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(A) Then the Lord God of Israel told the prophets Haggai and Zechariah[a] to speak in his name to the people of Judah and Jerusalem. And they did. (B) So Zerubbabel the governor and Joshua the priest urged the people to start working on the temple again, and God's prophets encouraged them.

Governor Tattenai of Western Province and his assistant Shethar Bozenai got together with some of their officials. Then they went to Jerusalem and said to the people, “Who told you to rebuild this temple? Give us the names of the workers!”

But God was looking after the Jewish leaders. So the governor and his group decided not to make the people stop working on the temple until they could report to Darius and get his advice.

Governor Tattenai, Shethar Bozenai, and their advisors sent a report to Darius, which said:

King Darius, we wish you the best! We went to Judah, where the temple of the great God is being built with huge stones and wooden beams set in the walls. Everyone is working hard, and the building is going up quickly.

We asked those in charge to tell us who gave them permission to rebuild the temple. 10 We also asked for the names of their leaders, so that we could write them down for you.

11 They claimed to be servants of the God who rules heaven and earth. And they said they were rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago by one of Israel's greatest kings.[b]

12 (C) We were told that their people had made God angry, and he let them be captured by Nebuchadnezzar,[c] the Babylonian king[d] who took them away as captives to Babylonia. Nebuchadnezzar tore down their temple, 13-15 (D) took its gold and silver articles, and put them in the temple of his own god in Babylon.

They also said that during the first year Cyrus was king of Babylonia,[e] he gave orders for God's temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem where it had stood before. So Cyrus appointed Sheshbazzar governor of Judah and sent these gold and silver articles for him to put in the temple. 16 Sheshbazzar then went to Jerusalem and laid the foundation for the temple, and the work is still going on.

17 Your Majesty, please order someone to look up the old records in Babylonia and find out if King Cyrus really did give orders to rebuild God's temple in Jerusalem. We will do whatever you think we should.

King Cyrus' Order Is Rediscovered

King Darius ordered someone to go through the old records kept in Babylonia. Finally, a scroll[f] was found in Ecbatana, the capital of Media Province, and it said:

This official record will show that in the first year Cyrus was king, he gave orders to rebuild God's temple in Jerusalem, so that sacrifices and offerings could be presented there.[g] It is to be built 27 meters high and 27 meters wide, with one[h] row of wooden beams for each three rows of large stones. The royal treasury will pay for everything. Then the gold and silver things that Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple and brought to Babylonia are to be returned to their proper places.

King Darius Orders the Work To Continue

King Darius sent this message:

Governor Tattenai of Western Province and Shethar Bozenai, you and your advisors must stay away from the temple. Let the Jewish governor and leaders rebuild it where it stood before. And stop slowing them down!

Starting at once, I am ordering you to help the leaders by paying their expenses from the tax money collected in Western Province. And don't fail to let the priests in Jerusalem have whatever they need each day so they can offer sacrifices to the God of heaven. Give them young bulls, rams, sheep, as well as wheat, salt, wine, and olive oil. 10 I want them to be able to offer pleasing sacrifices to God and to pray for me and my family.

11 If any of you don't obey this order, a wooden beam will be taken from your house and sharpened on one end. Then it will be driven through your body,[i] and your house will be torn down and turned into a garbage dump. 12 I ask the God who is worshiped in Jerusalem to destroy any king or nation who tries either to change what I have said or to tear down his temple. I, Darius, give these orders, and I expect them to be followed carefully.

The Temple Is Dedicated

13 Governor Tattenai, Shethar Bozenai, and their advisors carefully obeyed King Darius. 14 (E) With great success the Jewish leaders continued working on the temple, while Haggai and Zechariah encouraged them by their preaching. And so, the temple was completed at the command of the God of Israel and by the orders of kings Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes of Persia.[j] 15 On the third day of the month of Adar[k] in the sixth year of the rule of Darius,[l] the temple was finished.

16 The people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, and everyone else who had returned from exile were happy and celebrated as they dedicated God's temple. 17 One hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs were offered as sacrifices at the dedication. Also twelve goats were sacrificed as sin offerings for the twelve tribes of Israel. 18 Then the priests and Levites were assigned their duties in God's temple in Jerusalem, according to the instructions Moses had written.[m]

The Passover

19 (F) Everyone who had returned from exile celebrated Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.[n] 20 The priests and Levites had gone through a ceremony to make themselves acceptable to lead in worship. Then some of them killed Passover lambs for those who had returned, including the other priests and themselves.

21 The sacrifices were eaten by the Israelites who had returned and by the neighboring people who had given up the sinful customs of other nations in order to worship the Lord God of Israel. 22 For seven days they celebrated the Festival of Thin Bread. Everyone was happy because the Lord God of Israel had made sure that the king of Assyria[o] would be kind to them and help them build the temple.

Ezra Comes to Jerusalem

1-6 Much later, when Artaxerxes[p] was king of Persia, Ezra came to Jerusalem from Babylonia. Ezra was the son of Seraiah and the grandson of Azariah. His other ancestors were Hilkiah, Shallum, Zadok, Ahitub, Amariah, Azariah, Meraioth, Zerahiah, Uzzi, Bukki, Abishua, Phinehas, Eleazar, and Aaron, the high priest.

Ezra was an expert in the Law that the Lord God of Israel had given to Moses, and the Lord made sure that the king gave Ezra everything he asked for.

Other Jews, including priests, Levites, musicians, the temple guards, and servants, came to Jerusalem with Ezra. This happened during the seventh year that Artaxerxes[q] was king.

8-9 God helped Ezra, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month[r] of that seventh year, after leaving Babylonia on the first day of the first month.[s] 10 Ezra had spent his entire life studying and obeying the Law of the Lord and teaching it to others.

Artaxerxes Gives a Letter to Ezra

11 Ezra was a priest and an expert in the laws and commands that the Lord had given to Israel. One day King Artaxerxes gave Ezra a letter which said:

12 [t] Greetings from the great King Artaxerxes to Ezra the priest and expert in the teachings of the God of heaven.

13-14 Any of the people of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom may go with you to Jerusalem if they want to. My seven advisors and I agree that you may go to Jerusalem and Judah to find out if[u] the laws of your God are being obeyed.

15 When you go, take the silver and gold that I and my advisors are freely giving to the God of Israel, whose temple is in Jerusalem. 16 Take the silver and gold that you collect from everywhere in Babylonia. Also take the gifts that your own people and priests have so willingly contributed for the temple of your God in Jerusalem.

17 Use the money carefully to buy the best bulls, rams, lambs, grain, and wine. Then sacrifice them on the altar at God's temple in Jerusalem. 18 If any silver or gold is left, you and your people may use it for whatever pleases your God. 19 Give your God the other articles that have been contributed for use in his temple. 20 If you need to get anything else for the temple, you may have the money you need from the royal treasury.

21 Ezra, you are a priest and an expert in the laws of the God of heaven, and I order all treasurers in Western Province to do their very best to help you. 22 They will be allowed to give as much as 3.4 tons of silver, 10 tons of wheat, 2,000 liters of wine, 2,000 liters of olive oil, and all the salt you need.

23 They must provide whatever the God of heaven demands for his temple, so that he won't be angry with me and with the kings who rule after me. 24 We want you to know that no priests, Levites, musicians, guards, temple servants, or any other temple workers will have to pay any kind of taxes.

25 Ezra, use the wisdom God has given you and choose officials and leaders to govern the people of Western Province. These leaders should know God's laws and have them taught to anyone who doesn't know them. 26 Everyone who fails to obey God's Law or the king's law will be punished without pity. They will either be executed or put in prison or forced to leave their country, or have all they own taken away.

Ezra Praises God

27 Because King Artaxerxes was so kind, Ezra said:

Praise the Lord God of our ancestors! He made sure that the king honored the Lord's temple in Jerusalem. 28 God has told the king, his advisors, and his powerful officials to treat me with kindness. The Lord God has helped me, and I have been able to bring many Jewish leaders back to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. 5.1 Zechariah: Aramaic “Zechariah son of Iddo.”
  2. 5.11 one of Israel's greatest kings: Solomon (ruled from about 970 to 931 b.c.).
  3. 5.12 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 1.7.
  4. 5.12 the Babylonian king: Aramaic “the Babylonian king from Chaldea,” but Chaldea is another name for Babylonia.
  5. 5.13-15 Cyrus was king of Babylonia: King Cyrus of Persia became king of Babylonia when the Persians conquered the city of Babylon in 539 b.c.
  6. 6.2 scroll: A roll of paper or special leather used for writing on.
  7. 6.3 so that … there: One possible meaning for the difficult Aramaic text.
  8. 6.4 one: One possible meaning for the difficult Aramaic text.
  9. 6.11 driven through your body: A well-known punishment in the ancient Near East.
  10. 6.14 Artaxerxes of Persia: See the note at 4.7.
  11. 6.15 Adar: The twelfth month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-February to about mid-March.
  12. 6.15 sixth year … Darius: 515 b.c.
  13. 6.18 Ezra 4.8—6.18 was written in Aramaic, instead of Hebrew like most of the Old Testament.
  14. 6.19 the first month: Nisan, the first month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-March to mid-April.
  15. 6.22 king of Assyria: Meaning the king of Persia, because Assyria was now part of the Persian Empire.
  16. 7.1-6 Artaxerxes: Either Artaxerxes I (ruled from 465 to 425 b.c.) or Artaxerxes II (ruled from 405–358 b.c.).
  17. 7.7 seventh year … Artaxerxes: 458 b.c. if this is Artaxerxes I; 398 b.c., if this is Artaxerxes II (see the note at 7.1-6).
  18. 7.8,9 fifth month: Ab, the fifth month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-July to mid-August.
  19. 7.8,9 first month: See the note at 6.19.
  20. 7.12-26: Ezra 7.12-26 was written in Aramaic, instead of Hebrew like most of the Old Testament.
  21. 7.13,14 find out if: Or “make sure that.”

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