p. 2 | Zechariah 1-4 by Editor

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Aug 15, 1911

By Editor

Five books come within our reading of this week—the closing chapters of Daniel, covering in another form the same four great empires of the world; the book of Ezra, of Esther, of Haggai, and of Zechariah—all of them books of the captivity. Ezra was written by the priest whose name it bears, and who went up from Babylon with the children of the captivity. It was probably written about the year 456. The book of Esther is based on some wonderfully interesting incidents which had a great bearing on the people of God, occurring at the court of Xerxes, the Ahasuerus of the book. It is a marvelously told story, and invariably holds the interest of the reader from the beginning to the close. The name of God, or anything which refers to it, is not mentioned in the entire book, doubtless because of the position of the Jews, and so as not to offend the Persians. It was probably written by Mordecai. One who is familiar with the Bible will constantly recall what God said concerning the Amalekites, first in Exodus 17, in which it is intimated that Amalek would be against the throne of God forever; again in the 15th chapter of 1 Samuel, where Saul was instructed to destroy a power that was wicked and only wicked, but failed to do it, and now we have them cropping up again, with the descendant of the very King Agag himself—Haman—plotting against God's people. And yet we see God's wonderful providence in overruling all of Haman's plotting to the salvation of the Jews.

The children of Israel went up to Jerusalem under the decree of Cyrus in 536. They started building with a great deal of courage and vigor; but they were comparatively few in number, and their enemies on every hand, especially the Samaritans, did all in their power to thwart the work and discourage Israel. In addition to that they sent word to the Persian king, who at that time happened to be the false Smerdis, and who gave a decree that the work be stopped. The children of Israel turned from the work of God, in their discouragement, and sought their own interests. Then came the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah. God stirred them up to point out to the children of Israel their lethargy and sin in turning from God's work to their own, and how God's blessing had been turned from them because of that. This led them to return to the Lord's work, and brought God's blessing. In consequence of this the enemies still complained. Inquiry was made by officers of the new king. These officers were told that a decree had already been given for them to do the very work which Israel was then doing. Search was made in the government records, and it was found as Israel had said, and the decree was renewed by the king.