Ezra 3:11

11 And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto Hashem because He is good, for His chesed endureth forever toward Yisroel. And kol haAm shouted with a great shout, when they praised Hashem, because the foundation of the Beis Hashem was laid.

Ezra 3:11 Meaning and Commentary

Ezra 3:11

And they sang together by course
They sang by turns in responses, and answered one another, as the word signifies; when one company had performed their part, another took theirs:

in praising and giving thanks to the Lord;
for returning them to their own land, and giving them opportunity, ability, and will, to set about the rebuilding of the temple of the Lord, and restoring the pure worship of God;

because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever towards Israel;
which words are often repeated in ( Psalms 136:1-26 ) and which might be the psalm the Levites now sung by responses:

and all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the
Lord;
to express their joy, in the best manner they could, on this solemn occasion:

because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid;
which gave them hope the temple in due time would be rebuilt, and the service of it restored; see ( Job 38:6 Job 38:7 ) .

Ezra 3:11 In-Context

9 Then stood Yeshua with his banim and his brethren, Kadmiel and his banim, the Bnei Yehudah, together, to set forward the workmen in the Beis HaElohim; the Bnei Chenadad, with their banim and their brethren the Levi’im.

10 And when the Bonim (Builders) laid the foundation of the Heikhal Hashem, they set the kohanim in their robes with trumpets, and the Levi’im the Bnei Asaph with cymbals, to praise Hashem according to the instructions of Dovid Melech Yisroel.

11 And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto Hashem because He is good, for His chesed endureth forever toward Yisroel. And kol haAm shouted with a great shout, when they praised Hashem, because the foundation of the Beis Hashem was laid.

12 But many of the kohanim and Levi’im and chief of the avot, who were zekenim (ancient men), that had seen the Beis HaRishon (Beis HaMikdash of Shlomo), when the foundation of this Beis [Hamikdash] was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice, and many shouted aloud for simchah;

13 So that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of simchah from the noise of the weeping of the people; for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.