Chapter 4 of Ezra ends with the work on the house of God came to a standstill due to persecution and harassment from neighbors. Chapter 5 begins telling us that through the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah, they spurred the leadership, Zerubbabel the governor and Joshua the high priest, and the people to start rebuilding the temple, and the prophets helped them. The foundations were built during the reign of Cyrus king of Persia, but now it was Darius who was king of Persia, so the new leadership under Darius asked the Jews who gave them authority to build, and who was doing the building? The Jews shared it was an edict from King Cyrus, so the Persian leadership sent notice to Darius to see if there was record of that decree, and to see what king Darius wanted to do. They found the decree in the citadel of Ecbatana, and Darius told them that not only can they rebuild, but the funds can come out of the royal treasury. Darius also provided "whatever they needed," like animals, wheat, salt, wine and oil for sacrifice. The Jews were then to pray for the wellness of the king and his sons (6:10). The Jews kept working hard, and in the sixth year of King Darius the temple was completed! The Jews rejoiced and celebrated by sacrificing offerings unto the Lord. They made sure they gave an offering for each of the 12 tribes of Israel. They made sure the Levites and priests were installed correctly in their jobs, and then they celebrated the Passover and then for seven days they celebrated the feast of Unleavened Bread, and they were thankful unto the Lord for the change of attitude toward the Jews by the leadership.
