EZRA, THE PRAYING REFORMER
_Before the Great War there were many signs of a new interest in_
PRAYER _and new hope from its exercise. How these signs have
multiplied is known to every one. This one thing at least that is good
the War has done for us already. Let us not miss our opportunity.
Prayer is not an easy exercise. It requires encouragement, exposition,
and training. There never was a time when men and women were more
sincerely anxious to be told how to pray. Prayer is the mightiest
instrument in our armory, and if we are to use it as God has given the
encouragement, we must do everything in our power to bring it into
exercise._--REV. JAMES HASTINGS.
Ezra, the priest, and one of God’s great reformers, comes before
us in the Old Testament as a praying man, one who uses prayer to
overcome difficulties and bring good things to pass. He had returned
from Babylon under the patronage of the King of Babylon, who had been
strangely moved toward Ezra and who favored him in many ways. Ezra had
been in Jerusalem but a few days when the princes came to him with the
distressing information that the people had not separated themselves
from the people of that country, and were doing according to the
abominations of the heathen nations about them. And that which was
worse than all was that the princes and rulers in Israel had been chief
in the trespass.
It was a sad state of affairs facing Ezra as he found the Church almost
hopelessly involved with the world. God demands of His Church in all
ages that it should be separated from the world, a separation so sharp
that it amounts to an antagonism. To effect this very end, He put
Israel in the Promised Land, and cut them off from other nations by
mountains, deserts and seas, and straightway charged them that they
should not form any relation with alien nations, neither marital,
social nor business.
But Ezra finds the Church at Jerusalem, as he returns from Babylon,
paralyzed and hopelessly and thoroughly prostrated by the violation of
this principle. They had intermarried, and had formed the closest and
most sacred ties in family, social and business life, with the Gentile
nations. All were involved in it, priests, Levites, princes and people.
The family, the business, and the religious life of the people was
founded in this violation of God’s law. What was to be done? What could
be done? Here were the important questions which faced this leader in
Israel, this man of God.
Everything appeared to be against the recovery of the Church. Ezra
could not preach to them, because the whole city would be inflamed,
and would hound him out of the place. What force was there which could
recover them to God so that they would dissolve business partnerships,
divorce wives and husbands, cut acquaintances and dissolve friendships?
The first thing about Ezra which is worthy of remark was that he saw
the situation and realized how serious it was. He was not a blind-eyed
optimist who never sees anything wrong in the Church. By the mouth of
Isaiah God had propounded the very pertinent question, “Who is blind
but my servant?” But it could not possibly be made to apply to Ezra.
Nor did he minimize the condition of things or seek to palliate the
sins of the people or to minimize the enormity of their crimes. Their
offense appeared in his eyes to be serious in the extreme. It is worth
not a little to have leaders in Zion who have eyes to see the sins of
the Church as well as the evils of the times. One great need of the
modern Church is for leaders after the style of Ezra, who are not blind
in their seeing department, and who are willing to see the state of
things in the Church and who are not reluctant to open their eyes to
the real situation.
Very naturally, seeing these dreadful evils in the Church and in the
society of Jerusalem, he was distressed. The sad condition of things
grieved him, so much so that he rent his garments, plucked his hair,
and sat down astonished. All these things are evidences of his great
distress of soul at the terrible state of affairs. Then it was in that
frame of mind, concerned, solicitous and troubled in soul, that he gave
himself to prayer, to confession of the sins of the people, and to
pleading for pardoning mercy at the hands of God. To whom should he go
in a time like this but unto the God who hears prayer, who is ready to
pardon and who can bring the unexpected thing to pass?
He was amazed beyond expression at the wicked conduct of the people,
was deeply moved and began to fast and pray. Prayer and fasting always
accomplish something. He prays with a broken heart, for there is naught
else that he can do. He prays unto God, deeply burdened, prostrate on
the ground and weeping, while the whole city unites with him in prayer.
Prayer was the only way to placate God, and Ezra became a great mover
in a great work for God, with marvelous results. The whole work, its
principles and its results, are summarized by just one verse in Ezra
10:1:
“Now when Ezra had prayed, and had confessed, weeping and casting
himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of
Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children, for
the people wept sore.”
There had been mighty, simple and persevering prayer. Intense and
prevailing prayer had accomplished its end. Ezra’s praying had brought
into being and brought forth results in a great work for God. It was
mighty praying because it brought Almighty God to do His own work,
which was absolutely hopeless from any other source save by prayer and
by God. But nothing is hopeless to prayer because nothing is hopelessly
to God.
Again we must say that prayer has only to do with God, and is only
resultful as it has to do with God. Whatever influence the praying of
Ezra had upon himself, its chief, if not its only, results followed
because it affected God, and moved Him to do the work.
A great and general repentance followed this praying of Ezra, and there
occurred a wonderful reformation in Israel. And Ezra’s mourning and
his praying were the great factors which had to do with bringing these
great things to pass.
So thorough was the revival which occurred that as evidences of its
genuineness it is noted that the leaders in Israel came to Ezra with
these words:
“We have trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of
the people of the land. Yet now there is hope in Israel concerning
this thing.
“Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all
the wives, and such as are born to them, according to the counsel of
my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of our God;
and let it be done according to the law.
“Arise, for this matter belongeth unto thee. We also will be with
thee; be of good courage, and do it.”