In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing: “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you—may his God be with him and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem.” (Ezra 1:1-3, NIV 1984).
My Musings – Why is the king of Persia allowing the people of Judah to return from exile to Jerusalem? What happened to Babylon? “‘This is what these words mean: Mene: God has numbered the days of your [Belshazzar] reign and brought it to an end. Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Peres: Your kingdom [Babylon] is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.’ That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.” (Daniel 5:26-28, 30-31, NIV 1984). Belshazzar was Nebuchadnezzar’s son. The Medes were later conquered by Cyrus of Persia.
God may have used Babylon, the epitome of evil empires, to bring judgment upon Judah, but He would later judge them for being “found wanting” when “weighed on the scales” of His righteousness. And when it is time for judgment, it comes swiftly, sometimes “that very night.“
My Advice – There will be a final judgment on this world and all who have inhabited it. “So, when you see all these things [end time signs], you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.” (Matthew 23:33-34, NIV 1984).
All of our days are numbered. We may not live to “see all these things” that Jesus mentioned. If not, one day our life on this earth will be “brought to an end.” The question we all must ask is, will we be “found wanting” on that day? Without Jesus, we will be. For we can never do enough to balance the scales, much less tip them in our favor.
“But [thankfully] God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners [when we were still powerless], Christ died for us [the ungodly].” (Romans 5:8, NIV 1984). Because of this, “to all who [receive] him, to those who [believe] in his name, he [gives] the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12, NIV 1984). To those who do, they may “go up to [New] Jerusalem.“
The Brew Is A Musing 