Ezra — Chapter 3
Loading ESV text...
1And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.
2Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.
3And they set the altar upon his bases; for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries: and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD, even burnt offerings morning and evening.
4They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the custom, as the duty of every day required;
5And afterward offered the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of the LORD that were consecrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill offering unto the LORD.
6From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the LORD. But the foundation of the temple of the LORD was not yet laid.
7They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and oil, unto them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia.
8Now in the second year of their coming unto the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the remnant of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all they that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem; and appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to set forward the work of the house of the LORD.
9Then stood Jeshua with his sons and his brethren, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together, to set forward the workmen in the house of God: the sons of Henadad, with their sons and their brethren the Levites.
10And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the LORD, after the ordinance of David king of Israel.
11And 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.
12But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy:
13So 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.
1And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.
2Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.
3And they set the altar upon its base; for fear was upon them because of the peoples of the countries: and they offered burnt-offerings thereon unto Jehovah, even burnt-offerings morning and evening.
4And they kept the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and [offered] the daily burnt-offerings by number, according to the ordinance, as the duty of every day required;
5and afterward the continual burnt-offering, and [the offerings] of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of Jehovah that were consecrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill-offering unto Jehovah.
6From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt-offerings unto Jehovah: but the foundation of the temple of Jehovah was not yet laid.
7They gave money also unto the masons, and to the carpenters; and food, and drink, and oil, unto them of Sidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar-trees from Lebanon to the sea, unto Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia.
8Now in the second year of their coming unto the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all they that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem, and appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to have the oversight of the work of the house of Jehovah.
9Then stood Jeshua with his sons and his brethren, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together, to have the oversight of the workmen in the house of God: the sons of Henadad, with their sons and their brethren the Levites.
10And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of Jehovah, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise Jehovah, after the order of David king of Israel.
11And they sang one to another in praising and giving thanks unto Jehovah, [saying], For he is good, for his lovingkindness [endureth] for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised Jehovah, because the foundation of the house of Jehovah was laid.
12But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers` [houses], the old men that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy:
13so 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.
1When the seventh month arrived and the Israelites were living in their towns, the people assembled in Jerusalem.
2Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak and his priestly colleagues and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his colleagues started to build the altar of the God of Israel so they could offer burnt offerings on it as required by the law of Moses the man of God.
3They established the altar on its foundations, even though they were in terror of the local peoples, and they offered burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and the evening offerings.
4They observed the Feast of Shelters as required and offered the proper number of daily burnt offerings according to the requirement for each day.
5Afterward they offered the continual burnt offerings and those for the new moons and those for all the holy assemblies of the Lord and all those that were being voluntarily offered to the Lord.
6From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord. However, the Lord’s temple was not at that time established.
7So they provided money for the masons and carpenters, and food, beverages, and olive oil for the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar timber from Lebanon to the seaport at Joppa, in accord with the edict of King Cyrus of Persia.
8In the second year after they had come to the temple of God in Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak initiated the work, along with the rest of their associates, the priests and the Levites, and all those who were coming to Jerusalem from the exile. They appointed the Levites who were at least twenty years old to take charge of the work on the Lord’s temple.
9So Jeshua appointed both his sons and his relatives, Kadmiel and his sons (the sons of Yehudah), to take charge of the workers in the temple of God, along with the sons of Henadad, their sons, and their relatives the Levites.
10When the builders established the Lord’s temple, the priests, ceremonially attired and with their clarions, and the Levites (the sons of Asaph) with their cymbals, stood to praise the Lord according to the instructions left by King David of Israel.
11With antiphonal response they sang, praising and glorifying the Lord: “For he is good; his loyal love toward Israel is forever.” All the people gave a loud shout as they praised the Lord when the temple of the Lord was established.
12Many of the priests, the Levites, and the leaders—older people who had seen with their own eyes the former temple while it was still established—were weeping loudly, and many others raised their voice in a joyous shout.
13People were unable to tell the difference between the sound of joyous shouting and the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people were shouting so loudly that the sound was heard a long way off.
1When the seventh month had come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.
2Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak stood up with his brothers the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brothers, and built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.
3In spite of their fear because of the peoples of the surrounding lands, they set the altar on its base; and they offered burnt offerings on it to Yahweh, even burnt offerings morning and evening.
4They kept the feast of tents, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the ordinance, as the duty of every day required;
5and afterward the continual burnt offering, the offerings of the new moons, of all the set feasts of Yahweh that were consecrated, and of everyone who willingly offered a freewill offering to Yahweh.
6From the first day of the seventh month, they began to offer burnt offerings to Yahweh; but the foundation of Yahweh’s temple was not yet laid.
7They also gave money to the masons, and to the carpenters. They also gave food, drink, and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the grant that they had from Cyrus King of Persia.
8Now in the second year of their coming to God’s house at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brothers the priests and the Levites, and all those who had come out of the captivity to Jerusalem, began the work and appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to have the oversight of the work of Yahweh’s house.
9Then Jeshua stood with his sons and his brothers, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together, to have the oversight of the workmen in God’s house: the sons of Henadad, with their sons and their brothers the Levites.
10When the builders laid the foundation of Yahweh’s temple, they set the priests in their clothing with trumpets, with the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise Yahweh, according to the directions of David king of Israel.
11They sang to one another in praising and giving thanks to Yahweh, “For he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever toward Israel.” All the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised Yahweh, because the foundation of Yahweh’s house had been laid.
12But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ households, the old men who had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice. Many also shouted aloud for joy,
13so 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 far away.
Summary
The returned exiles rebuild the altar and restore daily sacrifices, then lay the foundation of the new Temple with celebration. The older men who remembered Solomon's Temple weep while the younger generation shouts for joy, creating a bittersweet scene.
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- The geographic arc: Babylon → Jerusalem (~900-mile journey through the Fertile Crescent). Two returns: 538 BC under Zerubbabel and 458 BC under Ezra.
- Jerusalem is the destination — the Temple is rebuilt (516 BC) and worship restored.
- The journey followed major trade routes along the Euphrates River, through Syria, then south into Judah — a 4-month trek (Ezra 7:9).
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik emphasizes that the altar was built before the Temple — showing that access to God through sacrifice is more fundamental than buildings. He notes the "fear" of v.3 actually motivated worship rather than paralysis, and draws attention to the bittersweet mixture of weeping and joy as a model for honest emotional response in worship.
- Charles Spurgeon: "The old men wept and the young men shouted — and both were right. The elders remembered a greater glory and mourned its loss; the youth rejoiced in present mercy and thanked God for new beginnings. Let neither rebuke the other. In every work of God there is cause for both tears and triumph. The past had glories we shall not see again this side of heaven; the present has mercies we must not despise. But note well: they built the altar first, before the Temple walls arose. Worship before architecture! Sacrifice before structure! If your heart is right with God, you need not wait for perfect circumstances to begin praising Him."
Reflection
- 1. Worship doesn't wait for perfect conditions (vv.2-3). The altar was built before the Temple, before the walls, before safety was secured. You don't need perfect circumstances to worship — you need a willing heart. If you're waiting for your life to be in order before you commit to worship, you've reversed God's priority. Worship first; let everything else be built around it.
- 2. Fear can drive you toward God rather than away (v.3). The people were afraid of hostile neighbors — and their response was to build an altar, not a fortress. When you face threats, is your first instinct to seek God or to seek self-protection? Make worship your first response to fear, not your last resort.
- 3. It's okay to grieve while others celebrate (vv.12-13). The old men wept; the young men shouted. Neither group was wrong. If you have experienced loss — of a spouse, a ministry, a season of life — you may feel grief even in moments of new beginning. That grief is not faithlessness; it is honest love for what was. Give yourself permission to feel both joy and sorrow in God's presence.
- 4. Start where you are with what you have (vv.6-7). The foundation was modest compared to Solomon's. But they didn't wait for resources equal to Solomon's wealth — they began with what they had. God does not require you to match previous generations' achievements. He requires faithfulness with your present resources. Begin the work; let God handle the comparison.
- 5. Follow God's Word, not human innovation (v.2). Everything was done "as it is written in the law of Moses." Restoration meant returning to Scripture, not inventing new approaches. In your own spiritual rebuilding, let the Bible set the pattern. Don't look to culture or convenience — look to "what is written."