Ezra 1-4
New King James Version
End of the Babylonian Captivity(A)
1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord (B)by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, (C)so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,
2 Thus says Cyrus king of Persia:
All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has given me. And He has (D)commanded me to build Him a [a]house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. 3 Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (E)(He is God), which is in Jerusalem. 4 And whoever is left in any place where he dwells, let the men of his place help him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, besides the freewill offerings for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.
5 Then the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, with all whose spirits (F)God [b]had moved, arose to go up and build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem. 6 And all those who were around them [c]encouraged them with articles of silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with precious things, besides all that was (G)willingly offered.
7 (H)King Cyrus also brought out the articles of the house of the Lord, (I)which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem and put in the [d]temple of his gods; 8 and Cyrus king of Persia brought them out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and counted them out to (J)Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. 9 This is the number of them: thirty gold platters, one thousand silver platters, twenty-nine knives, 10 thirty gold basins, four hundred and ten silver basins of a similar kind, and one thousand other articles. 11 All the articles of gold and silver were five thousand four hundred. All these Sheshbazzar took with the captives who were brought from Babylon to Jerusalem.
The Captives Who Returned to Jerusalem(K)
2 Now (L)these are the people of the province who came back from the captivity, of those who had been carried away, (M)whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, everyone to his own city.
2 Those who came with Zerubbabel were Jeshua, Nehemiah, [e]Seraiah, [f]Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, [g]Mispar, Bigvai, [h]Rehum, and Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel: 3 the people of Parosh, two thousand one hundred and seventy-two; 4 the people of Shephatiah, three hundred and seventy-two; 5 the people of Arah, (N)seven hundred and seventy-five; 6 the people of (O)Pahath-Moab, of the people of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and twelve; 7 the people of Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four; 8 the people of Zattu, nine hundred and forty-five; 9 the people of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty; 10 the people of [i]Bani, six hundred and forty-two; 11 the people of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-three; 12 the people of Azgad, one thousand two hundred and twenty-two; 13 the people of Adonikam, six hundred and sixty-six; 14 the people of Bigvai, two thousand and fifty-six; 15 the people of Adin, four hundred and fifty-four; 16 the people of Ater of Hezekiah, ninety-eight; 17 the people of Bezai, three hundred and twenty-three; 18 the people of [j]Jorah, one hundred and twelve; 19 the people of Hashum, two hundred and twenty-three; 20 the people of [k]Gibbar, ninety-five; 21 the people of Bethlehem, one hundred and twenty-three; 22 the men of Netophah, fifty-six; 23 the men of Anathoth, one hundred and twenty-eight; 24 the people of [l]Azmaveth, forty-two; 25 the people of [m]Kirjath Arim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty-three; 26 the people of Ramah and Geba, six hundred and twenty-one; 27 the men of Michmas, one hundred and twenty-two; 28 the men of Bethel and Ai, two hundred and twenty-three; 29 the people of Nebo, fifty-two; 30 the people of Magbish, one hundred and fifty-six; 31 the people of the other (P)Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four; 32 the people of Harim, three hundred and twenty; 33 the people of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-five; 34 the people of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five; 35 the people of Senaah, three thousand six hundred and thirty.
36 The priests: the sons of (Q)Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred and seventy-three; 37 the sons of (R)Immer, one thousand and fifty-two; 38 the sons of (S)Pashhur, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven; 39 the sons of (T)Harim, one thousand and seventeen.
40 The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the sons of [n]Hodaviah, seventy-four.
41 The singers: the sons of Asaph, one hundred and twenty-eight.
42 The sons of the gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, and the sons of Shobai, one hundred and thirty-nine in all.
43 (U)The Nethinim: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth, 44 the sons of Keros, the sons of [o]Siaha, the sons of Padon, 45 the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of Akkub, 46 the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shalmai, the sons of Hanan, 47 the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, the sons of Reaiah, 48 the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Gazzam, 49 the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Besai, 50 the sons of Asnah, the sons of Meunim, the sons of [p]Nephusim, 51 the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur, 52 the sons of [q]Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha, 53 the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Tamah, 54 the sons of Neziah, and the sons of Hatipha.
55 The sons of (V)Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of (W)Sophereth, the sons of [r]Peruda, 56 the sons of Jaala, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel, 57 the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth of Zebaim, and the sons of [s]Ami. 58 All the (X)Nethinim and the children of (Y)Solomon’s servants were three hundred and ninety-two.
59 And these were the ones who came up from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Cherub, [t]Addan, and Immer; but they could not [u]identify their father’s house or their [v]genealogy, whether they were of Israel: 60 the sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, and the sons of Nekoda, six hundred and fifty-two; 61 and of the sons of the priests: the sons of (Z)Habaiah, the sons of [w]Koz, and the sons of (AA)Barzillai, who took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called by their name. 62 These sought their listing among those who were registered by genealogy, but they were not found; (AB)therefore they were excluded from the priesthood as defiled. 63 And the [x]governor said to them that they (AC)should not eat of the most holy things till a priest could consult with the (AD)Urim and Thummim.
64 (AE)The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty, 65 besides their male and female servants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred men and women singers. 66 Their horses were seven hundred and thirty-six, their mules two hundred and forty-five, 67 their camels four hundred and thirty-five, and their donkeys six thousand seven hundred and twenty.
68 (AF)Some of the heads of the fathers’ houses, when they came to the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem, offered freely for the house of God, to erect it in its place: 69 According to their ability, they gave to the (AG)treasury for the work sixty-one thousand gold drachmas, five thousand minas of silver, and one hundred priestly garments.
70 (AH)So the priests and the Levites, some of the people, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the Nethinim, dwelt in their cities, and all Israel in their cities.
Worship Restored at Jerusalem
3 And when the (AI)seventh month had come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered together as one man to Jerusalem. 2 Then [y]Jeshua the son of (AJ)Jozadak[z] and his brethren the priests, (AK)and Zerubbabel the son of (AL)Shealtiel and his brethren, arose and built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is (AM)written in the Law of Moses the man of God. 3 Though fear had come upon them because of the people of those countries, they set the altar on its [aa]bases; and they offered (AN)burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening burnt offerings. 4 (AO)They also kept the Feast of Tabernacles, (AP)as it is written, and (AQ)offered the daily burnt offerings in the number required by ordinance for each day. 5 Afterwards they offered the (AR)regular burnt offering, and those for New Moons and for all the appointed feasts of the Lord that were consecrated, and those of everyone who willingly offered a freewill offering to the Lord. 6 From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, although the foundation of the temple of the Lord had not been laid. 7 They also gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and (AS)food, drink, and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre to bring cedar logs from Lebanon to the sea, to (AT)Joppa, (AU)according to the permission which they had from Cyrus king of Persia.
Restoration of the Temple Begins
8 Now in the second month of the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, (AV)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, Jeshua the son of [ab]Jozadak, and the rest of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all those who had come out of the captivity to Jerusalem, began work (AW)and appointed the Levites from twenty years old and above to oversee the work of the house of the Lord. 9 Then Jeshua with his sons and brothers, Kadmiel with his sons, and the sons of [ac]Judah, arose as one to oversee those working on the house of God: the sons of Henadad with their sons and their brethren the Levites.
10 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, (AX)the[ad] priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the (AY)ordinance[ae] of David king of Israel. 11 (AZ)And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord:
Then all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.
12 But many of the priests and Levites and (BC)heads of the fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud voice when the foundation of this temple was laid before their eyes. Yet many shouted aloud for joy, 13 so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people, for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the sound was heard afar off.
Resistance to Rebuilding the Temple
4 Now when (BD)the [af]adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the descendants of the captivity were building the temple of the Lord God of Israel, 2 they came to Zerubbabel and the heads of the fathers’ houses, and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we seek your God as you do; and we have sacrificed to Him (BE)since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.” 3 But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the fathers’ houses of Israel said to them, (BF)“You may do nothing with us to build a [ag]house for our God; but we alone will build to the Lord God of Israel, as (BG)King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.” 4 Then (BH)the people of the land tried to discourage the people of Judah. They troubled them in building, 5 and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of (BI)Darius king of Persia.
Rebuilding of Jerusalem Opposed
6 In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
7 In the days of (BJ)Artaxerxes also, [ah]Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabel, and the rest of their companions wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the letter was written in (BK)Aramaic script, and translated into the Aramaic language. 8 [ai]Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes in this fashion:
9 [aj]From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions—representatives of (BL)the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the people of Persia and Erech and Babylon and [ak]Shushan, the Dehavites, the Elamites, 10 (BM)and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnapper took captive and settled in the cities of Samaria and the remainder beyond [al]the River—(BN)and[am] so forth.
11 (This is a copy of the letter that they sent him.)
To King Artaxerxes from your servants, the men of the region beyond the River, [an]and so forth:
12 Let it be known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us at Jerusalem, and are building the (BO)rebellious and evil city, and are finishing its (BP)walls and repairing the foundations. 13 Let it now be known to the king that, if this city is built and the walls completed, they will not pay (BQ)tax, tribute, or custom, and the king’s treasury will be diminished. 14 Now because we receive support from the palace, it was not proper for us to see the king’s dishonor; therefore we have sent and informed the king, 15 that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. And you will find in the book of the records and know that this city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces, and that they have incited sedition within the city in former times, for which cause this city was destroyed.
16 We inform the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls are completed, the result will be that you will have no dominion beyond the River.
17 The king sent an answer:
To Rehum the commander, to Shimshai the scribe, to the rest of their companions who dwell in Samaria, and to the remainder beyond the River:
Peace, [ao]and so forth.
18 The letter which you sent to us has been clearly read before me. 19 And [ap]I gave the command, and a search has been made, and it was found that this city in former times has revolted against kings, and rebellion and sedition have been fostered in it. 20 There have also been mighty kings over Jerusalem, who have (BR)ruled over all the region (BS)beyond the River; and tax, tribute, and custom were paid to them. 21 Now [aq]give the command to make these men cease, that this city may not be built until the command is given by me.
22 Take heed now that you do not fail to do this. Why should damage increase to the hurt of the kings?
23 Now when the copy of King Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem against the Jews, and by force of arms made them cease. 24 Thus the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem ceased, and it was discontinued until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Footnotes
- Ezra 1:2 Temple
- Ezra 1:5 stirred up
- Ezra 1:6 Lit. strengthened their hands
- Ezra 1:7 Lit. house
- Ezra 2:2 Azariah, Neh. 7:7
- Ezra 2:2 Raamiah, Neh. 7:7
- Ezra 2:2 Mispereth, Neh. 7:7
- Ezra 2:2 Nehum, Neh. 7:7
- Ezra 2:10 Binnui, Neh. 7:15
- Ezra 2:18 Hariph, Neh. 7:24
- Ezra 2:20 Gibeon, Neh. 7:25
- Ezra 2:24 Beth Azmaveth, Neh. 7:28
- Ezra 2:25 Kirjath Jearim, Neh. 7:29
- Ezra 2:40 Judah, Ezra 3:9, or Hodevah, Neh. 7:43
- Ezra 2:44 Sia, Neh. 7:47
- Ezra 2:50 Nephishesim, Neh. 7:52
- Ezra 2:52 Bazlith, Neh. 7:54
- Ezra 2:55 Perida, Neh. 7:57
- Ezra 2:57 Amon, Neh. 7:59
- Ezra 2:59 Or Addon, Neh. 7:61
- Ezra 2:59 Lit. tell
- Ezra 2:59 Lit. seed
- Ezra 2:61 Or Hakkoz
- Ezra 2:63 Heb. Tirshatha
- Ezra 3:2 Or Joshua
- Ezra 3:2 Jehozadak, 1 Chr. 6:14
- Ezra 3:3 foundations
- Ezra 3:8 Jehozadak, 1 Chr. 6:14
- Ezra 3:9 Hodaviah, Ezra 2:40
- Ezra 3:10 So with LXX, Syr., Vg.; MT they stationed the priests
- Ezra 3:10 Lit. hands
- Ezra 4:1 enemies
- Ezra 4:3 Temple
- Ezra 4:7 Or in peace
- Ezra 4:8 The original language of Ezra 4:8 through 6:18 is Aramaic.
- Ezra 4:9 Lit. Then
- Ezra 4:9 Or Susa
- Ezra 4:10 The Euphrates
- Ezra 4:10 Lit. and now
- Ezra 4:11 Lit. and now
- Ezra 4:17 Lit. and now
- Ezra 4:19 Lit. by me a decree has been put forth
- Ezra 4:21 put forth a decree
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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