Ezra 3:11 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Ezra 3:11
And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.
good (as an adjective) in the widest sense · adjective, masculine singular absolute
mercy
חַסְדּ֖וֹchas.Do
H2617
kindness · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
ever
לְעוֹלָ֥םle.'o.Lam
H5769
properly · preposition + noun, common masculine singular absolute
Israel
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑לYis.ra.'El
H3478
Jisrael · proper noun, a place name
people
הָעָ֡םha.'Am
H5971
a people (as a congregated unit) · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
shouted
הֵרִיעוּ֩he.ri.'U
H7321
to mar (especially by breaking) · verb, hiphil perfect, 3rd person common plural
great
גְדוֹלָ֤הge.do.Lah
H1419
great (in any sense) · adjective, feminine singular absolute
shout
תְרוּעָ֙הte.ru.'Ah
H8643
clamor · noun, common feminine singular absolute
praised
בְהַלֵּל֙ve.ha.Lel
H1984
to be clear (orig. of sound · preposition + verb, piel infinitive construct
LORD
לַֽיהוָ֔הla.Yah.weh
H3068
Jehovah · preposition + proper noun, a title
foundation
הוּסַ֥דhu.Sad
H3245
to set (literally or figuratively) · verb, hophal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
house
בֵּיתbeit-
H1004
a house (in the greatest variation of applications · noun, common masculine singular construct
LORD
יְהוָֽהYah.weh
H3068
Jehovah · proper noun, a title
laid
יָסַדyâçad
H3245
to set (literally or figuratively)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Psalms 106:1 Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
1 Chronicles 16:34 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.
Psalms 107:1 O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Psalms 103:17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children;
Psalms 118:1 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.
Psalms 135:3 Praise the LORD; for the LORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant.
Jeremiah 33:11 The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Prai…
2 Chronicles 7:3 And when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD upon the house, they bowed themselves with their f…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Ezra 3:8–end
There was no dispute among the returned Jews whether they should build the temple or no; that was immediately resolved on, and that it should be done with all speed; what comfort could they take in their own land if they had not that token of God's presence with them and the record of his name among them? We have here therefore an account of the beginning of that good work. Observe,
I. When it was begun-in the second month of the second year, as soon as ever the season of the year would permit (Ezr 3:8), and when they had ended the solemnities of the passover. They took little more than half a year for making preparation of the ground and materials; so much were their hearts upon it. Note, W…
Jeshua with his sons--not the high priest, but a Levite (Ezr 2:40). To these, as probably distinguished for their mechanical skill and taste, the duty of acting as overseers was particularly committed.
Adam Clarke on Ezra 3:10
After the ordinance of David - With psalms which he composed, acting in the manner which he directed.
John Gill on 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 Psalm 136:1 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 mann…
So, with the foundation of the temple of the Lord laid by the masons, etc., great devotion of all persons is shown. With the foundation of the temple of the Lord laid, both priests and Levites and all the people, according to their respective statuses, praised the mercy of the Lord. The priests, indeed, adorned with holy garments as they were accustomed while the temple still stood, sounding the trumpets and stirring the hearts of the people to the sweetness of the heavenly praise; the Levites, strumming well on cymbals, singing hymns to the Lord; and the people, exhibiting their hearts' affection in common clamor in praising the Lord. The Levites also praised the Lord by the hand of David, either on the instruments which he made or the psalms which he established, or because David, in the placing of the ark, appointed Asaph and his brethren to give thanks to the Lord, as the words of the days testify, concerning whom it is again said: "Because his sons were under his hand, prophesying according to the king." (1 Chronicles VI). Rightly, also in this place, when the sons of Asaph praised and gave thanks to the Lord by the hand of David, that is, they are to be understood to have done this according to his arrangement. According to the mystical sense, indeed, with the temple of the Lord founded by masons, the priests stand in their attire with trumpets, when converted sinners from the error of sins, and with faith and love of Christ established in their hearts, all who hear the masters of the churches rejoice. They themselves, moreover, decorating themselves more diligently with good works, sound the trumpets of saving doctrine, so that both by the example of virtues and by the exhortation of sermons, they might aid the good beginnings of those who either recently by repenting have come to the grace of Christ or have recently taught others to turn to the grace of Christ. The Levites also stand to praise God with cymbals when even ministers of the second order serve their Creator with pious deeds for the instruction of neophytes, and this in the mutual sweetness of charity. For cymbals, which strike each other to sound, most fittingly express the works of charity, with which the holy ones excite each other to the praise of their author. They also praise Him through the hand of David, the King of Israel, when they diligently consider and strive as much as they…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Psalms, Book Of — The present Hebrew name of the book is Tehill’im, “Praises;” but in the actual superscriptions of the psalms the word Tehillah is applied only to one, (Psalms 145:1) ... which is indeed emphatically…
Cymbal · .Laying of the foundation of the second temple — .Laying of the foundation of the second temple
Jeshua · .Rebuilt the temple — .Rebuilt the temple
Praise · Exemplified: Priests and Levites — Exemplified: Priests and Levites
Shouting · IN JOY AND PRAISE — IN JOY AND PRAISE
Temple, The Second · Solemnities connected with laying the foundation of — Solemnities connected with laying the foundation of
Trumpet · At the foundation of the second temple — At the foundation of the second temple
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Keil & Delitzsch on Ezra 3:8–end
The foundation of the temple laid. - Ezr 3:8 In the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, i.e., after their arrival at Jerusalem on their return from Babylon, in the second month, began Zerubbabel and Joshua to appoint the Levites from twenty years old and upwards to the oversight of the work (the building) of the house of the Lord. That is to say, the work of building was taken in hand. Whether this second year of the return coincides with the second year of the rule of Cyrus, so that the foundations of the temple were laid, as Theophil. Antioch. ad Autolic. lib. 3, according to Berosus, relates, in the second year of Cyrus, cannot be determined. For nothing more is…
The music at this dedication ceremony sounded similar to the singing when Solomon first brought the Ark into the Temple (2 Chr 5:12-13). Both events caused the worshipers to givesing praise and thanks . . . to the Lord for his faithful covenant love and goodness. • as King David had prescribed: See 1 Chr 25:1-7.
Rashi on Ezra 3:11
And they sang aloud Heb. וַיַעֲנוּ, an expression of raising the voice in song, like (Exod. 15: 21): “And Miriam raised her voice in song to them.”
and with thanks and with thanksgivings.
for it is good to give thanks to the Lord.
and the entire people the rest of the people of Israel.
because...was laid They acted with all these rejoicings because of the building of the foundation, which was laid in the House of the Lord.
