Ezra 6:16

16 And the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of those who had come back, kept the feast of the opening of this house of God with joy.

Ezra 6:16 Meaning and Commentary

Ezra 6:16

And the children of Israel
Those of the ten tribes that remained after the body of the people were carried captive, or came with the Jews at their return:

the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the
captivity;
those of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin:

kept the dedication of this house of God with joy;
they set it apart for sacred use and service, with feasting and other expressions of joy and gladness, as follows.

Ezra 6:16 In-Context

14 And the responsible men of the Jews went on with their building, and did well, helped by the teaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, the son of Iddo. They went on building till it was complete, in keeping with the word of the God of Israel, and the orders given by Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes, king of Persia.

15 And the building of this house was complete on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the rule of Darius the king.

16 And the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of those who had come back, kept the feast of the opening of this house of God with joy.

17 And they gave as offerings at the opening of this house of God a hundred oxen, two hundred sheep, four hundred lambs; and for a sin-offering for all Israel, twelve he-goats, being the number of the tribes of Israel.

18 And they put the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their order, for the worship of God at Jerusalem; as it is recorded in the book of Moses.