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Worship in Jerusalem Restored

Now the seventh month drew near and the Israelites[a] were in the cities, so the people gathered as one[b] in Jerusalem. And Jeshua son of Jehozadak and his brothers the priests stood up, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brothers built the altar of the God of Israel, in order to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the law of Moses, the man of God. They set up the altar on its foundations, because they were in terror[c] because of the peoples of the lands. And they offered burnt offerings on it for Yahweh, burnt offerings for the morning and the evening. And they kept the feast of booths, as it is written, and offered burnt offerings day by day in number according to the ordinance as described for each day.[d] After this, they presented the daily sacrifice of burnt offerings, the offerings for the New Moon Festival, and for all of the appointed times consecrated for Yahweh and for all who gave a freewill offering to Yahweh. From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to Yahweh. But the temple of Yahweh was not yet founded.

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Footnotes

  1. Ezra 3:1 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  2. Ezra 3:1 Literally “one man”
  3. Ezra 3:3 Literally “in terror before them”
  4. Ezra 3:4 Literally “the daily word on its day”

The Altar Is Rebuilt

In early autumn,[a] when the Israelites had settled in their towns, all the people assembled in Jerusalem with a unified purpose. Then Jeshua son of Jehozadak[b] joined his fellow priests and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel with his family in rebuilding the altar of the God of Israel. They wanted to sacrifice burnt offerings on it, as instructed in the Law of Moses, the man of God. Even though the people were afraid of the local residents, they rebuilt the altar at its old site. Then they began to sacrifice burnt offerings on the altar to the Lord each morning and evening.

They celebrated the Festival of Shelters as prescribed in the Law, sacrificing the number of burnt offerings specified for each day of the festival. They also offered the regular burnt offerings and the offerings required for the new moon celebrations and the annual festivals as prescribed by the Lord. The people also gave voluntary offerings to the Lord. Fifteen days before the Festival of Shelters began,[c] the priests had begun to sacrifice burnt offerings to the Lord. This was even before they had started to lay the foundation of the Lord’s Temple.

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Footnotes

  1. 3:1 Hebrew In the seventh month. The year is not specified, so it may have been during Cyrus’s first year (538 B.c.) or second year (537 B.c.). The seventh month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred within the months of September/October 538 B.c. and October/November 537 B.c.
  2. 3:2 Hebrew Jozadak, a variant spelling of Jehozadak; also in 3:8.
  3. 3:6 Hebrew On the first day of the seventh month. This day in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in September or October. The Festival of Shelters began on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.