Completion and Dedication of the Temple
Then, according to the word sent by King Darius, Tattenai, the governor of the province Beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates did with all diligence what King Darius had ordered. So the elders of the Jews built and prospered, through the prophesying of the prophet Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo. They finished their building by command of the God of Israel and by decree of Cyrus, Darius, and King Artaxerxes of Persia; and this house was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
The people of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the returned exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. They offered 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. Then they set the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their courses for the service of God at Jerusalem, as it is written in the book of Moses.
Job done.
At last
Offerings made
Boxes ticked
What next?
Will this fulfilment of decree
a long time in the making
Impact the life of the world?
Will the God honoured in this edifice
make any difference
to those who have hewn stone,
those whose taxes have increased to fund
a monument to the past?
Will this symbol of greatness and dedication
live long and prosper?
Prayer
God when we become embroiled in buildings and structures, in decrees and laws, remind us of the demands you make on us - to love you and to love each other, inside and out of our worship,
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