Ezra

Ezra is the fifteenth book of the Bible. It covers the return of Jewish exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the temple. The book is traditionally attributed to Ezra the priest, who appears as a central figure in its second half. The events span roughly a century, from 538 BC to the mid-400s BC.

The book opens with the decree of the Persian king Cyrus, who has just conquered Babylon. He authorizes the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their temple, returning the temple vessels that Nebuchadnezzar had carried off. A first group returns under Zerubbabel, lays the foundation of the new temple, and faces opposition from the surrounding peoples who try to halt the work. After a long delay, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah encourage them to resume, and the temple is completed in 516 BC.

The second half of the book skips ahead about sixty years to Ezra himself, who returns from Persia with a second group of exiles. He finds that many Jewish men in Jerusalem have married foreign wives in violation of the Law. The book ends with Ezra's response: a public confession, an assembly of the people, and the dissolution of these marriages.