“Now these are the people of the province who came back from the captivity, of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, everyone to his own city. . . ” Ezzra 2:1 NKJV
“4 Then the people of the land tried to discourage the people of Judah. They troubled them in building, 5 and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.” Ezra 4:4-5 NKJV
“Now when the copy of King Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem against the Jews, and by force of arms made them cease. 24 Thus the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem ceased, and it was discontinued until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.” Ezra 4:23-24 NKJV
Lord God,
Seems when things go well and progress is being made sometimes there is opposition. We know from personal experience. Sometimes others are jealous or are concerned someone might think themselves more suitable . . .
Here, those around Jerusalem do not want to see the Temple restored and its walls rebuilt. That would give power to those living there! So they write letters to the King of Persia who is now King Artaxerxes and also threaten those doing the building. So the work that had started on the Temple stops for now. Ezra has not gone away or gone silent but others join in giving Your Word of encouragement to build. And there are other things to deal with to see all You were doing.
Perhaps we need a little opposition sometimes to remind us everything is not dependent on us. We need to return to our source, You Lord. And we live in a fallen world where things do go wrong. Here it looks like it has failed and work has stopped – but it has not ended. We too need to understand sometimes things stop but have not ended. You are the resurrection and the life (John 11:25), in You we hope and trust for the future (Psalm 130:5). Let opposition be a pause while we seek You for the when and way forward.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Worship Tuesday 8th September 2026
Time for a traditional hymn that has encouraged so many over the years . . .
Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
ye soldiers of the cross;
lift high His royal banner,
it must not suffer loss.
From victory unto victory
His army shall He lead,
till every foe is vanquished,
and Christ is Lord indeed.
Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the trumpet call obey;
forth to the mighty conflict,
in this His glorious day.
Ye that are brave now serve him
against unnumbered foes;
let courage rise with danger,
and strength to strength oppose.
Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
stand in His strength alone;
the arm of flesh will fail you,
ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armour,
each piece put on with prayer;
where duty calls or danger,
be never wanting there.
Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the strife will not be long;
this day the noise of battle,
the next the victor’s song.
To him who overcometh
a crown of life shall be;
he with the King of Glory
shall reign eternally.
Lyrics: George Duffield