The Book of Ezra

Word Study

"builded the altar," Hebrew va-yivnu eth-mizbach (וַיִּבְנוּ אֶת־מִזְבַּח). The very first thing the returned exiles built was not their own homes, not the city walls, not even the temple, but "the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses." Worship came first. The leaders, Jeshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the governor, together "stood up" and built the altar on its old foundations, and restored the "burnt offerings morning and evening," the daily worship the law required. And so, before anything else was secure, the fire of sacrifice was burning again on the altar of God.

"for fear was upon them," ki be-eimah aleihem (כִּי בְּאֵימָה עֲלֵיהֶם), for dread was upon them. Note the striking phrase: they did this "for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries." The surrounding peoples were hostile, and the little community was afraid. Yet the fear did not stop them; if anything, it drove them to the altar. When surrounded by enemies and full of dread, they turned first to God in worship. This is faith's instinct: not to let fear silence worship, but to worship in the very teeth of fear. They could not yet build the temple, but they could build the altar; they could not remove the danger, but they could seek the LORD.

Explanation

The returned exiles' first priority was worship. Before building the temple or securing the city, the leaders Jeshua and Zerubbabel rebuilt the altar and restored the daily morning and evening burnt offerings commanded in the law of Moses. Remarkably, they did this even though they were afraid of the hostile peoples around them. Their fear did not stop their worship; it drove them to the altar. Surrounded by danger, they turned first to God. Faith worships in the presence of fear rather than letting fear silence worship.

Gospel Focus

That the exiles "builded the altar" first, and did so though "fear was upon them," teaches two Gospel truths. First, worship comes first. Before we secure our own comfort or safety, God calls us to seek Him: "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). The altar before the house is the right order of every rebuilt life. Second, faith worships in spite of fear. The little community was surrounded by enemies and full of dread, yet they built the altar and offered to God. So we are called to worship and trust even when afraid: "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee" (Psalm 56:3); "Fear thou not; for I am with thee" (Isaiah 41:10). Fear is not the death of faith; faith is trusting God through the fear. And the altar itself points to Christ, our altar and our sacrifice, "we have an altar" (Hebrews 13:10), the once-for-all offering of the Lamb of God. The daily burnt offerings that the exiles restored were shadows of Him. Build the altar first; worship though you tremble; and rest in the finished sacrifice of Christ, to whom every offering pointed.

Word Study

"his mercy endureth for ever," Hebrew ki le-olam chasdo (כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ), for His covenant love (chesed) is everlasting. When the foundation of the temple was laid, the priests and Levites led the people in praise "after the ordinance of David king of Israel" (v10), and they sang the ancient refrain: "because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel." This is the same great song that was sung when Solomon's temple was dedicated (2 Chronicles 5:13; 7:3), and that fills Psalm 136, the everlasting chesed, the covenant-keeping love of God. The returned exiles, standing on the foundation of a new and lesser temple, reached back to the same eternal truth: God is good, and His mercy never ends. It was that unending mercy that had brought them home from Babylon; it was that mercy they now celebrated. The song that had marked the glory of the first temple now marked the humble beginning of the second: the same God, the same mercy, for ever.

"shouted with a great shout," heriu teruah gedolah (הֵרִיעוּ תְרוּעָה גְדוֹלָה), raised a great shout of joy. "And all the people shouted with a great shout... because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid." The laying of a mere foundation, not even the finished house, was enough to spark an explosion of joy, because it was the visible proof that God's mercy still endured and His promises were being kept.

Explanation

When the temple's foundation was laid, the priests and Levites led the people in the ancient song of praise that had been sung at Solomon's temple: "he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever." The people erupted in a great shout of joy. Even though only the foundation, not the finished building, was in place, it was cause for celebration, because it proved God's unending covenant love and His faithfulness to His promises. The same everlasting mercy that had brought them home from Babylon was now beginning to raise His house again.

Gospel Focus

"Because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever" is one of the great refrains of Scripture, and it stands at the heart of the Gospel. God's chesed, His covenant-keeping, steadfast love, is everlasting; it does not run out, does not fail, does not depend on our worthiness. "The mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him" (Psalm 103:17); "It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:22-23). It was this enduring mercy that brought the exiles home, and it is this same mercy, fully revealed in Jesus Christ, that brings us home to God: "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us... hath quickened us together with Christ" (Ephesians 2:4-5). And notice that the people rejoiced greatly over a mere foundation, a beginning, an unfinished work, because they trusted the God who finishes what He starts, "being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). Whatever foundation God has laid in your life, rejoice; His mercy endures for ever, and He will bring the work to completion.

Word Study

"ancient men," Hebrew ha-zeqenim (הַזְּקֵנִים), the old men. The joy was real, but it was mingled with grief. The "ancient men" who "had seen the first house", Solomon's magnificent temple, destroyed by Babylon some fifty years earlier, "wept with a loud voice" when they saw the foundation of this humbler house. They remembered the former glory, and this second beginning seemed small by comparison (Haggai 2:3 records God's tender word about this: "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?").

"could not discern," ein ha-am makkirim (אֵין הָעָם מַכִּירִים), the people could not distinguish. Meanwhile the younger generation, who had never seen the first temple, "shouted aloud for joy" simply to see a temple rising at all. And the two sounds blended: "the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping." Joy and sorrow rose together in one great cry "heard afar off."

"wept," bokhim (בֹּכִים), weeping aloud. This is one of the most poignant and true-to-life scenes in Scripture: the same event bringing tears to some and shouts to others, the grief of what was lost and the joy of what is beginning, inseparably intertwined. Both were fitting; both were heard by God.

Explanation

The celebration was mixed with sorrow. The old men who could remember Solomon's glorious temple, destroyed decades earlier, wept aloud when they saw how modest this new foundation was compared to the former glory. But the younger people, who had never seen the first temple, shouted for joy simply to see God's house being rebuilt. The weeping and the shouting blended into one great sound that could not be told apart and was heard far away. The same moment brought grief to some and gladness to others, the sorrow of what was lost and the joy of what was beginning, mingled together.

Gospel Focus

The scene where "the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping" captures a deep truth of life in a fallen world: joy and sorrow are often mingled, and both have their place before God. The old men's tears for the lost glory were not wrong, nor were the young men's shouts of joy; grief for what is lost and gladness for what is begun can rise together. The Christian life often holds both at once, "as sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing" (2 Corinthians 6:10). We weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice (Romans 12:15), sometimes in the very same moment. Yet the Gospel gives hope that turns the balance toward joy. God had a word for these weeping old men: the glory of the latter house would exceed the former, "the glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace" (Haggai 2:9), a promise fulfilled when the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the true glory of God, walked in the second temple's courts. So our present tears over what is lost or unfinished are real, but they are not the end. God is building something greater, and He has promised that at the last, "God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes" (Revelation 21:4). Weep where you must, rejoice where you can, and trust the God whose latter glory outshines the former.