Foundation Laid
Overview
- Testament: Old
- Book: Ezra
- Chapters: Ezra 3:8-13
- Summary: The foundation of the second temple was laid by Zerubbabel and Jeshua with great ceremony; the priests and Levites led worship with trumpets and cymbals; older men who had seen Solomon’s temple wept while younger people shouted for joy.
Details
In the second year after the first returnees arrived in Jerusalem, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak began work on the temple, appointing Levites from age twenty upward to oversee the construction. When the builders laid the foundation, the priests in vestments with trumpets and the Levites with cymbals stood to praise the LORD, antiphonally singing “He is good; for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel” — and all the people shouted with a great shout praising the LORD.
But many of the priests and Levites and family heads — old men who had seen the first house (Solomon’s temple, destroyed in 586 BC) — wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation being laid. Others shouted aloud for joy. “So that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people: for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.” The mingling of tears and joy captured the ambiguity of the moment: this was a fulfillment of promise but a shadow of former glory.
Key People Involved
- Zerubbabel — Governor; son of Shealtiel; led the construction
- Jeshua — High priest; co-leader of the project
- Levites — Conducted the worship ceremony at the foundation laying
Key Places
- Jerusalem — Site of the temple and its foundation
- Temple Mount — Where the foundation was laid
Important Verses
“And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.” — Ezra 3:11
Cross-References
- Preceded by: First Return
- Followed by: Opposition Halts Work
- Followed by: Temple Completed
- Related: Temple Construction — Solomon’s original temple
- Related books: Ezra, Haggai
Notes
The prophet Haggai (2:3) later asked those who remembered Solomon’s temple: “Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?” The weeping of the elders reflects the contrast between the hoped-for and the actual. Yet God’s word through Haggai and Zechariah is: “The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former” (Haggai 2:9) — a promise understood by Christians as fulfilled when Jesus entered this rebuilt temple.