Shout and Crying

One very big noise rise over di ruins of Jerusalem, e loud reach say people for far fit hear am. Some of am na shout of joy. Some of am na crying. And all of am mix together, so nobody fit know which one be which.

About fifty years before, di Babylonian army don burn Jerusalem and destroy di big temple of Solomon. Dem carry di people of Judah go Babylon. Then Babylon imself fall to Cyrus, king of Persia, and Cyrus allow di people wey dey exile to go house and build di house of dem God again. Thousands make di long journey back. Now dem dey Jerusalem, for one city of rubble and weeds. For di first autumn wey dem dey house, dem build one altar for im old place and dem begin offer sacrifice again. Dem pay stonemasons and carpenters, and dem send food and oil to di people of Tyre and Sidon make dem bring cedar logs from Lebanon by sea. And now, for di second year, for di second month, dem ready to start.

Two men dey lead di work. Zerubbabel, wey come from di line of King David, and Jeshua, di priest. Together with di priests and Levites and everybody wey don come back from captivity, dem start. Dem appoint Levites wey be twenty years and above to supervise di building of di house of Di Lord. Imagine di sounds of dat work. Dem dey cut stone and shape am. Men dey call each other. Ropes dey strain as dem dey lower big blocks put for dem place. And at last dem lay di foundation of di temple. No be di whole temple. Na only di foundation. But na beginning.

So dem celebrate. Di priests wear dem robes and stand with trumpets. Di Levites, di children of Asaph, stand with cymbals, to praise Di Lord di way King David don arrange am, long time ago. And dem sing to one another, one side dey answer di other, with praise and thanksgiving. Because e good. Because im love for Israel dey last forever. Then all di people shout one big shout, dey praise Di Lord, because dem don lay di foundation of di house of Di Lord. You fit almost hear am: di trumpets, di clash of cymbals, di song wey dey echo cross di hills, and thousands of voices wey dey shout together.

But no be everybody dey shout. Among di crowd na older priests and Levites and family heads. Old men and women wey, when dem be children, don see di first temple, Solomon temple, as e stand with all im glory. And as dem dey watch dis new foundation, dem cry with loud voice. Maybe dem remember how di old temple fine reach, and dis one be like say e too small. Maybe dem remember everything wey dem lose: houses, family, di long years for far place. Maybe na relief, after so long. Di Bible no tell us exactly why. E only tell us say plenty people cry, and plenty shout for joy. And di people no fit separate di sound of di joyful shout from di sound of di crying, because di people dey shout so loud. People hear di noise for far.

For eighteen seventy-nine, archaeologists for Babylon find one clay cylinder wey Babylonian writing cover. Now dem dey call am di Cyrus Cylinder, and e dey di British Museum for London. For am, King Cyrus of Persia describe how e take Babylon, and e talk say e return peoples wey dem don carry from dem homeland, and e repair di holy places of dem gods. E no mention Judah by name. But e show exactly di kind policy wey di book of Ezra describe.

Shout and crying. You go find dis story for Ezra chapter three, verse eight reach thirteen. New beginning, wey dem build on top di ruins of di old one, with joy and sorrow wey mix together, and God love wey dey last forever. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When you dey sad about wetin you don lose, wetin you fit still thank God for?