1. Ezra 5:11 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

To whom does "a great king" refer?

Ezra 5:11 (ESV)

11 And this was their reply to us: ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished.

This refers to king Solomon. In 1 Kings 6:1, Solomon begins building the temple which is completed in 1 Kings 7:51. Solomon not referred to by name since he would have been unknown to the Persians.1