Scholarship, context and study plans for Come, Follow Me
“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD.” — Isaiah 1:18
Come, Follow Me · Old Testament 2026 · Week 31
“I Am Doing a Great Work”
July 27 – August 2, 2026Ezra 1; 3–7; Nehemiah 2; 4–6; 811 chapters · 214 verses
After seventy years in exile, the Persian king Cyrus lets the Jews go home to rebuild the temple. The returning exiles lay its foundation with shouts and tears, face opposition, stop, and start again when prophets urge them on. Decades later, Ezra the scribe comes to teach the law, and Nehemiah leaves the Persian court to rebuild Jerusalem's walls. Pressed to stop, Nehemiah answers, “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down.” Then the people gather to hear the scriptures, and weep, and rejoice.
Chapter
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Map
Place
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Study guide
Ezra and Nehemiah tell how the exiles came home and rebuilt. These notes give you the timeline and the key lessons about building amid opposition.
How to read this week
Keep three returns in mind. Zerubbabel leads the first return and rebuilds the temple (Ezra 1–6); Ezra comes decades later to teach (Ezra 7–10); Nehemiah comes after that to rebuild the walls (Nehemiah).
Read with Haggai and Zechariah. Ezra 5:1 mentions them. Their books show how they got the stalled temple work moving.
Watch how opposition works. Discouragement (Ezra 4:4), mockery (Neh 4:1–3), threats (4:8), distraction (6:2–3) and false reports (6:5–9). Nehemiah responds with prayer, vigilance and focus.
Notice the prayers. Nehemiah prays before speaking to the king (2:4), when attacked (4:9) and when tired (6:9). Short prayers in the middle of work.
End with Nehemiah 8. After all the building, the people's greatest moment is hearing and understanding the scriptures together.
Return and rebuilding
538 BC — Cyrus's decree; first return (Ezra 1)
536 BC — Temple foundation laid (Ezra 3)
c. 536–520 BC — Opposition; work stops (Ezra 4)
520–515 BC — Haggai and Zechariah; temple finished (Ezra 5–6)
c. 458 BC — Ezra comes to teach the law (Ezra 7)
c. 445 BC — Nehemiah rebuilds the walls in 52 days (Neh 2–6)
After the walls — Ezra reads the law to all the people (Neh 8)
Images and ideas to recognize
Passage
Image
What it means
Ezra 1:7
Temple vessels returned
Sacred things restored.
Ezra 3:12
Weeping and shouting
Mixed emotions in rebuilding.
Neh 2:13
Broken walls inspected by night
Honestly assessing what needs to be rebuilt.
Neh 4:17
Tool in one hand, weapon in the other
Building while staying vigilant.
Neh 6:3
Not coming down
Refusing distractions from the Lord's work.
Neh 8:5
Standing for the word
Reverence for scripture.
Restoration connections
Isaiah 44:28; 45:1 — Isaiah names Cyrus as the Lord's anointed, long beforehand.
D&C 64:33 — “Out of small things proceedeth that which is great.”
D&C 109:5 — The Saints built the Kirtland Temple “out of our poverty,” as the exiles did.
2 Nephi 32:3 — Feasting on the words of Christ.
Questions for the week
What “great work” has the Lord given you that you shouldn't “come down” from (Neh 6:3)?
How do you respond to discouragement when you're trying to build something good (Ezra 4:4)?
Ezra prepared his heart to seek, do and teach the law. Which of those three needs your attention (Ezra 7:10)?
When has a quick prayer in the moment helped you (Neh 2:4)?
How can scripture study be a source of joy and strength (Neh 8:8–10)?
Conference talks & Church resources
Talks the Church's lesson points to this week, plus other Church resources that teach from these chapters.
Scholarly papers
Faithful scholarship from BYU and related publishers, tagged with the chapters each one discusses.
Podcasts & video
Come, Follow Me shows and episodes covering this week's reading.