Ezra 5:16

5:16 Then this Sheshbazzar went and laid the foundations of the temple of God in Jerusalem. From that time to the present moment ¹  it has been in the process of being rebuilt, although it is not yet finished.’

Ezra 5:4

5:4 They ²  also asked them, “What are the names of the men who are building this edifice?”

Ezra 4:9

4:9 From ³  Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues – the judges, the rulers, the officials, the secretaries, the Erechites, the Babylonians, the people of Susa (that is, ⁴  the Elamites),

Ezra 4:24

4:24 So the work on the temple of God in Jerusalem came to a halt. It remained halted until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia. ⁵ 

Ezra 5:5

5:5 But God was watching over ⁶  the elders of Judah, and they were not stopped ⁷  until a report could be dispatched ⁸  to Darius and a letter could be sent back concerning this.

Ezra 5:9

5:9 We inquired of those elders, asking them, ‘Who gave you the authority to rebuild this temple and to complete this structure?’

Ezra 6:1

Darius Issues a Decree

6:1 So Darius the king issued orders, and they searched in the archives ⁹  of the treasury which were deposited there in Babylon.

Ezra 6:13

The Temple Is Finally Dedicated

6:13 Then Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues acted accordingly – with precision, just as Darius the king had given instructions. ¹⁰ 

Ezra 4:23

4:23 Then, as soon as the copy of the letter from King Artaxerxes was read in the presence of Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their colleagues, they proceeded promptly to the Jews in Jerusalem ¹¹  and stopped them with threat of armed force. ¹² 

Ezra 5:2

5:2 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak began ¹³  to rebuild the temple of God in Jerusalem. The prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

¹ tn Aram “from then and until now.”

² tc The translation reads with one medieval Hebrew MS, the LXX, and the Syriac Peshitta אֲמַרוּ (’amaru, “they said”) rather than the reading אֲמַרְנָא (’amarna’, “we said”) of the MT.

³ tn Aram “then.” What follows in v. 9 seems to be the preface of the letter, serving to identify the senders of the letter. The word “from” is not in the Aramaic text but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn For the qere of the MT (דֶּהָיֵא, dehaye’, a proper name) it seems better to retain the Kethib דִּהוּא (dihu’, “that is”). See F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 25, §35; E. Vogt, Lexicon linguae aramaicae, 36.

⁴ sn Darius I Hystaspes ruled Persia ca. 522–486 b.c.

⁵ tn Aram “the eye of their God was on.” The idiom describes the attentive care that one exercises in behalf of the object of his concern.

⁶ tn Aram “they did not stop them.”

⁷ tn Aram “[could] go.” On this form see F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 58, §169.

⁶ tn Aram “the house of the archives.”

⁷ tn Aram “sent.”

⁸ tn Aram “to Jerusalem against the Jews.”

⁹ tn Aram “by force and power,” a hendiadys.

⁹ tn Aram “arose and began.” For stylistic reasons this has been translated as a single concept.