were in charge of the workmen and directed everyone involved, depending on what was required. Some of the Levites were scribes, some officers, and some gatekeepers.
All the leaders of the priests and the people were also totally faithless and sinful, following all the disgusting practices of the heathen nations. They defiled the Lord's Temple that he had set apart as holy in Jerusalem.
So Ezra stood up and made the leading priests, Levites, and all the Israelites present take an oath to act on what had just been said. They all took the oath.
This Ezra arrived from Babylon, and was a scribe who was an expert in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given to Israel. The king had granted Ezra everything he'd asked for, because the Lord his God was with him.
How on earth can you say, “We're wise, and we have the Law of the Lord?” Can't you see that the writings of your teachers of the Law have turned it into lies?
“This is why every religious teacher who's learned about the kingdom of heaven is like a house-owner who brings out from his storeroom both new and old treasures,” Jesus said.
But when the chief priests and religious teachers saw the wonderful miracles he did, and the children shouting in the Temple, “Hosanna to the son of David,” they were offended. “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
Jesus went into the Temple. The chief priests and the ruling elders of the people came to him while he was teaching and asked, “By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority?”
Then Jesus began to explain to them that the Son of man would suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and religious teachers. He would be killed, but three days later would rise again.
Immediately the religious teachers and the chief priests wanted to arrest him because they realized that the story Jesus told was aimed at them, but they were afraid of what the people would do.
So Judas took with him a troop of soldiers together with guards from the chief priests and the Pharisees. They arrived there carrying torches, lanterns, and weapons.
A great commotion erupted and some of the Pharisee teachers of the law stood up and argued fiercely, saying, “We find this man not guilty! Maybe a spirit spoke to him, or an angel!”