Text: Ezra 3:10-11
OT Text Referred to: 2 Chronicles 5:13
Subject: Liturgical praise at temple dedication
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Longitudinal Theme
Significance: When the foundation of the second temple is laid (Ezra 3:10-11), the Levites sing the same liturgical formula used at Solomon's temple dedication (2 Chr 5:13): "He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever toward Israel" (כִּי טוֹב כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ, ki tov ki le'olam chasdo). The deliberate use of identical praise vocabulary connects the two temple inaugurations, asserting continuity between Solomon's magnificent temple and Zerubbabel's humbler replacement. The echo claims that the same covenant faithfulness (חֶסֶד, chesed) that filled Solomon's temple with glory is operative in the restored community's worship, even amid diminished circumstances.