For the past several months, I decided to study the character and history of Nehemiah. It was here that I encountered the scribe-priest Ezra. Of Ezra, we read:

He had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments (Ezra 7:10).

Ezra was considered very mighty in the Scriptures. His own heart had been gripped by the truth of God's Word. Writes HA Ironside in his commentary on Ezra:

The Lord not only prepared Ezra's head, but his heart. His inmost being was brought under the sway of the truth of God. His affections were controlled by Scripture (p.44)

The bent of Ezra's life was Scripture. It permeated his soul. His heart was preoccupied with the Lord and with what the Lord had to say. Ezra did not treat truth casually. His mind and heart took seriously what he was entrusted with. He made it his responsibility to:

Put the Word to heart (SOUL PERMEATED)
DO it in the life he lived (LIVED OUT ACTIVELY)
Teach and instruct others (EXPLAINED TO MAKE SENSE
Entrust #3 to others who are defined by #1 and #2 (REPRODUCE/REPEAT)

Ezra refused to treat the truth casually. He walked the people through confession and a marked moment of repentance through the profound yet simple reading of the Scriptures. He read the Word ALOUD to the people (I love this!). There is a reference in the book of Nehemiah that he read from dawn till noon. Imagine that?! I think we fear in our time-driven culture that people would never show up if we read the Word for an hour, let alone 5-6. But the people's hearts were gripped, and they wept over the Word. Ezra spoke, repeated, and explained it. He appointed others to do the same. It transformed the people and affected the culture.

If curiosity has grabbed your heart and you want to know more, pick up your Bible and read Ezra and Nehemiah. I think you will be drawn in by the courage of these men and how their hearts resonated with the truth for God's Great Plan for His Chosen People, Israel. Let your own soul be gripped by these underrated and very underestimated men of God.