In Ezra 3 and 4 the people build the altar of God and set it up on its foundation. They keep the festival of booths even though the foundation for the temple had not been laid. The people give freewill offerings to pay for the supplies and workers for the building of the temple.

They sing praises to the Lord when the foundation is laid. The older people cry because they remember the old temple.

The adversaries of the Judah and Benjamin offer to help with the building of the temple but the people of Israel refuse them because they are not to have others build the temple per King Cyrus. The adversaries write to other kings and tell them about what the people are doing in Jerusalem. The adversaries warn the kings that the people of Jerusalem are troublemakers and will be hurtful if they are able to complete the temple. The people of Jerusalem are forced to stop working on the temple until the reign of King Darius of Persia.

By Luke 3 Jesus and John have become adults. John is in the wilderness preaching the message of repentance (a change in lifestyle) and the forgiveness of sins. The people think that maybe he is the Messiah, but he tells them that the Messiah will be able to do so much more than he can do. He baptizes all the people present. Jesus also is baptized. While he is praying the Holy Spirit comes on him in the form of a dove. A voice from heaven says the Jesus is His Son, the Beloved. God is pleased with him.

Luke presents a genealogy for Jesus that goes back to Adam the son of God.

Notice Adam is the son of God and Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus is the only Son of God through birth. We become God’s children by adoption. We have received Christ’s inheritance with him.