Shouts


Ezra 3:8-13
8Now in the second year after their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with the rest of their kinsmen, the priests and the Levites and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity. They appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to supervise the work of the house of the Lord. 9And Jeshua with his sons and his brothers, and Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together supervised the workmen in the house of God, along with the sons of Henadad and the Levites, their sons and brothers. 10And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments came forward with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the directions of David king of Israel. 11And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever 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 heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, 13so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted with a great shout, and the sound was heard far away.

The three leaders that worked to restore the nation of Israel after the Babylonian captivity are Ezra, Nehemiah, and Zerubbabel. In our reading for today, we find Zerubbabel playing the lead role.

Zerubbabel is the leader of the rebuilding effort, being of the proper lineage. God had promised David that one of his sons would build the Lord’s house (2 Samuel 7:12–13; 1 Chronicles 17:11–12). The preliminary fulfillment of this promise was when Solomon, a son of David, built the first temple. The second temple was a reestablishment of the temple worship that began under Solomon. Of course the complete fulfillment of this promise would be the incarnation of God in the person of his Son, the Son of David and also David’s Lord (Psalm 2:7; 110:1; Matthew 22:41–46), the temple to be razed and raised in three days (John 2:14–22).
Steinmann, A. E. ©2010. Ezra and Nehemiah (p. 215). Saint Louis, MO: CPH.

After a few thousand years of history, it is fascinating to see God’s hand of continuity throughout the story of our salvation. He makes promises to people and remembers to keep those promises over the millennia. Along with the repair of the Temple’s foundation we find a time of great worship. God’s people are thrilled that this is coming to pass and they honor the God who made it happen. But – there are those who are old enough to remember the greatness of Solomon’s Temple. They are saddened by the loss of what once was and probably disappointed to know that the former glory of that Temple is not truly going to be restored. Their sadness is built on human externals. God, on the other hand, has a longer view in mind. He is always working toward the final Day when Jesus will return and re-establish His rule over all the Earth and Heavens. The prophet Haggai spoke of this glorious day.

Haggai 2:1–9
1In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet: 2 “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? 4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, 5 according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not. 6 For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. 7 And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. 9 The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’”

So our disappoints can be set aside for there are greater things in store. No matter what we see coming God has bigger plans that have already been set in motion. Our future is secure and God’s plan is perfect. We need only stand still and watch Him work.

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