In today’s daily devotional on Ezra 3, we explore the third leadership principle from the Twelve Practical Principles of Leadership from the Book of Ezra: operate with priorities. This principle challenges us to evaluate our lives and ask, “What or who is most important to us?” In this chapter, we witness the returning exiles prioritize their relationship with God by first building an altar, a sacred place to meet with Him and offer sacrifices. As Ezra leads the people through the rebuilding process, their focus remains on reconnecting with God daily. In the same way, we are called to realign our priorities, ensuring that God remains at the center of our lives, and that we create space to meet with Him regularly. Through this reflection, we are encouraged to evaluate our time, reset our focus, and make daily communion with God a top priority. To read the list of the returning exiles, read the daily devotional on Ezra 2.
Ezra 3 Commentary by Allen J. Huth
In Ezra 3, we will consider the third leadership principle of our Twelve Practical Principles of Leadership from the Book of Ezra, operate with priorities. What is the most important thing, or who is the most important person, in your life? Do you spend the most time on it, or with that person? Are you living according to your priorities? Please read or listen to Ezra 3.
What Is Ezra Chapter 3 Talking About?
In 1995, I wrote, “In restoring Israel to God, the first thing built was an altar; a place to meet God.” Then, “Moses the man of God” (v. 2). Next, “They built the altar before they built the temple.” I continued, “Levites oversee rebuilding of temple. As the foundation is laid, people praise God, shouted for joy while others wept.” Then I made an interesting note right there, “The Ezra Project,” and I put a little picture of a Bible with the cross over it. That might be the first time I ever considered calling this ministry, which did not even exist until 2002, the Ezra Project. God may have been stirring my heart way back in 1995, like He stirred King Cyrus, to start the Ezra Project which, again, did not even begin until 2002. But I have that note, “The Ezra Project,” with a little picture there in my 1995 journal.
In 2009, I read Ezra chapters 3-5 on the same day and wrote, “The returning exiles built an altar so they could get back to daily sacrifices. They also reinstitute religious celebrations. Next, they started to rebuild the temple.”
In 2015, I read chapter 3 and 4 on the same day and wrote, “Work on the temple begins. Daily sacrifices were renewed. The foundation is laid, and people praised the Lord.”
What Does Rebuilding the Altar Mean?
We can see in chapter 3, the first thing the people did was built an altar to the Lord. What is an altar? A place to meet God. It is also a place to offer sacrifices to God. Many of our churches today still have altars, places where we can kneel and pray and be ministered to by our pastors. But we do not have places where we offer sacrifices in our churches anymore, other than personal sacrifices of weeping or praying. An altar is a place to meet God and offer our sacrifices to Him.
The people that came back to Jerusalem first built an altar so they could have a place to meet God and offer sacrifices again. Remember, they came back from Babylon. They probably could not do those things in captivity, so they set the altar in place, according to verse 3.
What Does Ezra 3:11 Mean?
Then they went to work on rebuilding the temple. They started building the foundation. When they got the foundation laid, a celebration occurred. “And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid” (v. 11). Most likely, most of these people never saw the Great Temple of Solomon. It was destroyed when the Babylonians came and took them away to captivity. Now they are really excited as they see the foundation laid for a new temple they can worship God in.
The reason some of the older generation wept was because they knew the glory of the first temple built by Solomon. At this point, this temple was not going to measure up to that first temple ever built.
What Does It Mean to Work on Your Priorities?
What is our practical application from Ezra 3? Let’s look at a third leadership principle called operating within priorities. Ezra 3:2 demonstrates Ezra’s priorities. They built an altar to God first. What is your first priority in life? Making a living, your family, a ministry, yourself, God?
You may be busy, overcommitted, stretched to the limit, wondering how to get it all done. To reestablish religion during a national rebuilding program, Ezra faced similar challenges, yet he operated within priorities. Do you? Are you operating within the priorities of your life? Most Christians would list their priorities in this order: my relationship with God, my family, my ministry or outreach, and then work. Do you agree with that list? If so, are you living according to your priorities? Or does work overwhelm the first three?
What Is the Number One Priority in Your Life Now?
What did Ezra do in chapter 3? Ezra got the people back to daily offerings to God. His priority was to focus on God daily by following the Book of the Law, God’s Word. That is what Ezra did. What is your number one daily priority? What is your daily offering? Do you spend time with God daily at an altar, a place where you can meet Him, and He can meet you in His Word and in prayer? If not, Ezra 3 may stir up in your heart a reordering of your priorities. Or, maybe your priorities are right, but your time allocation does not line up with your priorities. It is time to make a change.
Do you have an altar in your home, a place where you meet God on a daily basis? If not, find one. Create one. Establish a place where you can meet God and He can meet you daily. How do you do that? You open the Bible, put it in your lap and begin to read God’s Word so He can speak to you. And pray so you can speak to Him. Make meeting with God daily a priority in your life. Implement the third leadership principle in the Book of Ezra, operate within priorities.
Prayer
Father, most of us would say You are our highest priority, yet our time allocation does not reflect this. Most of us find ourselves so busy we hardly even have time for You at all in a day. Forgive us, Lord. Holy Spirit prick our hearts, so we want to spend time with You on a daily basis.
We are so thankful You are not too busy for us. You are always there at the altar waiting for us. We are sorry when we disappoint You when we don’t show up. Again, Lord, forgive us and call us back to You. May we find an altar, a place to meet You daily in our lives. And thank You for showing up when we do. Hallelujah! Amen.
