Ezra 3:12

Ezr 3:12 But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, [who were] ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy:

Ver. 12. Who were ancient men] From seventy years of age and upwards; for it was but seventy years before this that the temple was burnt.

Wept with a loud voice] Considering the disproportion. Let us do the like when we compare our state of creation with our state of corruption.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

3:12 Those who wept aloud either were disappointed that the foundation of the Temple wasn’t as wonderful as the old one had been (cp. Hag 2:3) or were deeply moved with joy at seeing the Temple of the Lord restored.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Because they saw that it was nothing so glorious as that Temple, which Solomon had built, notwithstanding Aggeus comforteth them, and prophesieth that it shall be more beautiful than the first: meaning the spiritual Temple, which are the members of Christ’s body.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers . . . wept with a loud voice--Those painful emotions were excited by the sad contrast between the prosperous circumstances in which the foundations of the first temple had been laid and the desolate, reduced state of the country and city when the second was begun; between the inferior size and less costliness of the stones used in the foundations of the second (Kg1 7:9-10), and the much smaller extent of the foundation itself, including all the appurtenances of the building (Hag 2:3); between the comparative smallness of their present means and the immense resources of David and Solomon. Perhaps, however, the chief cause of grief was that the second temple would be destitute of those things which formed the great and distinguishing glory of the first; namely, the ark, the shekinah, the Urim and Thummim, &c. Not that this second temple was not a very grand and beautiful structure. But no matter how great its material splendor was, it was inferior in this respect to that of Solomon. Yet the glory of the second far outshone that of the first temple in another and more important point of view, namely, the receiving within its walls the incarnate Saviour (Hag 2:9).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 12. Wept with a loud voice] They saw that the glory had departed from Israel; in their circumstances it was impossible to build such a house as the first temple was; and had this been even possible, still it would have been greatly inferior, because it wanted the ark of the covenant, the heavenly fire, the mercy-seat, the heavenly manna, Aaron's rod that budded, the Divine shechinah, the spirit of prophecy, and most probably the Urim and Thummim.

Many shouted for joy] Finding they were now restored to their own land, and to the worship of their God in his own peculiar city: these, in general, had not seen the original temple; and therefore could not feel affected in that way which the elderly people did.

The sight must have been very affecting: a whole people, one part crying aloud with sorrow; the other shouting aloud for joy; and on the same occasion too, in which both sides felt an equal interest! The prophet Haggai comforted them on this occasion by assuring them that the glory of this latter house should exceed that of the former, because the Lord (Jesus Christ) was to come to this temple, and fill it with his glory. See Haggai, Hag 2:1-9.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(12) But many of the priests and Levites . . . wept with a loud voice.—This most affecting scene requires the comment of Haggai 2 and Zeeh. 4. The first house was destroyed in B.C. 588, fifty years before. The weeping of the ancients was not occasioned by any comparison as to size and grandeur, unless indeed they marked the smallness of their foundation stones. They thought chiefly of the great desolation as measured by the past; the younger peoplc thought of the new future.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

12. But many &c. and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that] R.V. But many &c. and heads of fathers’ houses, the old men who, i.e. the heads of the people who would be most conspicuous, priests, Levites, and heads of families. The Vulgate ‘et seniores’ has apparently introduced a fourth official class, ‘the Elders’. The elders are not mentioned here; but see chap. Ezr_5:5.

had seen the first house] Solomon’s Temple was destroyed in 587. The foundation of the new Temple was laid in 536. There were even some alive sixteen years later (520) to whose recollection of the former building the prophet Haggai could appeal (Hag_2:3).

when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes] The traditional interpretation preserved in the Hebrew accents connects this clause with the one preceding, ‘the first house standing on its foundation, when this house was before their eyes’ (so marg. R.V.) The objection to this rendering is the concrete use of the word rendered ‘foundation’ not found elsewhere. But the construction is more vigorous and more vivid than that of the A.V. preferred by most commentators, which connects the whole clause with the words following.

wept with a loud voice] Clearly not tears of joy; expressions of joy are noticed in the next clause: nor tears of grief, because they could never live to see the completion of the building, or because the character of the work was by comparison with the former Temple poor and insignificant. Only the foundations were being laid, and the general plan was on a larger scale than that of Solomon’s Temple (see on Ezr_6:3). Disappointment at the small scale of the beginning may have taken possession of some (cf. Hag_2:3-9; Zec_4:10). But the thoughts of the disasters of their youth, the sorrows cf. their manhood in exile, the gaps in their numbers, the insignificance of the new community by comparison with the splendour of Messianic hopes (Isaiah 60), were enough to cause sadness and weeping.

shouted aloud for joy] the younger and middle-aged men. If memory was sad, hope was joyful.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

But many of the priests and Levites, and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men,.... Seventy or eighty years of age:

that had seen the first house; the temple built by Solomon, as they very well might, since then it had been destroyed but fifty two years; for the seventy years captivity are to be reckoned from the fourth of Jehoiakim, when it began, and which was eighteen years before the destruction of the temple; the beginning of the next clause:

when in the foundation, according to the Hebrew accents, is to be connected with this:

that had seen the first house; not when first founded, for that was five hundred years ago, but in "its foundation"; they saw it standing upon its foundation, in all its glory, and so the Septuagint version; and we may read on, when

this house was before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; seeing what it was like to be by the foundation now laid, and was in their sight as nothing in comparison of the former; see Hag 2:3 but Aben Ezra connects this clause as we do:

when the foundation of this house was laid; not but that the dimensions of this house strictly taken were as large as the former: see Ezr 6:3, but not the courts and appendages to it: besides, what might affect them, there was no likelihood of its being so richly decorated with gold and silver as the former temple, and many things would be wanting in it, as the Urim and Thummim, &c.

and many shouted aloud for joy; of the younger sort, who had never seen the grandeur of the first temple, and were highly delighted with the beginning of this, and the hope of seeing it finished.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Wept ... shouted ... for joy - Compare the marginal reference and Zec 4:10. It is implied that the dimensions of the second temple were smaller than those of the first. Hence, the feeling of sorrow which came upon some. They, however, who had not seen the former temple, and so could not contrast the two, naturally rejoiced to see the sanctuary of their religion begin to rise from its ruins.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Temple. This second temple, though very large (2 Machabees xiv. 13.) and magnificent, (Aggeus ii. 10,) never equalled the glory of the first, in its outward appearance, being also destitute of the ark, and perhaps of the Urim, &c. But the presence of the Messias gave it a more exalted dignity. (Calmet) --- Joy. These different emotions of grief and joy filled their breasts, (Du Hamel) thinking how they had brought on the judgments of God by their transgressions, and that he was now appeased, and would enable them to have some sort of a temple. (Tirinus) --- As it was less beautiful than that of Solomon, Aggeus must be understood to speak of the Church of Christ. (St. Augustine, de C.[City of God?] xviii. 45.) (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Had seen the first house; which divers of them might very well do, because it was destroyed not quite sixty years ago, as is manifest from 2Ki 25; 2Ch 36; Eze 40:1.

Wept with a loud voice; partly, because of the poor and small preparations made for this in comparison of what was made for the other temple; partly, because this temple was divested and destitute of those things which were the principal glory of the former temple, to wit, the ark, and the Urim and Thummim, &c.; partly, because these foundation stones were far inferior to the former, both for quantity and price, 1Ki 7:9,10; and partly, because these foundations were of a far narrower compass than the former; for although the foundations of this house of the Lord, strictly so called, were at least of equal largeness with those of the former, by comparing 1Ki 6:2, and Ezr 6:1-3; yet the foundations of the whole building belonging to the first temple, and adjoining to it, or in the courts of it, were far larger than these.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

12. Ancient men, that had seen the first house — So not a few of the returned exiles were the same persons whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried captive more than half a century before.

When the foundation of this house was laid — The Masoretic accent, and most natural grammatical construction of the Hebrew text, would require us to render thus — Had seen the first house when its foundation was laid. But none of these ancient men could have been so old as to have witnessed the laying of the foundation of the first temple nearly five hundred years before, and hence some take יסדhere in the sense of standing upon its foundation. The word, however, has nowhere else such a meaning, and it seems therefore better to disregard the accent, and construe ביסדוwith what follows, as is done in our common version. Literally, then, the Hebrew reads: In its being founded — this house before their eyes. Maurer refers the Hebrew suffix to Zerubbabel — when he (Zerubbabel) laid the foundation of this house; but as he is not mentioned in the context, it is better to translate the passage impersonally, and the common version can hardly be improved.

When the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes — When they witnessed the founding of this second temple the old men wept with a loud voice at the remembrance of the desolation of former glory, while others shouted aloud for joy in the strong hope and prospect of the restoration or former glory. Here, says Wordsworth, “is an apt emblem of every thing, however joyous, which is done in the Church militant on earth. Her march of victory is through a vale of tears; her restorations are memorials of sins which have caused the destruction of that which had been dissolved. Even when she celebrates the glories of the incarnation of Christ, who made our nature to be a temple of the Godhead, she may not forget to weep for the ruin into which the temple of that nature fell by sin.”

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Many who were ancient men, that had seen the first house. The old temple had not been destroyed so much as fifty years. Consequently, there would be many who could remember its grandeur and glory. These persons, when the foundation of the (new) house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice. It was "the day of small things". (Zec_4:10) The new house, in comparison with the old one, was "as nothing". (Hag_2:3) The difference was perhaps not so much in the dimensions (see note on Ezr_6:3) as in the size and quality of the foundation-stones, (1Ki_5:17) the excellence of the masonry, and the like. Solomon had employed the best workmen of one of the greatest of the Tyrian kings; Zerubbabel had only the arms of his own subjects to depend upon.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Had seen - Which divers of them might well do; because it was destroyed not sixty years ago. Wept - Because of the poor preparations made for this, in comparison of what was made for the other temple: because this was destitute of those things which were the principal glory of the former temple, namely, the ark, and the Urim and Thummim; because these foundation-stones were far inferior to the former, both for quantity and price, 1 Kings vii, 9, 10, and because these foundations were of a far narrower compass than the former: for although the foundations of this house of the Lord, strictly so called, were of equal largeness with those of the former, yet the foundations of the whole building belonging to the first temple, were far larger than these.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

first house

This refers to the first temple that Solomon built, the house of God. (See: Metonymy)

before their eyes

The people are represented by their "eyes" to emphasize what they saw. AT: "in their sight" or "and they saw it" (See: Synecdoche)

wept loudly

This refers to emotional expression of sorrow involving tears and vocal sounds.

translationWords

patriarch

found

joy

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

when its foundation was laid Heb. בְּיָסְדוֹ, with its foundation. With the noun of יוֹסֶד and from יסד, he says בְּיָסְדוֹ, like from חדֶשּׁ, בְּחָדְשּׁוֹ, and from קדֶשּׁ, בְּקָדְשּׁוֹ.

this Temple When they would see the building of this Temple, they would weep because they remembered the large building of the First Temple.

and many who had not seen the building of the First Temple, were rejoicing and shouting for joy with a loud voice, out of their great joy that they had emerged from their exile.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.