Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close CEV

Ezra 5-7
Contemporary English Version

5 1 (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. 2 (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.

3 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? 4 Give us the names of the workers!”

5 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.

6 Governor Tattenai, Shethar Bozenai, and their advisors sent a report to Darius, 7 which said:

King Darius, we wish you the best! 8 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.

9 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

6 King Darius ordered someone to go through the old records kept in Babylonia. 2 Finally, a scroll[f] was found in Ecbatana, the capital of Media Province, and it said:

This official record will show 3 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, 4 with one[h] row of wooden beams for each three rows of large stones. The royal treasury will pay for everything. 5 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

6 King Darius sent this message:

Governor Tattenai of Western Province and Shethar Bozenai, you and your advisors must stay away from the temple. 7 Let the Jewish governor and leaders rebuild it where it stood before. And stop slowing them down!

8 Starting at once, I am ordering you to help the leaders by paying their expenses from the tax money collected in Western Province. 9 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

7 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.

7 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.”
Listen to Ezra 5-7
Close NIV

Ezra 5-7
New International Version

Tattenai’s Letter to Darius

5 Now Haggai(A) the prophet and Zechariah(B) the prophet, a descendant of Iddo, prophesied(C) to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. 2 Then Zerubbabel(D) son of Shealtiel and Joshua(E) son of Jozadak set to work(F) to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

3 At that time Tattenai,(G) governor of Trans-Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai(H) and their associates went to them and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and to finish it?”(I) 4 They[a] also asked, “What are the names of those who are constructing this building?” 5 But the eye of their God(J) was watching over the elders of the Jews, and they were not stopped until a report could go to Darius and his written reply be received.

6 This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai and their associates, the officials of Trans-Euphrates, sent to King Darius. 7 The report they sent him read as follows:

To King Darius:

Cordial greetings.

8 The king should know that we went to the district of Judah, to the temple of the great God. The people are building it with large stones and placing the timbers in the walls. The work(K) is being carried on with diligence and is making rapid progress under their direction.

9 We questioned the elders and asked them, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and to finish it?”(L) 10 We also asked them their names, so that we could write down the names of their leaders for your information.

11 This is the answer they gave us:

“We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple(M) that was built many years ago, one that a great king of Israel built and finished. 12 But because our ancestors angered(N) the God of heaven, he gave them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar the Chaldean, king of Babylon, who destroyed this temple and deported the people to Babylon.(O)

13 “However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree(P) to rebuild this house of God. 14 He even removed from the temple[b] of Babylon the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to the temple[c] in Babylon.(Q) Then King Cyrus gave them to a man named Sheshbazzar,(R) whom he had appointed governor, 15 and he told him, ‘Take these articles and go and deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem. And rebuild the house of God on its site.’

16 “So this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God(S) in Jerusalem. From that day to the present it has been under construction but is not yet finished.”

17 Now if it pleases the king, let a search be made in the royal archives(T) of Babylon to see if King Cyrus did in fact issue a decree to rebuild this house of God in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us his decision in this matter.

The Decree of Darius

6 King Darius then issued an order, and they searched in the archives(U) stored in the treasury at Babylon. 2 A scroll was found in the citadel of Ecbatana in the province of Media, and this was written on it:

Memorandum:

3 In the first year of King Cyrus, the king issued a decree concerning the temple of God in Jerusalem:

Let the temple be rebuilt as a place to present sacrifices, and let its foundations be laid.(V) It is to be sixty cubits[d] high and sixty cubits wide, 4 with three courses(W) of large stones and one of timbers. The costs are to be paid by the royal treasury.(X) 5 Also, the gold(Y) and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, are to be returned to their places in the temple in Jerusalem; they are to be deposited in the house of God.(Z)

6 Now then, Tattenai,(AA) governor of Trans-Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai(AB) and you other officials of that province, stay away from there. 7 Do not interfere with the work on this temple of God. Let the governor of the Jews and the Jewish elders rebuild this house of God on its site.

8 Moreover, I hereby decree what you are to do for these elders of the Jews in the construction of this house of God:

Their expenses are to be fully paid out of the royal treasury,(AC) from the revenues(AD) of Trans-Euphrates, so that the work will not stop. 9 Whatever is needed—young bulls, rams, male lambs for burnt offerings(AE) to the God of heaven, and wheat, salt, wine and olive oil, as requested by the priests in Jerusalem—must be given them daily without fail, 10 so that they may offer sacrifices pleasing to the God of heaven and pray for the well-being of the king and his sons.(AF)

11 Furthermore, I decree that if anyone defies this edict, a beam is to be pulled from their house and they are to be impaled(AG) on it. And for this crime their house is to be made a pile of rubble.(AH) 12 May God, who has caused his Name to dwell there,(AI) overthrow any king or people who lifts a hand to change this decree or to destroy this temple in Jerusalem.

I Darius(AJ) have decreed it. Let it be carried out with diligence.

Completion and Dedication of the Temple

13 Then, because of the decree King Darius had sent, Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai and their associates(AK) carried it out with diligence. 14 So the elders of the Jews continued to build and prosper under the preaching(AL) of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, a descendant of Iddo. They finished building the temple according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus,(AM) Darius(AN) and Artaxerxes,(AO) kings of Persia. 15 The temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.(AP)

16 Then the people of Israel—the priests, the Levites and the rest of the exiles—celebrated the dedication(AQ) of the house of God with joy. 17 For the dedication of this house of God they offered(AR) a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred male lambs and, as a sin offering[e] for all Israel, twelve male goats, one for each of the tribes of Israel. 18 And they installed the priests in their divisions(AS) and the Levites in their groups(AT) for the service of God at Jerusalem, according to what is written in the Book of Moses.(AU)

The Passover

19 On the fourteenth day of the first month, the exiles celebrated the Passover.(AV) 20 The priests and Levites had purified themselves and were all ceremonially clean. The Levites slaughtered(AW) the Passover lamb for all the exiles, for their relatives the priests and for themselves. 21 So the Israelites who had returned from the exile ate it, together with all who had separated themselves(AX) from the unclean practices(AY) of their Gentile neighbors in order to seek the Lord,(AZ) the God of Israel. 22 For seven days they celebrated with joy the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(BA) because the Lord had filled them with joy by changing the attitude(BB) of the king of Assyria so that he assisted them in the work on the house of God, the God of Israel.

Ezra Comes to Jerusalem

7 After these things, during the reign of Artaxerxes(BC) king of Persia, Ezra son of Seraiah,(BD) the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,(BE) 2 the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok,(BF) the son of Ahitub,(BG) 3 the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, 4 the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki, 5 the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas,(BH) the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest— 6 this Ezra(BI) came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted(BJ) him everything he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.(BK) 7 Some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers and temple servants, also came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes.(BL)

8 Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king. 9 He had begun his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was on him.(BM) 10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching(BN) its decrees and laws in Israel.

King Artaxerxes’ Letter to Ezra

11 This is a copy of the letter King Artaxerxes had given to Ezra the priest, a teacher of the Law, a man learned in matters concerning the commands and decrees of the Lord for Israel:

12 Artaxerxes, king of kings,(BO)

To Ezra the priest, teacher of the Law of the God of heaven:

Greetings.

13 Now I decree that any of the Israelites in my kingdom, including priests and Levites, who volunteer to go to Jerusalem with you, may go. 14 You are sent by the king and his seven advisers(BP) to inquire about Judah and Jerusalem with regard to the Law of your God, which is in your hand. 15 Moreover, you are to take with you the silver and gold that the king and his advisers have freely given(BQ) to the God of Israel, whose dwelling(BR) is in Jerusalem, 16 together with all the silver and gold(BS) you may obtain from the province of Babylon, as well as the freewill offerings of the people and priests for the temple of their God in Jerusalem.(BT) 17 With this money be sure to buy bulls, rams and male lambs,(BU) together with their grain offerings and drink offerings,(BV) and sacrifice(BW) them on the altar of the temple of your God in Jerusalem.

18 You and your fellow Israelites may then do whatever seems best with the rest of the silver and gold, in accordance with the will of your God. 19 Deliver(BX) to the God of Jerusalem all the articles entrusted to you for worship in the temple of your God. 20 And anything else needed for the temple of your God that you are responsible to supply, you may provide from the royal treasury.(BY)

21 Now I, King Artaxerxes, decree that all the treasurers of Trans-Euphrates are to provide with diligence whatever Ezra the priest, the teacher of the Law of the God of heaven, may ask of you— 22 up to a hundred talents[f] of silver, a hundred cors[g] of wheat, a hundred baths[h] of wine, a hundred baths[i] of olive oil, and salt without limit. 23 Whatever the God of heaven has prescribed, let it be done with diligence for the temple of the God of heaven. Why should his wrath fall on the realm of the king and of his sons?(BZ) 24 You are also to know that you have no authority to impose taxes, tribute or duty(CA) on any of the priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers, temple servants or other workers at this house of God.(CB)

25 And you, Ezra, in accordance with the wisdom of your God, which you possess, appoint(CC) magistrates and judges to administer justice to all the people of Trans-Euphrates—all who know the laws of your God. And you are to teach(CD) any who do not know them. 26 Whoever does not obey the law of your God and the law of the king must surely be punished by death, banishment, confiscation of property, or imprisonment.[j](CE)

27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart(CF) to bring honor(CG) to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way 28 and who has extended his good favor(CH) to me before the king and his advisers and all the king’s powerful officials. Because the hand of the Lord my God was on me,(CI) I took courage and gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.

Footnotes

  1. Ezra 5:4 See Septuagint; Aramaic We.
  2. Ezra 5:14 Or palace
  3. Ezra 5:14 Or palace
  4. Ezra 6:3 That is, about 90 feet or about 27 meters
  5. Ezra 6:17 Or purification offering
  6. Ezra 7:22 That is, about 3 3/4 tons or about 3.4 metric tons
  7. Ezra 7:22 That is, probably about 18 tons or about 16 metric tons
  8. Ezra 7:22 That is, about 600 gallons or about 2,200 liters
  9. Ezra 7:22 That is, about 600 gallons or about 2,200 liters
  10. Ezra 7:26 The text of 7:12-26 is in Aramaic.
Next
Ezra 4
Ezra 8
Next
dropdown
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

CEV Resources
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

July Summer Surge

More on the NIV