September 5 & 6, 2026
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Ezra and James? Here’s today’s reading:
Ezra 1 (NIV)
Cyrus Helps the Exiles to Return
1In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:……Continue Reading
Next: Ezra 2
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Back: 2 Chronicles 36
How great and gracious is our God that He would use a Gentile to accomplish His will for His people and His temple. And how nice to see through the influence of Jewish believers that were in Babylon and Persia, that Cyrus would recognize the Lord for who He is and to provide for the Jews for their return to the Holy land. And this was all according to the prophecy that came through Jeremiah, both in the time frame of the exile and that Cyrus would be the guy to do this. How amazing is our God who knows and controls the times and the hearts of the rulers of the world.
Amen!
Ezra 1
Ezra 1
“Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem.”
Ezra 1:3 NKJV
Got to love Cyrus’ parenthetical statement, (He is God), an aside stating the most powerful point of all.
Ezra 1
Ezra 1
Ezra 2
Genesis 12-15
Cool that God used Cyrus to restore His people to Jerusalem. Not surprising that it was just a minority of exiles that chose to return. The task ahead of them even including the journey there was daunting but those that knew the significance of such a blessing as this realized God went before them in this undertaking. Not all our paths will be easy, but if we go with God He will make ways when there seems to be no way!