The Tupelo journal., 1905-10-20
Rebuilding
the Temple
srnday School Lesson IL OF. "a. 1905
Specially Prepared for This Paper.

LESSON -TExT.-Ezra s:1oA:5. Memory
Verses 10, II.
GOLDEN TExT.-'sThe temple OF God
is holy. which temple We are.'-lC Cor. s:l7.
TIME.-From b. c. 5S6-515. Peloubet In
his Select Notes. gives the following
dates: ~5S6-Spring. Left Babylon. bs6-
July. Arrived at Jerusalem.
| months getting settled. 536-October. Al
| tar set up. Worship begun. s535-May.
Foundations of temple begun, followed ny
Is years of delay and opposition. so
| Work on temple renewed. 520-September
and October. Haggai. the prophet, prophe-
sizes. November and December. Zecharlans
| the prophet, prophesies. Four years more
in building the temple. 516-Ternpie COM
pleted 70 years after its destruction.
Professionalism and vicinity.
Comment and suggestive Thought.
INTRODUCTORY u last les
son we saw a large body of exiles leav-
ing Babylon with high hopes, and tri-
umphant songs of joy. But the journey
was long, tedious and full Of hardships.
There were 1880 of them, according TO
each of the three versions extant. But
the detailed numbers all come short OF
this sum, and it is supposed that the IL
600 or $4,000 not ranked in the list I'M
der any place or family name were
Israelties of the northern tribes. Ii
| these left Babylonia in March (Apoc.
Esdras $50, they could not well reach
Jerusalem, after a journey OF nearly
800 miles, before some time in July. 1t
took Ezra four months to make the jour-
ney ezra. 7:9). They found the city
in ruins, as it had lain for SO years since
it's complete destruction by Nebuchad-
nezzar. Trees were growing wild on
the Mountain of the House, and the
iackals prowled among heaps of shat
tered Crumbling stonerwork
and charred timbers marked the site OF
palaces and towers, and choked the
streets. The city walls and gates were
leveled with the ground."-Hunter. The
first business OF the returned exiles was.
of course. to provide some kind OF dwell
ings for themselves and their families.
They accordingly settled in the small
cities surrounding Jerusalem, perhaps
repairing the houses and walls that had
been ruined by the besieging armies
years before, or contenting themselves
with huts or tents. The territory they
controlled was, of course. small, and
hemmed in on all sides, including only
Bethlehem on the south. while on the
north their territory measured no more
than 25 miles in length by 20 in
BREADTH" and ever upon this en-
croached the heather or mongrel popu-
lation.
". TO- Builders laid the foundation"
The cornerstone. or the first course.
This was made the occasion OF a great
ceremonial. Priests in their apparel"
The elegant and beautiful official robes
used by the priests in their celebrations.
especially the blue and scarlet and pur-
pie robes. with gold and gems. of the
high priests and others. described In
Exod. SO. with trumpets:" Not for
music; but, like our church-bells, for
summoning assemblies and joyful an
nouncements:: Sons of Asaph:" A
guild of singers named after the famous
singer and leader in the time of David.
After the ordinance (order) of David"
(Sce l Chron. 15:l6-21).
v. II. Sang together by course" r.
", "one TO another" responsibility.
HE is good" etc. See l Chron. 1884.
Al; Pisa. JOG. 1O7, l1S. They praised the
Lord" The joy of the younger people
who remembered the exile, but had no
memory of the Temple of Solomon, was
very great.
v. IL. Ancient men, that had seen
the first house" which was destroyed
e. c. $50. 81 years before. They must
lave beer 60 or 70 years old. "Wept
with a loud voice. The weeping was
not because the new temple was smaller
than the first, for it was larger comp.
Ezra 6:3; l Kings 6:2; 2 Chron. 3:3, ~.
They wept because of the contrast be-
tween the beauty, the magnificence. the
gold and gems of the old temple, and the
simplicity and poverty Of the new struc-
ture alag. 2:3; Zech. 4:10).
Ezra Ais. Fifteen years B. C.. $685.
$50. When the adversaries of JUDAH
The Samaritans. and the foreign colon
lists from Babylonia, Persia and Elan
Tvs. g.. 10), which 'Esar- haddon king of
Assur:' (Assyria) (V. q, (B. C. 720-7l5)
and also Sargon and Asshur- banipal (B.
C. 665) had sent to Samaria e Kings
1920. Thus they had lived in Samaria
100 to 1870 years. For we seek your
God and we do sacrifice unto
Him." But they did it in a different
way. partially in connection with other
<h;,ro ,,b;oh mould doctrov tho porfoc-a
ton and power of the Jewish worship.
v. 3. But Z~erubbabel' and the other
leaders refused the alliance. Two views
of the course pursued by ~Zerubbabel
lave been taken. First. Many have re-
garded it as a great mistake, a piece of
narrow-minded, bigoted folly. which
made enemies of those VINO should have
been friends. and kindled hatred and
jealousy, and lowered the moral tone
and cooled the zeal of the new colony.
Such seems to be Geikie's view. On the
other hand. Rawlinsen calls it IAN hero
lie refusal to accept the material aid of a
rich and powerful people at the risk of
imperiling religious purity" Thus was
q great peril averted."
Illustrative Points.
The temple was the symbol and type
of Gods spiritual temple, both the in
dividual Christian and the whole people
of God Il Cor. 3:10-16).
The first thing for each one who would
build the Temple of the Church and of
Society is to be himself a temple Of the
Holy Ghost.
The true Christian character when
cnmnlefn is q headfiful and Costly tam.