Ezra 6:16

Dedication of the Temple

16 Then the people of Israel—the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the exiles—celebrated the dedication of the 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 So the Jewish elders built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo. They finished building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia.

15 And this temple was completed on the third day of the month of Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.

16 Then the people of Israel—the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the exiles—celebrated the dedication of the house of God with joy.

17 For the dedication of the house of God they offered a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and a sin offering for all Israel of twelve male goats, one for each tribe of Israel.

18 They also appointed the priests by their divisions and the Levites by their groups to the service of God in Jerusalem, according to what is written in the Book of Moses.