Ezra 2:68

2:68 When they came to the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem, some of the family leaders ¹  offered voluntary offerings for the temple of God in order to rebuild ²  it on its site.

Ezra 4:8

4:8 Rehum the commander ³  and Shimshai the scribe ⁴  wrote a letter concerning ⁵  Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows:

Ezra 4:20

4:20 Powerful kings have been over Jerusalem who ruled throughout the entire Trans-Euphrates ⁶  and who were the beneficiaries of ⁷  tribute, custom, and toll.

Ezra 5:2

5:2 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak began ⁸  to rebuild the temple of God in Jerusalem. The prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

Ezra 7:7

7:7 In the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, Ezra brought ⁹  up to Jerusalem ¹⁰  some of the Israelites and some of the priests, the Levites, the attendants, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants.

[2:68]  ¹ tn Heb “the heads of the fathers.”

[2:68]  ² tn Heb “cause it to stand.”

[4:8]  ³ tn Aram “lord of the command.” So also in vv. 9, 17.

[4:8]  ⁴ sn Like Rehum, Shimshai was apparently a fairly high-ranking official charged with overseeing Persian interests in this part of the empire. His title was “scribe” or “secretary,” but in a more elevated political sense than that word sometimes has elsewhere. American governmental titles such as “Secretary of State” perhaps provide an analogy in that the word “secretary” can have a broad range of meaning.

[4:8]  ⁵ tn Or perhaps “against.”

[4:20]  ⁶ sn The statement that prior Jewish kings ruled over the entire Trans-Euphrates is an overstatement. Not even in the days of David and Solomon did the kingdom of Israel extend its borders to such an extent.

[4:20]  ⁷ tn Aram “were being given to them.”

[5:2]  ⁸ tn Aram “arose and began.” For stylistic reasons this has been translated as a single concept.

[7:7]  ⁹ tc The translation reads the Hiphil singular וַיַּעֲל (vayya’al, “he [Ezra] brought up”) rather than the Qal plural וַיַּעַלוּ (vayya’alu, “they came up”) of the MT.

[7:7]  tn Heb “he brought”; the referent (Ezra) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:7]  ¹⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.