This scale model of the Second Temple is based on descriptions of its architecture of the Herodian period, 1st century B.C.E. The temple of Zerubbabel's rebuilding was not quite so grand. [2]The Israelites traced their common lineage to the biblical patriarch Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. An united Kingdom was established under King Saul and continued under King David and Solomon. King David then conquered Jerusalem (first a Canaanite, then a Jebusite town) and made it his capital. After Solomon's reign, the nation split into two kingdoms, the Kingdom of Israel (in the north) and the Kingdom of Judah (in the south).
The Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Assyrian ruler Shalmaneser V in the 8th century BCE and the Israelites were spread all over the Assyrian empire, where they were assimilated into other cultures and came to be known as the Ten Lost Tribes. The Kingdom of Judah continued as an independent state until it was conquered by a Babylonian army in the early 6th century BCE, destroying the First Temple that was at the centre of Jewish worship. The Judean elite was exiled to Babylonia where they served the king of Babylon for seventy years (Jeremiah 25:12; 29:10) known as the "Babylonian Captivity"
Subsequently, a Persian King Cyrus brought about the fall of Babylon and ended the New Babylonian Empire in 539 BC. He was "the battle- axe" with which Abba used to shatter Babylon (Jeremiah 51:20), and Cyrus was welcomed and appointed by Abba as the liberator of the Israelites.(Isaiah 44:26-28). Within a year of the entry of Cyrus into Babylon an edict was issued (2 Chronicles 36:22,23; Ezra 1:1), granting permission to the exiles to return and build a house for the Lord in Jerusalem. Cyrus also returned the vessels of the Temple which Nebuchadrezzar[1] had carried away and handed them over to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah. A total of 42,360 exiles returned under Sheshbazzar and among the exiles were Joshua the son of Jozadak the priest, and Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel.
In the first year, an altar was built and in the second year the foundations of the Temple were laid by Zerubbabel. However, the adversaries of the Jews, especially the Samaritans, expended great efforts to hinder the Jews from building the Temple. A letter is written by the Samaritans to Cambyses II to procure a prohibition of the construction of the Temple, and the work is interrupted till the second year of Darius.
As you may see the Israelites faced a HUGE mountain of criticism and accusations from the adversaries of the Jews. The accusations were so strong that the Israelites bowed down to the verbal attacks and lost the faith, courage and confidence to resume rebuilding of the temple. This changed at the 2nd year of Reign of King Darius, when Abba spoke to the Prophets Haggai and Zechariah. At their exhortations, the Israelites led by Zerubbabel and Joshua the High Priest regained their faith to rebuild the temple.
Let us probe in the Book of Zechariah. In Zechariah 1:18-21, Abba mentioned to Zechariah that HE will sent four craftsmen to hammer down the four horns which oppressed the people of judah such that no one could raise his head uphigh. Subsequently, in Zechariah 3:1-2 (NIV),
" 1 Then He showed me Joshua [a] the high priest standing before
the angel of the LORD, and
Satan [b] standing at his right side to accuse him.
2 The LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD,
who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you!
Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?"
I believe Abba is pledging that he will HAMMER down & REBUKE the ACCUSATIONS from the adversaries of the Jews which led to the halt of the rebuilding of the temple.
Then in (Zechariah 4:2-3), Zechariah saw in his dream "a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lights on it, with seven channels to the lights. 3 Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left." Subsequently, the angel said this to Zechariah: (Zechariah 4:6-8,Amplified Bible)
6 So He said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel:
'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty. 7 "What are you, O mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of 'Grace! Grace to it!'
8 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 9 "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.
Abba declares it so clearly, It is not by your Might nor your power, but by His spirit which ensures NO MIGTHY MOUNTAIN will stand in your way for they will become level ground by solely believing His Grace and His Spirit.
Indeed the overflowing grace and favor that ensured led to the successful rebuilding of the temple. Tatnai, the governor upon seeing the Jews rebuilding the temple again under the leadership of Joshua the High Priest and Zerubbabel, sent a report to King Darius to complain. King Darius managed to find the decree of Cyrus in the archives of Achmetha (Hamadan), and commanded Tatnai not to disturb the Jews in their work. He also exempted the Jews from paying tribute and that Tatnai and the adversaries of the Jews must supply everything necessary for the offerings.(Read Ezra 6: 6-15). The Temple was finally finished in the month of Adar, in the sixth year of Darius, and is dedicated with great solemnity.
The Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Assyrian ruler Shalmaneser V in the 8th century BCE and the Israelites were spread all over the Assyrian empire, where they were assimilated into other cultures and came to be known as the Ten Lost Tribes. The Kingdom of Judah continued as an independent state until it was conquered by a Babylonian army in the early 6th century BCE, destroying the First Temple that was at the centre of Jewish worship. The Judean elite was exiled to Babylonia where they served the king of Babylon for seventy years (Jeremiah 25:12; 29:10) known as the "Babylonian Captivity"
Subsequently, a Persian King Cyrus brought about the fall of Babylon and ended the New Babylonian Empire in 539 BC. He was "the battle- axe" with which Abba used to shatter Babylon (Jeremiah 51:20), and Cyrus was welcomed and appointed by Abba as the liberator of the Israelites.(Isaiah 44:26-28). Within a year of the entry of Cyrus into Babylon an edict was issued (2 Chronicles 36:22,23; Ezra 1:1), granting permission to the exiles to return and build a house for the Lord in Jerusalem. Cyrus also returned the vessels of the Temple which Nebuchadrezzar[1] had carried away and handed them over to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah. A total of 42,360 exiles returned under Sheshbazzar and among the exiles were Joshua the son of Jozadak the priest, and Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel.
In the first year, an altar was built and in the second year the foundations of the Temple were laid by Zerubbabel. However, the adversaries of the Jews, especially the Samaritans, expended great efforts to hinder the Jews from building the Temple. A letter is written by the Samaritans to Cambyses II to procure a prohibition of the construction of the Temple, and the work is interrupted till the second year of Darius.
As you may see the Israelites faced a HUGE mountain of criticism and accusations from the adversaries of the Jews. The accusations were so strong that the Israelites bowed down to the verbal attacks and lost the faith, courage and confidence to resume rebuilding of the temple. This changed at the 2nd year of Reign of King Darius, when Abba spoke to the Prophets Haggai and Zechariah. At their exhortations, the Israelites led by Zerubbabel and Joshua the High Priest regained their faith to rebuild the temple.
Let us probe in the Book of Zechariah. In Zechariah 1:18-21, Abba mentioned to Zechariah that HE will sent four craftsmen to hammer down the four horns which oppressed the people of judah such that no one could raise his head uphigh. Subsequently, in Zechariah 3:1-2 (NIV),
" 1 Then He showed me Joshua [a] the high priest standing before
the angel of the LORD, and
Satan [b] standing at his right side to accuse him.
2 The LORD said to Satan, "The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD,
who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you!
Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?"
I believe Abba is pledging that he will HAMMER down & REBUKE the ACCUSATIONS from the adversaries of the Jews which led to the halt of the rebuilding of the temple.
Then in (Zechariah 4:2-3), Zechariah saw in his dream "a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lights on it, with seven channels to the lights. 3 Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left." Subsequently, the angel said this to Zechariah: (Zechariah 4:6-8,Amplified Bible)
6 So He said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel:
'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty. 7 "What are you, O mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of 'Grace! Grace to it!'
8 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 9 "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.
Abba declares it so clearly, It is not by your Might nor your power, but by His spirit which ensures NO MIGTHY MOUNTAIN will stand in your way for they will become level ground by solely believing His Grace and His Spirit.
Indeed the overflowing grace and favor that ensured led to the successful rebuilding of the temple. Tatnai, the governor upon seeing the Jews rebuilding the temple again under the leadership of Joshua the High Priest and Zerubbabel, sent a report to King Darius to complain. King Darius managed to find the decree of Cyrus in the archives of Achmetha (Hamadan), and commanded Tatnai not to disturb the Jews in their work. He also exempted the Jews from paying tribute and that Tatnai and the adversaries of the Jews must supply everything necessary for the offerings.(Read Ezra 6: 6-15). The Temple was finally finished in the month of Adar, in the sixth year of Darius, and is dedicated with great solemnity.
[1] In the third year of Jehoiachim, the eighteenth king of Judah (B.C. 605), Nebuchadnezzar having overcome the Egyptians at Carchemish, advanced to Jerusalem with a great army. After a brief siege he took that city, and carried away the vessels of the sanctuary to Babylon, and dedicated them in the Temple of Belus (2 Kings 24:1; 2Chr 36:6,7; Daniel 1:1,2).
[2] Source: Professor Barry Bandstra
Hope College Department of Religion
326 Lubbers Hall126 E. 10th Street Holland, Michigan, 49423
Office 616.395.7752
Home 616.335.3345
Email: bandstra@hope.edu
Hope College Department of Religion
326 Lubbers Hall126 E. 10th Street Holland, Michigan, 49423
Office 616.395.7752
Home 616.335.3345
Email: bandstra@hope.edu
No comments:
Post a Comment