Ezra 5

Berean Standard Bible

Chapter summary

Encouraged by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, Zerubbabel and Jeshua resumed rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem with the prophets' help. Tattenai, the governor west of the Euphrates, along with Shethar-bozenai and their associates, questioned the Jewish elders about who authorized the construction and requested the builders' names. Protected by God, the elders were not stopped, allowing work to continue while a report was sent to King Darius. In their letter to Darius, the officials detailed their inquiries and the elders' response, which explained that they were servants of the God of heaven rebuilding a temple originally built by a great king of Israel. The elders recounted that after their ancestors angered God and were exiled by Nebuchadnezzar, King Cyrus of Babylon issued a decree in his first year to rebuild the house, appointed Sheshbazzar governor, and returned the gold and silver articles taken from the temple. Consequently, Tattenai and Shethar-bozenai asked King Darius to search the royal archives in Babylon to verify whether Cyrus had indeed authorized the project and to provide his decision.

Summary automatically generated from the Bible text.

Words of Jesus in red

¹Later, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. ²Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak rose up and began to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them, helping them. ³At that time Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates went to the Jews and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?” ⁴They also asked, “What are the names of the men who are constructing this building?” ⁵But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, so that they were not stopped until a report was sent to Darius and written instructions about this matter were returned. ⁶This is the text of the letter that Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates, the officials in the region, sent to King Darius. ⁷The report they sent him read as follows: To King Darius: All peace. ⁸Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. The people are rebuilding it with large stones and placing timbers in the walls. This work is being carried out diligently and is prospering in their hands. ⁹So we questioned the elders and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?” ¹⁰We also asked for their names, so that we could write down the names of their leaders for your information. ¹¹And this is the answer they returned: “We are servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed. ¹²But since our fathers angered the God of heaven, He delivered them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean who destroyed this temple and carried away the people to Babylon. ¹³In the first year of his reign, however, Cyrus king of Babylon issued a decree to rebuild this house of God. ¹⁴He also removed from the temple of Babylon the gold and silver articles belonging to the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken and carried there from the temple in Jerusalem. King Cyrus gave these articles to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom he appointed governor ¹⁵and instructed, ‘Take these articles, put them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its original site.’ ¹⁶So this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundation of the house of God in Jerusalem, and from that time until now it has been under construction, but it has not yet been completed.” ¹⁷Now, therefore, if it pleases the king, let a search be made of the royal archives in Babylon to see if King Cyrus did indeed issue a decree to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us his decision in this matter.

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Louis Segond 1910 and Berean Standard Bible: public domain. Cross references: open-cross-ref, Creative Commons BY 4.0.