Introduction to 4 Ezra
Besides the canonical book Ezra, there are also a numerous extrabiblical writings that pseudonymously are attributed to Ezra. In 458 B.C., Ezra led a group of repatriating Jews back to Jerusalem from captivity under the approval and financial underwriting of the Persian government. Since he was a scribe, he was commissioned to establish and enforce the Law within the fabric of the resettled covenant community. Wright, speaking of Ezra, says that he was "ultimately regarded as second only to Moses as a divinely inspired lawgiver."1
The book known as 4 Ezra is a compilation of three textual traditions.2 Together, these three traditions make up sixteen chapters and form what we today know as 4 Ezra. The central chapters of the book (3-14) are a Jewish apocalypse, with a later Christian addition added to the front (chapters 1-2) and a later Christian addition added to the end as an appendix/conclusion (chapters 15-16). The book is not difficult to outline in its macro structure. The three textual traditions provide the broadest structure as outlined below.
- 1-2 Introduction
- 3-14 Seven Visions
- Appendix
Such an outline, however, is not helpful in terms of the actual content of the book. The essential content is found in the seven visions Ezra receives. A breakdown of that content is presented in bullet form below.
- Vision One (3:1-5:20): The subject broached: Why has God given over His people to the Gentiles?
- Vision Two (5:21-6:34): The issue clarified: Should not God's people be punished by God's own hands?
- Vision Three (6:35-9:25): The question of design: Why does not Israel inherit the world, if they are God's special creation?
- Vision Four (9:26-10:59): The Weeping Woman/Zion: Ezra's Catharsis.
- Vision Five (11:1-12:51): The Eagle and the Lion: Messianic Judgment of Rome.
- Vision Six (13:1-58): The Man from the Sea: Messiah on top of Mt. Zion.
- Vision Seven (14:1-48): The Voice in the Bush: Ezra the Scribe.
There is a change in the presentation of the material beginning with the fourth vision. Prior to this, the first three visions were presented in a dialogue format. Vision Four is transitional and pivotal in that the vision regards Jerusalem's utterly broken down condition. Hence, Ezra breaks down as well. No more does Ezra call God into question, but rather draws the same conclusion as God. Finally, then, he is ready for the last three visions, which are eschatological and filled with much apocalyptic imagery.
Notes
1J. E. Wright, "Esdras, Books of," in Dictionary of New Testament Backgrounds, eds. Craig A. Evans and Stanley Porter (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000): 337.
2For an explanation of the nomenclature of the Ezra-Esdras tradition, see under: Texts and Languages.
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