EzraChapter 4

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¹The enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple. It was for the LORD, the God of Israel. ²So they came to Zerubbabel and the family leaders. They said, "Let us build with you. We worship your God just like you do. We have been offering sacrifices to him since the time of Esar-haddon king of Assyria. He is the one who brought us here." ³But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other family leaders of Israel answered, "You have no part with us in building a house for our God. We alone must build it for the LORD, the God of Israel. That is what Cyrus king of Persia ordered us to do." ⁴Then the people of the land tried to make the people of Judah lose heart. They tried to scare them so they would stop building. ⁵They paid advisers to work against them and ruin their plans. They did this the whole time Cyrus was king of Persia. They kept it up until Darius became king of Persia. ⁶When Xerxes began to rule, people wrote a charge against the people of Judah and Jerusalem. ⁷Later, when Artaxerxes was king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their group wrote a letter to him. It was written in Aramaic and then translated. ⁸Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem. They sent it to King Artaxerxes. It said: ⁹From Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe. It is also from the rest of their group. They are the judges and officials over Tripolis, Persia, Erech, and Babylon. They are also the Elamites of Susa ¹⁰and the other peoples. The great and noble Ashurbanipal moved these peoples from their homes. He settled them in the cities of Samaria and in other places west of the Euphrates River. ¹¹(Here is a copy of the letter they sent him.) To King Artaxerxes, from your servants, the men west of the Euphrates: ¹²The king should know this. The Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are building that rebellious and evil city again. They are rebuilding its walls and fixing its foundations. ¹³Now the king should know this too. If that city is built and its walls are finished, they will stop paying tribute, taxes, and tolls. Then the king's treasury will lose money. ¹⁴We serve the palace. It would not be right for us to let the king be shamed. So we are sending this message to tell the king. ¹⁵We ask that a search be made in the record books of the kings before you. In those books you will find proof. This city has always rebelled. It has caused trouble for kings and lands. It has stirred up revolts since long ago. That is why this city was destroyed. ¹⁶We want the king to know this. If this city is built and its walls are finished, you will lose control of the land west of the Euphrates. ¹⁷Then the king sent this answer: To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of your group living in Samaria and in other places west of the Euphrates: Greetings. ¹⁸The letter you sent us has been translated and read to me. ¹⁹I gave an order, and a search was made. We found that this city has turned against kings since long ago. It has been a place of rebellion and revolt. ²⁰Strong kings have ruled over Jerusalem. They ruled over the whole land west of the Euphrates. People paid them tribute, taxes, and tolls. ²¹So now give an order to make these men stop. This city must not be built again until I give the order. ²²Be careful not to ignore this. Why let this danger grow and hurt the king? ²³The letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their group. Right away they went to the Jews in Jerusalem. They used force to make them stop. ²⁴So the work on God's house in Jerusalem stopped. It stayed stopped until the second year that Darius was king of Persia.