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Ezra 4:2-4
The Voice
Ezra 4:2-4
The Voice
2 they asked Zerubbabel and the tribal leaders if they could help.
Northern Enemies: Let us help you build this temple to the True God, whom we both follow. You see, our families began sacrificing to Him when King Esarhaddon of Assyria sent us to colonize the Northern Kingdom after he conquered it.
Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the Tribal Leaders: 3 You have nothing in common with us! You are not heirs to the Lord’s promise to Abraham. King Cyrus of Persia has commanded us to build the Eternal God of Israel’s temple, so we will do it by ourselves.
4 To intimidate the returning Jews from building, the people of the land made the returning exiles afraid to build
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Ezra 4:2-4
New International Version
Ezra 4:2-4
New International Version
2 they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, “Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon(A) king of Assyria, who brought us here.”(B)
3 But Zerubbabel, Joshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, “You have no part with us in building a temple to our God. We alone will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.”(C)
4 Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.[a](D)
Footnotes
- Ezra 4:4 Or and troubled them as they built
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