Ezra 4:17 - Meaning and Application

Here we have the king of Persia’s response to the Samaritans’ report against the Jews. He let himself be misled by their lies and did not bother to check whether their claims about the Jews were true. He simply assumed the charge was correct and was eager to please them with an order to stop the work.

First, he looked into the records about Jerusalem and found that it had indeed rebelled against the king of Babylon. So he accepted their claim that it was a troublesome city (Ezra 4:19). He also found that in earlier times kings had ruled there, and the lands west of the river had paid tribute to them (Ezra 4:20). From that, he reasoned that if Jerusalem ever became strong again, it might try to take back its former power, though it was not likely to do so. In this, he simply repeated what they had said and gave a reason for acting on it.

This shows how hard it is for rulers, who must often judge matters by other people’s reports and hearsay. They can only see and hear through others’ eyes and ears, and those reports are often false. God’s judgment is always right, because He sees things exactly as they are and judges according to truth.

Second, he ordered the Samaritans to stop the rebuilding of the city at once, until further notice (Ezra 4:21, Ezra 4:22). Neither their letter nor his order mentioned the temple. That is because both they and he knew the Jews had already received not only permission but a command from Cyrus to rebuild it, and the Samaritans did not dare ask for that decree to be canceled. So they spoke only about the city, meaning its walls and gates. In effect, the order said, “Do not let that be built, because it might bring harm to the kings.” He did not want the crown to lose anything while he wore it.

The enemies of the Jews then used these orders, which they had gotten by deceit. As soon as they received them, they hurried to Jerusalem (Ezra 4:23). Their feet ran to evil (Proverbs 1:16). They were eager to show the builders the ban and use force if needed to make them stop. Just as they had misled the king to get the order, they also twisted it when enforcing it. The order was really about stopping the walls of the city, but since they had power on their side, they applied it to the temple, which they disliked and wanted to block if they could find any excuse.

There was indeed a broad phrase in the order telling them to make these men stop, and that referred to the complaint about the walls. But they stretched it to mean the temple as well. This reminds us why we should pray not only for kings, but for all who serve under them, and for the governors they send. The peace and quiet of our lives, lived in godliness and honesty, depends a great deal on the honesty and good sense of lower officials as well as rulers.

The result was that the work on God’s house stopped for a time, because of the force and boldness of its enemies. It also stayed stopped because of the coldness and carelessness of its friends, and it remained so until the second year of Darius Hystaspes, whom I take to be the Darius named here (Ezra 4:24). Even though the Samaritans had forced a stop for the moment, the work might soon have gone on again if the builders had cared enough about it. Before they had any clear royal approval to continue, the prophets already rebuked them for neglecting the work (Ezra 5:1, compare Haggai 1:1, and following verses). If they had made a careful and truthful case before Cambyses, he might have withdrawn his order. But it may be that some of the builders were almost as willing for the work to stop as the enemies were.

At times, the church has suffered more from the chill of its friends than from the heat of its enemies. But when both are working together, church work usually moves very slowly.