The Day of Small Things

The Story

When the exiles came home from Babylon, Jerusalem was in ruins. Their leader, Zerubbabel, organized the people to rebuild the temple. They laid the foundation with shouts of joy.

But the older people who remembered Solomon’s magnificent temple wept. This new one looked small and plain by comparison.

Then opposition came. Enemies complained to the Persian king, and the work was forced to stop. For about sixteen years, the foundation just sat there. Weeds grew. People went back to working on their own houses.

Then God sent the prophet Zechariah with a message for Zerubbabel. “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.”

Who are you, O great mountain? God said. Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain. Every obstacle in his way will be flattened.

Then came the promise: the hands that laid this foundation will also finish it. “For who hath despised the day of small things?”

The people went back to work. And just a few years later, the temple was finished, and they dedicated it with joy. Zerubbabel’s hands had finished what they started.

Reflection