The promise the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah was about to come true in Cyrus’ first year as king of Persia. The Lord inspired the king to make this announcement throughout his whole kingdom and then to put it in writing.
Then the heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, the priests, and the Levites—everyone God had inspired—came forward to rebuild the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem.
Those who were willing and whose hearts moved them came and brought their contributions to the Lord. The gifts were used to construct the tent of meeting, to pay other expenses, and to make the holy clothes.
Every Israelite man and woman who was willing brought all these items to the Lord as a freewill offering. They brought these items to be used to make everything the Lord had commanded through Moses.
Then Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro. Moses said to him, “Please let me go back to my own people in Egypt. I would like to see if they’re still alive.” Jethro said to Moses, “You may go.”
After a while Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s go back to every city where we spread the Lord’s word. We’ll visit the believers to see how they’re doing.”
Every good present and every perfect gift comes from above, from the Father who made the sun, moon, and stars. The Father doesn’t change like the shifting shadows produced by the sun and the moon.