Ezra 6:13-18

The Temple Is Finally Dedicated

6:13 Then Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues acted accordingly – with precision, just as Darius the king had given instructions. ¹  6:14 The elders of the Jews continued building and prospering, while at the same time ²  Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo continued prophesying. They built and brought it to completion by the command of the God of Israel and by the command of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia. 6:15 They finished this temple on the third day of the month Adar, which is the sixth ³  year of the reign of King Darius.

6:16 The people ⁴  of Israel – the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the exiles ⁵  – observed the dedication of this temple of God with joy. 6:17 For the dedication of this temple of God they offered one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and twelve male goats for the sin of all Israel, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. 6:18 They appointed the priests by their divisions and the Levites by their divisions over the worship of God at Jerusalem, ⁶  in accord with ⁷  the book of Moses.

[6:13]  ¹ tn Aram “sent.”

[6:14]  ² tn Aram “in” or “by,” in the sense of accompaniment.

[6:15]  ³ sn The sixth year of the reign of Darius would be ca. 516 B.C.

[6:16]  ⁴ tn Aram “sons of.”

[6:16]  ⁵ tn Aram “sons of the exile.”

[6:18]  ⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[6:18]  ⁷ tn Aram “according to the writing of.”