Day 54 · Ezra 5–6; Zechariah 8–9
Old Testament · Phase 6 · Exile & Return
Temple completed and dedicated; Messianic king prophecy
Ezra 5–6
Section titled “Ezra 5–6”Temple Rebuilding Resumes
1Later, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. 2Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak rose up and began to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them, helping them.
3At that time Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates went to the Jews and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?”
4They also asked, “What are the names of the men who are constructing this building?”
5But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, so that they were not stopped until a report was sent to Darius and written instructions about this matter were returned.
Tattenai’s Letter to Darius
6This is the text of the letter that Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates, the officials in the region, sent to King Darius. 7The report they sent him read as follows:
To King Darius:
All peace.
8Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. The people are rebuilding it with large stones and placing timbers in the walls. This work is being carried out diligently and is prospering in their hands.
9So we questioned the elders and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?”
10We also asked for their names, so that we could write down the names of their leaders for your information.
11And this is the answer they returned:
“We are servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed. 12But since our fathers angered the God of heaven, He delivered them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean who destroyed this temple and carried away the people to Babylon.
13In the first year of his reign, however, Cyrus king of Babylon issued a decree to rebuild this house of God. 14He also removed from the temple of Babylon the gold and silver articles belonging to the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken and carried there from the temple in Jerusalem. King Cyrus gave these articles to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom he appointed governor 15and instructed, ‘Take these articles, put them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its original site.’
16So this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundation of the house of God in Jerusalem, and from that time until now it has been under construction, but it has not yet been completed.”
17Now, therefore, if it pleases the king, let a search be made of the royal archives in Babylon to see if King Cyrus did indeed issue a decree to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us his decision in this matter.
The Decree of Darius
1Thus King Darius ordered a search of the archives stored in the treasury of Babylon. 2And a scroll was found in the fortress of Ecbatana, in the province of Media, with the following written on it:
Memorandum:
3In the first year of King Cyrus, he issued a decree concerning the house of God in Jerusalem:
Let the house be rebuilt as a place for offering sacrifices, and let its foundations be firmly laid. It is to be sixty cubits high and sixty cubits wide, 4with three layers of cut stones and one of timbers. The costs are to be paid from the royal treasury.
5Furthermore, the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and carried to Babylon, must also be returned to the temple in Jerusalem and deposited in the house of God.
6Therefore Darius decreed:
To Tattenai governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and your associates and officials in the region:
You must stay away from that place! 7Leave this work on the house of God alone. Let the governor and elders of the Jews rebuild this house of God on its original site.
8I hereby decree what you must do for these elders of the Jews who are rebuilding this house of God:
The cost is to be paid in full to these men from the royal treasury out of the taxes of the provinces west of the Euphrates, so that the work will not be hindered. 9Whatever is needed— young bulls, rams, and lambs for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, as well as wheat, salt, wine, and oil, as requested by the priests in Jerusalem— must be given to them daily without fail. 10Then they will be able to offer sacrifices of a sweet aroma to the God of heaven and to pray for the lives of the king and his sons.
11I also decree that if any man interferes with this directive, a beam is to be torn from his house and raised up, and he is to be impaled on it. And his own house shall be made a pile of rubble for this offense. 12May God, who has caused His Name to dwell there, overthrow any king or people who lifts a hand to alter this decree or to destroy this house of God in Jerusalem.
I, Darius, have issued the decree. Let it be carried out with diligence.
The Temple Completed
13In response, Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates diligently carried out what King Darius had decreed. 14So the Jewish elders built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo.
They finished building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia. 15And this temple was completed on the third day of the month of Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
Dedication of the Temple
16Then the people of Israel — the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the exiles — celebrated the dedication of the house of God with joy.
17For the dedication of the house of God they offered a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and a sin offering for all Israel of twelve male goats, one for each tribe of Israel.
18They also appointed the priests by their divisions and the Levites by their groups to the service of God in Jerusalem, according to what is written in the Book of Moses.
The Returned Exiles Keep the Passover
19On the fourteenth day of the first month, the exiles kept the Passover. 20All the priests and Levites had purified themselves and were ceremonially clean.
And the Levites slaughtered the Passover lamb for all the exiles, for their priestly brothers, and for themselves. 21The Israelites who had returned from exile ate it, together with all who had separated themselves from the uncleanness of the peoples of the land to seek the LORD, the God of Israel.
22For seven days they kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread with joy, because the LORD had made them joyful and turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them to strengthen their hands in the work on the house of the God of Israel.
Zechariah 8–9
Section titled “Zechariah 8–9”The Restoration of Jerusalem
1Again the word of the LORD of Hosts came to me, saying: 2This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I am jealous for Zion with great zeal; I am jealous for her with great fervor.”
3This is what the LORD says: “I will return to Zion and dwell in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of Hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.”
4This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Old men and old women will again sit along the streets of Jerusalem, each with a staff in hand because of great age. 5And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing there.”
6This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “If this is impossible in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be impossible in My eyes?” declares the LORD of Hosts.
7This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I will save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the west. 8I will bring them back to dwell in Jerusalem, where they will be My people, and I will be their faithful and righteous God.”
9This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Let your hands be strong, you who now hear these words spoken by the prophets who were present when the foundations were laid to rebuild the temple, the house of the LORD of Hosts. 10For before those days neither man nor beast received wages, nor was there safety from the enemy for anyone who came or went, for I had turned every man against his neighbor. 11But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as I did in the past,” declares the LORD of Hosts.
12“For the seed will be prosperous, the vine will yield its fruit, the ground will yield its produce, and the skies will give their dew. To the remnant of this people I will give all these things as an inheritance. 13As you have been a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid; let your hands be strong.”
14For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Just as I resolved to bring disaster upon you when your fathers provoked Me to anger, and I did not relent,” says the LORD of Hosts, 15“so now I have resolved to do good again to Jerusalem and Judah. Do not be afraid. 16These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another, render true and sound judgments in your gates, 17do not plot evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and do not love to swear falsely, for I hate all these things,” declares the LORD.
18Then the word of the LORD of Hosts came to me, saying, 19“This is what the LORD of Hosts says: The fasts of the fourth, the fifth, the seventh, and the tenth months will become times of joy and gladness, cheerful feasts for the house of Judah. Therefore you are to love both truth and peace.”
20This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Peoples will yet come — the residents of many cities — 21and the residents of one city will go to another, saying: ‘Let us go at once to plead before the LORD and to seek the LORD of Hosts. I myself am going.’ 22And many peoples and strong nations will come to seek the LORD of Hosts in Jerusalem and to plead before the LORD.”
23This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “In those days ten men from the nations of every tongue will tightly grasp the robe of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’”
The Burden against Israel’s Enemies
1This is the burden of the word of the LORD
against the land of Hadrach
and Damascus its resting place—
for the eyes of men
and of all the tribes of Israel
are upon the LORD—
2and also against Hamath,
which borders it,
as well as Tyre and Sidon,
though they are very shrewd.
3Tyre has built herself a fortress;
she has heaped up silver like dust,
and gold like the dirt of the streets.
4Behold, the Lord will impoverish her
and cast her wealth into the sea,
and she will be consumed by fire.
5Ashkelon will see and fear;
Gaza will writhe in agony,
as will Ekron,
for her hope will wither.
There will cease to be a king in Gaza,
and Ashkelon will be uninhabited.
6A mixed race will occupy Ashdod,
and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.
7I will remove the blood from their mouths
and the abominations from between their teeth.
Then they too will become a remnant for our God;
they will become like a clan in Judah,
and Ekron will be like the Jebusites.
8But I will camp around My house because of an army,
because of those who march to and fro,
and never again will an oppressor overrun My people,
for now I keep watch with My own eyes.
Zion’s Coming King
9Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O Daughter of Jerusalem!
See, your King comes to you,
righteous and victorious,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
10And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the horse from Jerusalem,
and the bow of war will be broken.
Then He will proclaim peace to the nations.
His dominion will extend from sea to sea,
and from the Euphrates
to the ends of the earth.
11As for you,
because of the blood of My covenant,
I will release your prisoners
from the waterless pit.
12Return to your stronghold,
O prisoners of hope;
even today I declare
that I will restore to you double.
13For I will bend Judah as My bow
and fit it with Ephraim.
I will rouse your sons, O Zion,
against the sons of Greece.
I will make you like the sword
of a mighty man.
The LORD Will Save His People
14Then the LORD will appear over them,
and His arrow will go forth like lightning.
The Lord GOD will sound the ram’s horn
and advance in the whirlwinds of the south.
15The LORD of Hosts will shield them.
They will destroy and conquer with slingstones;
they will drink and roar as with wine.
And they will be filled like sprinkling bowls,
drenched like the corners of the altar.
16On that day the LORD their God will save them
as the flock of His people;
for like jewels in a crown
they will sparkle over His land.
17How lovely they will be,
and how beautiful!
Grain will make the young men flourish,
and new wine, the young women.