And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.
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Bede
AD 735
For these prophets had predicted that if they persisted in building the temple, soon, with the Lord’s assistance, they not only would complete the work itself but also have a more abundant supply of all good things as a reward for their devotion. Among their proclamations are Zechariah’s words: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house, and his hands will complete it, and you will know that the Lord of Hosts has sent me to you,” which is to say, “When you see that the temple has been completed by Zerubbabel, by whom it was begun, then you will understand that I was sent by the Lord and that what I have said I have said at his command.” And Haggai says, “From this twentyfourth day of the ninth month, from the day when the foundations of the Lord’s temple were laid, store it in your heart. Is the seed as yet to sprout? Or have the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate and the olive tree not blossomed? From this day on I will bless you.” What happened in the event show...
Adar, corresponding with our February and March. (Menochius)
In the latter month they celebrated the Passover, ver. 19.
Darius. Hence twenty years had elapsed from the first foundation. They might continue to embellish the temple other twenty-seven years, as the Jews assert; (John ii. 20,) unless they speak of the repairs made by Herod, (Baronius; Tirinus) or exaggerate, (Grotius) being under a mistake. (Salien, the year of the world 3537.)
