Ezr 2:62 | KingComments | STEP | Seventy years of Babylon has weakened the thought of inheritance and priestly privileges in the hearts of some. If we don’t appreciate both, we lose the right to it in a practical sense. God knows who belongs to Him. He knows His own. But we must prove “our genealogy” by abstaining from wickedness and pursuing ... ( ). In the land of exile, not much care has been taken about claims and privileges. Some are now paying for this. Those who cannot show their genealogy cannot participate in the work and priests cannot perform their service. They are not told that they are not priests, but they must wait until it is proved, that is, until the time that God can make it clear. For us, it means that a certain confession alone is not enough. At a time when Babylon rules and deliverance from it takes place, it is important that God’s Word shows us the way in receiving believers as priests at ‘the altar’, which is the Table of the Lord. Any danger of mixing with the (Christian) world must be recognized and must not take place. In the first days of the church no one dared to join the church that did not belong to it ( ). Then the Spirit can still work powerfully. It is not necessary to prove that someone belongs to the church in that good condition. However, that time is long gone. What was neglected in Babylon is now necessary to maintain. They want to remain unmixed Israel, now that they have felt what it means to have to do with the nations. They have experienced the anger and power of those from whom they previously sought help. “The most holy things” of which may be eaten ( ) are the meat offering ( ), the sin offering ( ) and the trespass offering ( ). That there is no priest with Urim (Urim means “lights”) and Thummim (Thummim means “perfections”) is weakness. There is also no moderation of a power they do not possess. There is faithfulness to wait for that priest to come. For us, that priest, the Lord Jesus, has already acted. In the future, if God’s people are utterly incapable of asserting any right to the blessing, He will be there. Now there are no priests except those who are acknowledged as such by Christ ( ). Any uncertainty is solved by going to Christ. We show our genealogy among believers through our walk, the ways we go, the spirit we reveal and by serving in love. Demetrius has such a testimony, Diotrephes does not ( ). When the brothers and sisters see spiritual features in us, we prove our genealogy. Young people show their genealogy when they enjoy being with the saints, show interest in the meetings and what they hear there, read what builds them up spiritually and are not ashamed to confess Christ.

‏ Ezra 2:62

Those Who Could Not Prove Their Ancestry

Seventy years of Babylon has weakened the thought of inheritance and priestly privileges in the hearts of some. If we don’t appreciate both, we lose the right to it in a practical sense. God knows who belongs to Him. He knows His own. But we must prove “our genealogy” by abstaining from wickedness and pursuing ... (2Tim 2:19-22).

In the land of exile, not much care has been taken about claims and privileges. Some are now paying for this. Those who cannot show their genealogy cannot participate in the work and priests cannot perform their service. They are not told that they are not priests, but they must wait until it is proved, that is, until the time that God can make it clear.

For us, it means that a certain confession alone is not enough. At a time when Babylon rules and deliverance from it takes place, it is important that God’s Word shows us the way in receiving believers as priests at ‘the altar’, which is the Table of the Lord. Any danger of mixing with the (Christian) world must be recognized and must not take place.

In the first days of the church no one dared to join the church that did not belong to it (Acts 5:13). Then the Spirit can still work powerfully. It is not necessary to prove that someone belongs to the church in that good condition. However, that time is long gone.

What was neglected in Babylon is now necessary to maintain. They want to remain unmixed Israel, now that they have felt what it means to have to do with the nations. They have experienced the anger and power of those from whom they previously sought help.

“The most holy things” of which may be eaten (Ezra 2:63) are the meat offering (Lev 6:17), the sin offering (Lev 6:25-26) and the trespass offering (Lev 7:6). That there is no priest with Urim (Urim means “lights”) and Thummim (Thummim means “perfections”) is weakness. There is also no moderation of a power they do not possess. There is faithfulness to wait for that priest to come.

For us, that priest, the Lord Jesus, has already acted. In the future, if God’s people are utterly incapable of asserting any right to the blessing, He will be there. Now there are no priests except those who are acknowledged as such by Christ (Rev 1:6a). Any uncertainty is solved by going to Christ.

We show our genealogy among believers through our walk, the ways we go, the spirit we reveal and by serving in love. Demetrius has such a testimony, Diotrephes does not (3Jn 1:9-10 ; 12). When the brothers and sisters see spiritual features in us, we prove our genealogy. Young people show their genealogy when they enjoy being with the saints, show interest in the meetings and what they hear there, read what builds them up spiritually and are not ashamed to confess Christ.