Day 14

Another dip into the apocrypha these next couple days. It makes sense to look at the books of Esdras as they are closely linked, in name, to Ezra and Nehemiah. First Esdras is pretty much a word for word copy of Ezra and parts of Second Chronicles. Something felt incredibly familiar reading it and when I flipped to the preface for the book, there it was, a reminder that First Esdras was a repeat.

I had pretty strong feelings about the book of Ezra. It was gloomy and bitter. First Esdras, although being a near exact retelling of Ezra, shifts a good portion of the language to a more positive tone. Ezra is still bitter, but I wasn’t left feeling in the dumps after reading it.

What was interesting were the handful of chapters that were unique to this book. The shift in tone certainly stood out, but the extra chapters were a delight. They provide a weird narrative device that gives a glimpse into who King Darius was in Persia.

Here’s a king that is swayed by wisdom, not by charm. A king that worshipped his own gods but, somehow, is moved to offer some devotion to the god of Israel. I imagine people can look at this and praise Darius and his devotion. “Look! Look how the divine uses him!” I think the real reason for Darius, and other Persian kings, allowing the rebuilding of Jerusalem was purely political.

That’s what this added story (chapters 3-5) gives us between the lines…a savvy politician. Sometimes the goals of the political line up with what is good. If only it could always be that way.

One Word for First Esdras: Shifting

Parts of the Story That Stayed With Me

1 Esd 3-4, Darius’ Banquet. This is really the highlight and the major difference between Ezra and 1 Esdras. King Darius is holding a banquet and three men decide to make a wager. Whoever can impress the King the most will, they suspect, be given a prominent position in the kingdom. So they write down what they want to say to the King to impress him and, get this, they slip it under his pillow as he’s sleeping. That cracks me up! Anyway, the King sees the men in the morning, their notes, and asks why? They tell him. So the King calls all the nobles of the kingdom to bear witness to what he surely thought would be a disaster. The first man gives a treatise on why wine is the most powerful thing in the kingdom. The second speaks about the king being the most powerful (how patriotic). The third man says women…but ultimately truth will be victor. He goes on to explain the role of women (bold in a patriarchal society) and concludes with his devotion to the god of Israel winning the day. Darius is moved by his devotion and allows the temple to be rebuilt. It’s a wild, odd, and strangely placed story in what is otherwise an exact copy of Ezra. Love it.

This post is part of a lager series where I read the entirety of Hebrew & Christian scriptures in 45 days. Take a look a the original post for more info, as well as links to other reflections on this journey.