The text is silent, concerning when the Jews arrived in the Province of Judah. In fact, the very first reference to a calendar date in the Book of Ezra is Ezra 3:1. The text says: “when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.” Is this a coincidence or is the date important? When the seventh month was come… would be the first day of the seventh month. This was the Feast of Trumpets, which was an annual holy day for the Jewish people. It was a time of celebration. When King Solomon completed the Temple of God and brought the Ark of the Covenant (symbol of God’s Presence) into the Most Holy Place (1Kings 8:5-6), it was on this very date in the calendar (cp. 1Kings 8:2). So, it seems that the Feast of Trumpets has a special significance in Jewish history, as that pertains to the Temple of God.
In the Book of Ezra the writer tells us that “when the seventh month was come” (Ezra 3:1), all the people came out of their cities as one man to Jerusalem. In other words, the returning exiles journeyed from the cities in which they were living in the Province of Judah to go to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Trumpets, which was the first day of the seventh month. They were as one man, vis-à-vis they had one purpose in mind. One might ask, ‘What purpose was that?’
We are told that the two leaders of the congregation, Jeshua, the high priest, together with his brethren (the priests) and Zerubbabel, the Tirshatha (Ezra 2:63) or governor of the Province of Judah, together with his brethren (of the house of David), assembled together and built the altar of God. This was done so the priests of God could offer burnt offerings, according to the Law of Moses, which, apparently weren’t offered until this date (Ezra 3:2)..
This makes this day stand out as particularly significant.[1] The text says that they set the altar upon its foundation, although they were in great fear of their enemies round about them (Ezra 3:3). In other words, it is implied they were under duress. They felt intimidated by the countries surrounding them, because, it seems, the people of those countries didn’t want the Jews’ religious practices to be reinstituted. Moreover, we are told that offerings to God, particularly the morning and evening sacrifices, began at this time. That is, this date, vis-à-vis the Feast of Trumpets (cp. Ezra 3:6), which followed the exiles’ return to their homeland, marks the very beginning of the Jew’s offerings to God, after those offerings terminated with the destruction of the Temple by Nebuchadnezzar some seventy years prior.
Next, we are told that the people celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles, which seems to infer all of the annual feast days of the seventh month were kept, including the Day of Atonement, which was celebrated on the tenth day of the month. Nevertheless, although it was the most solemn of the annual holy days, it wasn’t mentioned due to the joyful context this particular season represented. In the same sense, during Solomon’s dedication of the Temple, the Feast of Tabernacles is implied to have been celebrated (1Kings 8:65) but there is no mention of the Day of Atonement, due to the celebratory mood of the people (cp. Mark 2:19). The effect of the Presence of God (cp. 1Kings 8:10-11) at the season of dedication overshadowed the mourning of the nation on the tenth of the month. All the feasts of the seventh month were celebrated, but the reference to the joyful feast of the ingathering, namely the Feast of Tabernacles, echoed the mood of the people, not the solemnity of the Day of Atonement (cp. Ecclesiastes 3:4).
So, all the sacrifices to the Lord were offered, vis-à-vis the morning and evening sacrifices, those offered at the new moons and during all the annual feast days and sabbaths etc., including what freewill offerings were made, all these were offered to the Lord, beginning on the Feast of Trumpets, the first day of the seventh month, which followed the exiles’ return to their homeland (Ezra 3:5-6).
Finally, it was also at this time that the people began contributing money for the building of the Temple, and supplies for those who served at the Temple. It was also at this time that the grant that was given them by Cyrus was officially deposited in the Temple treasury to buy the things they needed from Zidon and Tyre for the construction of the Temple (Ezra 3:7). Earlier, when the exiles assembled at Jerusalem, after first entering the land, some of the leaders had given offerings of gold and silver, according to their ability, for the construction of the Temple, and priestly garments for the service in the Temple (Ezra 2:68-69). Presumably, this is mentioned to show that the people will follow the example set by those in authority over them. Thus, it is understood that the need for godly leadership cannot be overvalued.
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[1] This date, the Feast of Trumpet, is also important to the ministry of Jesus. It was on this very day that Jesus began his ministry in Nazareth, according to the Gospel of Luke. A comparison of the Sabbaths in Luke, plus the fact that it was the time of the harvest (Luke ), show that Jesus began his ministry in the seventh month, and on the first Sabbath, the Feast of Trumpets, Jesus announced the Messiah had come, thus, beginning the final week of the Seventy Weeks Prophecy. See my earlier studies in the Gospel of Luke: Jesus of Nazareth—Messiah, and David’s Greater Son!
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