Ezra 3:1–7

Rebuilding the Altar

3When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns,^u the people assembled^v together as one in Jerusalem. ²Then Joshua^w son of Jozadak^x and his fellow priests and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel^y and his associates began to build the altar of the God of Israel to sacrifice burnt offerings on it, in accordance with what is written in the Law of Moses^z the man of God. ³Despite their fear^a of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening sacrifices.^{b 4}Then in accordance with what is written, they celebrated the Festival of Tabernacles^c with the required number of burnt offerings prescribed for each day. ⁵After that, they presented the regular burnt offerings, the New Moon^d sacrifices and the sacrifices for all the appointed sacred festivals of the Lord,^e as well as those brought as freewill offerings to the Lord. ⁶On the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, though the foundation of the Lord’s temple had not yet been laid.

Rebuilding the Temple

⁷Then they gave money to the masons and carpenters,^f and gave food and drink and olive oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar logs^g by sea from Lebanon^h to Joppa, as authorized by Cyrusⁱ king of Persia.