As we continue our study of the Old Testament book of Ezra I would like to suggest we do a biographical study of Ezra, the priest and teacher who led another return of exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem.
Human interest always stimulates concentration and captures the imagination. We perk up when we see or hear how someone else manages in a situation. This is especially true when the circumstances are similar to what we might be facing at the time. The more we can learn from others the less we need to learn through the hard knocks of experience. The biographical study helps us learn from the experience of Bible characters.
It uses an approach similar to that for the “3C” topical study, only now you are collecting all the references in the Bible referring or relating to the character you want to study. A concordance will be necessary for most characters. You then correlate the material you find on the chosen character into either a character analysis or an historical portrait. The latter emphasizes events in the person’s life while the former emphasizes the qualities of an individual. Then you crystallize what you have learned into some applications.
To study the life of Ezra using this study method you will find most of the information on him in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, specifically Ezra chapters 7-10 and Nehemiah chapters 8-12. In preparation for our ongoing study read over these chapters and collect as much information about Ezra as you can. We will be doing a character analysis of his life. I hope you can join us for this study.