The books of Ezra & Nehemiah pick up where 2 Chronicles ends (compare 2 Chronicles 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4). They record Israel’s return from Babylonian exile and the restoration of Jerusalem.
The return to Judah unfolded in three phases. First, Zerubbabel led a group, then Ezra another, and finally, Nehemiah the third. A clear pattern emerges across these phases and the men who led them. Each one:
Nehemiah was vital to the rebuilding of Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity had ended. He gained permission from Artaxerxes to go to Judah (Nehemiah 2:5-6) to lead the people. Through several challenges Nehemiah led the people as they repaired the wall of Jerusalem and completed the project in just 52 days (Nehemiah 6:15).
Nehemiah gathered the people together to register them by their genealogies (Nehemiah 7:5-73), and served as their governor (Nehemiah 10:1). He, along with Ezra sought to lead the people in the ways of God as given in the law of Moses (Nehemiah 8:1-8).
After things were settled in Jerusalem, Nehemiah went back to Artaxerxes in Babylon for a time (Nehemiah 13:6). Upon his return, there were some problems that required his attention.
