Ezra 6:13-18 “Then Tattenai, governor of the region beyond the River, Shethar-Boznai, and their companions diligently did according to what King Darius had sent. (14) So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. (15) Now the temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. (16) Then the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites and the rest of the descendants of the captivity, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. (17) And they offered sacrifices at the dedication of this house of God, one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel twelve male goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. (18) They assigned the priests to their divisions and the Levites to their divisions, over the service of God in Jerusalem, as it is written in the Book of Moses.”
We have already established that the building of the Second Temple began in the year 520 BC, and the above-quoted passage of scripture teaches us that it was completed in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. Historical records confirm that the sixth year of the reign of King Darius took place in the year 516 BC[1]. And so we can see that the Second Temple took four years to build. As an aside, it is important to note that between the years 587 BC and 516 BC (70 years); Israel was without a temple. This passage also teaches us that the Lord used King Cyrus, King Darius, and King Artaxerxes to command the Jews to build the Second Temple. We have already seen that King Cyrus issued the first edict in the year 539 BC. And so the question is asked, when did King Darius and King Artaxerxes issue their edicts, and why was it necessary for them to issue additional edicts for the Second Temple?
Ezra 6:1-8 “Then King Darius issued a decree, and a search was made in the archives, where the treasures were stored in Babylon. (2) And at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of Media, a scroll was found, and in it a record was written thus: (3) In the first year of King Cyrus, King Cyrus issued a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem: "Let the house be rebuilt, the place where they offered sacrifices; and let the foundations of it be firmly laid, its height sixty cubits and its width sixty cubits, (4) with three rows of heavy stones and one row of new timber. Let the expenses be paid from the king's treasury. (5) Also let the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple which is in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be restored and taken back to the temple which is in Jerusalem, each to its place; and deposit them in the house of God"-- (6) Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the region beyond the River, and Shethar-Boznai, and your companions the Persians who are beyond the River, keep yourselves far from there. (7) Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God on its site. (8) Moreover I issue a decree as to what you shall do for the elders of these Jews, for the building of this house of God: Let the cost be paid at the king's expense from taxes on the region beyond the River; this is to be given immediately to these men, so that they are not hindered.”
The above-quoted passage of scripture is an account of the second edict for the building of the Second Temple, issued by King Darius. The context of this passage is that the Samaritan population was opposed to the building of the Second Temple and they had raised legal challenges against its construction. And so in response to the Samaritan legal challenge, King Darius had searched the Persian records for evidence of King Cyrus' original edict. When the record of King Cyrus' original edict was found, King Darius decided the case in favour of the Jews and issued his edict instructing the Jews to proceed with the building of the Second Temple. We have already established that the construction of the Second Temple began in the second year of the reign of King Darius, i.e. in the year 520 BC. And so clearly this is the same year in which the second edict for the building of the Second Temple was issued by King Darius.
Ezra 7:8-23 “And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. … (11) This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra the priest, the scribe, expert in the words of the commandments of the Lord, and of His statutes to Israel: (12) Artaxerxes, king of kings, To Ezra the priest, a scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Perfect peace, and so forth. (13) I issue a decree that all those of the people of Israel and the priests and Levites in my realm, who volunteer to go up to Jerusalem, may go with you. (14) And whereas you are being sent by the king and his seven counsellors to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, with regard to the Law of your God which is in your hand; (15) and whereas you are to carry the silver and gold which the king and his counsellors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem; (16) and whereas all the silver and gold that you may find in all the province of Babylon, along with the freewill offering of the people and the priests, are to be freely offered for the house of their God in Jerusalem-- (17) now therefore, be careful to buy with this money bulls, rams, and lambs, with their grain offerings and their drink offerings, and offer them on the altar of the house of your God in Jerusalem. (18) And whatever seems good to you and your brethren to do with the rest of the silver and the gold do it according to the will of your God. (19) Also the articles that are given to you for the service of the house of your God, deliver in full before the God of Jerusalem. (20) And whatever more may be needed for the house of your God, which you may have occasion to provide, pay for it from the king's treasury. (21) And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, issue a decree to all the treasurers who are in the region beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, let it be done diligently.”
The above-quoted passage of scripture is an account of the third edict for the Second Temple, issued by King Artaxerxes. It is important to note that the decree issued by King Artaxerxes had nothing to do with the building of the Second Temple, but rather it had to do with its operation. More specifically, it was a decree instructing the Babylonian government officials to provide the Jews with all that they needed to ensure that the Second Temple functioned as taught in the Law of Moses. This passage teaches us that this edict was issued in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. Historical records reveal that the seventh year of the reign of King Artaxerxes was in the year 458 BC[2]. We have already established that the construction of the Second Temple was completed in the year 516 BC. And so that explains why the edict issued by King Artaxerxes had nothing to do with the building of the Second Temple, but rather it had to do with its operation. As we will see in the later section, the dates of these various edicts are important in fulfilling the prophecies about the coming Messiah. It is important to note that because of the impoverishment of the Jews returning from exile during this period, the initial construction of the Second Temple could not come anywhere close to matching the grandeur of the First Temple built by King Solomon. That truth is confirmed to us by Haggai the prophet when he prophesied to the Jews about the Second Temple, “Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? In comparison with it, is this not in your eyes as nothing?” (Haggai 2:3). Nevertheless, the Second Temple was eventually refurbished and expanded in the first century BC under the reign of Herod the Great, hence its alternative name, Herod's Temple. The temple's transformation resulted in a grand and imposing structure and courtyard, including large edifices and façades. The Temple Mount, i.e. the platform upon which the Second Temple stood, was also significantly expanded, doubling in size to become the largest religious sanctuary in the ancient world[3]. As an aside, by the time the Second Temple was built, the Ark of the Covenant had disappeared. The last time it was mentioned in scripture was during the reign of King Josiah of Judah, “Then he said to the Levites who taught all Israel, who were holy to the Lord: "Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built. It shall no longer be a burden on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and His people Israel.” (2 Chronicles 35:3). It is interesting to note that Josiah instructed the Levites to place the Ark back in the temple, thus implying that they had removed the Ark during the period when Josiah's predecessors used the temple for pagan worship. Nevertheless, after the First Temple’s final destruction, the Ark of the Covenant no longer existed. And so the section of the Second Temple called the Holy of Holies would have been an empty chamber.
Michael E.B. Maher
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