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Speaker 1: Life Audio. For more resources to help you in your

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Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at Bible Study Headquarters

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Speaker 1: dot com. You're listening to the chapter today Audio Bible.

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Speaker 1: I'm John Stangey, and today we're in Ezra chapter seven,

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Speaker 1: and we'll be reading from the New English translation. Now,

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Speaker 1: after these things had happened during the reign of King

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Speaker 1: Artaxerxes of Persia, Ezra came up from Babylon. Ezra was

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Speaker 1: the son of Saraya, who was the son of Azariah,

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Speaker 1: who was the son of Hilkaia, who is the son

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Speaker 1: of Shallam, who was the son of Zadok, who was

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Speaker 1: the son of a high Tub, who was the son

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Speaker 1: of Amariyah, who was the son of Azariah, who was

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Speaker 1: the son of Marioth, who is the son of zara Ayah,

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Speaker 1: who is the son of Uzi, who is the son

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Speaker 1: of Bookie, who is the son of abesh Ushua, who

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Speaker 1: was the son of Phineas, who was the son of Eliezer,

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Speaker 1: who was the son of Erin, the chief priest. This

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Speaker 1: Ezra is the one who came up from Babylon. He

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Speaker 1: was a scribe who was skilled in the law of Moses,

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Speaker 1: which the Lord God of Israel had given. The King

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Speaker 1: supplied him with everything he requested, for the hand of

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Speaker 1: the Lord his God was on him. In the seventh

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Speaker 1: year of King Artaxerxes, Ezra brought up to Jerusalem some

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Speaker 1: of the Israelites and some of the priests, the Levites,

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Speaker 1: the attendants, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants. He entered

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Speaker 1: Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of

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Speaker 1: the king. On the first day of the first month,

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Speaker 1: he had determined to make the ascent from Babylon, and

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Speaker 1: on the first day of the fifth month he arrived

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Speaker 1: at Jerusalem. For the good hand of His God was

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Speaker 1: on him. Now Ezra had dedicated himself to the study

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Speaker 1: of the Law of the Lord, to its observance, and

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Speaker 1: to teaching its statutes and judgments in Israel. What follows

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Speaker 1: is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave

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Speaker 1: to Ezra, the priestly scribe. Ezra was a scribe in

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Speaker 1: matters pertaining to the commandments of the Lord and his

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Speaker 1: statutes over Israel. Artaxerxes, King of Kings, to Ezra, the priest,

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Speaker 1: a scribe of the perfect Law of the God of Heaven.

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Speaker 1: I have now issued a decree that anyone in my

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Speaker 1: kingdom from the people of Israel, even the priests and Levites,

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Speaker 1: who wishes to do so, may go up with you

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Speaker 1: to Jerusalem. You are authorized by the King and his

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Speaker 1: seven advisers to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem according to

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Speaker 1: the law of your God, which is in your possession,

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Speaker 1: and to bring silver and gold which the King and

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Speaker 1: his advisers have freely contributed to the God of Israel

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Speaker 1: who resides in Jerusalem, along with all the silver and

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Speaker 1: gold that you may collect throughout all the province of Babylon,

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Speaker 1: and the contributions of the people and the priests for

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Speaker 1: the Temple of their God, which is in Jerusalem. With

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Speaker 1: this money, you should be sure to purchase bulls, rams,

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Speaker 1: and lambs, along with the appropriate meal offerings and libations.

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Speaker 1: You should bring them to the altar of the Temple

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Speaker 1: of your God, which is in Jerusalem. You may do

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Speaker 1: whatever seems appropriate to you and your colleagues. With the

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Speaker 1: rest of the silver and the gold, in keeping with

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Speaker 1: the will of your God, deliver to the God of

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Speaker 1: Jerusalem the vessels that are given to you for the

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Speaker 1: service of the Temple of your God. The rest of

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Speaker 1: the needs for the Temple of your God, that you

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Speaker 1: may have to supply, You may do so from the

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Speaker 1: royal treasury. I King Artaxerxes hereby issue orders to all

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Speaker 1: the treasurers of trans Euphrates that you precisely execute all

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Speaker 1: that Ezra, the priestly scribe of the law of the

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Speaker 1: God of Heaven, may request of you up to one

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Speaker 1: hundred talents of silver, one hundred cores of wheat, one

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Speaker 1: hundred baths of wine, one hundred baths of olive oil,

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Speaker 1: and unlimited salt. Everything that the God of Heaven has

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Speaker 1: required should be precisely done for the temple of the

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Speaker 1: God of Heaven. Why should there be wrath against the

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Speaker 1: empire of the king and his sons. Furthermore, be aware

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Speaker 1: of the fact that you have no authority to impose tax,

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Speaker 1: tribute or toll on any of the priests, the levites,

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Speaker 1: the musicians, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or the attendants

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Speaker 1: at the temple of this God. Now, you, Ezra, in

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Speaker 1: keeping with the wisdom of your God which you possess,

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Speaker 1: appoint judges and court officials who can arbitrate cases on

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Speaker 1: behalf of all the people who are in trans You

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Speaker 1: fe es who know the laws of your God. Those

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Speaker 1: who do not know this law should be taught. Everyone

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Speaker 1: who does not observe both the law of your God

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Speaker 1: and the law of the King will be completely liable

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Speaker 1: to the appropriate penalty, whether it is death or banishment,

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Speaker 1: or confiscation of property or detainment in prison. Blessed be

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Speaker 1: the Lord, God of our fathers, who so moved in

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Speaker 1: the heart of the king to so honor the temple

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Speaker 1: of the Lord, which is in Jerusalem. He has also

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Speaker 1: conferred his favor on me before the King, his advisers,

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Speaker 1: and all the influential leaders of the King. I gained

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Speaker 1: strength as the hand of the Lord my God was

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Speaker 1: on me, and I gathered leaders from Israel to go

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Speaker 1: up with me. Let's pray, Lord, we thank you for

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Speaker 1: your word, and we thank you for the privilege of

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Speaker 1: being able to look at this portion of scripture today.

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Speaker 1: And we thank you that as this progress is taking

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Speaker 1: place in Jerusalem, as the temple is being built, that

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Speaker 1: now you're seeing to it that one who knows your will,

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Speaker 1: one who knows your word, is sent to Jerusalem. You

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Speaker 1: raise up Ezra, and you make the king favorably disposed

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Speaker 1: toward him, and he's sent to Jerusalem. So that he

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Speaker 1: could teach the word of God to the people of Judah. Lord,

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Speaker 1: we're grateful for the privilege of being able to see

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Speaker 1: this transpire because we know that ultimately your word, all

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Speaker 1: of it, whether it be in the Old Covenant or

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Speaker 1: the New Covenant, it's all pointing to your son, Jesus Christ,

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Speaker 1: and we're grateful to see someone in that generation raised

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Speaker 1: up to make your word known. And likewise, Lord, in

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Speaker 1: the context that we live in, we're grateful for opportunities

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Speaker 1: for us to learn your word and grow from it

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Speaker 1: and ingest it in our minds and in our hearts,

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Speaker 1: so that we can be people who understand your will,

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Speaker 1: who practice what you have taught us, and that we

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Speaker 1: could understand more about what it means to bring glory

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Speaker 1: to your name through faith in your son Jesus Christ. Lord,

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Speaker 1: we're grateful for this reality. We're grateful for the ways

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Speaker 1: that You've blessed us. We're grateful that we have the

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Speaker 1: opportunity each day to share in these recordings. We're grateful

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Speaker 1: that we can sit down with printed copies of your word.

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Speaker 1: And we're grateful, Lord for all sorts of resources that

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Speaker 1: you've made available to us during this particular era of

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Speaker 1: history that enable us to understand your word and know

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Speaker 1: it and grow and be pointed directly to your son,

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Speaker 1: Jesus Christ. Lord. We're grateful for all these things, and

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Speaker 1: we're grateful for your presence with us today. We commit

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Speaker 1: this day to your care, and we just thank you

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Speaker 1: for all of this in Jesus' name, Amen,