The Building Resumed: “Help the Leaders in the Rebuilding”
5Meanwhile the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo were preaching to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the authority of the God of Israel who ruled them.H5029H2292H5029H2148H1247H5714H5013H5922H3062H3061H3390H8036H426H3479H59222And so Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak started again, rebuilding The Temple of God in Jerusalem. The prophets of God were right there helping them.H116H6966H2217H1247H7598H3443H1247H3136H8271H1124H1005H426H3390H5974H5029H426H55833Tattenai was governor of the land beyond the Euphrates at this time. Tattenai, Shethar-Bozenai, and their associates came to the Israelites and asked, "Who issued you a permit to rebuild this Temple and restore it to use?"H2166H858H8674H6347H5675H5103H8370H3675H560H3652H5922H4479H7761H2942H1124H1836H1005H3635H1836H8464Then we told them the names of the men responsible for this construction work.H116H560H3660H4479H581H8036H1400H1124H1836H11475But God had his eye on the leaders of the Jews, and the work wasn't stopped until a report could reach Darius and an official reply be returned.H5870H426H1934H5922H7868H3062H3809H989H1994H989H5705H2941H1946H1868H116H8421H5407H5922H18366Tattenai, governor of the land beyond the Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai and his associates—the officials of that land—sent a letter to Darius the king.H6573H104H8674H6347H5675H5103H8370H3675H671H5675H5103H7972H5922H1868H44307This is what they wrote to him: To Darius the king. Peace and blessing!H7972H6600H5922H1459H3790H1836H1868H4430H3606H80018We want to report to the king that we went to the province of Judah, to The Temple of the great God that is being rebuilt with large stones. Timbers are being fitted into the walls; the work is going on with great energy and in good time.H1934H3046H4430H236H4083H3061H1005H7229H426H1124H1560H69H636H7761H3797H1791H5673H5648H629H6744H30289We asked the leaders, "Who issued you the permit to rebuild this Temple and restore it to use?"H116H7593H479H7868H560H3660H4479H7761H2942H1124H1836H1005H3635H1836H84610We also asked for their names so we could pass them on to you and have a record of the men at the head of the construction work.H7593H8036H638H3046H3790H8036H1400H721711This is what they told us: "We are servants of the God of the heavens and the earth. We are rebuilding The Temple that was built a long time ago. A great king of Israel built it, the entire structure.H3660H8421H6600H560H586H1994H5649H426H8065H772H1124H1005H1934H1124H1836H7690H8140H6928H7229H4430H3479H1124H363512But our ancestors made the God of the heavens really angry and he turned them over to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who knocked this Temple down and took the people to Babylon in exile.H3861H4481H2H7265H426H8065H7265H3052H1994H3028H5020H4430H895H3679H5642H1836H1005H1541H5972H1541H89513"But when Cyrus became king of Babylon, in his first year he issued a building permit to rebuild this Temple of God.H1297H2298H8140H3567H4430H895H4430H3567H7761H2942H1124H1836H1005H42614He also gave back the gold and silver vessels of The Temple of God that Nebuchadnezzar had carted off and put in the Babylon temple. Cyrus the king removed them from the temple of Babylon and turned them over to Sheshbazzar, the man he had appointed governor.H3984H638H1768H1722H3702H1005H426H5020H5312H4481H1965H3390H2987H1965H895H1994H3567H4430H5312H4481H1965H895H3052H8036H8340H7761H634715He told him, 'Take these vessels and place them in The Temple of Jerusalem and rebuild The Temple of God on its original site.'H560H5376H412H3984H236H5182H1994H1965H3390H1005H426H1124H5922H87016And Sheshbazzar did it. He laid the foundation of The Temple of God in Jerusalem. It has been under construction ever since but it is not yet finished."H116H858H1791H8340H3052H787H1005H426H3390H4481H116H5705H3705H1124H3809H800017So now, if it please the king, look up the records in the royal archives in Babylon and see if it is indeed a fact that Cyrus the king issued an official building permit authorizing the rebuilding of The Temple of God in Jerusalem. And then send the king's ruling on this matter to us.H3705H2006H2869H5922H4430H1240H4430H1596H1005H8536H895H2006H383H2942H7761H4481H3567H4430H1124H1791H1005H426H3390H4430H7972H7470H5922H1836