The families of Judah and Benjamin found themselves in a hostile pagan world. This situation required considerable faith and hope, since they were now a minority group in a land that had been promised by the Lord to the descendants of Abraham forever, and they had been commissioned with the monumental task of rebuilding the temple at Jerusalem. They were craftsmen and workers. They were not skilled warriors.
These pagan groups came to Zerubbabel with an offer to assist in rebuilding the temple; an offer that was rejected by the families of Israel because it was obvious that the real desire of the pagans was to sabotage the effort.
When that attempt to halt the construction of the temple failed, the pagan people turned to discouragement, intimidation, and fear. They hired lobbyists to persuade Cyrus, king of Persia, to stop the building. Those attempts also failed, but they finally convinced King Artaxerxes, during his reign, to order and force the work to stop.
The building of the temple was stopped for 15 years, but the Israelites were not discouraged or afraid. There were plenty of promises by God (2 Samuel 7) that lifted their faith in believing God would protect them and eventually reverse His judgment against Israel for their continual sinning.
Do you put your faith and trust in the Lord? Do you look to Him daily for direction and security? Psalm 91:14 says, “’Because he loves me,’ says the Lord, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.’”
Regarding Psalm 91, Halley’s Bible Handbook says, “One of the best-loved psalms. Magnificent! Amazing promise of security to those who trust God.”
