20. Darius and the Completion of the Second Temple

The construction of the temple in Jerusalem was impeded by local opposition and a change of official policy in Persia. That changed, however, when Darius the Great took the Persian throne in 521 b.c. Under the inspiring preaching of Haggai and Zechariah, the people of God once again took to the task and the temple was completed and put back into operation in 516 b.c., exactly 70 years after its destruction under the Babylonians.