Add parallel Print Page Options

Enemies Against Rebuilding the Temple

Many people living in the area were against the people of Judah and Benjamin. These enemies heard that the people who had come from captivity were building a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel. So they came to Zerubbabel and to the family leaders and said, “Let us help you build. We are the same as you, we ask your God for help. We have offered sacrifices to your God since the time King Esarhaddon of Assyria brought us here.”

But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other family leaders of Israel answered, “No, you people cannot help us build a temple for our God. Only we can build the Temple for the Lord. He is the God of Israel. This is what King Cyrus of Persia commanded us to do.”

So the enemies began to discourage them and tried to frighten them in order to stop them from building the Temple. These enemies hired government officials to work against the people of Judah. The officials constantly did things to stop the Jews’ plans to build the Temple. This continued the whole time that Cyrus was the king until Darius became the king of Persia.

These enemies even wrote letters to the king of Persia trying to stop the Jews. They wrote a letter the year that Xerxes[a] became the king of Persia.

Enemies Against Rebuilding Jerusalem

Later, when Artaxerxes became the new king of Persia, some of these men wrote another letter complaining about the Jews. The men who wrote the letter were Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the other people in their group. The letter was written in Aramaic and translated.[b]

[c] Then Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary wrote a letter against the people of Jerusalem. They wrote the letter to Artaxerxes the king. This is what they wrote:

From Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary, and from the judges and important officials over the men from Tripolis, Persia, Erech, and Babylon, and from the Elamites from Susa, 10 and from the other people who the great and powerful Ashurbanipal moved to the city of Samaria and other places in the country west of the Euphrates River.

11 This is the copy of the letter sent to King Artaxerxes:

From your servants living in the area west of the Euphrates River.

12 King Artaxerxes, we wish to inform you that the Jews you sent from there are now in Jerusalem. They are trying to rebuild that terrible city. The people there have always rebelled against other kings. Now they have almost finished repairing the foundations and building the walls.[d]

13 Also, King Artaxerxes, you should know that if Jerusalem and its walls are rebuilt, the people of Jerusalem will stop paying their taxes. They will stop sending money to honor you. They also will stop paying customs fees, and the king will lose all that money.

14 We have a responsibility to the king. We don’t want to see this happen, so we are sending this letter to inform the king.

15 King Artaxerxes, we suggest that you search the writings of the kings who ruled before you. You will see in the writings that Jerusalem always rebelled against other kings. It has caused much trouble for other kings and nations. Many rebellions have started in this city since ancient times. That is why Jerusalem was destroyed.

16 King Artaxerxes, we wish to inform you that if this city and its walls are rebuilt, you will lose control of the area west of the Euphrates River.

17 Then King Artaxerxes sent this answer:

To Rehum the commanding officer, Shimshai the secretary, and all the people with them living in Samaria and other places west of the Euphrates River.

Greetings:

18 The letter you sent us has been translated and read to me. 19 I gave an order for the writings of the kings before me to be searched. The writings were read, and we found out that Jerusalem has a long history of rebellion against kings. Jerusalem has been a place where rebellion and revolt has happened often. 20 Jerusalem has had powerful kings ruling over it and over the whole area west of the Euphrates River. Their kings received taxes, customs, fees, and tribute.

21 Now, you must give an order for these men to stop work. That order must be given to keep Jerusalem from being rebuilt until I say so. 22 Be careful not to overlook this matter. We should not let the building of Jerusalem continue. If that work continues, I will not get any more money from Jerusalem.

23 So a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes sent was read to Rehum, Shimshai the secretary, and the people with them. They went very quickly to the Jews in Jerusalem and forced them to stop building.

The Work on the Temple Stopped

24 So the work stopped[e] on God’s Temple in Jerusalem. The work did not continue until the second year[f] that Darius was king of Persia.

At that time the prophets Haggai[g] and Zechariah son of Iddo[h] began to prophesy in the name of God. They encouraged the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem. So Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak again started working on the Temple in Jerusalem. All of God’s prophets were with them and were supporting the work. At that time Tattenai was the governor of the area west of the Euphrates River. Tattenai, Shethar Bozenai, and the men with them went to Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the others who were building. Tattenai and the people with him asked Zerubbabel and the people with him, “Who gave you permission to rebuild this Temple and repair it like new?” They also asked Zerubbabel, “What are the names of the men who are working on this building?”

But God was watching over the Jewish leaders. The builders didn’t have to stop working until a report could be sent to King Darius. They continued working until the king sent his answer back.

Tattenai the governor of the area west of the Euphrates River, Shethar Bozenai, and the important people with them sent a letter to King Darius. This is a copy of that letter:

To King Darius.

Greetings:

King Darius, you should know that we went to the province of Judah. We went to the Temple of the great God. The people in Judah are building that Temple with large stones. They are putting big wooden timbers in the walls. The work is being done with much care and the people of Judah are working very hard. They are building very fast; it will soon be done.

We asked their leaders some questions about the work they are doing. We asked them, “Who gave you permission to rebuild this temple and repair it like new?” 10 We also asked for their names. We wanted to write down the names of their leaders so that you would know who they are.

11 This is the answer they gave us:

“We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth. We are rebuilding the Temple that a great king of Israel built and finished many years ago. 12 But our ancestors made the God of heaven angry, so God gave our ancestors to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed this Temple, and he forced the people to go to Babylon as prisoners. 13 But, in the first year that Cyrus was king of Babylon, King Cyrus gave a special order for God’s Temple to be rebuilt. 14 And Cyrus brought out from his false god’s temple in Babylon the gold and silver things that were taken from God’s Temple in the past. Nebuchadnezzar took them from the Temple in Jerusalem and brought them to his false god’s temple in Babylon. Then King Cyrus gave those gold and silver things to Sheshbazzar.” Cyrus chose Sheshbazzar to be governor.

15 Then Cyrus said to Sheshbazzar, “Take these gold and silver things and put them back in the Temple in Jerusalem. Rebuild God’s Temple in the same place it was in the past.”

16 So Sheshbazzar came and built the foundations of God’s Temple in Jerusalem. From that day until now, the work has continued, but it is not yet finished.

17 Now, if it pleases the king, please search the official records of the king. See if it is true that King Cyrus gave an order to rebuild God’s Temple in Jerusalem. And then, sir, please send us a letter to let us know what you have decided to do about this.

The Order of Darius

So King Darius gave an order to search the writings of the kings before him. The writings were kept in Babylon in the same place the money was kept. A scroll was found in the fortress of Ecbatana. (Ecbatana is in the province of Media.) This is what was written on that scroll:

Official Note: During the first year that Cyrus was king, he gave an order about the Temple of God in Jerusalem. The order said:

Let the Temple of God be rebuilt. It will be a place to offer sacrifices. Let its foundations be built. The Temple must be 60 cubits[i] high and 60 cubits wide. Its wall will be in layers that have three rows of large stones[j] and one row of wooden timbers. The cost of building the Temple must be paid for from the king’s treasury. Also, the gold and silver things from God’s Temple must be put back in their places. Nebuchadnezzar took them from the Temple in Jerusalem and brought them to Babylon. They must be put back in God’s Temple.

So King Darius sent this message to his officials:

To Tattenai, governor of the area west of the Euphrates River, to Shethar Bozenai, and to all the officials living in that province. I order you to stay away from Jerusalem. Don’t bother the workers. Don’t try to stop the work on this Temple of God. Let the Jewish governor and the Jewish leaders rebuild it. Let them rebuild God’s Temple in the same place it was in the past.

Now I give this order. You must do this for the Jewish leaders building God’s Temple: The cost of the building must be fully paid from the king’s treasury. The money will come from the taxes collected from the provinces in the area west of the Euphrates River. Do these things quickly, so the work will not stop. Give them anything they need. If they need young bulls, rams, or male lambs for sacrifices to the God of heaven, give these things to them. If the priests of Jerusalem ask for wheat, salt, wine, and oil, give these things to them every day without fail. 10 Give them to the Jewish priests so that they may offer sacrifices that please the God of heaven. Give these things so that the priests may pray for me and my sons.

11 Also, I give this order: If anyone changes this order, a wooden beam must be pulled from their house and pushed through their body. Then their house must be destroyed until it is only a pile of rocks.

12 God put his name there in Jerusalem. May God defeat any king or other person who tries to change this order. If anyone tries to destroy this Temple in Jerusalem, may God destroy that person.

I, Darius, have ordered it. This order must be obeyed quickly and completely.

The Temple Completed and Dedicated

13 So Tattenai the governor of the area west of the Euphrates River, Shethar Bozenai, and the men with them obeyed King Darius’ order. They obeyed the order quickly and completely. 14 So the Jewish leaders continued to build. Encouraged by the preaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo, they had great success. They finished building the Temple as the God of Israel had commanded and as Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, the kings of Persia, had ordered. 15 The Temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar.[k] That was in the sixth year of the rule of King Darius.[l]

16 Then the Israelites celebrated the dedication of God’s Temple with much happiness. The priests, the Levites, and all the other people who came back from captivity joined in the celebration.

17 This is the way they dedicated God’s Temple: They offered 100 bulls, 200 rams, and 400 male lambs. And they offered twelve male goats for all Israel for a sin offering. That is one goat for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. 18 Then they chose the priests in their groups and the Levites in their groups to serve in God’s Temple in Jerusalem. They did these things as it is written in the Book of Moses.

The Passover

19 [m] On the fourteenth day of the first month,[n] the Jews who came back from captivity celebrated the Passover. 20 The priests and Levites made themselves pure. They all made themselves clean and ready to celebrate the Passover. The Levites killed the Passover lamb for all the Jews who came back from captivity. They did that for their brothers the priests, and for themselves. 21 So all the Israelites who came back from captivity ate the Passover meal. Other people washed themselves and made themselves pure from the unclean things of the people living in that country. These pure people also shared in the Passover meal. They did this so that they could go to the Lord, the God of Israel, for help. 22 They celebrated the Festival of Unleavened Bread with much joy for seven days. The Lord made them very happy because he had changed the attitude of the king of Assyria.[o] So the king of Assyria had helped them do the work on God’s Temple.

Footnotes

  1. Ezra 4:6 Xerxes King of Persia about 485–465 B.C.
  2. Ezra 4:7 The letter … translated Or “The letter was written in the local language, but with Aramaic characters, and then translated into Aramaic.” This would mean the scribe used the “modern” Aramaic alphabet rather than the older alphabet that was still being used in Judah.
  3. Ezra 4:8 Here, the original language changes from Hebrew to Aramaic.
  4. Ezra 4:12 building the walls This was a way of protecting a city. These men wanted the king to think that the Jews were preparing to rebel against the king.
  5. Ezra 4:24 the work stopped Here, this refers to the time of Xerxes, when work on the Temple was stopped, not to the time of Artaxerxes, when work on the walls around Jerusalem was stopped.
  6. Ezra 4:24 second year That is, 520 B.C.
  7. Ezra 5:1 Haggai See Hag. 1:1.
  8. Ezra 5:1 Zechariah son of Iddo See Zech. 1:1.
  9. Ezra 6:3 60 cubits 102' 3/8" (31.1 m).
  10. Ezra 6:4 large stones Or “marble stones.”
  11. Ezra 6:15 third … Adar That is, February–March. Some ancient writers have “23rd of Adar.”
  12. Ezra 6:15 the sixth year … Darius That is, 515 B.C.
  13. Ezra 6:19 Here, the original language changes from Aramaic back to Hebrew.
  14. Ezra 6:19 first month That is, March–April, 515 B.C.
  15. Ezra 6:22 king of Assyria This probably means King Darius of Persia.

Bible Gateway Recommends

Swahili New Testament Easy to Read Version (ERV) case of 40
Swahili New Testament Easy to Read Version (ERV) case of 40
Retail: $200.00
Our Price: $148.99
Save: $51.01 (26%)
ERV Holy Bible--soft leather-look, teal, case of 24
ERV Holy Bible--soft leather-look, teal, case of 24
Retail: $445.76
Our Price: $334.99
Save: $110.77 (25%)
4.5 of 5.0 stars
ERV Duotone Bible, Black/Grey
ERV Duotone Bible, Black/Grey
Retail: $18.99
Our Price: $13.99
Save: $5.00 (26%)
5.0 of 5.0 stars
ERV Holy Bible--soft leather-look, russet, case of 24
ERV Holy Bible--soft leather-look, russet, case of 24
Retail: $455.76
Our Price: $334.99
Save: $120.77 (26%)
4.5 of 5.0 stars
ERV Illustrated Paperback New Testament
ERV Illustrated Paperback New Testament
Retail: $3.99
Our Price: $2.49
Save: $1.50 (38%)
La Biblia La Palabra De Dios para Todos -Flexcover Bible
La Biblia La Palabra De Dios para Todos -Flexcover Bible
Retail: $8.99
Our Price: $7.29
Save: $1.70 (19%)
5.0 of 5.0 stars