Ezra 8:23
So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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What's so beautiful here is that "he was intreated of us" suggests more than just God listening. It implies God gave them assurance—a sense of his gracious answer—while they were still fasting, not just a successful outcome later. This highlights that seeking God during difficult journeys isn't just about asking for safety, but about receiving peace and confidence in His presence, even before the danger passes.
Ezra and the returning exiles were about to embark on a long and perilous journey back to Jerusalem, carrying precious treasures for the Temple. Fearful of robbers and lacking a military escort, Ezra felt it was inappropriate to ask the Persian king for soldiers after boasting about God's protection. Instead, he called for a time of fasting and prayer at the river of Ahava, humbling themselves before God to seek His guidance and safety for their group, including the women, children, and all their possessions. Their earnest entreaty was met with a divine assurance that God had heard and would grant them safe passage.
When life throws real danger your way, what's your go-to response? For Ezra and his people, it wasn't a military strategy, but a spiritual one.
Ezra 8:21-23 tells us Ezra proclaimed a fast not just to feel bad, but to actively 'afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way'.
More Than Just Hunger
Fasting in the Bible isn't about diet or self-punishment. It's a spiritual discipline that heightens our senses to God's presence and prioritizes our need for Him above physical comfort.
Focused Petition
By choosing to fast, Ezra and his community were declaring the seriousness of their situation and their complete reliance on God's protection for the perilous journey ahead. It was a powerful, visible act of devotion and dependence.
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Have you ever felt like your prayers were just bouncing off the ceiling? Ezra's group felt the direct opposite.
The verse lands with a powerful punch: 'and he listened to our entreaty.' This wasn't a maybe or a someday; it was a present reality.
The Assurance of Answer
Commentators note that 'he was intreated of us' implies more than just God hearing; it suggests He gave them an 'assurance of his gracious answer.' They received a sense, a peace, or a clear leading that God was with them and would protect them.
Faith Confirmed by Event
This wasn't just a feeling, either. The journey that followed was remarkably safe, proving their prayers were not in vain. God responded tangibly to their earnest pleas.
Understand the original words
baqash · Hebrew Verb
To make a desperate or earnest request to God, often involving deep humility and persistence in prayer to secure His favor.
techinnah · Hebrew Noun
A plea or a desperate petition brought before God, acknowledging one's total dependence on His mercy for the request to be granted.
Ezra's bold decision to forgo a military guard for the return journey highlights a profound trust in God's provision, turning a perilous trek into a testament of faith.
c. 538 BC
Cyrus's Decree for Return
King Cyrus the Great issues a decree allowing exiled Judeans to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple.
c. 515 BC
Second Temple Completed
The Temple in Jerusalem is completed by the returning exiles, but it lacks the grandeur of Solomon's original Temple.
c. 458 BC— this verse
Ezra's Commission and Journey Begins
Ezra, a scribe and priest, receives permission and resources from King Artaxerxes I to lead a group of Judeans back to Jerusalem.
c. 458 BC
Fast Declared at the River Ahava
Before beginning the final leg of their journey, Ezra proclaims a fast to seek divine protection due to the dangers of traveling without an armed escort.
c. 458 BC
Safe Arrival in Jerusalem
Ezra and his company arrive safely in Jerusalem, their prayers for protection having been answered.
This passage shows the Israelites fasting and confessing their sins, drawing a parallel to Ezra's people seeking God through fasting. The assurance of God hearing them in Ezra is echoed in Samuel's account of God answering their cries.
2 Chronicles 33:13Manasseh, like Ezra, fasted and prayed, and God heard him. This shows that seeking God through repentance and prayer, even after wrongdoing, can lead to His gracious intervention.
Nehemiah 1:4Nehemiah's response to bad news involved fasting, weeping, and praying for days, demonstrating a similar pattern of earnest entreaty before God. Ezra's fasting and prayer for a safe journey mirrors this deep seeking of divine favor.
Psalm 34:17-18This psalm speaks to the Lord hearing the cries of the righteous and delivering them from their troubles. Ezra and his people experienced this reality firsthand when God answered their prayers after their period of fasting and entreaty.
Isaiah 58:9The prophet Isaiah declares that if people call on the Lord, he will answer, and cry for help, he will say 'Here I am.' This verse provides a theological foundation for why God 'listened to our entreaty' in Ezra 8:23.
bensonEzra 8:23: "So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us."
Ezra 8:23 . And he was entreated of us — They had some comfortable assurance in their own minds that their prayers were answered; and the event showed that they were, for they escaped all the dangers they had been afraid of, and in due time arrived safe in Judea.
pooleEzra 8:23: "So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us."
He gave us some assurance of his gracious answer to our request.
What's so beautiful here is that "he was intreated of us" suggests more than just God listening. It implies God gave them assurance—a sense of his gracious answer—while they were still fasting, not just a successful outcome later. This highlights that seeking God during difficult journeys isn't just about asking for safety, but about receiving peace and confidence in His presence, even before the danger passes.
Ezra and the returning exiles were about to embark on a long and perilous journey back to Jerusalem, carrying precious treasures for the Temple. Fearful of robbers and lacking a military escort, Ezra felt it was inappropriate to ask the Persian king for soldiers after boasting about God's protection. Instead, he called for a time of fasting and prayer at the river of Ahava, humbling themselves before God to seek His guidance and safety for their group, including the women, children, and all their possessions. Their earnest entreaty was met with a divine assurance that God had heard and would grant them safe passage.
Ezra and the returning exiles were about to embark on a long and perilous journey back to Jerusalem, carrying precious treasures for the Temple. Fearful of robbers and lacking a military escort, Ezra felt it was inappropriate to ask the Persian king for soldiers after boasting about God's protection. Instead, he called for a time of fasting and prayer at the river of Ahava, humbling themselves before God to seek His guidance and safety for their group, including the women, children, and all their possessions. Their earnest entreaty was met with a divine assurance that God had heard and would grant them safe passage.
"So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty." — What's so beautiful here is that "he was intreated of us" suggests more than just God listening. It implies God gave them assurance—a sense of his gracious answer—while they were still fasting, n…
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