What follows ¹  is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priestly scribe. ²  Ezra was ³  a scribe in matters pertaining to the commandments of the Lord and his statutes over Israel:

At the time of the evening offering I got up from my self-abasement, ¹  with my tunic and robe torn, and then dropped to my knees and spread my hands to the Lord my God.

From the days of our fathers until this very day our guilt has been great. Because of our iniquities we, along with our kings and ¹  priests, have been delivered over by the local kings ²  to sword, captivity, plunder, and embarrassment – right up to the present time.

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. ¹ 

As they were able, ¹  they gave to the treasury for this work 61,000 drachmas ²  of gold, 5,000 minas ³  of silver, and 100 priestly robes. ⁴ 

up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of olive oil, ¹  and unlimited ²  salt.

Therefore let us enact ¹  a covenant with our God to send away all these women and their offspring, in keeping with your counsel, my lord, ²  and that of those who respect ³  the commandments of our God. And let it be done according to the law.

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 

All these gold and silver vessels totaled 5,400. ¹  Sheshbazzar brought them all along when the captives were brought up from Babylon to Jerusalem.

These are the ones that came up from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Kerub, Addon, and Immer (although they were unable to certify ¹  their family connection ²  or their ancestry, ³  as to whether they really were from Israel):

With this money you should be sure to purchase bulls, rams, and lambs, along with the appropriate ¹  meal offerings and libations. You should bring them to the altar of the temple of your God which is in Jerusalem.

The governor ¹  instructed them not to eat any of the sacred food until there was a priest who could consult ²  the Urim and Thummim.

I weighed out to them ¹  650 talents of silver, silver vessels worth 100 talents, ²  100 talents of gold,

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.’

But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the leaders of Israel said to them, “You have no right ¹  to help us build the temple of our God. We will build it by ourselves for the Lord God of Israel, just as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded us.”

(They gave their word ¹  to send away their wives; their guilt offering was a ram from the flock for their guilt.)

The rest of the needs for the temple of your God that you may have to supply, ¹  you may do so from the royal treasury.

Now give praise to the Lord God of your fathers, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the local residents ¹  and from these foreign wives.”

“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.”

which you commanded us through your servants the prophets with these words: ¹  ‘The land that you are entering to possess is a land defiled by the impurities of the local residents! ²  With their abominations they have filled it from one end to the other with their filthiness.