Ezr 3:12 | NET2full | STEP | Many of the priests , the Levites , and the leaders — older people who had seen with their own eyes the former temple while it was still established —were weeping loudly , and many others raised their voice in a joyous shout .

‏ Ezra 3:12

12 Many of the priests, the Levites, and the leaders ^{▼▼tn Heb “the heads of the fathers.”} —older people who had seen with their own eyes the former temple while it was still established ^{▼▼sn The temple had been destroyed some fifty years earlier by the Babylonians in 586 b.c.} —were weeping loudly, ^{▼▼tn Heb “with a great voice.”} and many others raised their voice in a joyous shout.