Ezra 4:7-11: a reflection

7In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his companions wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in Syrian and delivered in the Syrian language. 8Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows. 9Then Rehum the chancellor, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions, the Dinaites, and the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Shushanchites, the Dehaites, the Elamites, 10and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnappar brought over and settled in the city of Samaria, and in the rest of the country beyond the River, and so forth, wrote. 11This is the copy of the letter that they sent: To King Artaxerxes, from your servants, the people beyond the River.

As the returned exiles set about rebuilding Jerusalem, their work does not go unopposed. Their adversaries organize against them, writing an official letter of accusation to the king of Persia, seeking to have the rebuilding stopped through slander and political maneuvering. The good work of restoring the city and its worship met determined, organized opposition, using official channels and false accusations to hinder it. Those who set out to do God's work found it resisted.

Notice that good work provoked opposition. The rebuilding of Jerusalem was a good and God-honoring work, yet it did not proceed unopposed; adversaries rose up to hinder it, using slander and official complaint. This is a recurring pattern: good work, work that honors God, often meets resistance and opposition, sometimes organized and determined, sometimes using unfair or dishonest means. We should not be surprised when the good we set out to do meets opposition.

That is worth remembering when our own efforts to do good meet resistance. We may hope that good work will be welcomed and supported; but often it is opposed, sometimes fiercely, sometimes unfairly. The opposition the exiles faced did not mean they were wrong to build; it was simply the resistance that good work often provokes. When your efforts to do good, to serve God, to build something worthwhile, meet opposition, do not be discouraged into thinking you must be on the wrong path. Opposition often accompanies good work. Persevere, entrust the outcome to God, who is greater than those who oppose, and do not let resistance turn you from the good you are called to do.

Lord, when the exiles set about the good work of rebuilding Jerusalem, they met determined, organized opposition, slander and official complaint aimed at stopping them. Remind me that good work often provokes such resistance. When my own efforts to do good, to serve you, to build something worthwhile, meet opposition, sometimes fierce, sometimes unfair, keep me from being discouraged into thinking I must be on the wrong path. Opposition often accompanies good work; it does not mean I am wrong to do it. Help me persevere, entrusting the outcome to you, who are greater than those who oppose. Do not let resistance turn me from the good you have called me to do. Give me courage and endurance to keep building, even against opposition, trusting you with the result.