# Ezra 05 📖: Work on the Temple Resumes [[📚 Explore the Bible Books]] [[-Ezra Overview]] | [[Ezra 04]] | [[Ezra 06]] > [!info] Table of Contents > [[#📜 Scripture Text (NET)]] > [[#📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary]] > [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]] > [[#🧠 Chapter Summary]] > [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]] > [[#🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application]] > [[#💬 Discussion Questions]] > [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]] > [[#🔗 Related Passages/Cross Reference]] > [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]] > [[#📂 Internal Notes]] ## 📜 Scripture Text (NET) (The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005) ## Tattenai Appeals to Darius [[#Verse 01.]] Then the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo prophesied concerning the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel who was over them.  [[#Verse 02.]] Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak began to rebuild the temple of God in Jerusalem. The prophets of God were with them, supporting them. [[#Verse 03.]] At that time Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues came to them and asked, “Who gave you authority to rebuild this temple and to complete this structure?”  [[#Verse 04.]] They also asked them, “What are the names of the men who are building this edifice?”  [[#Verse 05.]] But God was watching over the elders of Judah, and they were not stopped until a report could be dispatched to Darius and a letter could be sent back concerning this. [[#Verse 06.]] This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and his colleagues (who were the officials of Trans-Euphrates) sent to King Darius.  [[#Verse 07.]] The report they sent to him was written as follows: “To King Darius: All greetings!  [[#Verse 08.]] Let it be known to the king that we have gone to the province of Judah, to the temple of the great God. It is being built with large stones, and timbers are being placed in the walls. This work is being done with all diligence and is prospering in their hands.  [[#Verse 09.]] We inquired of those elders, asking them, ‘Who gave you the authority to rebuild this temple and to complete this structure?’  [[#Verse 10.]] We also inquired of their names in order to inform you, so that we might write the names of the men who were their leaders.  [[#Verse 11.]] They responded to us in the following way: ‘We are servants of the God of heaven and earth. We are rebuilding the temple which was previously built many years ago. A great king of Israel built it and completed it.  [[#Verse 12.]] But after our ancestors angered the God of heaven, he delivered them into the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and exiled the people to Babylon.  [[#Verse 13.]] But in the first year of King Cyrus of Babylon, King Cyrus enacted a decree to rebuild this temple of God.  [[#Verse 14.]] Even the gold and silver vessels of the temple of God that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and had brought to the palace of Babylon—even those things King Cyrus brought from the palace of Babylon and presented to a man by the name of Sheshbazzar whom he had appointed as governor.  [[#Verse 15.]] He said to him, “Take these vessels and go deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt in its proper location.”  [[#Verse 16.]] Then this Sheshbazzar went and laid the foundations of the temple of God in Jerusalem. From that time to the present moment it has been in the process of being rebuilt, although it is not yet finished.’ [[#Verse 17.]] “Now if the king is so inclined, let a search be conducted in the royal archives there in Babylon in order to determine whether King Cyrus did in fact issue orders for this temple of God to be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us a decision concerning this matter.” ## 📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary ###### Overall. ###### Verse 01. ###### Verse 02. ###### Verse 03. ###### Verse 04. ###### Verse 05. ###### Verse 06. ###### Verse 07. ###### Verse 08. ###### Verse 09. ###### Verse 10. ###### Verse 11. ###### Verse 12. ###### Verse 13. ###### Verse 14. ###### Verse 15. ###### Verse 16. ###### Verse 17. ## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights 1. Haggai and Zechariah wrote the Old Testament books that carry their names, both dated to about 520 BC. 2. Zechariah is called the son of Iddo here (5:1), while Zechariah 1:1 calls him the son of Berechiah and grandson of Iddo. 3. Tattenai was governor of the province Beyond the River (5:3). A Babylonian document from this period also mentions a governor named Tattenai. 4. Darius I came to the throne in 522 BC after a period of revolt in the empire. 5. The Persian officials did not stop the work while they waited for the king's answer (5:5). 6. The elders call the Lord "the God of heaven" (5:11-12), a title used often in Ezra, Nehemiah, and Daniel. 7. The officials reported that the temple was being built with large stones and timber set in the walls (5:8), a method also used in Solomon's temple (1 Kings 6:36). 8. The elders said God gave their ancestors into Nebuchadnezzar's hand because they angered Him (5:12), owning their history instead of blaming Babylon. 9. They asked the king to search the royal archives for Cyrus's decree (5:17). 10. Haggai's first message came on the first day of the sixth month of Darius's second year, and the work resumed about three weeks later (Haggai 1:1, 15). ## 🧠 Chapter Summary > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter Christ is the Word through whom God restarts His work. The prophets spoke and the builders began again (5:1-2). In these last days God has spoken to us by His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2), and His eye is on His people as it was on the elders of Judah (5:5). ## 🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## 💬 Discussion Questions 1. The prophets did more than preach. They were with the builders, helping them (5:2). What does it look like to encourage others by working alongside them? 2. The eye of God was on the elders, so the work was not stopped (5:5). How does knowing God watches over you give you courage? 3. The elders answered the officials honestly, admitting their ancestors' sin and pointing to God (5:11-12). How can we explain our faith with humility and honesty? ## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember - 📖 verses 1-2: Haggai and Zechariah prophesy, and Zerubbabel and Jeshua begin to rebuild. - 📖 verse 5: God's eye watches over the elders of the Jews, and the work continues. - 📖 verse 11: The elders identify themselves as servants of the God of heaven and earth. ## 🔗 Related Passages/Cross Reference - 🔗 [[Haggai 01#Verse 12.|Haggai 1:12-14]] - The Lord stirs the spirits of Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the people. - 🔗 [[Zechariah 04#Verse 06.|Zechariah 4:6-9]] - The work will be done by the Lord's Spirit, not human strength. - 🔗 [[Psalm 33#Verse 18.|Psalm 33:18]] - The Lord watches over those who fear Him. - 🔗 [[Hebrews 01#Verse 01.|Hebrews 1:1-2]] - God has spoken to us through His Son. - 🔗 [[1 Peter 03#Verse 15.|1 Peter 3:15]] - Always be ready to give a reason for your hope. ## 🙏 Devotional Reflection 📝 SOAP: [[Ezra 05 - SOAP|The Lord Is There In The Middle of Trouble]] ## 📂 Internal Notes