Ezra 6:13-22
Contemporary English Version
The Temple Is Dedicated
13 Governor Tattenai, Shethar Bozenai, and their advisors carefully obeyed King Darius. 14 (A) With great success the Jewish leaders continued working on the temple, while Haggai and Zechariah encouraged them by their preaching. And so, the temple was completed at the command of the God of Israel and by the orders of kings Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes of Persia.[a] 15 On the third day of the month of Adar[b] in the sixth year of the rule of Darius,[c] the temple was finished.
16 The people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, and everyone else who had returned from exile were happy and celebrated as they dedicated God's temple. 17 One hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs were offered as sacrifices at the dedication. Also twelve goats were sacrificed as sin offerings for the twelve tribes of Israel. 18 Then the priests and Levites were assigned their duties in God's temple in Jerusalem, according to the instructions Moses had written.[d]
The Passover
19 (B) Everyone who had returned from exile celebrated Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.[e] 20 The priests and Levites had gone through a ceremony to make themselves acceptable to lead in worship. Then some of them killed Passover lambs for those who had returned, including the other priests and themselves.
21 The sacrifices were eaten by the Israelites who had returned and by the neighboring people who had given up the sinful customs of other nations in order to worship the Lord God of Israel. 22 For seven days they celebrated the Festival of Thin Bread. Everyone was happy because the Lord God of Israel had made sure that the king of Assyria[f] would be kind to them and help them build the temple.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 6.14 Artaxerxes of Persia: See the note at 4.7.
- 6.15 Adar: The twelfth month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-February to about mid-March.
- 6.15 sixth year … Darius: 515 b.c.
- 6.18 Ezra 4.8—6.18 was written in Aramaic, instead of Hebrew like most of the Old Testament.
- 6.19 the first month: Nisan, the first month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-March to mid-April.
- 6.22 king of Assyria: Meaning the king of Persia, because Assyria was now part of the Persian Empire.
Ezra 6:13-22
King James Version
13 Then Tatnai, governor on this side the river, Shetharboznai, and their companions, according to that which Darius the king had sent, so they did speedily.
14 And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded, and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.
15 And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.
16 And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy.
17 And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.
18 And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses.
19 And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month.
20 For the priests and the Levites were purified together, all of them were pure, and killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.
21 And the children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the Lord God of Israel, did eat,
22 And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the Lord had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.
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