SCRIPTURE: EZRA 5
TATTENAL’S LETTER TO DARIUS (vs. 1-17)
Zerubbabel and Jeshua set to work in rebuilding the house of the Lord in Jerusalem with the help of both prophets Haggai and Zechariah. Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates and Shethar-Bozenai and their associates went to ask them this questions: “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure? What are the names of the men constructing this building? (vs. 4-5). Then they sent a letter to king Darius with the following information: We went to the district of Judah and saw people building their temple with large stones and placing timbers in the walls. We asked them who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure? And we also asked them to write down the names of their leaders. And we received their reply as follows: “Before, we had a great temple built by Solomon but because we sinned against our God, he handed us over to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who destroyed this temple and deported us to Babylon. However, in the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, he issued a decree allowing us to rebuild this house of God. He removed from the temple of Babylon the gold and silver articles of the house of God which he had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to the temple in Babylon. Then king Cyrus appointed Sheshbazzar as governor and told him to take these articles and go and deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem to rebuild the house of God on its site. So, 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. 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” (vs. 11-17)
THOUGHTS:
Facing opposition, intimidation and pressure, God sent prophets to encourage and strengthen the people to build His temple. They proceeded their work no matter who attempted to block them. As we are doing God’s work, concentrate on God’s purpose. Don’t be side tracked by intrigues or slander.
While rebuilding the temple, the workers were confronted by the Persian appointed governor demanding to know who gave permission for their construction project. They boldly spoke up their faith. You must also hold on to our allegiance to God in dealing with pressure and intimidation. Let people know by your words and action whom you really are serving.