8 During the second month of the second year after the people had returned from Babylonia, they started rebuilding the Lord's temple. Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jozadak, the priests, the Levites, and everyone else who had returned started working. Every Levite over twenty years of age was put in charge of some part of the work.
9 The Levites in charge of the whole project were Joshua and his sons and relatives and Kadmiel and his sons from the family of Hodaviah. The family of Henadad worked along with them.
10 When the builders had finished laying the foundation of the temple, the priests put on their robes and blew trumpets in honour of the Lord, while the Levites from the family of Asaph praised God with cymbals. All of them followed the instructions given years before by King David.
11 They praised the Lord and gave thanks as they took turns singing:“The Lord is good!His faithful love for Israelwill last for ever.”Everyone started shouting and praising the Lord because work on the foundation of the temple had begun.
12 Many of the older priests and Levites and the heads of families cried aloud because they remembered seeing the first temple years before. But others were so happy that they celebrated with joyful shouts.
13 Their shouting and crying were so noisy that it all sounded alike and could be heard a long way off.