Ezra 3
1 And now the seventh month had arrived, and the sons of Israel were in their cities. Then, the people were gathered together, like one man, in Jerusalem.
Memasuki bulan ketujuh, semua orang Israel berkumpul lagi di Yerusalem.
2 And Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, rose up with his brothers, the priests. And Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, rose up with his brothers. And they built the altar of the God of Israel, so that they might offer holocausts upon it, just as it was written in the law of Moses, the man of God.
Sebelum mereka memulai pembangunan rumah TUHAN, Yesua anak Yozadak dan Zerubabel anak Sealtiel serta para imam dan sahabat-sahabat Zerubabel membuat mezbah tempat membakar kurban-kurban persembahan kepada Allah, sesuai dengan yang tertulis dalam kitab Musa hamba Allah.
3 Now they set the altar of God upon its bases, while keeping the people of all the surrounding lands away from it. And they offered upon it a holocaust to the Lord, morning and evening.
Biarpun mereka takut diserang oleh orang dari bangsa-bangsa sekitar, mereka tetap membangun mezbah itu di tempat semula dan mulai mempersembahkan kurban-kurban yang dibakar habis untuk TUHAN. Mereka membakar kurban itu sesuai jadwal pada waktu pagi maupun sore.
4 And they kept the solemnity of tabernacles, just as it was written, and the holocaust of each day in order, according to the precept, the work of each day in its time.
Mereka juga merayakan Hari Raya Pondok Cabang-cabang Berdaun sesuai peraturan yang ada, dan setiap hari kurban yang dibakar habis terus dilakukan di mezbah menurut giliran yang sudah ditetapkan.
5 And after these, they offered the continual holocaust, as much on the new moons as on all the solemnities of the Lord that were consecrated, and on all those when a voluntary gift was offered to the Lord.
Sejak hari pertama bulan ketujuh itu, mereka sudah mulai mempersembahkan kurban secara rutin— baik kurban yang dibakar habis yang tetap, kurban yang dibakar habis pada bulan baru dan pada setiap hari raya TUHAN yang kudus, maupun persembahan sukarela dari setiap orang kepada TUHAN— meskipun pondasi rumah TUHAN belum mulai dibuat.
6 From the first day of the seventh month, they began to offer holocausts to the Lord. But the temple of God had not yet been founded.
7 And so they gave money to those who cut and laid stones. Similarly, they gave food, and drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians, so that they would bring cedar wood, from Lebanon to the sea at Joppa, in accord with what had been commanded of them by Cyrus, the king of the Persians.
Sesudah itu rakyat menyumbang uang untuk membayar tukang batu dan tukang kayu. Mereka juga membeli kayu-kayu aras dari orang Tirus dan Sidon dengan bayaran berupa bahan makanan, minuman, dan minyak zaitun. Kayu itu diangkut dari wilayah Libanon ke Yopa melalui jalur laut. Semuanya itu dilakukan rakyat sesuai dengan perintah Kores, raja Persia.
8 Then, in the second year of their advent to the temple of God in Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and the remainder of their brothers, the priests, and the Levites, and all who had arrived from the captivity to Jerusalem, began, and they appointed Levites, from twenty years and over, to hasten the work of the Lord.
Kemudian tibalah tahun kedua sesudah orang Israel berkumpul di rumah Allah di Yerusalem. Pada bulan kedua dalam tahun itu, mereka mulai membangun rumah TUHAN. Zerubabel anak Sealtiel dan Yesua anak Yozadak, bersama sahabat-sahabat mereka yaitu para imam dan orang-orang Lewi, juga seluruh rakyat yang sudah pulang dari Babel ke Yerusalem turut mengambil bagian dalam pembangunan itu. Orang-orang suku Lewi yang berusia dua puluh tahun ke atas ditugaskan untuk mengawasi pekerjaan pembangunan rumah TUHAN.
9 And Jeshua and his sons and his brothers, Kadmiel and his sons, and the sons of Judah, like one man, stood so that they might have charge over those who did the work in the temple of God: the sons of Henadad, and their sons, and their brothers, the Levites.
Pekerjaan pembangunan ini dipimpin oleh Yesua dari suku Lewi, Kadmiel dari suku Yehuda, bersama semua anak dan saudara-saudara mereka, serta keturunan Henadad dari suku Lewi beserta saudara-saudara mereka.
10 And when the builders had founded the temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their adornment with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, stood with cymbals, so that they might praise God by the hand of David, the king of Israel.
Pada waktu tukang bangunan mulai meletakkan pondasi rumah TUHAN, para imam mengenakan jubah khusus dan memegang terompet, lalu berdiri untuk memuji TUHAN. Orang-orang Lewi dari keturunan Asaf juga maju membawa alat musik ceracap. Puji-pujian itu dilakukan menurut cara yang sudah ditetapkan oleh Raja Daud.
11 And they sung together with hymns and confession to the Lord: “For he is good. For his mercy is over Israel unto eternity.” And likewise, all the people shouted with a great clamor in praise to the Lord, because the temple of the Lord had been founded.
Mereka bersyukur kepada TUHAN dan menyanyi bersahut-sahutan, “TUHAN itu baik! Sesungguhnya kasih dan kesetiaan-Nya tetap ada bagi kita sampai selama-lamanya!” Seluruh rakyat bersorak dengan nyaring karena bersukacita melihat pondasi rumah TUHAN sudah diletakkan.
12 And many of the priests and the Levites, and the leaders of the fathers and of the elders, who had seen the former temple, when now this temple was founded and was before their eyes, wept with a great voice. And many of them, shouting for joy, lifted up their voice.
Sebagian besar imam dan orang Lewi serta para kepala keluarga yang dahulu pernah melihat bangunan rumah TUHAN yang pertama menangis keras-keras waktu mereka menyaksikan peletakan pondasi rumah TUHAN yang baru ini, tetapi generasi baru yang tidak mengetahui bangunan yang dulu pun tetap bersorak-sorak dengan penuh sukacita.
13 Neither could anyone distinguish between the voice of clamor of joy, and a voice of weeping of the people. For the shouting of the people mixed into a great clamor, and the voice was heard from far away.
Saat itu, sulit membedakan antara suara teriakan sukacita atau suara tangisan, sebab bunyinya begitu nyaring. Suara mereka terdengar sampai jauh.
