In the seventh month, the people gathered as one in Jerusalem, and Jeshua son of Jozadak with the priests and Zerubbabel with his kinsmen built the altar of the God of Israel to offer burnt offerings according to Moses' law, despite their fear of the surrounding peoples. They celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles with its prescribed daily burnt offerings, along with the offerings for new moons and all the appointed feasts of the Lord, from the first day of the seventh month, though the temple foundation had not yet been laid. In the second year, the Levites supervised the work, and when the builders laid the foundation of the Lord's temple, the priests in vestments with trumpets and the Levites with cymbals praised the Lord according to David's direction; but while many shouted with joy, the older men who had seen the first temple wept loudly, and the mingled sound of weeping and shouting was heard far away.
Read Ezra Chapter 3 Summary
Characters in This Chapter
Priest and scribe who led the second return and addressed intermarriage
Leader of the first return who oversaw temple rebuilding
Persian king who decreed the Jews could return and rebuild the temple
Prophet and Lawgiver
First High Priest of the Second Temple
Son of Jacob, Ancestor of David and Christ
Levite Musician and Psalmist
King of Israel
Places in This Chapter
The Temple in Jerusalem was the permanent house of worship built by Solomon on Mount Moriah. Destroyed by Babylon, it was rebuilt by Zerubbabel and later greatly expanded by Herod. Jesus taught in the Temple courts, cleared it of merchants, and predicted its destruction, which occurred in 70 AD.
Persia (modern Iran) was a major empire that conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. King Cyrus issued the decree permitting the temple's reconstruction. The books of Esther and Daniel are set partly in the Persian court. Nehemiah served as cupbearer to the Persian king Artaxerxes before returning to rebuild Jerusalem's walls.
Position in Book
Altar rebuilt, temple foundation laid, opposition faced, work completed under Darius.