Ezra 7:14

7:14 You are authorized ¹  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, ² 

Ezra 7:1

The Arrival of Ezra

7:1 Now after these things had happened, during the reign of King Artaxerxes ³  of Persia, Ezra came up from Babylon. ⁴  Ezra was the son of Seraiah, who was the son of Azariah, who was the son of Hilkiah,

Ezra 3:1

The Altar is Rebuilt

3:1 When the seventh month arrived and the Israelites ⁵  were living ⁶  in their ⁷  towns, the people assembled ⁸  in ⁹  Jerusalem. ¹⁰ 

Ezra 3:1

The Altar is Rebuilt

3:1 When the seventh month arrived and the Israelites ¹¹  were living ¹²  in their ¹³  towns, the people assembled ¹⁴  in ¹⁵  Jerusalem. ¹⁶ 

Ezra 1:1

The Decree of Cyrus

1:1 ¹⁷ In the first ¹⁸  year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to fulfill the Lord’s message ¹⁹  spoken through ²⁰  Jeremiah, ²¹  the Lord stirred the mind ²²  of King Cyrus of Persia. He disseminated ²³  a proclamation ²⁴  throughout his entire kingdom, announcing in a written edict ²⁵  the following: ²⁶ 

Psalms 19:7

19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect

and preserves one’s life. ²⁷ 

The rules set down by the Lord ²⁸  are reliable ²⁹ 

and impart wisdom to the inexperienced. ³⁰ 

Psalms 119:98-100

119:98 Your commandments ³¹  make me wiser than my enemies,

for I am always aware of them.

119:99 I have more insight than all my teachers,

for I meditate on your rules.

119:100 I am more discerning than those older than I,

for I observe your precepts.

Proverbs 2:6

2:6 For ³²  the Lord gives ³³  wisdom,

and from his mouth ³⁴  comes ³⁵  knowledge and understanding.

Proverbs 6:23

6:23 For the commandments ³⁶  are like ³⁷  a lamp, ³⁸ 

instruction is like a light,

and rebukes of discipline are like ³⁹  the road leading to life, ⁴⁰ 

James 1:5

1:5 But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him.

James 3:17-18

3:17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, accommodating, ⁴¹  full of mercy and good fruit, ⁴²  impartial, and not hypocritical. ⁴³  3:18 And the fruit that consists of righteousness ⁴⁴  is planted ⁴⁵  in peace among ⁴⁶  those who make peace.

[7:14]  ¹ tn Aram “sent.”

[7:14]  ² tn Aram “in your hand.”

[7:1]  ³ 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]  ⁴ 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.

[3:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “the sons of Israel.”

[3:1]  ⁶ tn The word “living” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied. Some translations supply “settled” (cf. NAB, NIV, NLT).

[3:1]  ⁷ tc The translation reads with some medieval Hebrew MSS and ancient versions בְּעָרֵיהֶם (be’arehem, “in their towns”), rather than the reading בֶּעָרִים (be’arim, “in the towns”) found in the MT. Cf. Neh 7:72 HT [7:73 ET].

[3:1]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew text adds the phrase “like one man.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[3:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “to.”

[3:1]  ¹⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the sons of Israel.”

[3:1]  ¹² tn The word “living” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied. Some translations supply “settled” (cf. NAB, NIV, NLT).

[3:1]  ¹³ tc The translation reads with some medieval Hebrew MSS and ancient versions בְּעָרֵיהֶם (be’arehem, “in their towns”), rather than the reading בֶּעָרִים (be’arim, “in the towns”) found in the MT. Cf. Neh 7:72 HT [7:73 ET].

[3:1]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew text adds the phrase “like one man.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[3:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “to.”

[3:1]  ¹⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:1]  ¹⁷ sn In addition to the canonical books of Ezra and Nehemiah, there are two deuterocanonical books that are also called “Ezra.” Exactly how these books are designated varies in ancient literature. In the Septuagint (LXX) canonical Ezra is called Second Esdras, but in the Latin Vulgate it is called First Esdras. Our Nehemiah is called Third Esdras in some manuscripts of the LXX, but it is known as Second Esdras in the Latin Vulgate. (In the earliest LXX manuscripts Ezra and Nehemiah were regarded as one book, as they were in some Hebrew manuscripts.) The deuterocanonical books of Ezra are called First and Fourth Esdras in the LXX, but Third and Fourth Esdras in the Latin Vulgate. The titles for the so-called books of Ezra are thus rather confusing, a fact that one must keep in mind when consulting this material.

[1:1]  ¹⁸ sn The first year of Cyrus would be ca. 539 B.C. Cyrus reigned in Persia from ca. 539-530 B.C.

[1:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “the word of the Lord.”

[1:1]  ²⁰ tc The MT reads מִפִּי (mippi, “from the mouth of”), but this should probably be emended to בְּפִי (bÿfi, “by the mouth of”), which is the way the parallel passage in 2 Chr 36:22 reads. This is also reflected in the LXX, which is either reflecting an alternate textual tradition of בְּפִי or is attempting to harmonize Ezra 1:1 in light of 2 Chronicles.

[1:1]  ²¹ sn Cf. Jer 29:10; 25:11-14. Jeremiah had prophesied that after a time of seventy years the Jews would return “to this place.” How these seventy years are to be reckoned is a matter of debate among scholars. Some understand the period to refer to the approximate length of Babylon’s ascendancy as a world power, beginning either with the fall of Nineveh (612 b.c.) or with Nebuchadnezzar’s coronation (605 b.c.) and continuing till the fall of Babylon to the Persians in 539 b.c. Others take the seventy years to refer to the period from the destruction of the temple in 586 b.c. till its rebuilding in 516 b.c.

[1:1]  ²² tn Heb “spirit.” The Hebrew noun רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) has a broad range of meanings (see BDB 924-26 s.v.). Here, it probably refers to (1) “mind” as the seat of mental acts (e.g., Exod 28:3; Deut 34:9; Isa 29:24; 40:13; Ezek 11:5; 20:32; 1 Chr 28:12; cf. BDB 925 s.v. 6) or (2) “will” as the seat of volitional decisions (e.g., Exod 35:5, 22; Pss 51:12, 14; 57:8; 2 Chr 29:31; cf. BDB 925 s.v. 7). So also in v. 5.

[1:1]  ²³ tn Heb “caused to pass.”

[1:1]  ²⁴ tn Heb “a voice.” The Hebrew noun קוֹל (qol, “voice, sound”) has a broad range of meanings, including the metonymical (cause – effect) nuance “proclamation” (e.g., Exod 36:6; 2 Chr 24:9; 30:5; 36:22; Ezra 1:1; 10:7; Neh 8:15). See BDB 877 s.v. 3.a.2.

[1:1]  ²⁵ sn For an interesting extrabiblical parallel to this edict see the Cyrus cylinder (ANET 315-16).

[1:1]  ²⁶ tn Heb “in writing, saying.”

[19:7]  ²⁷ tn Heb “[it] restores life.” Elsewhere the Hiphil of שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) when used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”) as object, means to “rescue or preserve one’s life” (Job 33:30; Ps 35:17) or to “revive one’s strength” (emotionally or physically; cf. Ruth 4:15; Lam 1:11, 16, 19). Here the point seems to be that the law preserves the life of the one who studies it by making known God’s will. Those who know God’s will know how to please him and can avoid offending him. See v. 11a.

[19:7]  ²⁸ tn Traditionally, “the testimony of the Lord.” The noun עֵדוּת (’edut) refers here to the demands of God’s covenant law.

[19:7]  ²⁹ tn God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.

[19:7]  ³⁰ tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly.

[119:98]  ³¹ tn The plural form needs to be revocalized as a singular in order to agree with the preceding singular verb and the singular pronoun in the next line. The Lord’s “command” refers here to the law (see Ps 19:8).

[2:6]  ³² tn This is a causal clause. The reason one must fear and know the Lord is that he is the source of true, effectual wisdom.

[2:6]  ³³ tn The verb is an imperfect tense which probably functions as a habitual imperfect describing a universal truth in the past, present and future.

[2:6]  ³⁴ sn This expression is an anthropomorphism; it indicates that the Lord is the immediate source or author of the wisdom. It is worth noting that in the incarnation many of these “anthropomorphisms” become literal in the person of the Logos, the Word, Jesus, who reveals the Father.

[2:6]  ³⁵ tn The verb “comes” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

[6:23]  ³⁶ tn Heb “the commandment” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV).

[6:23]  ³⁷ tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[6:23]  ³⁸ sn The terms “lamp,” “light,” and “way” are all metaphors. The positive teachings and commandments will illumine or reveal to the disciple the way to life; the disciplinary correctives will provide guidance into fullness of life.

[6:23]  ³⁹ tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[6:23]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “the way of life” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV, NLT “the way to life.” The noun “life” is a genitive following the construct “way.” It could be an attributive genitive modifying the kind of way/course of life that instruction provides, but it could also be objective in that the course of life followed would produce and lead to life.

[3:17]  ⁴¹ tn Or “willing to yield,” “open to persuasion.”

[3:17]  ⁴² tn Grk “fruits.” The plural Greek term καρπούς has been translated with the collective singular “fruit.”

[3:17]  ⁴³ tn Or “sincere.”

[3:18]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “the fruit of righteousness,” meaning righteous living as a fruit, as the thing produced.

[3:18]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “is sown.”

[3:18]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “for,” or possibly “by.”