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. ¹ 

Ezra 6:1-15

Darius Issues a Decree

6:1 So Darius the king issued orders, and they searched in the archives ²  of the treasury which were deposited there in Babylon. 6:2 A scroll was found in the citadel ³  of Ecbatana which is in the province of Media, and it was inscribed as follows:

“Memorandum: 6:3 In the first year of his reign, ⁴  King Cyrus gave orders concerning the temple of God in Jerusalem: ⁵  ‘Let the temple be rebuilt as a place where sacrifices are offered. Let its foundations be set in place. ⁶  Its height is to be ninety feet and its width ninety ⁷  feet, ⁸  6:4 with three layers of large stones ⁹  and one ¹⁰  layer of timber. The expense is to be subsidized ¹¹  by the royal treasury. ¹²  6:5 Furthermore let the gold and silver vessels of the temple of God, which Nebuchadnezzar brought from the temple in Jerusalem and carried to Babylon, be returned and brought to their proper place in the temple in Jerusalem. Let them be deposited in the temple of God.’

6:6 “Now Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar Bozenai, and their colleagues, the officials of Trans-Euphrates – all of you stay far away from there! 6:7 Leave the work on this temple of God alone. ¹³  Let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this temple of God in its proper place.

6:8 “I also hereby issue orders as to what you are to do with those elders of the Jews in order to rebuild this temple of God. From the royal treasury, from the taxes of Trans-Euphrates the complete costs are to be given to these men, so that there may be no interruption of the work. ¹⁴  6:9 Whatever is needed – whether oxen or rams or lambs or burnt offerings for the God of heaven or wheat or salt or wine or oil, as required by ¹⁵  the priests who are in Jerusalem – must be given to them daily without any neglect, 6:10 so that they may be offering incense to the God of heaven and may be praying for the good fortune of the king and his family. ¹⁶ 

6:11 “I hereby give orders that if anyone changes this directive a beam is to be pulled out from his house and he is to be raised up and impaled ¹⁷  on it, and his house is to be reduced ¹⁸  to a rubbish heap ¹⁹  for this indiscretion. ²⁰  6:12 May God who makes his name to reside there overthrow any king or nation ²¹  who reaches out ²²  to cause such change so as to destroy this temple of God in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have given orders. Let them be carried out with precision!”

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. ²³  6:14 The elders of the Jews continued building and prospering, while at the same time ²⁴  Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo continued prophesying. They built and brought it to completion by the command of the God of Israel and by the command of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia. 6:15 They finished this temple on the third day of the month Adar, which is the sixth ²⁵  year of the reign of King Darius.

Ezra 7:1

The Arrival of Ezra

7:1 Now after these things had happened, during the reign of King Artaxerxes ²⁶  of Persia, Ezra came up from Babylon. ²⁷  Ezra was the son of Seraiah, who was the son of Azariah, who was the son of Hilkiah,

Ezra 7:8

7:8 He entered Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king.

Ezra 7:11-26

Artaxerxes Gives Official Endorsement to Ezra’s Mission

7:11 What follows ²⁸  is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priestly scribe. ²⁹  Ezra was ³⁰  a scribe in matters pertaining to the commandments of the Lord and his statutes over Israel:

7:12 ³¹ “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, a scribe of the perfect law of the God of heaven: 7:13 I have now issued a decree ³²  that anyone in my kingdom from the people of Israel – even the priests and Levites – who wishes to do so may go up with you to Jerusalem. ³³  7:14 You are authorized ³⁴  by the king and his seven advisers to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of your God which is in your possession, ³⁵  7:15 and to bring silver and gold which the king and his advisers have freely contributed to the God of Israel, who resides in Jerusalem, 7:16 along with all the silver and gold that you may collect ³⁶  throughout all the province of Babylon and the contributions of the people and the priests for the temple of their God which is in Jerusalem. 7:17 With this money you should be sure to purchase bulls, rams, and lambs, along with the appropriate ³⁷  meal offerings and libations. You should bring them to the altar of the temple of your God which is in Jerusalem. 7:18 You may do whatever seems appropriate to you and your colleagues ³⁸  with the rest of the silver and the gold, in keeping with the will of your God. 7:19 Deliver to ³⁹  the God of Jerusalem the vessels that are given to you for the service of the temple of your God. 7:20 The rest of the needs for the temple of your God that you may have to supply, ⁴⁰  you may do so from the royal treasury.

7:21 “I, King Artaxerxes, hereby issue orders to all the treasurers of ⁴¹  Trans-Euphrates, that you precisely execute all that Ezra the priestly scribe of the law of the God of heaven may request of you – 7:22 up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of olive oil, ⁴²  and unlimited ⁴³  salt. 7:23 Everything that the God of heaven has required should be precisely done for the temple of the God of heaven. Why should there be wrath ⁴⁴  against the empire of the king and his sons? 7:24 Furthermore, be aware of the fact ⁴⁵  that you have no authority to impose tax, tribute, or toll on any of the priests, the Levites, the musicians, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or the attendants at the temple of this God.

7:25 “Now you, Ezra, in keeping with the wisdom of your God which you possess, ⁴⁶  appoint judges ⁴⁷  and court officials who can arbitrate cases on behalf of all the people who are in Trans-Euphrates who know the laws of your God. Those who do not know this law should be taught. 7:26 Everyone who does not observe both the law of your God and the law of the king will be completely ⁴⁸  liable to the appropriate penalty, whether it is death or banishment or confiscation of property or detainment in prison.”

Nehemiah 2:1-8

Nehemiah Is Permitted to Go to Jerusalem

2:1 Then in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought to me, ⁴⁹  I took the wine and gave it to the king. Previously ⁵⁰  I had not been depressed ⁵¹  in the king’s presence. ⁵²  2:2 So the king said to me, “Why do you appear to be depressed when you aren’t sick? What can this be other than sadness of heart?” This made me very fearful.

2:3 I replied to the king, “O king, live forever! Why would I not appear dejected when the city with the graves of my ancestors ⁵³  lies desolate and its gates destroyed ⁵⁴  by fire?” 2:4 The king responded, ⁵⁵  “What is it you are seeking?” Then I quickly prayed to the God of heaven 2:5 and said to the king, “If the king is so inclined ⁵⁶  and if your servant has found favor in your sight, dispatch me to Judah, to the city with the graves of my ancestors, so that I can rebuild it.” 2:6 Then the king, with his consort ⁵⁷  sitting beside him, replied, “How long would your trip take, and when would you return?” Since the king was amenable to dispatching me, ⁵⁸  I gave him a time. 2:7 I said to the king, “If the king is so inclined, let him give me letters for the governors of Trans-Euphrates ⁵⁹  that will enable me to travel safely until I reach Judah, 2:8 and a letter for Asaph the keeper of the king’s nature preserve, ⁶⁰  so that he will give me timber for beams for the gates of the fortress adjacent to the temple and for the city wall ⁶¹  and for the house to which I go.” So the king granted me these requests, ⁶²  for the good hand of my God was on me.

Nehemiah 3:1

The Names of the Builders

3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest and his priestly colleagues ⁶³  arose and built the Sheep Gate. They dedicated ⁶⁴  it and erected its doors, working as far as the Tower of the Hundred ⁶⁵  and ⁶⁶  the Tower of Hananel.

[4:24]  ¹ sn Darius I Hystaspes ruled Persia ca. 522–486 b.c.

[6:1]  ² tn Aram “the house of the archives.”

[6:2]  ³ tc The translation reads בִירְתָא (birta’, citadel”) rather than the reading בְּבִירְתָא (bÿvireta’, “in the citadel”) found in the MT. The MT probably experienced dittography here.

[6:3]  ⁴ tn Aram “In the first year of Cyrus the king.”

[6:3]  ⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[6:3]  ⁶ tn Aram “raised”; or perhaps “retained” (so NASB; cf. NLT), referring to the original foundations of Solomon’s temple.

[6:3]  ⁷ tc The Syriac Peshitta reads “twenty cubits” here, a measurement probably derived from dimensions given elsewhere for Solomon’s temple. According to 1 Kgs 6:2 the dimensions of the Solomonic temple were as follows: length, 60 cubits; width, 20 cubits; height, 30 cubits. Since one would expect the dimensions cited in Ezra 6:3 to correspond to those of Solomon’s temple, it is odd that no dimension for length is provided. The Syriac has apparently harmonized the width dimension provided here (“twenty cubits”) to that given in 1 Kgs 6:2.

[6:3]  ⁸ tn Aram “Its height sixty cubits and its width sixty cubits.” The standard cubit in the OT is assumed by most authorities to be about eighteen inches (45 cm) long.

[6:4]  ⁹ tn Aram “stones of rolling.”

[6:4]  ¹⁰ tc The translation follows the LXX reading חַד (khad, “one”) rather than the MT חֲדַת (khadat, “new”). If the MT reading “new” is understood to mean freshly cut timber that has not yet been seasoned it would seem to be an odd choice for construction material.

[6:4]  ¹¹ tn Aram “let be given.”

[6:4]  ¹² tn Aram “house.”

[6:7]  ¹³ tc For the MT reading “the work on this temple of God” the LXX reads “the servant of the Lord Zurababel” [= Zerubbabel].

[6:8]  ¹⁴ tn The words “of the work” are not in the Aramaic, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:9]  ¹⁵ tn Aram “according to the word of.”

[6:10]  ¹⁶ tn Aram “for the life of the king and his sons.”

[6:11]  ¹⁷ sn The practice referred to in v. 11 has been understood in various ways: hanging (cf. 1 Esd 6:32 and KJV); flogging (cf. NEB, NLT); impalement (BDB 1091 s.v. זְקַף; HALOT 1914 s.v. מחא hitpe; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV). The latter seems the most likely.

[6:11]  ¹⁸ tn Aram “made.”

[6:11]  ¹⁹ tn Aram “a dunghill.”

[6:11]  ²⁰ tn Aram “for this.”

[6:12]  ²¹ tn Aram “people.”

[6:12]  ²² tn Aram “who sends forth his hand.”

[6:13]  ²³ tn Aram “sent.”

[6:14]  ²⁴ tn Aram “in” or “by,” in the sense of accompaniment.

[6:15]  ²⁵ sn The sixth year of the reign of Darius would be ca. 516 B.C.

[7:1]  ²⁶ sn If the Artaxerxes of Ezra 7:1 is Artaxerxes I Longimanus (ca. 464–423 B.C.), Ezra must have arrived in Jerusalem ca. 458 B.C., since Ezra 7:7-8 connects the time of his arrival to the seventh year of the king. The arrival of Nehemiah is then linked to the twentieth year of the king (Neh 1:1), or ca. 445 B.C. Some scholars, however, have suggested that Ezra 7:7 should be read as “the thirty-seventh year” rather than “the seventh year.” This would have Ezra coming to Jerusalem after, rather than before, the arrival of Nehemiah. Others have taken the seventh year of Ezra 7:7-8 to refer not to Artaxerxes I but to Artaxerxes II, who ruled ca. 404–358 B.C. In this understanding Ezra would have returned to Jerusalem ca. 398 B.C., a good many years after the return of Nehemiah. Neither of these views is certain, however, and it seems better to retain the traditional understanding of the chronological sequence of returns by Ezra and Nehemiah. With this understanding there is a gap of about fifty-eight years between chapter six, which describes the dedication of the temple in 516 b.c., and chapter seven, which opens with Ezra’s coming to Jerusalem in 458 b.c.

[7:1]  ²⁷ tn The words “came up from Babylon” do not appear in the Hebrew text until v. 6. They have been supplied here for the sake of clarity.

[7:11]  ²⁸ tn Heb “this.”

[7:11]  ²⁹ tn Heb “the priest, the scribe.” So also in v. 21.

[7:11]  ³⁰ tn The words “Ezra was” are not in the Hebrew text but have been added in the translation for clarity.

[7:12]  ³¹ sn Ezra 7:12-26 is written in Aramaic rather than Hebrew.

[7:13]  ³² tn Heb “from me is placed a decree.” So also in v. 21.

[7:13]  ³³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[7:14]  ³⁴ tn Aram “sent.”

[7:14]  ³⁵ tn Aram “in your hand.”

[7:16]  ³⁶ tn Aram “find.”

[7:17]  ³⁷ tn Aram “their meal offerings and their libations.”

[7:18]  ³⁸ tn Aram “brothers.”

[7:19]  ³⁹ tn Or “before.”

[7:20]  ⁴⁰ tn Aram “may fall to you to give.”

[7:21]  ⁴¹ tn Aram “who are in.”

[7:22]  ⁴² tc The translation reads מְשַׁח בַּתִּין (mÿshakh battin) rather than מְשַׁח בַּתִּין (battin mÿshakh) of the MT.

[7:22]  ⁴³ tn Aram “he did not write.”

[7:23]  ⁴⁴ tn The Aramaic word used here for “wrath” (קְצַף, qÿtsaf; cf. Heb קָצַף, qatsaf) is usually used in the Hebrew Bible for God’s anger as opposed to human anger (but contra Eccl 5:17 [MT 5:16]; Esth 1:18; 2 Kgs 3:27). The fact that this word is used in v. 23 may have theological significance, pointing to the possibility of divine judgment if the responsible parties should fail to make available these provisions for the temple.

[7:24]  ⁴⁵ tn Aram “we are making known to you.”

[7:25]  ⁴⁶ tn Aram “in your hand.”

[7:25]  ⁴⁷ tc For the MT reading שָׁפְטִין (shoftim, “judges”) the LXX uses the noun γραμματεῖς (grammatei", “scribes”).

[7:26]  ⁴⁸ tn On the meaning of this word see HALOT 1820-21 s.v. אָסְפַּרְנָא; E. Vogt, Lexicon linguae aramaicae, 14.

[2:1]  ⁴⁹ tc The translation reads with the LXX וְיַיִן לְפָנַי (vÿyayin lÿfanay, “and wine before me”) rather than יַיִן לְפָנָיו (yayin lÿfanayv, “wine before him”) of the MT. The initial vav (ו) on original וְיַיִן probably dropped out due to haplograpy or orthographic confusion with the two yods (י) which follow. The final vav on לְפָנָיו in the MT was probably added due to dittography with the vav on the immediately following word.

[2:1]  ⁵⁰ tc The translation reads לְפָנֵים (lÿfanim, “formerly”) rather than לְפָנָיו (lÿfanayv, “to his face”) of the MT. The MT seems to suggest that Nehemiah was not sad before the king, which is contrary to what follows.

[2:1]  ⁵¹ tn Or “showed him a sullen face.” See HALOT 1251 s.v. רַע, רָע 9.

[2:1]  ⁵² tn This expression is either to be inferred from the context, or perhaps one should read לְפָנָיו (lÿfanayv, “before him”; cf. the MT) in addition to לְפָנִים (lÿfanim, “formerly”). See preceding note on the word “previously.”

[2:3]  ⁵³ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 5).

[2:3]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “devoured” or “eaten” (so also in Neh 2:13).

[2:4]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “said to me.”

[2:5]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “If upon the king it is good.” So also in v. 7.

[2:6]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “queen,” so most English versions (cf. HALOT 1415 s.v. שֵׁגַל); TEV “empress.”

[2:6]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “It was good before the king and he sent me.”

[2:7]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “across the river,” here and often elsewhere in the Book of Nehemiah.

[2:8]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “forest.” So HALOT 963 s.v. פַּרְדֵּס 2.

[2:8]  ⁶¹ tc One medieval Hebrew MS, the Syriac Peshitta, Vulgate, and the Arabic read here the plural וּלְחוֹמוֹת (ulÿkhomot, “walls”) against the singular וּלְחוֹמַת (ulÿkhomat) in the MT. The plural holem vav (וֹ) might have dropped out due to dittography or the plural form might have been written defectively.

[2:8]  ⁶² tn The Hebrew text does not include the expression “these requests,” but it is implied.

[3:1]  ⁶³ tn Heb “his brothers the priests.”

[3:1]  ⁶⁴ tn Or “consecrated” (so NASB, NRSV); KJV, ASV “sanctified”; NCV “gave it to the Lord’s service.”

[3:1]  ⁶⁵ tc The MT adds קִדְּשׁוּהוּ (qidshuhu, “they sanctified it”). This term is repeated from the first part of the verse, probably as an intentional scribal addition to harmonize this statement with the preceding parallel statement.

[3:1]  ⁶⁶ tc The translation reads וְעַד (vÿ’ad, “and unto”) rather than the MT reading עַד (ad, “unto”). The original vav (ו) was probably dropped accidentally due to haplography with the final vav on the immediately preceding word in the MT.