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The Proclamation of Cyrus

(A)Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia—in order to complete the word of [a]Yahweh from the mouth of Jeremiah—Yahweh stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he (B)had a proclamation pass throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying:

“Thus says Cyrus king of Persia,

‘Yahweh, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and (C)He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

Whoever there is among you of all His people, may his God be with him! Let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of Yahweh, the God of Israel; (D)He is the God who is in Jerusalem.

So everyone who remains, at whatever place he may sojourn, let the men of [b]that place support him with silver and gold, with goods and cattle, together with a freewill offering for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.’”

Articles from Yahweh’s House Brought to Jerusalem

Then the heads of fathers’ households of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites arose, (E)that is of everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of Yahweh which is in Jerusalem. All those around them [c](F)strengthened them with articles of silver, with gold, with possessions, with cattle, and with precious things, aside from all that was given as a freewill offering. (G)Also King Cyrus brought out the articles of the house of Yahweh, (H)which Nebuchadnezzar had brought out from Jerusalem and put in the house of his gods; and Cyrus, king of Persia, had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and he counted them out to (I)Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah. Now this was their number: 30 (J)gold dishes, 1,000 silver dishes, 29 [d]duplicates; 10 30 gold bowls, 410 silver bowls of a second kind and 1,000 other articles. 11 All the articles of gold and silver numbered 5,400. Sheshbazzar brought them all up with the exiles who went up from Babylon to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. Ezra 1:1 The personal covenant name of God, a form of I AM WHO I AM, cf. Ex 3:14-15
  2. Ezra 1:4 Lit his
  3. Ezra 1:6 Lit strengthened their hands
  4. Ezra 1:9 Heb obscure; other possible meanings are knives, censers

Permission to return to Jerusalem

In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia’s rule, to fulfill the Lord’s word spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Persia’s King Cyrus. The king issued a proclamation throughout his kingdom (it was also in writing) that stated:

Persia’s King Cyrus says: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has commanded me to build him a house at Jerusalem in Judah. If there are any of you who are from his people, may their God be with them! They may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of the Lord, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem. And as for all those who remain in the various places where they are living, let the people of those places supply them with silver and gold, and with goods and livestock, together with spontaneous gifts for God’s house in Jerusalem.[a]

Preparing to return

Then the heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred up—got ready to go up and build God’s house in Jerusalem. All their neighbors assisted them with silver equipment, with gold, with goods, livestock, and valuable gifts, in addition to all that was freely offered. King Cyrus brought out the equipment of the Lord’s house—those items that Nebuchadnezzar brought from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. Persia’s King Cyrus handed them over to Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. This was the count: thirty gold dishes, one thousand silver dishes, twenty-nine knives,[b] 10 thirty gold bowls, four hundred ten larger[c] silver bowls, and one thousand other objects. 11 The total of the gold and silver objects numbered five thousand four hundred. Sheshbazzar brought up all of these when the exiles went up from Babylonia to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. Ezra 1:4 Heb uncertain
  2. Ezra 1:9 Vulg; Heb uncertain
  3. Ezra 1:10 Heb double