A Mixed Beginning: Ezra Nehemiah 4

Introduction

The task that the returning exiles had was that of rebuilding in the midst of ruin. The work was overwhelming and the challenges huge, and we are very much in a similar position. As we have noted, one of our basic tasks is that of learning from them.

The Text:

“And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem. Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak . . .” (Ezra 3:1-13).

Overview:

The returning exiles had gone to their ancestral cities. But in the seventh month, they all congregated in Jerusalem (v. 1). Joshua the priest and Zerubabbel the governor together rebuilt the altar on which the sacrifices required by Moses could be offered (v. 2). Because they were afraid of their adversaries, they began to offer ascension offerings morning and evening (v. 3). They restored the feast of tabernacles, and the daily ascension offering (v. 4). From that time on, they continued with the monthly ascension offerings, along with free will offerings of individuals (v. 5). So they began the sacrifices without the foundation of the Temple being laid. All they had was the altar (v. 6). With this as the beginning, they apportioned money to the masons and carpenters and loggers (v. 7). About half a year later, they set in order the work of the Levites, twenty years old and up (v. 8). And Joshua (with others) directed the workman in the house of the Lord (v. 9). And when the workman laid the foundation of the Temple, they arranged for musical worship and celebration after the ordinance of David (v. 10). And so they sang (by turn), thanking and praising God, for He is good and His mercy toward Israel endures forever. And the congregation responded with a great shout (v. 11). But many of them, ancient men, remembered the house of the Lord that had been destroyed, and they wept to see the new foundation. They wept and others shouted for joy (v. 12). The noise of the weeping and shouting was mixed, was heard a long way off, and could not be distinguished (v. 13).

Worship At the Center:

The first thing that happens is that the people are gathered together (v. 1) In the work of repairing the ruins, this is the first foundation. The second thing that happens is that the altar is built and the sacrifices renewed (v. 2). In the new covenant era, this would correspond to a recovery of Word and sacrament—the heart of worship. Working in concentric circles outward, the next thing that happens is the laying of the foundations of the Temple itself. Later in the book of Ezra and Nehemiah, we get out to the rebuilding of city walls. And so here is the direction and pattern—people, altar, house of worship, and civilization.

Cultus (worship proper) is the core of all culture. The one prerequisite to worship is worshippers. All cultures have the worship of some deity at the center, and who or what is worshipped at the center will necessarily work its way out to the city limits. Notice that the recovery of this worship is not expensive; it can be done right away. There is no barrier (outside the human heart) to doing it, no obstacle. The people assemble and gather, and they worship God. When they restore that worship, certain things necessarily follow.

The restoration of the ascension offerings (burnt offerings) is the restoration of what we might call entire cultural consecration. The animal that is sacrificed is entirely burned up in the offering, and that animal ascends into heaven in the smoke of the offering. Everything ascends to God.

After the Ordinance of David:

After the worship is restored, the work begins almost immediately on the Temple itself. Although God can be worshipped anywhere, and can be worshipped anywhere gloriously (catacombs, prisons, galley ships, meadows, field houses, and cathedrals), it is not proper for us to suit ourselves and loll about in luxury while God is worshipped in mean circumstances. Are you on the run? Then worship on the run. Do you live in the catacombs? Then worship in the catacombs. But if we live quite nicely, thank you, and the worship of God is some kind of an add-on, then we need to shift our priorities.

As we have already noted, the work of laying the foundation of the Temple was consecrated with music. This music, it is said, was according to the ordinance of David. Remember that when David brought the ark of the covenant back to Zion, he built a tabernacle for praise in which music was (apart from the sacrifice of dedication) the only thing offered up to God. When Solomon built the Temple, the worship of “Mt. Zion” was then transferred to “Mt. Moriah,” where the Temple actually was. Notice that through long use the Temple mountain has come to carry the name of another mountain, Mt. Zion. Now when the exiles returned, they built an altar (on Moriah) and they laid the foundation stones “after the ordinance of David.” What does this have to do with us? As Gentiles, as Paul would put it, much in every way. We are part of the tabernacle of David being extended across the world (Acts 15: 15-17). And as we reestablish worship, and build our churches, we must do so according to the ordinance of David. This means music and psalms.

With a Great Shout:

The trained musicians were involved, obviously, but the entire congregation responded to the music, and they did not do so in a staid and complacent way. They did not see the foundation stones laid and then respond with polite golf applause. “And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD” (v. 11). The loud shout is repeated in v. 13, and it is said that the whole thing was heard a long way off. They were not shouting loudly “in their hearts.” Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all ye lands.

Weeping and Joy:

It is commonly assumed that the elderly were weeping for sadness because the foundation here was not at all comparable to what had been lost. But I am not sure of this. It says they were weeping, and on the basis of a comparison, but the comparison could have been more than a simple disparagement of the new Temple being built. It could have been on the basis of a need to rebuild, or a remembrance of God’s judgment, or some other bittersweet aspect. Regardless, it says that they were weeping. And what with the din of singing, shouting, and weeping (all loud), we are told that the noise could not be separated out. But we are invited to think that the net effect of all this was good.

Our situation today is, as we have noted, comparable. What must we do, and what goes along with it? We begin by assembling, finding each other. In the new covenant, there is no promised land, no one spot that is particularly holy. But there are gatherings of like-minded people. And in these days, finding such communities and attaching yourself to them should be ranked as having the highest priority. And when you have gathered, what you do? You restore Word and sacrament—you restore right worship. You rebuild the altar first: this may mean meeting in a home, or in a school, or a gym. When this worship is restored, then you begin thinking about the church building. And unless the worship is right, the building you will build will be cock-eyed, just like the worship. And when the work begins, the people gather round and sing the psalms of David, and lay the cornerstone. And when they do this, they remember the days long past when God has done greater things than this, and they weep and shout together. And they work their wall out to the city walls, not in from the city walls.