Ezra 5: Rebuilding the Temple – Clear & Engaging Audio Bible Reading | Opposition, Encouragement, and Completion

Listen to this clear and engaging audio recording of Ezra 5, as the story of the temple rebuilding continues. Encounter the opposition faced by the Jews and how they were encouraged by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to continue the work. Finally, witness the completion of the foundation of the temple, and discover the significance of this event. Perfect for study, reflection, or meditation, let the Scriptures come alive in this powerful chapter.

EZRA 5 (NIV)

1 Now Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the prophet, a descendant of Iddo,
prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of
Israel, who was over them.

2 Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Joshua son
of Jozadak set to work to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. And the
prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

3 At that time Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai and
their associates went to them and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this
temple and to finish it?”

4 They also asked, “What are the names of those who
are constructing this building?”

5 But the eye of their God was watching over
the elders of the Jews, and they were not stopped until a report could go to
Darius and his written reply be received.

6 This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, and
Shethar-Bozenai and their associates, the officials of Trans-Euphrates, sent
to King Darius.

7 The report they sent him read as follows:
To King Darius:
Cordial greetings.

8 The king should know that we went to the district of Judah, to the temple of
the great God. The people are building it with large stones and placing the
timbers in the walls. The work is being carried on with diligence and is
making rapid progress under their direction.

9 We questioned the elders and asked them, “Who authorized you to rebuild this
temple and to finish it?”

10 We also asked them their names, so that we could
write down the names of their leaders for your information.

11 This is the answer they gave us:
“We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the
temple that was built many years ago, one that a great king of Israel built
and finished.

12 But because our ancestors angered the God of heaven, he gave
them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar the Chaldean, king of Babylon, who
destroyed this temple and deported the people to Babylon.

13 “However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a
decree to rebuild this house of God.

14 He even removed from the temple of
Babylon the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar
had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to the temple in Babylon.
Then King Cyrus gave them to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom he had appointed
governor,

15 and he told him, ‘Take these articles and go and deposit them in
the temple in Jerusalem. And rebuild the house of God on its site.’

16 “So this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in
Jerusalem. From that day to the present it has been under construction but is
not yet finished.”

17 Now if it pleases the king, let a search be made in the royal archives of
Babylon to see if King Cyrus did in fact issue a decree to rebuild this house
of God in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us his decision in this matter.