Ezra 8:35 - Captivity to Sin

Preparation and Notes

At that time those who had come from captivity, the returned exiles, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and as a sin offering twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord. 36 They also delivered the king’s commissions to the king’s satraps and to the governors of the province Beyond the River, and they aided the people and the house of God. [1]

Word Study/ Translation Notes:

35 – seventy-seven – not a multiple of twelve (which seem to represent the tribes of Israel). Argues for the accuracy of the narrative.

We know, for example, from the Ugaritic literature that seventy and seventy-seven were used as a literary device to denote a fairly large number (for seventy-seven cf. UT, 75:II:49). There is obvious merit, therefore, in the view of some scholars that seventy-seven must be regarded as symbolic and should not be changed.[2]

All the numbers here are multiples of twelve except “seventy-seven,” but in 1 Esdr 8:66 it is seventy-two (thus a multiple of twelve). However, there is no textual evidence for the change. Since seventy-seven is often used to denote a large number, most scholars think the original text must have had “seventy-seven.”[3]

36 – satraps – There was only one satrap in the Trans-Euphrates area, but this likely included other regional satrapies, like Egypt.

It is not unlikely that the satraps of Trans-Euphrates and Egypt are meant here. Palestine is near enough to Egypt, which had a substantial Jewish population, to include the Egyptian satrap.[4]

Thoughts on the Passage:

35 – come from captivity, the returned exiles… - No matter how comfortable we become in our captivity, it is nonetheless captivity. We are separated from our home.

This is the first time this group has been referred to as exiles or captives. The first group was referenced early on, but this group had not been up to this point.

Many did not return with this group – they remained in the comfort of their cage.

A slave who chooses to return to captivity:

You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. 16 But if he says to you, ‘I will not go out from you,’ because he loves you and your household, since he is well-off with you, 17 then you shall take an awl, and put it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your slave forever.[5] – Deuteronomy 15:15-17

For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.[6] – Hebrews 6:4-6

No longer slaves to sin:

Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. 20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.[7] – Romans 6:16-22

No longer slaves to the Law:

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. 2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.[8] - Galatians 5:1-5

The world will coddle us to buy us:

A gilded cage is still a prison. To the one who doesn’t want to escape, silk will bind as tightly as steel.

Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.” [9] - Numbers 11:4-6

No matter what we abandon the freedom of Christ for, we are selling out cheaply:

Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was exhausted. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am exhausted!” (Therefore his name was called Edom.) 31 Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright now.” 32 Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” 33 Jacob said, “Swear to me now.” So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. [10] - Genesis 25:29-34

There is security in chains we know; we often don’t trust our freedom.

The wisdom of this world is demonic:

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. [11] - James 3:13-18

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. [12] - 1 Peter 2:11-12

No matter what comes next in the narrative, the worship and thanks in the fulfilment of the mission took priority over everything.

This could have been a peaceful ending to the book – except our peace will not be found on earth:

“And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they partook of food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people” (Acts 2:46–47)[13]

just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. [14] - Romans 6:19

Biblical Text: Ezra 8:35-36

At that time those who had come from captivity, the returned exiles, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and as a sin offering twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord. 36 They also delivered the king’s commissions to the king’s satraps and to the governors of the province Beyond the River, and they aided the people and the house of God. [15]

Sermon Text:

Today, I ask us to focus our attention on verse 35 for the time we have together.

Really, not the whole of verse 35 – we looked at the context of the offerings and thanksgiving last week.

I would like to focus our attention this morning to one phrase:

…those who had come from captivity, the returned exiles…

In the context of the entire book of Ezra, this phrase looks unremarkable –

Simply a description of those who had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon.

Indeed, the entire book of Ezra can be summarized as dealing with the end of the exile, and the return of the Jews from captivity.

But I ask you to recall that there were, in Ezra, two separate returns:

One in Ezra chapters 1 to 6:

This was the first return, under Zerubbabel, when the bulk of the Jews who would return journeyed back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple.

Then there was Ezra’s return in chapters 7 to 10:

This is the second return of those who accompanied Ezra’s call to return.

This is the context of today’s verse – the context of the second return.

And in the entire chronicle of Ezra’s mission, this is the first time, indeed the only time, this second group is described as “returning exiles from captivity.”

And if you think about it, it doesn’t really make sense that this second group would be categorized as either exiles or captives.

After all, their families had been permitted to return to the land of Israel for 80 years when Ezra organized his return.

Cyrus’s edict of 538 BC had allowed any Jews who wished to return to Jerusalem to do so.

King Darius had also re-issued the decree when he was asked about it.

Ezra’s journey began in 458 BC.

So for 80 years, everyone in Ezra’s return and in the subsequent return of Nehemiah 13 years later had permission from the king of Persia to return to the land.

That doesn’t describe the realities of what we might consider exile or captivity.

The people weren’t held there, forced into labor like the Israelites had been in Egypt from the time of Joseph to Moses.

They were not oppressed like they were in the days of the judges, or in the time of Saul or David, by Philistines or other enemies.

The sad truth, that we shall see in an even larger context in the next chapters of Ezra, is that these “captives” were captivated by choice.

They chose to remain in Babylonia for all those extra years.

Rather than living in oppression, though, they lived in relative comfort.

Instead of embracing the freedom God had provided, even when He provided it at exactly the time He said He would,

They were captivated by the life that did not hold God’s promises.

Brother, Sister: does this describe your life?

Have you allowed, or are you allowing, yourself to be taken captive by something other than the grace of God?

Captivity comes in many forms, and the warnings about each of these permeates the Scriptures.

It is not just one power that wishes to re-enslave you – they are many, and we must always be on our guard.

The first, possibly the most obvious, power that would enslave you is your own sin.

Peter, in his first epistle, warns his flock:

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.[16] – 1 Peter 2:11

Your sins, the passions of your flesh, are the deadliest enemies that are trying to ensnare you.

They will destroy you!

They are certainly strong enough to pull you away from the sanctification God is working to accomplish in you.

If you are in Christ, that sin, those temptations, are simply not who you are any more.

How can we who died to sin still live in it?[17] – Romans 6:2

So how can you keep returning to them?

We may claim we are weak, and easily tempted,

and so we are.

But the truth is that there is a difference between an occasional, even accidental sin and a habit.

There is a difference between us, as former slaves to sin, meeting temptation along the way,

Or running back to it and embracing it.

How many of the sins in your life keep calling you back, and you continue running to them?

How many sins do you consider your happy little secret instead of your mortal enemy?

How many times have you run into them knowing you would ask God to forgive you later for them?

In so many things, we are like the Israelites following Moses, complaining about how hard it is to follow God’s path, and thinking how nice that captivity was.

Now the rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also wept again and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.” [18] - Numbers 11:4-6

God was providing food from heaven, food without cost, to them every day, and still they dreamed – they wept – about going back into slavery in Egypt.

Is that slavery to sin REALLY so good that you would forfeit eternal life?

Because no matter how nice or pleasant or euphoric that sin makes you feel – it is temporary.

Trading eternal life to practice your sin or your addiction is no better than Esau, who traded his birthright for a bowl of stew.

Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was exhausted. And Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am exhausted!” … Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright now.” Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” Jacob said, “Swear to me now.” So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. [19] - Genesis 25:29-34

That sin you are toying with is your enemy – it will destroy you if it can.

“Take heed, this is that thy lust is working towards,—the hardening of the heart, searing of the conscience, blinding of the mind, stupifying of the affections, and deceiving the whole soul.” (Works of John Owen, Vol. 6 page 52: Mortification Of Sin In Believers)

If you insist on returning to your sin, you put your soul in grave peril.

And none of us should dare to stand against this statement on that great doctrine of the Perseverance of the Saints.

Not because we cannot rely on that doctrine,

But because if we habitually return to our sin, allowing ourselves to be enslaved again, we cannot have a GENUINE assurance that we ARE saints.

What evidence will you bring that you belong to Jesus Christ?

The attitude or intentions of your heart?

Would that be the same heart that is choosing to abandon our Lord for the sake of passing pleasures?

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.[20] – John 8:31-36

He goes on to tell them that:

I tell the truth, you do not believe me.[21] – John 8:45

Any assurance we think we have, any proofs we think we have been given, are unreliable if we have abandoned our Savior and returned to our captivity.

In the Law of Moses – Deuteronomy 15:16-17 – we see the command in regard to a Hebrew slave that had been granted his freedom:

But if he says to you, ‘I will not go out from you,’ because he loves you and your household, since he is well-off with you, then you shall take an awl, and put it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your slave forever.

Do you love your sin so much that you would forever forfeit life, grace, and freedom in Christ?

I realize it is a jarring use of the passage, particularly one that talks about the idea of loving the master and the family.

But I also see the same teaching in a passage we often skip past when we read the book of Hebrews – 6:4-6:

For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.

Is this saying anything different than the Deuteronomy passage?

You were offered your freedom;

You knew precisely what it entailed;

You chose instead to return to your old master;

There you are in grave danger of remaining.

There is only one place all this leads us: Repent.

“Repent” means to turn around, go the other direction.

It means abandoning your sin, killing it within your body, rather than hosting it.

if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.[22] – Romans 8:13

In his commentary on this single verse, John Owen makes the statement we all do well to heed:

Always be killing sin, or it will be killing you.

And I would add that TODAY is the day to repent.

Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 15 As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” [23] - Hebrews 3:12-15

You cannot afford another day holding on to your sin.

This message is for the believer as much as it is for the unconverted.

The people in Ezra’s day held on to 80 extra years of captivity,

But the good news is that some of them repented.

They made the journey.

They returned from the exile.

They obeyed the command of God to return to the land of promise.

Repentance is not far from you either.

Jesus Christ came and endured crucifixion to bring you to repentance,

To bring you into salvation,

To free you from the slavery of sin.

Jesus told a parable to describe His joy at the repentance of one who has been freed from sin:

“Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” [24] - Luke 15:8-10

So now, today – and from now on:

…just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. [25] - Romans 6:19

§

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ezr 8:35–36). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[2] Fensham, F. C. (1982). The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah (p. 122). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

[3] Breneman, M. (1993). Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (electronic ed., Vol. 10, p. 146). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

[4] Fensham, F. C. (1982). The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah (p. 122). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

[5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Dt 15:15–17). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[6] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 6:4–6). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[7] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 6:16–22). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[8] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ga 5:1–5). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[9] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Nu 11:4–6). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[10] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ge 25:29–34). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[11] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Jas 3:13–18). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[12] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Pe 2:11–12). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[13] Levering, M. (2007). Ezra & Nehemiah (p. 96). Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press.

[14] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 6:19). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[15] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ezr 8:35–36). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[16] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Pe 2:11). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[17] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 6:2). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[18] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Nu 11:4–6). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[19] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ge 25:29–34). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[20] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Jn 8:31–36). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[21] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Jn 8:45). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[22] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 8:13). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[23] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Heb 3:12–15). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[24] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Lk 15:8–10). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

[25] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 6:19). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.