Advanced Commentary
Texts -- Ezra 4:1-15 (NET)
Pericope
NET
- Ezr 4:1-5 -- Opposition to the Building Efforts
- Ezr 4:6-24 -- Official Complaints Are Lodged Against the Jews
Bible Dictionary
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Zerubbabel
[ebd] the seed of Babylon, the son of Salathiel or Shealtiel (Hag. 1:1; Zorobabel, Matt. 1:12); called also the son of Pedaiah (1 Chr. 3:17-19), i.e., according to a frequent usage of the word "son;" the grandson or the nephew of ...
[isbe] ZERUBBABEL - ze-rub'-a-bel (zerubbabhel, probably a transliteration of the Babylonian name Zeru-Babili, "seed of Babylon"; Zorobabel): 1. Name: Is commonly called the son of Shealtiel (Ezr 3:2,8; 5:2; Neh 12:1; Hag 1:1,12,14...
[nave] ZERUBBABEL, called also Sheshbazzar. Directs the rebuilding of the altar and temple after his return from captivity in Babylon, Ezra 3:2-8; 4:2, 3; 5:2, 14-16; Hag. 1:12-14. Leads the emancipated Jews back from Babylon, Ezra...
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Persecution
[nave] PERSECUTION See also Intolerance; Bigotry. Of Jesus Gen. 3:15; Psa. 2:1-5; Psa. 22:1, 2, 6-8, 11-21; Psa. 69:7-9, 20, 21, 26 vs. 1-21.; Psa. 109:25; Isa. 49:7; Isa. 50:6; Isa. 52:14; Isa. 53:2-5, 7-10; Mic. 5:1; Matt. 2:13...
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Temple
[nave] TEMPLE. Solomon's Called also Temple of the Lord, 2 Kin. 11:10; Holy Temple, Psa. 79:1; Holy House, 1 Chr. 29:3; House of God, 1 Chr. 29:2; 2 Chr. 23:9; House of the Lord, 2 Chr. 23:5, 12; Jer. 28:5; Father's House, John 2...
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Lies and Deceits
[nave] LIES AND DECEITS Ex. 23:1; Lev. 6:2-7; Lev. 19:11, 12, 16 Ex. 20:16. Job 13:4; Job 21:34; Job 27:4; Job 31:5, 6, 33; Job 36:4; Psa. 5:6, 9; Psa. 10:7; Psa. 12:2, 3; Psa. 28:3; Psa. 31:18; Psa. 34:13 1 Pet. 3:10. Psa. 36:3; P...
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Israel
[nave] ISRAEL 1. A name given to Jacob, Gen. 32:24-32; 2 Kin. 17:34; Hos. 12:3, 4. 2. A name of the Christ in prophecy, Isa. 49:3. 3. A name given to the descendants of Jacob, a nation. Called also Israelites, and Hebrews, Gen. 4...
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Zechariah
[ebd] Jehovah is renowned or remembered. (1.) A prophet of Judah, the eleventh of the twelve minor prophets. Like Ezekiel, he was of priestly extraction. He describes himself (1:1) as "the son of Berechiah." In Ezra 5:1 and 6:14 h...
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Malice
[nave] MALICE. Gen. 3:15; Lev. 19:14, 17, 18; Deut. 27:17, 18; Deut. 32:32, 33; 2 Kin. 6:21, 22; Job 31:29, 30; Psa. 4:2; Psa. 7:14-16 Job 15:35. Psa. 10:7-10, 14; Psa. 21:11; Psa. 22:7, 8; Psa. 35:15, 16, 19-21; Psa. 38:16, 19; P...
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Rehum
[ebd] merciful. (1.) One of "the children of the province" who returned from the Captivity (Ezra 2:2); the same as "Nehum" (Neh. 7:7). (2.) The "chancellor" of Artaxerxes, who sought to stir him up against the Jews (Ezra 4:8-24) a...
[isbe] REHUM - re'-hum (rechum, or rechum): (1) One of the twelve heads of the Jewish community returning from captivity with Zerubbabel (Ezr 2:2; Neh 7:7 (by a copyist's error "Nehum"); 12:3; 1 Esdras 5:8, "Roimus"). (2) A Persian...
[smith] (merciful). One who went up from Babylon with Zerubbabel. (Ezra 2:2) (B.C. 536.) "Rehum the chancellor." (Ezra 4:8,9,17,23) He was perhaps a kind of lieutenant-governor of the province under the king of Persia. (B.C. 535.) A...
[nave] REHUM 1. A captive who returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, Ezra 2:2. Called Nehum, Neh. 7:7. 2. A chancellor who wrote a letter to Artaxerxes, influencing him against the Jews, Ezra 4:8, 9, 17, 23. 3. A Levite who repaire...
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Artaxerxes
[ebd] the Greek form of the name of several Persian kings. (1.) The king who obstructed the rebuilding of the temple (Ezra 4:7). He was probably the Smerdis of profane history. (2.) The king mentioned in Ezra 7:1, in the seventh y...
[isbe] ARTAXERXES - ar-taks-urk'-sez (Artaxerxes): Is the Greek and Latin form of one, and perhaps of two or three kings of Persia mentioned in the Old Testament. (1) All are agreed that the Artaxerxes at whose court Ezra and Nehem...
[smith] (the great warrior). The first Artaxerxes is mentioned in (Ezra 4:7) and appears identical with Smerdis, the Magian impostor and pretended brother of Cambyses, who usurped the throne B.C. 522, and reigned eight months. In (N...
[nave] ARTAXERXES 1. A Persian king, probably identical with Ahasuerus. Prohibits the rebuilding of Jerusalem, Ezra 4:7-24. 2. King of Persia. Decrees of, in behalf of the Jews, Ezra 7; Neh. 2; 5:14.
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Persia
[smith] (pure, splended), Per?sians. Persia proper was a tract of no very large dimensions on the Persian Gulf, which is still known as Fars or Farsistan , a corruption of the ancient appellation. This tract was bounded on the west b...
[nave] PERSIA An empire which extended from India to Ethiopia, comprising one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, Esth. 1:1; Dan. 6:1. Government of, restricted by constitutional limitations, Esth. 8:8; Dan. 6:8-12. Municipal gov...
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Accusation, False
[nave] ACCUSATION, FALSE. Ex. 23:1, 7; Lev. 19:16; Psa. 41:5-9; Matt. 5:11; Luke 3:14; 2 Tim. 3:3; 1 Pet. 4:14 See: Conspiracy; Evidence; Iuendo; Slander; Falsehood; Lies and Deceits; Persecution; Speaking, Evil; Gossip. Incident...
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Bishlam
[isbe] BISHLAM - bish'-lam (bishlam, "peaceful" (?)): One of three foreign colonists who wrote a letter of complaint against the Jews to Artaxerxes (Ezr 4:7 = 1 Esdras 2:16). In 1 Esdras the reading is "Belemus." "And in the days o...
[nave] BISHLAM, a Samaritan who obstructed the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem, Ezra 4:7-24.
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ESDRAS, THE FIRST BOOK OF
[isbe] ESDRAS, THE FIRST BOOK OF - ez'-dras, es'-dras: 1. Name 2. Contents 3. Relation to Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah 4. Versions 5. Date and Authorship LITERATURE 1. Name: In some of the Greek uncials (Codex Vaticanus, etc.) of the...
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TAX; TAXING
[isbe] TAX; TAXING - taks, taks'-ing: I. INTRODUCTION 1. General Considerations 2. Limits of the Discussion II. TAXES IN ISRAEL UNDER SELF-GOVERNMENT 1. In the Earliest Period 2. Under the Theocracy; in the Period of the Judges 3. ...
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EPISTLE
[isbe] EPISTLE - e-pis'-'-l (epistole, "a letter," "epistle"; from epistello, "to send to"): 1. New Testament Epistles 2. Distinctive Characteristics 3. Letter-Writing in Antiquity 4. Letters in the Old Testament 5. Letters in the ...
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Chaldee language
[ebd] employed by the sacred writers in certain portions of the Old Testament, viz., Dan. 2:4-7, 28; Ezra 4:8-6:18; 7:12-26; Gen. 31:46; Jer. 10:11. It is the Aramaic dialect, as it is sometimes called, as distinguished from the H...
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EZRA-NEHEMIAH
[isbe] EZRA-NEHEMIAH - || 1. Name. 2. Object 3. Plan 4. Unity 5. Sources 6. Literary Character 7. Languages 8. Historicity 9. Text LITERATURE 1. Name: The books of Ezra and Nehemiah, by whomsoever written, are properly so named acc...
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SAMARITANS
[ebd] the name given to the new and mixed inhabitants whom Esarhaddon (B.C. 677), the king of Assyria, brought from Babylon and other places and settled in the cities of Samaria, instead of the original inhabitants whom Sargon (B....
[isbe] SAMARITANS - sa-mar'-i-tanz (shomeronim; Samareitai, New Testament; (singular), Samarites): The name "Samaritans" in 2 Ki 17:29 clearly applies to the Israelite inhabitants of the Northern Kingdom. In subsequent history it d...
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Chancellor
[ebd] one who has judicial authority, literally, a "lord of judgement;" a title given to the Persian governor of Samaria (Ezra 4:8, 9, 17).
[isbe] CHANCELLOR - chan'-sel-er: The rendering in Ezr 4:8,9,17 of the Hebrew be`el Te`em; Septuagint Baal (4:9), Balgam (4:17), the latter being an incorrect translation of Hebrew `ayin. In 1 Esdras 2:16,25, Beeltethmos (compare E...
[nave] CHANCELLOR, a state officer, Ezra 4:8, 9, 17. See: Cabinet.
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Shimshai
[ebd] the shining one, or sunny, the secretary of Rehum the chancellor, who took part in opposing the rebuilding of the temple after the Captivity (Ezra 4:8, 9, 17-23).
[isbe] SHIMSHAI - shim'-shi, shim'-sha-i (shimshay; Codex Vaticanus Samasa, Samae, Sameais Samesa; Codex Alexandrinus Samsai; Lucian, Samaias, throughout; in 1 Esdras 2:17 he is called "Semellius," the Revised Version (British and ...
[nave] SHIMSHAI, a scribe, Ezra 4:8, 9, 17, 23.
Arts
Resources/Books
Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)
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The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
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Jeroboam, who would become the first king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, was from Ephraim, the most prominent tribe in the North (v. 26).Part of Benjamin affiliated voluntarily with Judah eventually (v. 32; cf. 12:21; 2 C...
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The Chronicler's main interest in David's reign, as we have seen, focused on the Davidic Covenant with its promises to David and his descendants. In recounting the events of Solomon's reign he proceeded to emphasize the templ...
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Due to the ancient tradition that the same writer composed both parts of the book (chapters 1-6 and 7-10), many scholars believe Ezra produced all of it.5A passage in the Talmud credits Ezra with the authorship of Ezra-Nehemi...
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The earliest historical reference in Ezra is to the decree of Cyrus that he issued in his first year on the throne (1:1), 538 B.C.12The latest historical reference was just prior to Nehemiah's first trip to Jerusalem (4:21-23...
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I. The first return under Sheshbazzar chs. 1-6A. The return from Babylon chs. 1-21. The edict of Cyrus and its consequences ch. 12. The exiles who returned ch. 2B. The rebuilding of the temple chs. 3-61. The beginning of cons...
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"This whole section (Ezra 1-6) emphasizes God's sovereignty and his providence; God works in history to fulfill his will."15
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"It is not strange according to the Semitic style to start a book with a waw["And"or "Now"], especially when the author intended to write a continuation of the history of his people. He connects the history which he wants to ...
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Construction of the temple began soon after the exiles returned to Jerusalem. However problems threatened the completion of the project. First, the immigrants contemplated abandoning their religious distinctives to get along ...
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The Assyrian government encouraged its residents to move to Israel and to settle there after the fall of the Northern Kingdom in 722 B.C. This was official government policy during the reigns of the Assyrian kings Esarhaddon ...
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"When he [the writer] discussed the problems of the building of the temple in 4:1-5, it reminded him of later similar troubles with the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, and so 4:6-23 has been inserted, almost parenthetica...
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Artaxerxes was the successor of Ahasuerus (Xerxes) who ruled the Persian Empire from 464 to 424 B.C.73Clearly the incident reported in these verses took place long after the temple was complete. It really involved the attempt...
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The reference in this verse to work stopping indicates that at this point the writer returned to the opposition he had been describing earlier (vv. 1-5). Verses 6-23 are parenthetical. They record later events and simply illu...
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As a result of Samaritan intimidation (4:1-5) the restoration Jews stopped building the temple in 536 B.C. (4:24). They did little work on it until 520 B.C. The Jews should have persevered because Cyrus had supported their ef...
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In contrast to Rehum and Shimshai's letter to Artaxerxes (4:11-16), Tattenai's letter to Darius was fair and objective. He did not want to stop the Jews' project. He only wanted to know if Cyrus had really given permission fo...
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Several factors resulted in the completion of the temple that the writer brought together in verse 14. The reference to Artaxerxes (v. 14; cf. 4:7-23) does not mean that he had a part in completing the temple. As I pointed ou...
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Compared with the dedication of the first temple this one was very modest. Solomon had offered more than 200 times as many animals.96The Jews offered one sin offering, which involved slaying a goat, for each of the 12 tribes ...
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A period of 58 years separates Ezra 6 from Ezra 7 (515-458 B.C.). During this time the events in the Book of Esther took place in Persia and, in particular, Susa, one of the Persian capitals.Darius I (Hystaspes; 521-486 B.C.)...
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"These things"(v. 1) refers to the events of the first return that the writer described in chapters 1-6.Ezra's genealogy (vv. 1-5) shows that he was a man of importance whom his fellow Jews would have respected. He was a desc...
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This decree appears in Aramaic, the official language of the Persian Empire, in the Hebrew Bible.The king appointed Ezra as the person responsible to him for the affairs conducted in the Jewish community in Judah. He held a p...
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The Book of Ezra records two major Jewish returns to the Promised Land from Babylon.The first of these took place in 537 B.C. under the leadership of Sheshbazzar and then Zerubbabel. About 50,000 Jews returned, rebuilt the te...
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The focus of restoration activities in Nehemiah is on the walls of Jerusalem. In Ezra it was the altar of burnt offerings and especially the temple in Jerusalem."The orientation of Nehemiah is more civil and secular than that...
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Because of the opposition of the Jews' neighbors, Artaxerxes sent a military escort to accompany Nehemiah to Jerusalem (v. 9). It is not certain how many Jews travelled with Nehemiah on this occasion. The writer gave us no nu...
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The events of the Book of Esther took place during the Persian period of ancient history (539-331 B.C.) and during the reign of King Ahasuerus in particular (486-464 B.C.).Chronology of the Book of Esther483Ahasuerus' militar...
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This introductory segment provides the basic information about the historical situation that Judah faced plus God's command concerning that situation. Would King Ahaz face his threat from God's perspective or from man's? Woul...
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11:14-15 The Lord then replied that many of the Jews in Jerusalem were saying that the Judahites who had gone into captivity were the ones that God was judging. They believed that the Jews left in Jerusalem were the remnant t...
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The emphasis on the holiness of God that has marked this vision continues strong in this pericope and the next. God's holiness will determine who serves as priests and how they serve.44:4 The guide proceeded to take Ezekiel t...
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5:29 Belshazzar kept his promise (v. 16) though Daniel's honors only lasted a few hours at most, typical of the honors of this world. The king's response is surprising. We might have expected him to execute Daniel for confron...
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The vision in chapter 9 came after Daniel had been praying and fasting (9:3). The vision that follows also came to him after he had been mourning, fasting, and undoubtedly praying for three weeks (cf. 1:11-13). Obviously thes...
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The Babylonians, led by King Nebuchadnezzar, destroyed the city of Jerusalem, including Solomon's temple, in 586 B.C. and took most of the Jews captive to Babylon. There the Israelites could not practice their formal worship ...
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1:1 Yahweh sent a message to Zerubbabel and Joshua through the prophet Haggai, though it went to all the Israelites too (vv. 2, 4). Zerubbabel was the political governor (overseer) of the Persian province of Judah who had led...
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4:6 The angel announced a word of explanation from Yahweh that Zechariah was to pass on to Zerubbabel, the descendant of David who was the leader of the first group of returnees from exile.88He was to tell him, "not by might ...
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Chapter 8 not only contains two major messages from the Lord (vv. 1-17, 18-23) but 10 minor messages, "a decalogueof divine words,"155that make up the two major ones. "Thus says the Lord"introduces each of these minor message...
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Malachi was one of the three post-exilic writing prophets along with Haggai and Zechariah, and he was quite certainly the last one chronologically, even though we cannot be dogmatic about a date for his writing.The first grou...
Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)
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Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the Lord God of Israel; 2. Then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said unto them, Let...
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The time and place are precisely given. The month Chisleu' corresponds to the end of November and beginning of December. The twentieth year' is that of Artaxerxes (Neh. 2:1). Shushan,' or Susa, was the royal winter residence,...