以斯拉記 4
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
建殿工作受阻
4 猶大和便雅憫的敵人聽說流亡者回來要為以色列的上帝耶和華建殿， 2 就去見所羅巴伯和以色列的族長，對他們說：「請讓我們與你們一同建造，因為我們像你們一樣也尋求你們的上帝。自從亞述王以撒哈頓帶我們到這裡以後，我們就一直獻祭給上帝。」 3 所羅巴伯、耶書亞和以色列其餘的族長回答說：「你們不能參與建殿。遵照波斯王塞魯士的吩咐，我們要自己為以色列的上帝耶和華建殿。」
4 於是，當地人阻撓猶大人，使他們不敢建殿， 5 從波斯王塞魯士統治年間，一直到波斯王大流士統治期間，當地人收買謀士，破壞他們的計劃。
阻擾重建耶路撒冷
6 亞哈隨魯統治初期，他們寫信控告猶大和耶路撒冷的居民。
7 波斯王亞達薛西統治年間，比施蘭、米特利達、他別及其同黨上奏亞達薛西。奏章是用亞蘭文寫的，經過翻譯後呈上。 8 利宏省長和伸帥書記也寫了奏本給亞達薛西王，控告耶路撒冷人，內容如下： 9 「利宏省長、伸帥書記和我們的同僚底拿人、亞法薩提迦人、他毗拉人、亞法撒人、亞基衛人、巴比倫人、書珊迦人、底亥人、以攔人， 10 以及偉大尊貴的亞斯那巴遷來並安置在撒瑪利亞各城與幼發拉底河西一帶的人民， 11 上奏亞達薛西王，
「『幼發拉底河西的臣民奏告亞達薛西王， 12 王該知道，從王那裡到我們這裡來的猶太人已經去了耶路撒冷，如今正在重建這座叛逆、罪惡之城，正在重建地基，修築城牆。 13 王該知道，如果這城建好，城牆完工，他們將不再進貢、交賦、納稅，王的稅收必受虧損。 14 我們既食王祿，就不能坐視王遭受損失，因此上奏於王。 15 請王查看先王的記錄，必從中獲悉這城是叛逆之城，危害列王和各省。自古以來，城中叛亂不斷，因此才被毀滅。 16 我們願王知道，這城一旦建好，城牆完工，幼發拉底河西之地就不再為王所有了。』」
17 王回覆利宏省長、伸帥書記及其住在撒瑪利亞與幼發拉底河西一帶的同僚，說：「願你們平安！ 18 你們呈上的奏章，經過翻譯已奏報給我。 19 我已命人查考，發現這城自古以來屢屢背叛列王，是悖逆和叛亂之地。 20 強大的君王曾經統管耶路撒冷和幼發拉底河西全境，並向人們徵收貢物和賦稅。 21 現在你們要下令讓這些人停止建造這城，等候我的諭旨。 22 要認真辦理這事，不可遲延，何必容事情惡化，使王受虧損呢？」
23 利宏、伸帥書記及其同僚接到諭旨後，急忙趕往耶路撒冷，用武力強迫猶太人停工。
恢復建殿工作
24 於是，耶路撒冷上帝殿的重建工程停止了，一直停到波斯王大流士第二年。
Ezra 4
Evangelical Heritage Version
Opposition to the Construction of the Second Temple
4 When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel, 2 they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the families. They said to them, “Let us build with you, because, like you, we seek your God, and we have been sacrificing to him[a] since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.”
3 Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel said to them, “We will not permit you to join us in building a house for our God, because we ourselves will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, just as King Cyrus of Persia commanded us.”
4 Then the people of the land kept discouraging[b] the people of Judah and kept trying to make them too frightened to build. 5 They kept bribing officials[c] against them to try to frustrate their plans. They did this throughout all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
6 During the reign of Xerxes,[d] at the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. 7 Then in Artaxerxes’ days, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabe’el, and the rest of his associates wrote to King Artaxerxes of Persia. A document was written in Aramaic and translated.[e] What follows is the Aramaic version.[f]
8 Rehum the head of the council and Shimshai the secretary wrote a letter concerning Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows:
9 Heading: Rehum the head of the council with Shimshai the secretary and the rest of their associates: the judges, the rulers, the officials, the administrators, people from Uruk and Babylon, people from Susa (that is, the Elamites),[g] 10 and the rest of the peoples whom the great and glorious Ashurbanipal exiled and settled in the city of Samaria and the rest of the province called Trans-Euphrates.[h]
11 (This is a copy of the letter that they sent to him.)
To King Artaxerxes.
From your servants, men of the Trans-Euphrates.
Message:
12 The King should know that the Judeans who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. Soon they will have completed the walls, and they are now repairing the foundations.
13 Now let it be known to the King that if that city is rebuilt and the walls are completed, then taxes, tribute, and revenue will not be paid, and kings certainly will be harmed.
14 Now because we are duty-bound by an oath to the King[i] and do not wish to see the King dishonored, for that reason we are sending this letter to inform the King, 15 so that a search may be made in the book containing the memoranda of your predecessors. In this book of memoranda you will discover and come to know that this city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces, producing rebellions within it from days of old. For this reason that city was destroyed. 16 We are informing the King that if that city is rebuilt and its walls are completed, then, because of that, you will retain possession of no portion of the Trans-Euphrates.
17 The king sent a reply:
To Rehum the head of the council, Shimshai the secretary, and the rest of their associates, who live in Samaria and the rest of the province called Trans-Euphrates.
Peace.
Message:
18 The document that you sent to us was translated and read in my presence. 19 So a decree was issued by me. They searched and found that from ancient days that city has risen up against kings, and rebellion and insurrection have been made in it. 20 Powerful kings were over Jerusalem, and they ruled throughout the entire Trans-Euphrates, and taxes, tribute, and revenue were paid to them. 21 Therefore, issue a decree to stop these men, and this city shall not be rebuilt until a decree is issued by me. 22 Moreover, continue to be diligent. Do not neglect to do this. Why should damage increase to harm kings?
23 Then, when a copy of Artaxerxes’ document was read in the presence of Rehum, Shimshai the secretary, and their associates, they immediately went to the Judeans in Jerusalem, and they stopped them with armed force. 24 In this way, the work on the house of God in Jerusalem was stopped. Also, it had previously been stopped until the second year[j] of the reign of King Darius of Persia.[k]
Footnotes
- Ezra 4:2 The translation follows the marginal Hebrew reading, which is supported by a Dead Sea Scroll and the ancient versions. The main Hebrew reading is have not been sacrificing.
- Ezra 4:4 Literally causing the hands to droop for
- Ezra 4:5 Or hiring lobbyists
- Ezra 4:6 The EHV uses the names of the Persian kings that have become the standard English names. These names derive from the Greek versions of the names rather than directly from the Hebrew or Persian forms of the names.
- Ezra 4:7 Presumably translated into Persian for the king. See verse 18.
- Ezra 4:7 E zra 4:7–6:18 is in Aramaic, as is Ezra 7:12–26. The letters are written in a kind of formal, stylized, bureaucratic Aramaic.
- Ezra 4:9 It is unclear which of these terms refer to offices and which refer to ethnic groups. Some translations understand all of them to be names of ethnic groups: Dinaites and Apharsathkites, Tarpelites, Persians, Urukites, Babylonians, Susanites, Dahavites, Elamites. If some of the words are names of office-holders, it is not clear in all cases which specific offices are referred to.
- Ezra 4:10 That is, the territory west of the Euphrates River, Syria-Palestine
- Ezra 4:14 Literally we eat the salt of the palace
- Ezra 4:24 That is, 520 bc
- Ezra 4:24 The hostile letter to the later King Artaxerxes illustrates the method that had been used to stop the work earlier, during the reign of Darius.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.