Ezra 4:6-10
Contemporary English Version
Trouble Rebuilding Jerusalem[a]
6 (A) In the first year that Xerxes was king,[b] the neighboring people brought written charges against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
7 Later, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and their advisors got together and wrote a letter to Artaxerxes when he was king of Persia.[c] It was written in Aramaic and had to be translated.[d]
8-10 [e] A letter was also written to Artaxerxes about Jerusalem by Governor Rehum, Secretary Shimshai, and their advisors, including the judges, the governors, the officials, and the local leaders. They were joined in writing this letter by people from Erech and Babylonia, the Elamites from Susa,[f] and people from other foreign nations that the great and famous Ashurbanipal[g] had forced to settle in Samaria and other parts of Western Province.[h]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 4.6 Jerusalem: Verses 6-23, which tell about the events of a later period, are placed here because they are also concerned with the problem of stopping or slowing down work on the temple.
- 4.6 first year that Xerxes was king: Either the end of 486 or the beginning of 485 b.c. The Hebrew has the king's Persian name “Ahasuerus,” but he is better known as “Xerxes,” the Greek form of the name.
- 4.7 Artaxerxes … Persia: Artaxerxes I (465–425 b.c.).
- 4.7 It was … translated: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 4.8-10 Ezra 4.8—6.18 was written in Aramaic, instead of Hebrew like most of the Old Testament.
- 4.8-10 the judges … Susa: One possible translation for the names and titles.
- 4.8-10 Ashurbanipal: King of Assyria 669–633 (or possibly 627) b.c. In Aramaic the king's name is “Osnapper,” but he is better known as Ashurbanipal.
- 4.8-10 Western Province: The land from the Euphrates River west to the Mediterranean Sea.
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