(This is a copy of the letter they sent to him:) “To King Artaxerxes, ¹  from your servants in ²  Trans-Euphrates:

Then the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son ¹  of Iddo ²  prophesied concerning the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem ³  in the name of the God of Israel who was over them.

But God was watching over ¹  the elders of Judah, and they were not stopped ²  until a report could be dispatched ³  to Darius and a letter could be sent back concerning this.

The letter you sent to us has been translated and read in my presence.

“Now if the king is so inclined, ¹  let a search be conducted in the royal archives ²  there in Babylon in order to determine whether King Cyrus did in fact issue orders for this temple of God to be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us a decision concerning this matter.”

Exercise appropriate caution so that there is no negligence in this matter. Why should danger increase to the point that kings sustain damage?”

The report they sent to him was written as follows: ¹  “To King Darius: All greetings! ² 

“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 ¹  on it, and his house is to be reduced ²  to a rubbish heap ³  for this indiscretion. ⁴ 

Rehum the commander ¹  and Shimshai the scribe ²  wrote a letter concerning ³  Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows:

In light of the fact that we are loyal to the king, ¹  and since it does not seem appropriate to us that the king should sustain damage, ²  we are sending the king this information ³ 

So I gave orders, ¹  and it was determined ²  that this city from long ago has been engaging in insurrection against kings. It has continually engaged in ³  rebellion and revolt.

Powerful kings have been over Jerusalem who ruled throughout the entire Trans-Euphrates ¹  and who were the beneficiaries of ²  tribute, custom, and toll.

This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and his colleagues who were the officials of Trans-Euphrates sent to King Darius.

He said to him, “Take these vessels and go deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt in its proper location.” ¹ 

Leave the work on this temple of God alone. ¹  Let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this temple of God in its proper place.

They appointed the priests by their divisions and the Levites by their divisions over the worship of God at Jerusalem, ¹  in accord with ²  the book of Moses.

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 

You may do whatever seems appropriate to you and your colleagues ¹  with the rest of the silver and the gold, in keeping with the will of your God.

Now ¹  let the king be aware that the Jews who came up to us from you have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and odious city. ²  They are completing its walls and repairing its foundations.

so that he may initiate a search of the records ¹  of his predecessors ²  and discover in those records ³  that this city is rebellious ⁴  and injurious to both kings and provinces, producing internal revolts ⁵  from long ago. ⁶  It is for this very reason that this city was destroyed.