God’s will is supreme over all rulers, all historical events, and all hostile forces. He can deliver us in ways we can’t imagine. If we trust in his power and love, no opposition can stop us.
6:15 The Temple was completed in 515 B.C.
6:16-22 Feasting and celebration were in order at the great Temple dedication. This celebration was similar to the one that Solomon had when he dedicated the Temple in 1 Kings 8:63, although Solomon offered more than 200 times as many cattle and sheep. This book of Moses was probably Leviticus. The priests and Levites were organized into groups in order to do “the service of God, . . . as it is written in the book of Moses.” There is a time to celebrate, but there is also a time to work. Both are proper and necessary when worshiping God, and both are pleasing to him.
6:19 The Passover was an annual celebration commemorating Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. After a series of plagues failed to convince Pharaoh to free the Israelites, God said that he would destroy the firstborn in every household. But he would pass over every home that had the blood of a specified type of lamb on the sides and top of the doorposts. See Exodus 12:1-30 for the story of this event and the establishment of the Passover celebration.
6:22 There are many ways to pray for God’s help. Have you ever considered that God would change the attitude of a person or group of people? God is infinitely powerful; his insight and wisdom transcend the laws of human nature. While you must always change your attitude as a first step, remember that he can change the attitude of others.