All biblical narrative is about Messiah-Jesus.

Mark Lauterbach is studying Ezra-Nehemiah: "I am studying through Ezra-Nehemiah these days as we lead the church in understanding how God fulfills his promises for his everlasting kingdom. Set in the century after the exile, these books record the activity of God to rebuild the temple, the law, and the city of Jerusalem. It would be very easy to study these for purely historical interest. Or, more commonly, to study these for "leadership principles." Neither of these is true to a Gospel driven approach. All biblical narrative is about Messiah-Jesus. This is not exception. The opening verses of Ezra are a thunderclap about God's ways. Ezra 1:1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom. Here is what God has taught me. These words seem simple, as a record of history, but behind them lies the covenant of God with Abraham -- a covenant to bless all nations through his ultimate Messiah-son. That covenant restrained the hand of God's justice against his people so that a remnant survived. That covenant God is working to fulfill here. Behind them lies the covenant at Sinai and the clear conditions of obedience and the blessing of the land that will follow, or the curses of judgment that come with disobedience. Those curses came to pass after 800 years of patience by God toward his people. That covenant failed and the new covenant became a "felt need." Behind these words lies the promise of God through Isaiah -- that God would raise up the King Cyrus, and through him he would rebuild the city and the temple after exile. (see Isaiah 44-45). Behind these words lies the promise of God through Jeremiah (ch 25 and 29) that the exile would last 70 years.