Hello, thank you so much for joining me today for Give Him 15.

And I want to read to you again from Volume 2 of Give Him 15 and Appeal to Heaven,

our series of three devotionals that we have compiled.

And I'm reading today a post titled, Let's Finish This. As the book of

Ezra opens, Cyrus, King of Persia, allows a remnant of Israelites to return to Jerusalem for the

purpose of rebuilding their

temple. Seventy years prior, God had allowed Israel to be taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar,

king of Babylon, because of their apostasy. Years later, they came under the rule of Cyrus when he conquered Babylon.

God then moved on the heart of Cyrus, a pagan and idolatrous king, to permit this return.

He even stirred Cyrus's heart to help the remnant raise the funds needed for the rebuilding

and returned to them all the vessels and utensils Nebuchadnezzar had plundered from the temple.

How's that for help from a pagan king, Ezra, Chapter 1?

A remnant returned to Jerusalem under Zerubbable's leadership and began the work. Ezra tells us, chapter 3 versus 10 through 13,

the message, when the workers laid the foundation, now they're going back, this remnant, now they start building. When the workers laid the foundation,

now they've gone back, this remnant,

now they start building.

When they laid the foundation of the temple,

the priests in their robes stood up with trumpets

and the Levites, sons of ASAP,

with symbols to praise God in the tradition of David.

All the people boomed out, hurrahs. I love the message.

praising God as the foundation of the temple of God was laid. As many were noisily shouting with joy,

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