The Stirred Spirit and the Returned Spoons Text: Ezra 1:5-11
Introduction: The Economics of Reformation
We live in an age that is simultaneously cynical and sentimental. We are cynical about God's direct involvement in history, and we are sentimental about human initiative. We like stories of plucky underdogs pulling themselves up by their own bootstraps. But the Bible is not that kind of book. The story of the return from exile is not a story about the triumph of the human spirit. It is the story of the triumph of the Spirit of God, who condescends to stir the spirits of men.
The first few verses of Ezra established the grand, geopolitical reality: God is the one who moves the hearts of pagan kings. The Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, the most powerful man in the world, to fulfill a prophecy made by Jeremiah decades before. God writes history in advance, and then He uses the most unlikely instruments to bring it to pass. But history is not just made by kings and decrees. It is made by ordinary men and women whose hearts are also moved by God. This passage shows us the downstream effects of that great royal decree. It moves from the throne room of Persia to the households of Judah and Benjamin. And it shows us a foundational principle for all true reformation: God not only provides the mission, He provides the men and the means.
What we are about to see is a second Exodus. Just as God moved the heart of Pharaoh to let His people go, and just as He moved the hearts of the Egyptians to load them down with silver and gold, so also here God moves the heart of Cyrus and the hearts of the Jews' pagan neighbors. God was funding the rebuilding of His own house with pagan gold. This is not just an interesting historical detail. It is a paradigm for how God builds His kingdom. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and He also owns the gold in a thousand pagan treasuries. When it is time for Him to build, He will not lack for resources.
This passage gives us the anatomy of a true revival. It begins with a divine stirring, is supported by unexpected provision, and is centered on the restoration of true worship, right down to the last golden bowl. This is not just about rebuilding a structure; it is about restoring a relationship. And God cares about the details.
The Text
Then the heads of fathers’ households of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites arose, that is of everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of Yahweh which is in Jerusalem. All those around them strengthened them with articles of silver, with gold, with possessions, with cattle, and with precious things, aside from all that was given as a freewill offering. Also King Cyrus brought out the articles of the house of Yahweh, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought out from Jerusalem and put in the house of his gods; and Cyrus, king of Persia, had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and he counted them out to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah. Now this was their number: 30 gold dishes, 1,000 silver dishes, 29 duplicates; 30 gold bowls, 410 silver bowls of a second kind and 1,000 other articles. All the articles of gold and silver numbered 5,400. Sheshbazzar brought them all up with the exiles who went up from Babylon to Jerusalem.
(Ezra 1:5-11 LSB)
The Divine Initiative (v. 5)
We begin with the response to Cyrus's decree.
"Then the heads of fathers’ households of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites arose, that is of everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of Yahweh which is in Jerusalem." (Ezra 1:5)
The decree goes out, but who responds? Not everyone. Many Jews had grown comfortable in Babylon. They had businesses, homes, and a life. The prospect of a grueling, dangerous journey back to a ruined city to undertake a massive construction project was not universally appealing. So who went? "Everyone whose spirit God had stirred."
This is the doctrine of effectual calling written into the historical record. God's external call goes out to all through the decree of Cyrus, but the internal, effective call is the work of the Holy Spirit. God does not just make the offer; He creates the response. He does not just open the door; He stirs the heart to walk through it. This is the difference between a sentimental wish and a holy resolve. This is the difference between a New Year's resolution and genuine repentance. Man, left to himself, will always choose the comfort of Babylon over the ruins of Jerusalem. But when God stirs the spirit, men rise up.
Notice who is stirred. It is the leaders, the heads of households, the priests, and the Levites. Reformation is never a grassroots, populist movement in the modern sense. It is always led from the top down, by those whom God has placed in authority. God stirs the leaders, and the people follow. This is the pattern. And what is the purpose of this stirring? It is not for a vague spiritual renewal. It is for a very specific task: "to go up to rebuild the house of Yahweh." True spiritual awakening is never aimless. It is always directed toward the central task of building up the church and restoring true worship.
The Surprising Provision (v. 6)
Once God has stirred the hearts of His people for the task, He then moves the hearts of their neighbors to provide the means.
"All those around them strengthened them with articles of silver, with gold, with possessions, with cattle, and with precious things, aside from all that was given as a freewill offering." (Ezra 1:6)
This is the plundering of the Persians, a direct echo of the plundering of the Egyptians in Exodus 12. God’s people are leaving, and their pagan neighbors, instead of resenting them, lavish them with gifts. This is a supernatural work of God. He holds the hearts of all men in His hand, and He can make them generous toward His people whenever it serves His purpose. This is a profound lesson for the church in every age. We are not to look at our own meager resources and despair. Our God owns everything, and He can fund His work out of the pockets of the unregenerate. He can make a pagan government sign a check. He can make a secular corporation give a grant. The silver and the gold are His, and He will get them to the construction site on time.
This provision is on top of the freewill offerings given by the Jews themselves. God's people are to be generous, but their generosity is supplemented and multiplied by God's surprising providence. This is not a justification for laziness or for a refusal to give sacrificially. It is a promise that when God's people step out in faith to do God's work, God will meet them with resources from the most unexpected quarters.
The Great Reversal (v. 7-8)
Next, we see the king himself participating in this great act of provision and restoration.
"Also King Cyrus brought out the articles of the house of Yahweh, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought out from Jerusalem and put in the house of his gods; and Cyrus, king of Persia, had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and he counted them out to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah." (Ezra 1:7-8)
This is a moment of profound theological significance. Seventy years prior, Nebuchadnezzar, the instrument of God's wrath, had sacked the temple and carried off its sacred furniture. It was a visible sign of God's judgment. The glory had departed. Nebuchadnezzar placed these articles in the temple of his own god, as a trophy, a symbol of his god's victory over Yahweh. But now, the tables are turned.
Cyrus, the instrument of God's restoration, is now taking those very articles out of the pagan temple and returning them. This is not just giving back stolen property. This is a public declaration that Yahweh is the true God, and that the gods of Babylon are nothing. The judgment is over. The period of discipline has ended. God is publicly vindicating His own name. The very items that were symbols of Israel's humiliation are now becoming the symbols of her restoration.
Notice the orderly process. This is not a chaotic handover. Cyrus has his treasurer, Mithredath, conduct a formal inventory. The items are counted out to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah. This is an official, legal transfer. God's property is being returned to God's appointed representative. This is a picture of how God works. He is a God of order, not of confusion. His work of restoration is deliberate, official, and thorough.
The Meticulous Accounting (v. 9-11)
The passage concludes with what might seem to us like a tedious list of bowls and dishes.
"Now this was their number: 30 gold dishes, 1,000 silver dishes, 29 duplicates; 30 gold bowls, 410 silver bowls of a second kind and 1,000 other articles. All the articles of gold and silver numbered 5,400. Sheshbazzar brought them all up with the exiles who went up from Babylon to Jerusalem." (Ezra 1:9-11)
Why does the Holy Spirit inspire the inclusion of this inventory list in the eternal Word of God? Because details matter to God, especially the details of worship. These are not just pots and pans. These are consecrated vessels, holy to the Lord. Each one had a place and a function in the worship of God at the temple. Their meticulous accounting demonstrates the value God places on the instruments of worship. It shows that God kept track of every last dish. He knew what was His, where it was, and He intended to get it all back.
The total number is 5,400 articles. This is a staggering amount of treasure. It tells us of the immense glory of Solomon's original temple, and it tells us of the immense grace of God in its restoration. This is not a half-hearted restoration. God is not just giving them a few token items to get started. He is returning the treasury. He is re-equipping His house for glorious worship.
Sheshbazzar, the prince, brings them all up. Nothing is left behind. This is the task of faithful leadership. When God entrusts His treasures to us, whether physical or spiritual, our task is to steward them carefully and bring them all to their intended destination, which is the worship and glory of God in His house.
Conclusion: Vessels of Honor
This is more than a story about ancient temple furniture. It is a picture of our own redemption. We, like those temple articles, were created for a holy purpose: to be vessels for the worship and glory of God. But through sin, we were carried off into a spiritual Babylon. We were desecrated, put into the service of false gods, used for profane purposes. We were trophies in the house of the enemy.
But God, in His mercy, did not leave us there. He sent a greater King than Cyrus, the Lord Jesus Christ, to issue a decree of release. Through His death and resurrection, He conquered our captors and set us free. And He did not just set us free to wander aimlessly. He is restoring us to our original purpose.
The Apostle Paul uses this very imagery. He says that in a great house there are vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. "Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work" (2 Timothy 2:21).
God is in the business of taking dishonorable vessels, lost in Babylon, and through the blood of Christ, cleansing them, consecrating them, and restoring them to His house. He counts each one. He knows you by name. You are His treasured possession, bought with a price. And He is bringing you up from your exile, out of the house of false gods, and placing you back into His temple, the church, where you might be used for His glory. He has stirred your spirit. He has provided for your journey. And He has restored you to your high and holy calling. Our task, like that of Sheshbazzar, is to bring all that He has entrusted to us, our lives, our families, our resources, our gifts, and dedicate them fully to the great task of rebuilding His house.