And they sang, praising and giving thanks to the Lord, saying, “For He is good, for His favor is upon Israel forever.” And all the people shouted with a great shout of joy when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
Parallel translations
- WEB They sang to one another in praising and giving thanks to Yahweh, “For he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever toward Israel.” All the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised Yahweh, because the foundation of Yahweh’s house had been laid.
- KJV 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.
- BSB And they sang responsively with praise and thanksgiving to the LORD: “For He is good; for His loving devotion to Israel endures forever.” Then all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD had been laid.
- NKJV And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord: “For He is good, For His mercy endures forever toward Israel.” Then all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
- NLT With praise and thanks, they sang this song to the Lord: “He is so good! His faithful love for Israel endures forever!” Then all the people gave a great shout, praising the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s Temple had been laid.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
They sang of God's goodness and steadfast love, and the people shouted for joy that the foundation was laid. Worship erupted in gratitude for God's faithfulness.
Overview
Their refrain, "He is good, for his loving kindness endures forever," echoes the Psalms (Psalm 136) and Israel's enduring confidence in God's covenant love. The great shout celebrated a visible sign that God was restoring His people. Their joy testifies that God's mercy, not their merit, made the restoration possible.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 27
- Ps 106:1Praise Yahweh! Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever.
- 1 Chr 16:34Oh give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever.
- Ps 107:1Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever.
- Ps 103:17But Yahweh’s loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting with those who fear him, his righteousness to children’s children;
- Ps 118:1Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever.
- Jer 33:11the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who say, ‘Give thanks to Yahweh of Armies, for Yahweh is good, for his loving kindness endures forever;’ who bring thanksgiving into Yahweh’s house. For I will cause the captivity of the land to return as at the first,” says Yahweh.
- Ps 135:3Praise Yah, for Yahweh is good. Sing praises to his name, for that is pleasant.
- 2 Chr 7:3All the children of Israel looked on, when the fire came down, and Yahweh’s glory was on the house. They bowed themselves with their faces to the ground on the pavement, worshiped, and gave thanks to Yahweh, saying, “For he is good; for his loving kindness endures for ever.”
- Neh 12:24The chiefs of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brothers close to them, to praise and give thanks, according to the commandment of David the man of God, watch next to watch.
- Isa 12:6Cry aloud and shout, you inhabitant of Zion; for the Holy One of Israel is great among you!”
- Ps 136:1–26Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good; for his loving kindness endures forever.
- Isa 44:23Sing, you heavens, for Yahweh has done it! Shout, you lower parts of the earth! Break out into singing, you mountains, O forest, all of your trees, for Yahweh has redeemed Jacob, and will glorify himself in Israel.
- Exod 15:21Miriam answered them, “Sing to Yahweh, for he has triumphed gloriously. The horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”
- Ps 145:1–11A praise psalm by David. I will exalt you, my God, the King. I will praise your name forever and ever.
- Isa 6:3One called to another, and said, “Holy, holy, holy, is Yahweh of Armies! The whole earth is full of his glory!”
- 1 Chr 16:41and with them Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest who were chosen, who were mentioned by name, to give thanks to Yahweh, because his loving kindness endures forever;
- Luke 1:50His mercy is for generations of generations on those who fear him.
- Zech 9:9Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion! Shout, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King comes to you! He is righteous, and having salvation; lowly, and riding on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
- Ps 47:1For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by the sons of Korah. Oh clap your hands, all you nations. Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
- Ps 24:7–10Lift up your heads, you gates! Be lifted up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory will come in.
- Neh 12:40So the two companies of those who gave thanks in God’s house stood, and I, and the half of the rulers with me;
- Rev 21:10–14He carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
- Josh 6:5It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the city wall shall fall down flat, and the people shall go up, every man straight in front of him.”
- Ps 47:5God has gone up with a shout, Yahweh with the sound of a trumpet.
- Josh 6:16At the seventh time, when the priests blew the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for Yahweh has given you the city!
- Ps 102:13–14You will arise and have mercy on Zion; for it is time to have pity on her. Yes, the set time has come.
- Josh 6:10Joshua commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout, nor let your voice be heard, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.”
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Christ at the center
The return from exile and the rebuilt altar keep alive the hope of a greater restoration — the true return from our deeper exile of sin accomplished by Christ.
How Ezra 3:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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