CHAPTER XXVIII.

REBUILDING THE TEMPLE AT JERUSALEM.

THE Jews had been in captivity for seventy years, and the time had now come for them to return to Jerusalem. And God made Cyrus willing to let them go.

Then the words came true that Isaiah had spoken nearly two hundred years before. For he had said that God would raise up a king, Cyrus, who would send the Jews back to Jerusalem to build up the temple and the city. This prediction was made long before the birth of Cyrus and before the Jews were sent into captivity.

And Cyrus caused a proclamation to be read throughout the kingdom, saying, The Lord hath charged me to build up his house in Jerusalem. Who is there among the captives from Judah that wishes to go back to his own land? Let you, his people, go now to Jerusalem also and build up the house of the Lord; and let the people of my kingdom help him with gold and silver, and with camels and clothes.

Then the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and The priests and the Levites rose up, and all those whom God made willing to go set out on their journey. And many persons strengthened their hands with vessels of silver and gold, and cattle, and raiment, as the king had commanded.

And Cyrus brought forth the vessels of the house of the Lord which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and gave them to the prince of Judah.

And the number of vessels of gold and silver that Cyrus gave to him was five thousand four hundred.

So Zerubbabel took the vessels from Babylon to Jerusalem. And there went with him forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty of the children of Israel, beside their servants, who were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven. There were seven hundred and thirty-six horses; two hundred and forty-five mules; four hundred and thirty-five camels, and six thousand seven hundred and twenty asses.

The people gathered at Jerusalem and built the altar of

God. And they asked God for protection against the heathen nations round about. As soon as the altar was built they worshipped God, and offered burnt offerings every day, as Moses had commanded.

Then they began to build the house of the Lord. They hired men of Tyre to bring cedar trees from Mount Lebanon by the sea down to Joppa. And they gave meat, and drink,

and oil to these men; and they gave money to the masons and carpenters.

When the foundations were laid the priests and Levites played on trumpets and cymbals, and sang together by course in praising the Lord. And the people shouted with a great shout, because the building of the temple was begun. But many of the old men had seen the temple that was there

before, and remembering its beauty they wept with a loud voice. So that the singing and shouting and the sounds of weeping were mingled together, and were heard a long way off.

Now there were living outside of Jerusalem certain people known as Samaritans, who had made homes for themselves on the land once owned by the Jews. They were idolaters, yet they wanted to assist in building the temple, claiming that they worshipped the same God.

But Zerubbabel and Jeshua the high priest, and the chief men of the Jews said to the Samaritans, Ye have nothing to do with us to build our house unto our God. We will build it ourselves, as Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded. This answer enraged the Samaritans, and they did all they could to hinder the Jews in their work. And they hired counsellors against them to speak evil of them to the king's officers, and to put a stop to their plans.

After the death of Cyrus, Artaxerxes was made king, and the Samaritans wrote a letter to him, saying, Be it known to thee, O king, that the Jews who came from Babylon are in Jerusalem, building up that wicked city. And if this city be builded and the walls set up again they will not pay tribute to thee as they ought to do, and so the reverence of the kings will be lessened. Therefore, as we are grateful to the king, and do not wish him to be disobeyed, we send this letter, that he may search and know that this city is a rebellious city and troublesome unto the kings.

The king replied to the Samaritans, saying, Peace be unto thee. The letter which you wrote has been plainly read before me. And I have made inquiry, and find that Jerusalem has always been a rebellious city. Therefore command these men of Judah to cease, for the city shall not be built until permission is given by me. Then the Samaritans went to Jerusalem, and made the people stop building by force. And there was no more work done on the temple so long as Artaxerxes was on the throne.

After the death of Artaxerxes, Darius reigned. In the meantime the Jews had built houses for themselves to live in, and were so interested in this work that they did not give

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much attention to finishing the temple of the Lord. And the Lord was displeased with them, and sent the prophet Haggai to them, who came and said, Thus saith the Lord, You say the time has not come to build the Lord's house. Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house lie waste? Because you have left my house in ruins, and made haste to build your own houses, I have not blessed you, and you have not prospered. Now, therefore, go up to the mountain and get wood, and build the house, and I will take pleasure in it. And the people did as the Lord commanded, and began to build the house.

But when the Samaritans saw it they came to Zerubbabel and Jeshua, and said to them, Who hath commanded you to build this house and to make up this wall? And Zerubbabel and Jeshua told them, King Cyrus ordered us to come back to our native land and to build this temple. And he gave us the vessels of gold and silver that Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple and carried to Babylon, and said to us, Take them to Jerusalem, and let the house of the Lord be builded there.

Still continuing their persecutions, the Samaritans told Darius, the chief ruler of Babylon, what the Jews were doing and wanted him to search the records of the kingdom, and find out whether Cyrus had told them to build the temple, as they said he did.

In searching the records, they found that Cyrus had told them to do so, and decreed it also.

Cyrus also had told them to bring back the gold and silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple.

Darius having learned all this from the documents of Cyrus, would not allow the Samaritans to hinder the Jews any more in building a house in which to worship God.

He made a decree also that part of the taxes which the Samaritans paid to the king should be given to the Jews to assist in building the temple, that they should give them young bullocks, rams, and lambs for burnt offerings, and also wheat, salt, wine, and oil, as they were needed.

Darius also made a decree that whoever should change