A Godly Deposition
Introduction: Answering the Authorities
We live in an age that is increasingly hostile to the claims of Christ. This hostility, however, does not always manifest itself with fire and sword. More often than not, in our Western context, it comes to us wearing a suit and carrying a clipboard. It is the hostility of the bureaucrat, the zoning committee, the regulatory agency. It is the polite, persistent, and soul-crushing demand for paperwork. The question comes to the church, to the Christian school, to the faithful family, and it is always the same question: "By what authority do you do these things?"
The book of Ezra is intensely relevant for us because it is a book about rebuilding the ruins in the face of opposition. The people of God had returned from exile, and in obedience to the command of God, they had begun to rebuild the temple, the center of their worship and their life. And as soon as the foundation was laid, the adversaries showed up. After a period of discouragement, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah stirred up the people, and the work began again. And right on cue, the authorities show up. Tattenai, the governor of the province, comes to inspect the construction site. He is not a raving persecutor, at least not yet. He is a government man. He wants to know who signed the permit.
The response of the Jewish elders in this passage is a master class in giving a godly deposition. It is a model for how Christians ought to answer the secular authorities when they come asking questions. Their answer is respectful but unyielding. It is theologically robust and legally astute. They know who they are, they know whose they are, and they know the laws of the land. They show us that faithfulness in the public square requires both a backbone of steel and a wisdom that knows how to fill out the forms. This is not a story about cowering before the state; it is a story about making the state do its own research, confident that God's truth will be vindicated in the public record.
The Text
This is the copy of the letter which Tattenai, the governor of the province beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai and his colleagues the officials, who were beyond the River, sent to Darius the king. They sent word to him in which it was written thus:
"To Darius the king, all peace. Let it be known to the king that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, and it is being built with huge stones, and timber is being put within the walls; and that work is going on with all diligence and is succeeding in their hands. Then we asked those elders and said to them thus, 'Who issued you a decree to rebuild this house and to complete this structure?' And we also asked them their names in order to make known to you, and that we might write down the names of the men who were at their head.
Thus they responded with a word to us, saying,
'We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed. But because our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house and took the people away into exile in Babylon. However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild this house of God. Also the gold and silver utensils of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and brought them to the temple of Babylon, these King Cyrus took out from the temple of Babylon, and they were given to one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had appointed governor. He said to him, "Take these articles, go and deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt in its place." Then that Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem; and from then until now it is being rebuilt, and it is not yet finished.'
So now if it seems good to the king, let a search be made in the king's treasure house, which is there in Babylon, if it be that a decree was issued by King Cyrus to rebuild that house of God in Jerusalem; and let the king send to us his will concerning this matter."
(Ezra 5:6-17 LSB)
The Official Inquiry (vv. 6-10)
The first part of our text is the letter itself, written by Tattenai to King Darius. It is a piece of official government correspondence.
"To Darius the king, all peace. Let it be known to the king that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, and it is being built with huge stones, and timber is being put within the walls; and that work is going on with all diligence and is succeeding in their hands." (Ezra 5:7-8)
We should note that this is a remarkably fair and objective report. Tattenai is no friend to the Jews, but he is a competent bureaucrat. He reports what he sees. The project is substantial, built with "huge stones." The quality is high. The work is being done with "all diligence." And most importantly, it is "succeeding in their hands." This success is what has attracted his attention. When the work of God's kingdom prospers, the world takes notice. Success invites scrutiny.
Tattenai then reports the questions he asked, which are the central questions of any secular authority: "Who gave you permission?" and "Who is in charge here?" He wants to know the authority behind the work and the names of the men responsible. This is about accountability. The world wants to know who to blame, who to fine, and who to arrest if things go sideways. This is the nature of earthly power structures.
The Foundational Allegiance (v. 11)
Now we get to the heart of the matter: the Jews' response. And their first words are everything.
"Thus they responded with a word to us, saying, 'We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth...'" (Ezra 5:11)
They do not begin by citing the decree of Cyrus. They do not start with their permit from a previous administration. They begin by declaring their ultimate citizenship and their highest allegiance. Before they are subjects of the Persian Empire, they are servants of the God of heaven and earth. This is their fundamental identity. This is the presupposition from which they will argue everything else. They are telling Tattenai, "You need to understand that the authority you answer to is not the highest authority in this matter."
They then ground their work in their own history. They are rebuilding the house that a "great king of Israel," Solomon, had built. They are not some new cult, starting a novel project. They are restoring what was. They are a people with a history, a covenant, and a long-standing claim to this place and this worship. This is an appeal to tradition and legitimacy. They are the true conservatives, conserving the ancient worship of the true God.
The Theological Confession (v. 12)
What comes next is startling in its honesty and theological depth. It is not something a modern political consultant would ever advise.
"But because our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house and took the people away into exile in Babylon." (Ezra 5:12)
Instead of playing the victim, they confess their sin. They provide Tattenai with a concise, Reformed theology of history. Why was the temple destroyed? Not because Nebuchadnezzar was strong, but because their fathers were sinful. Not because of bad geopolitical luck, but because the God of heaven was provoked to wrath. They are saying that God is sovereign over the nations. He raises up kings like Nebuchadnezzar to be His rod of judgment, and He casts them down again. This is an incredible witness. They are telling this pagan governor that their God is the one who runs the world, and that He runs it righteously. This kind of confession, which takes full responsibility for sin, is a powerful sign that true repentance has occurred. They are not the same people who went into exile.
The Legal Justification (vv. 13-16)
Only after establishing their theological foundation do they move to their legal standing in the Persian system.
"However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild this house of God." (Ezra 5:13)
They are not rebels. They are not lawless. They are acting under a direct, legal, and official decree from the founder of the Persian Empire himself. They proceed to lay out the facts of the case with precision. They mention the return of the temple vessels, the appointment of Sheshbazzar as governor, and the specific command of Cyrus to rebuild on the original site. They demonstrate that the work did not just begin last Tuesday. Sheshbazzar "laid the foundations," and the work has been proceeding, however haltingly, "from then until now."
This is a lesson for us. Christians ought to be the most law-abiding of citizens. We should know our rights and our legal standing. We should use the protections of the law to advance the kingdom. The elders here are not making a vague appeal to religious freedom; they are citing a specific, historical, verifiable edict. They are saying to Tattenai, "We are in compliance with the laws of your own empire. The problem is not with us; the problem is with those who are trying to hinder us in our lawful enterprise."
The Providential Result (v. 17)
The response of the Jews is so effective that it corners Tattenai. He cannot simply shut them down. They have made a compelling case. And so, he does the only thing a responsible official can do.
"So now if it seems good to the king, let a search be made in the king's treasure house... if it be that a decree was issued by King Cyrus... and let the king send to us his will concerning this matter." (Ezra 5:17)
This is a moment of beautiful, providential irony. The adversary's attempt to halt the work has now become the very mechanism by which the work will be officially investigated, re-authorized, and, as we see in the next chapter, funded by the royal treasury. Tattenai, in his official capacity, asks the king to do the one thing the Jews needed him to do: check the archives. They were confident in their testimony because they knew the decree was real. They spoke the truth, and then they trusted God to make their opponents do the legwork to verify it.
This is how our God works. He is the master of turning the tables. He uses the schemes of His enemies to accomplish His purposes. He makes the wrath of man to praise Him. The letter that was intended to be an obstacle becomes the pathway to victory. The official inquiry becomes the occasion for an official vindication.
Conclusion: Our Godly Deposition
The pattern laid out by these elders is the pattern for us. When the world comes to us with its clipboards and its questions, demanding to know by what authority we build Christian schools, or teach our children at home, or refuse to bow to the latest cultural idol, our answer must be threefold.
First, it must be theological. We must begin by declaring our primary allegiance. We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth. Our rights do not come from the state; they are endowed by our Creator. Our mission does not come from a government permit; it comes from the Great Commission.
Second, it must be confessional. We must have a robust understanding of history, including our own failings. We should be able to explain the state of the world not as a series of unfortunate accidents, but as the outworking of sin and rebellion against a holy God, and the outworking of His glorious, sovereign grace in redemption.
And third, it must be civic and legal. We should be wise as serpents. We should know the law and use it. We should be prepared to give a clear, logical, and factual account of our standing. We should be able to say, with all respect, "We are not the lawbreakers here."
If we give such a testimony, we can then stand back and watch the Lord work. We can trust His providence to turn the hearts of kings, or, if not their hearts, then at least their bureaucratic processes. We can be confident that when our adversaries are forced to search the records, they will find that our King, the Lord Jesus Christ, has already issued a decree. He has all authority in heaven and on earth, and He has commanded us to go and build. And that is a permit that can never be revoked.