After King Artaxerxes’ letter was read, Rehum and the scribe Shimshai and their associates marched on Jerusalem immediately, with cavalry and a large group of armed troops, in order to stop the builders.
Then the king, in reply to the recorder Rehum, Beltethmus, the scribe Shimshai, and the others associated with them and living in Samaria and Syria and Phoenicia, wrote as follows:
Then, when the letter from King Artaxerxes was read, Rehum and the scribe Shimshai and their associates went quickly to Jerusalem, with cavalry and a large number of armed troops, and began to hinder the builders. And the building of the temple in Jerusalem stopped until the second year of the reign of King Darius of the Persians.
Then the king, in reply to Rehum the recorder and Beltethmus and Shim′shai the scribe and the others associated with them and living in Samar′ia and Syria and Phoenic′ia, wrote as follows:
Then the king wrote again to Rathymus, that wrote those things that befell, and to Beeltethmus, and to Semellius, the scribe, and to others ordained sovereigns and dwelling in Syria, and in Phenice (or in Phoenicia), [or to others ordained, and dwellers in Syria, and Phenice], he wrote to them these things that be set under.