[[Ezr-06]] Prev: [[Prophecies in Ezr-05]] | Next: [[Prophecies in Ezr-07]] --- ### In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king made a decree: Concerning God's house at Jerusalem, let the house be built... They built and finished it... according to the decree of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: The completion of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, authorized and supported by King Cyrus's initial decree, fulfills the specific prophecy that a ruler named Cyrus would command the rebuilding of the temple. *Historical context*: The prophet Isaiah ([[Isa-44#v28|Isaiah 44:28]]; 45:1) named Cyrus as the 'shepherd' of the Lord who would authorize the rebuilding of the Temple approximately 150 years before Cyrus took power. Historical records such as the Cyrus Cylinder and the decree mentioned in [[Ezr|Ezra 6]] corroborate that Cyrus the Great initiated this restoration policy in 538 BC, which was eventually completed under Darius I in 516 BC. *Related to*: [[Isa-44#v28|Isaiah 44:28]] ### This house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king. *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: The completion of the temple in the sixth year of Darius (516/515 BC) fulfills the chronological prophecy regarding the 70-year period of desolation for the temple and Jerusalem. *Historical context*: The prophet Jeremiah predicted a 70-year period of Babylonian service and desolation ([[Jer-25#v11|Jeremiah 25:11]]-12; 29:10). Historians and theologians calculate that from the destruction of the first temple in 586 BC to the completion and rededication of the second temple in 516 BC is a period of exactly 70 years, marking the literal fulfillment of Jeremiah's timeline. *Related to*: [[Jer-25#v11|Jeremiah 25:11]]-12 and [[Jer-29#v10|Jeremiah 29:10]] ### The elders of the Jews built and prospered, through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: The successful completion of the temple construction despite significant political and local opposition is the realization of the prophetic encouragement given by Haggai and Zechariah. *Historical context*: [[Hag-01#v1|Haggai 1:1]]-8 and [[Zech-04#v6|Zechariah 4:6]]-9 contain prophecies urging the people to rebuild, promising that the hands of Zerubbabel would finish the work and that God would remove the 'great mountain' of opposition. [[Ezr-06#v14|Ezra 6:14]] explicitly credits their prophesying as the reason the elders prospered and finished the project. *Related to*: [[Hag-01#v1|Haggai 1:1]]-11 and [[Zech-04#v6|Zechariah 4:6]]-9 ### Moreover I make a decree... that of the king's goods, even of the tribute beyond the River, expenses must be given with all diligence to these men... also wheat, salt, wine, and oil... let it be given them day by day without fail. *Type*: fulfillment *Summary*: The decree by Darius to fully fund the temple's reconstruction and daily sacrifices using the royal treasury and taxes fulfills the prophecy that the wealth of nations would be used to glorify God's house. *Historical context*: In [[Hag-02#v7|Haggai 2:7]]-8, the prophet declared that 'the treasures of all nations shall come in' and 'the silver is mine, and the gold is mine.' Darius's command to use regional tax revenue ('tribute beyond the River') to provide for the Jewish temple is viewed as a historical fulfillment of foreign wealth being channeled to Jerusalem. *Related to*: [[Hag-02#v7|Haggai 2:7]]-8 --- #ai_prophecy