Today's Reading June 13

Today's Old Testament is from the book of Ezra, chapters 3, 4, and 5
The people, having been given permission, have returned to Jerusalem and have begun to rebuild the Temple. And they take great joy in this.

10 And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the LORD, after the ordinance of David king of Israel.
11 And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.
12 But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy:
13 So that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people: for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.

Our New Testament reading is from the Gospel of John chapter 20
Just as the readings from the last few days, the record leading up to the Crucifixion, right through Jesus' burial, are arguably the darkest in all of Scripture, here we get into the most hopeful. He's alive! The tomb is empty!
In a way, we can not imagine what went through their minds. In another way, we do. Ray vander Laan once said that every believer must, in his mind's eye, go to that tomb, look inside, and verify that He is risen. That's not a bad way to think about it. I know that He is risen, just as He said. And as a result of a vacant cross and an empty tomb, I have hope.