Ezra 2:68-69

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. 2:69 As they were able, ³  they gave to the treasury for this work 61,000 drachmas ⁴  of gold, 5,000 minas ⁵  of silver, and 100 priestly robes. ⁶ 

Ezra 7:11

Artaxerxes Gives Official Endorsement to Ezra’s Mission

7:11 What follows ⁷  is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priestly scribe. ⁸  Ezra was ⁹  a scribe in matters pertaining to the commandments of the Lord and his statutes over Israel:

Ezra 6:9

6:9 Whatever is needed – whether oxen or rams or lambs or burnt offerings for the God of heaven or wheat or salt or wine or oil, as required by ¹⁰  the priests who are in Jerusalem – must be given to them daily without any neglect,

Ezra 1:4

1:4 Anyone who survives in any of those places where he is a resident foreigner must be helped by his neighbors ¹¹  with silver, gold, equipment, and animals, along with voluntary offerings for the temple of God which is in Jerusalem.’”

Ezra 9:12

9:12 Therefore do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons, and do not take their daughters in marriage for your sons. Do not ever seek their peace or welfare, so that you may be strong and may eat the good of the land and may leave it as an inheritance for your children ¹²  forever.’

Ezra 5:11

5:11 They responded to us in the following way: ‘We are servants of the God of heaven and earth. We are rebuilding the temple which was previously built many years ago. A great king ¹³  of Israel built it and completed it.

Ezra 7:16

7:16 along with all the silver and gold that you may collect ¹⁴  throughout all the province of Babylon and the contributions of the people and the priests for the temple of their God which is in Jerusalem.

Ezra 8:17

8:17 I sent them to Iddo, who was the leader in the place called Casiphia. I told them ¹⁵  what to say to Iddo and his relatives, ¹⁶  who were the temple servants in ¹⁷  Casiphia, so they would bring us attendants for the temple of our God.

Ezra 1:6

1:6 All their neighbors assisted ¹⁸  them with silver utensils, ¹⁹  gold, equipment, animals, and expensive gifts, not to mention ²⁰  all the voluntary offerings.

Ezra 5:9

5:9 We inquired of those elders, asking them, ‘Who gave you the authority to rebuild this temple and to complete this structure?’

Ezra 7:6

7:6 This Ezra is the one who came up from Babylon. He was a scribe who was skilled in the law of Moses which the Lord God of Israel had given. The king supplied him with everything he requested, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.

Ezra 9:8-9

9:8 “But now briefly ²¹  we have received mercy from the Lord our God, in that he has left us a remnant and has given us a secure position ²²  in his holy place. Thus our God has enlightened our eyes ²³  and has given us a little relief in our time of servitude. 9:9 Although we are slaves, our God has not abandoned us in our servitude. He has extended kindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, in that he has revived us ²⁴  to restore the temple of our God and to raise ²⁵  up its ruins and to give us a protective wall in Judah and Jerusalem. ²⁶ 

Ezra 8:36

8:36 Then they presented the decrees of the king to the king’s satraps and to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, who gave help to the people and to the temple of God.

Ezra 7:19

7:19 Deliver to ²⁷  the God of Jerusalem the vessels that are given to you for the service of the temple of your God.

Ezra 3:7

Preparations for Rebuilding the Temple

3:7 So they provided money ²⁸  for the masons and carpenters, and food, beverages, and olive oil for the people of Sidon ²⁹  and Tyre, ³⁰  so that they would bring cedar timber from Lebanon to the seaport ³¹  at Joppa, in accord with the edict of King Cyrus of Persia.

Ezra 8:34

8:34 Everything was verified ³²  by number and by weight, and the total weight was written down at that time.

Ezra 8:20

8:20 and some of the temple servants that David and his officials had established for the work of the Levites – 220 of them. They were all designated by name.

Ezra 6:8

6:8 “I also hereby issue orders as to what you are to do with those elders of the Jews in order to rebuild this temple of God. From the royal treasury, from the taxes of Trans-Euphrates the complete costs are to be given to these men, so that there may be no interruption of the work. ³³ 

Ezra 1:8

1:8 King Cyrus of Persia entrusted ³⁴  them to ³⁵  Mithredath ³⁶  the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar ³⁷  the leader of the Judahite exiles. ³⁸ 

Ezra 4:21

4:21 Now give orders that these men cease their work and that this city not be rebuilt until such time as I so instruct. ³⁹ 

Ezra 6:1

Darius Issues a Decree

6:1 So Darius the king issued orders, and they searched in the archives ⁴⁰  of the treasury which were deposited there in Babylon.

Ezra 6:10

6:10 so that they may be offering incense to the God of heaven and may be praying for the good fortune of the king and his family. ⁴¹ 

Ezra 7:27

7:27 ⁴² Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers, who so moved in the heart of the king to so honor the temple of the Lord which is in Jerusalem!

Ezra 10:19

10:19 (They gave their word ⁴³  to send away their wives; their guilt offering was a ram from the flock for their guilt.)

Ezra 5:3

5:3 At that time Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues came to them and asked, “Who gave you authority ⁴⁴  to rebuild this temple and to complete this structure?” ⁴⁵ 

Ezra 6:12

6:12 May God who makes his name to reside there overthrow any king or nation ⁴⁶  who reaches out ⁴⁷  to cause such change so as to destroy this temple of God in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have given orders. Let them be carried out with precision!”

Ezra 7:21

7:21 “I, King Artaxerxes, hereby issue orders to all the treasurers of ⁴⁸  Trans-Euphrates, that you precisely execute all that Ezra the priestly scribe of the law of the God of heaven may request of you –

Ezra 7:28

7:28 He has also conferred his favor on me before the king, his advisers, and all the influential leaders of the king. I gained strength as the hand of the Lord my God was on me, and I gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.

Ezra 9:15

9:15 O Lord God of Israel, you are righteous, for we are left as a remnant this day. Indeed, we stand before you in our guilt. However, because of this guilt ⁴⁹  no one can really stand before you.”

Ezra 1:9

1:9 The inventory ⁵⁰  of these items was as follows:

30 gold basins, ⁵¹ 

1,000 silver basins,

29 silver utensils, ⁵² 

Ezra 3:3

3:3 They established the altar on its foundations, even though they were in terror of the local peoples, ⁵³  and they offered burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and the evening offerings.

Ezra 4:17

4:17 The king sent the following response:

“To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues who live in Samaria and other parts of Trans-Euphrates: Greetings! ⁵⁴ 

Ezra 5:5

5:5 But God was watching over ⁵⁵  the elders of Judah, and they were not stopped ⁵⁶  until a report could be dispatched ⁵⁷  to Darius and a letter could be sent back concerning this.

Ezra 5:15

5:15 He said to him, “Take these vessels and go deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt in its proper location.” ⁵⁸ 

Ezra 7:15

7:15 and to bring silver and gold which the king and his advisers have freely contributed to the God of Israel, who resides in Jerusalem,

Ezra 1:2

1:2 “Thus says King Cyrus of Persia:

“‘The Lord God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has instructed me to build a temple ⁵⁹  for him in Jerusalem, ⁶⁰  which is in Judah.

Ezra 3:10

3:10 When the builders established the Lord’s temple, the priests, ceremonially attired and with their clarions, ⁶¹  and the Levites (the sons of Asaph) with their cymbals, stood to praise the Lord according to the instructions left by ⁶²  King David of Israel. ⁶³ 

Ezra 6:3

6:3 In the first year of his reign, ⁶⁴  King Cyrus gave orders concerning the temple of God in Jerusalem: ⁶⁵  ‘Let the temple be rebuilt as a place where sacrifices are offered. Let its foundations be set in place. ⁶⁶  Its height is to be ninety feet and its width ninety ⁶⁷  feet, ⁶⁸ 

Ezra 7:25

7:25 “Now you, Ezra, in keeping with the wisdom of your God which you possess, ⁶⁹  appoint judges ⁷⁰  and court officials who can arbitrate cases on behalf of all the people who are in Trans-Euphrates who know the laws of your God. Those who do not know this law should be taught.

Ezra 9:7

9:7 From the days of our fathers until this very day our guilt has been great. Because of our iniquities we, along with our kings and ⁷¹  priests, have been delivered over by the local kings ⁷²  to sword, captivity, plunder, and embarrassment – right up to the present time.

Ezra 9:11

9:11 which you commanded us through your servants the prophets with these words: ⁷³  ‘The land that you are entering to possess is a land defiled by the impurities of the local residents! ⁷⁴  With their abominations they have filled it from one end to the other with their filthiness.

Ezra 9:13

9:13 “Everything that has happened to us has come about because of our wicked actions and our great guilt. Even so, our God, you have exercised restraint ⁷⁵  toward our iniquities and have given us a remnant such as this.

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

[2:68]  ² tn Heb “cause it to stand.”

[2:69]  ³ tn Heb “according to their strength.”

[2:69]  ⁴ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word דַּרְכְּמוֹנִים (darkÿmonim, cf. Neh 7:69, 70, 71) is uncertain. It may be a Greek loanword meaning “drachmas” (the view adopted here and followed also by NAB, NASB, NIV) or a Persian loanword “daric,” referring to a Persian gold coin (BDB 204 s.v. דַּרְכְּמוֹן; HALOT 232 s.v. נִים(וֹ)דַּרְכְּמֹ; cf. ASV, NRSV). For further study, see R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 206-9.

[2:69]  ⁵ sn The מָנִים (manim, cf. Neh 7:71, 72) is a measuring weight for valuable metals, equal to 1/60 of a talent or 60 shekels (BDB 584 s.v. מָנֶה; HALOT 599 s.v. מָנֶה). For further study, see R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 203-6.

[2:69]  ⁶ tn Or “garments.”

[7:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “this.”

[7:11]  ⁸ tn Heb “the priest, the scribe.” So also in v. 21.

[7:11]  ⁹ tn The words “Ezra was” are not in the Hebrew text but have been added in the translation for clarity.

[6:9]  ¹⁰ tn Aram “according to the word of.”

[1:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the men of his place.”

[9:12]  ¹² tn Heb “sons”; cf. KJV, NAB, NIV, NLT “children”; NCV, TEV “descendants.”

[5:11]  ¹³ sn This great king of Israel would, of course, be Solomon.

[7:16]  ¹⁴ tn Aram “find.”

[8:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “I placed in their mouth words.”

[8:17]  ¹⁶ tc The translation reads with the LXX and Vulgate וְאֶחָיו (vÿ’ekhayv, “and his brethren” = “relatives”; so NCV, NLT) rather than the reading אָחִיו (’akhiyv, “his brother”) of the MT.

[8:17]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “in the place called.” This phrase has not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:6]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “strengthened their hands.”

[1:6]  ¹⁹ tc The MT reads בִּכְלֵי־כֶסֶף (bikhley khesef, “with silver vessels”). However, part of the LXX manuscript tradition reads ἐν πᾶσιν ἀργυρίῳ (en pasin arguriw), which reflects an alternate Hebrew reading of בַּכֹּל־בַּכֶּסֶף (bakkol-bakkesef, “everywhere, with silver”). The textual variant involves (1) simple omission of yod (י) between two words, a common scribal mistake; (2) haplography of the preposition bet (בּ); and (3) an alternate vocalization tradition of the first term.

[1:6]  ²⁰ tn Heb “besides” or “in addition to.”

[9:8]  ²¹ tn Heb “according to a little moment.”

[9:8]  ²² tn Heb “a peg” or “tent peg.” The imagery behind this word is drawn from the experience of nomads who put down pegs as they pitched their tents and made camp after times of travel.

[9:8]  ²³ tn Heb “to cause our eyes to shine.” The expression is a figure of speech for “to revive.” See DCH 1:160 s.v. אור Hi.7.

[9:9]  ²⁴ tn Heb “has granted us reviving.”

[9:9]  ²⁵ tn Heb “to cause to stand.”

[9:9]  ²⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[7:19]  ²⁷ tn Or “before.”

[3:7]  ²⁸ tn Heb “silver.”

[3:7]  ²⁹ map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

[3:7]  ³⁰ map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

[3:7]  ³¹ tn Heb “to the sea”

[8:34]  ³² tn The words “everything was verified” are not in the Hebrew text but have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:8]  ³³ tn The words “of the work” are not in the Aramaic, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:8]  ³⁴ tn Heb “brought them forth.”

[1:8]  ³⁵ tn Heb “upon the hand of.”

[1:8]  ³⁶ sn A Persian name meaning “gift of Mithras.” See HALOT 656 s.v. מִתְרְדָת.

[1:8]  ³⁷ sn A Babylonian name with the probable meaning “Shamash protect the father.” See HALOT 1664-65 s.v. שֵׁשְׁבַּצַּר.

[1:8]  ³⁸ tn Heb “Sheshbazzar the prince to Judah”; TEV, CEV “the governor of Judah.”

[4:21]  ³⁹ tn Aram “until a command is issued from me.”

[6:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Aram “the house of the archives.”

[6:10]  ⁴¹ tn Aram “for the life of the king and his sons.”

[7:27]  ⁴² sn At this point the language of the book reverts from Aramaic (7:12-26) back to Hebrew.

[10:19]  ⁴³ tn Heb “hand.”

[5:3]  ⁴⁴ tn Aram “who placed to you a command?” So also v. 9.

[5:3]  ⁴⁵ tn The exact meaning of the Aramaic word אֻשַּׁרְנָא (’ussarna’) here and in v. 9 is uncertain (BDB 1083 s.v.). The LXX and Vulgate understand it to mean “wall.” Here it is used in collocation with בַּיְתָא (bayta’, “house” as the temple of God), while in 5:3, 9 it is used in parallelism with this term. It might be related to the Assyrian noun ashurru (“wall”) or ashru (“sanctuary”; so BDB). F. Rosenthal, who translates the word “furnishings,” thinks that it probably enters Aramaic from Persian (Grammar, 62-63, §189).

[6:12]  ⁴⁶ tn Aram “people.”

[6:12]  ⁴⁷ tn Aram “who sends forth his hand.”

[7:21]  ⁴⁸ tn Aram “who are in.”

[9:15]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “this”; the referent (the guilt mentioned previously) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:9]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “these are their number.”

[1:9]  ⁵¹ tn The exact meaning of the Hebrew noun אֲגַרְטָל (’agartal, which occurs twice in this verse) is somewhat uncertain. The lexicons suggest that it is related to a common Semitic root (the Hebrew derivative has a prosthetic prefixed א [aleph] and interchange between ג [gimel] and ק [kof]): Judean Aramaic and Syriac qartalla, Arabic qirtallat, Ethiopic qartalo, all meaning “basket” (BDB 173-74 s.v.; HALOT 11 s.v.). There is debate whether this is a loanword from Greek κάρταλλος (kartallo", “basket”), Persian hirtal (“leather bag”) or Hittite kurtal (“container”). The term is traditionally understood as a kind of vessel, such as “basket, basin” (BDB 173-74 s.v.; HALOT 11 s.v.); but some suggest “leather bag” or a basket-shaped container of some sort (P. Humbert, “En marge du dictionnaire hébraïque,” ZAW 62 [1950]: 199-207; DCH 1:118 s.v.). The LXX translated it as ψυκτήρ (yukthr, “metal bowl”). The precise meaning depends on whether the nouns כֶּסֶף (kesef, “silver”) and זָהָב (zahav, “gold”), which follow each use of this plural construct noun, are genitives of content (“containers full of silver” and “containers full of gold”) or genitives of material (“silver containers” and “gold containers” = containers made from silver and gold). If they are genitives of content, the term probably means “baskets” or “leather bags” (filled with silver and gold); however, if they are genitives of material, the term would mean “basins” (made of silver and gold). Elsewhere in Ezra 1, the nouns כֶּסֶף (“silver”) and זָהָב (“gold”) are used as genitives or material, not genitives of contents; therefore, the translation “gold basins” and “silver basins” is preferred.

[1:9]  ⁵² tn Heb “knives.” The Hebrew noun מַחֲלָפִים (makhalafim, “knives”) is found only here in the OT. While the basic meaning of the term is fairly clear, what it refers to here is unclear. The verb II חָלַף (khalaf) means “to pass through” (BDB 322 s.v. חָלַף) or “to cut through” (HALOT 321 s.v. II חלף; see also Judg 5:26; Job 20:24); thus, the lexicons suggest מַחֲלָפִים means “knives” (BDB 322 s.v. מַחֲלָף; HALOT 569 s.v. *מַחֲלָף). The related noun חֲלָפוֹת (khalafot, “knife”) is used in Mishnaic Hebrew (HALOT 321 s.v. II חלף), and חֲלִיפוֹת (khalifot, “knives”) appears in the Talmud. The noun appears in the cognate languages: Ugaritic khlpnm (“knives”; UT 19) and Syriac khalofta (“shearing knife”; HALOT 321 s.v. II חלף). The Vulgate translated it as “knives,” while the LXX understood it as referring to replacement pieces for the offering basins. The English translations render it variously; some following the Vulgate and others adopting the approach of the LXX: “knives” (KJV, NKJV, NRSV), “censers” (RSV), “duplicates” (NASV), “silver pans” (NIV), “bowls” (TEV), “other dishes” (CEV). Verse 11 lists these twenty-nine objects among the “gold and silver vessels” brought back to Jerusalem for temple worship. The translation above offers the intentionally ambiguous “silver utensils” (the term מַחֲלָפִים [“knives”] would hardly refer to “gold” items, but could refer to “silver items”).

[3:3]  ⁵³ tn Heb “the peoples of the lands.”

[4:17]  ⁵⁴ tn Aram “peace.”

[5:5]  ⁵⁵ tn Aram “the eye of their God was on.” The idiom describes the attentive care that one exercises in behalf of the object of his concern.

[5:5]  ⁵⁶ tn Aram “they did not stop them.”

[5:5]  ⁵⁷ tn Aram “[could] go.” On this form see F. Rosenthal, Grammar, 58, §169.

[5:15]  ⁵⁸ tn Aram “upon its place.”

[1:2]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “house.” The Hebrew noun בַּיִת (bayit, “house”) is often used in reference to the temple of Yahweh (BDB 108 s.v. 1.a). This is also frequent elsewhere in Ezra and Nehemiah (e.g., Ezra 1:3, 4, 5, 7; 2:68; 3:8, 9, 11, 12; 4:3; 6:22; 7:27; 8:17, 25, 29, 30, 33, 36; 9:9; 10:1, 6, 9).

[1:2]  ⁶⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:10]  ⁶¹ sn This was a long, straight, metallic instrument used for signal calls, rather than the traditional ram’s horn (both instruments are typically translated “trumpet” by English versions).

[3:10]  ⁶² tn Heb “according to the hands of.”

[3:10]  ⁶³ sn See Ps 107:1; 118:1, 29; 136:1. Cf. 2 Chr 5:13; 7:3; 20:21.

[6:3]  ⁶⁴ tn Aram “In the first year of Cyrus the king.”

[6:3]  ⁶⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[6:3]  ⁶⁶ tn Aram “raised”; or perhaps “retained” (so NASB; cf. NLT), referring to the original foundations of Solomon’s temple.

[6:3]  ⁶⁷ tc The Syriac Peshitta reads “twenty cubits” here, a measurement probably derived from dimensions given elsewhere for Solomon’s temple. According to 1 Kgs 6:2 the dimensions of the Solomonic temple were as follows: length, 60 cubits; width, 20 cubits; height, 30 cubits. Since one would expect the dimensions cited in Ezra 6:3 to correspond to those of Solomon’s temple, it is odd that no dimension for length is provided. The Syriac has apparently harmonized the width dimension provided here (“twenty cubits”) to that given in 1 Kgs 6:2.

[6:3]  ⁶⁸ tn Aram “Its height sixty cubits and its width sixty cubits.” The standard cubit in the OT is assumed by most authorities to be about eighteen inches (45 cm) long.

[7:25]  ⁶⁹ tn Aram “in your hand.”

[7:25]  ⁷⁰ tc For the MT reading שָׁפְטִין (shoftim, “judges”) the LXX uses the noun γραμματεῖς (grammatei", “scribes”).

[9:7]  ⁷¹ tc The MT lacks “and” here, but see the LXX and Vulgate.

[9:7]  ⁷² tn Heb “the kings of the lands.”

[9:11]  ⁷³ tn Heb “through your servants the prophets, saying.”

[9:11]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “the peoples of the lands.”

[9:13]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “held back downwards from”; KJV “hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve” (NIV, NRSV, NLT all similar).