The Family That Returned to Serve the Sanctuary
The name Barkos is recorded twice in the Old Testament, identifying the head of a family who returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel after the Babylonian Captivity. His inclusion in the meticulous registers of Ezra and Nehemiah underscores the importance of every family—even those in humble service roles—in the grand work of rebuilding God’s nation.
The meaning of the name Barkos is uncertain, though some scholars suggest it may mean “painter” or “party-colored,” possibly indicating a trade or function connected to the ornamentation or maintenance of the Temple fabrics. More broadly, he is known by his association with the Nethinims.
The Humble Heritage of the Nethinims
Barkos’s descendants were part of the Nethinims (a name meaning “given ones”), a dedicated class of Temple servants who were consecrated to assist the Levites with the necessary manual labor of the sanctuary. Their tasks included drawing water, chopping wood, and performing other physical duties that allowed the priests and Levites to focus entirely on the spiritual and ritual aspects of worship.
The family of Barkos is recorded alongside other families of Nethinims who bravely left the settled life of exile to face the rigors of rebuilding a ruined city for the sake of God’s house:
Ezra 2:53 (KJV): “The children of Barkos, the children of Sisera, the children of Thamah,”
This same family is listed again in Nehemiah’s parallel record:
Nehemiah 7:55 (KJV): “The children of Barkos, the children of Sisera, the children of Tamah,”
The Significance of Consecrated Labor
The fact that the Holy Spirit ensured the preservation of Barkos’s name in these sacred rolls provides a profound Defence of the Truth concerning the nature of service in God’s Kingdom:
- Honoring All Labor: Barkos represents the forgotten laborer—those whose faithfulness is demonstrated through quiet, tireless, and often dirty work. His inclusion proves that in God’s eyes, the service of carrying wood and water is just as vital and worthy of remembrance as the service of the priest wearing the sacred vestments. The Temple could not function without the Nethinims.
- Commitment to the Covenant: The family of Barkos chose to return from Babylon. This was an act of profound faith, demonstrating their loyalty to the Covenant God and their dedication to the restoration of His appointed worship. Their ancestral dedication to the Sanctuary transcended their comfort in the foreign land.
The Defence of Diligence
The story of Barkos is a powerful reminder for those awaiting the Lord’s Return. In the “Defence of the Truth,” we must recognize that every single task performed for the sake of the Gospel and the purity of the Church is necessary and consecrated.
The Lord does not only value the public prophet or the leading scribe; He honors the quiet diligence of every servant. Like Barkos’s family, we are called to be “given ones,” offering our lives, our labor, and our gifts—no matter how humble—to the continuous work of maintaining the integrity of the Sanctuary until the King of Glory returns to fill it.