Keepers of the Covenant, the second book in Lynn Austin’s Restoration Chronicles series, was an excellent book for me to review right now as my Bible study group is diving into Nehemiah, the companion book to Ezra.
Lynn Austin does an excellent job of bringing to life Ezra, a Jewish Bible scholar, who was one of the Jews threatened by King Xerxes’ edict that all the Jews would be killed. With Queen Esther’s help, the Jews were given the opportunity to fight back and survived the attack by their enemies. Unwillingly, Ezra was thrown into a leadership role as he saw his people forgetting even just a year later how God saved them from total destruction. As Ezra realized how quickly the Jews were becoming like the Gentiles, he realized that the only way to truly save his people was to take them back to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple.
Ezra’s story is one of listening to God’s voice and following Him despite opposition from even well-meaning family and friends. Ezra’s faithfulness to God resulted in the beginning of a new era for the Jews as they made their way back to their homeland.
Lynn Austin has obviously done her research. She clearly demonstrates in-depth knowledge of biblical accounts, Jewish customs, geography, and historical details as she brings to life different people who could have lived during Ezra’s day.
One of the best things about this book was that it pointed me back to my Bible, encouraging me to delve into Ezra for myself to be sure that the author was not taking away from what the Bible has to say. I have found myself more intrigued by Ezra and what led him to rebuild Jerusalem.
I would definitely recommend this book, but I encourage you to keep a Bible nearby in order to compare any information with what God says.
*This book was provided to me in return for my honest review by Bethany House Publishers.
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