Ezra 4
1 Men da Judas og Benjamins Fjender hørte, at de, der havde været i Landflygtighed, byggede HERREN, Israels Gud, en Helligdom,
The enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a Temple to the Lord, the God of Israel.
2 henvendte de sig til Zerubbabel, Jesua og Overhovederne for Fædrenehusene og sagde til dem: Lad os være med til at bygge, thi vi søger eders Gud saavel som I, og ham har vi ofret til, siden Assyrerkongen Asarhaddon førte os herhen!
They came to Zerubbabel and the family leaders and said, “Please let us help you with the building work, for we worship your God like you do. In fact we have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.”
3 Men Zerubbabel, Jesua og de andre Overhoveder for Israels Fædrenehuse svarede: »I skal ikke være fælles med os om at bygge vor Gud et Hus, men vi vil være ene om at bygge for HERREN, Israels Gud, saaledes som Kong Kyros, Perserkongen, paalagde os!«
But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the family leaders of Israel replied, “You can't share with us in building a Temple for our God. Only we can build it for the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what Cyrus the king of Persia has ordered us to do.”
4 Saa bragte Hedningerne i Landet Judas Folks Hænder til at synke og skræmmede dem fra at bygge;
Then the local people set out to intimidate the people of Judah and make them too scared to go on building.
5 og de købte Folk til med deres Raad at modarbejde dem og bringe deres Planer til at strande; saaledes gik det, saa længe Perserkongen Kyros levede, lige til Perserkongen Darius's Regering.
They bribed officials to oppose them and to obstruct their plans. This continued during the whole reign of Cyrus king of Persia up until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
6 Under Ahasverus's Regering, i hans første Regeringstid, skrev de en Klage over Judas og Jerusalems Indbyggere.
When Ahasuerus became king the local people sent him a written accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
7 I Artaxerxes's Dage affattede Bisjlam, Mitredat, Tabe'el og alle hans andre Embedsbrødre en Skrivelse til Perserkongen Artaxerxes. Skrivelsen var affattet paa Aramaisk og oversat.
During the time of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and their fellow officers wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. The letter was written in Aramaic and translated from Aramaic.
8 Statholderen Rehum og Skriveren Sjimsjaj skrev et Brev mod Jerusalem til Kong Artaxerxes af følgende Indhold.
Rehum the officer in command and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter to King Artaxerxes condemning Jerusalem stating,
9 De, der dengang skrev, var Statholderen Rehum og Skriveren Sjimsjaj og alle deres andre Embedsbrødre, Diniterne, Afarsatkiterne, Tarpeliterne, Afaresiterne, Arkiterne, Babylonerne,
This comes from Rehum the officer in command, Shimshai the scribe, and fellow officers: the judges and officials and those in charge of Persia, Erech and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,
10 Susaniterne, Dehaviterne, Elamiterne og de andre Folk, som den store og navnkundige Asenappar havde ført bort og ladet bosætte sig i Samarias Byer og andetsteds hinsides Floden, og saa videre.
and the rest of the people whom the great and noble Ashurbanipal deported and resettled in the towns of Samaria and other places west of the Euphrates.
11 Dette er en Afskrift af Brevet, de sendte ham: »Til Kong Artaxerxes. Dine Trælle, Folkene hinsides Floden, og saa videre:
The following is a copy of the letter they sent to him. To King Artaxerxes, from your servants, men beyond the River Euphrates:
12 Det være Kongen kundgjort, at Jøderne, som drog op til os fra dig, er kommet til Jerusalem; de er i Færd med at genopbygge denne oprørske og onde By; de genopfører Murene og udbedrer Grunden.
Your Majesty should be informed that the Jews who came from you to us have returned to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city, completing repairs to the walls, and mending its foundations.
13 Men nu være det Kongen kundgjort, at hvis denne By bygges op og Murene genopføres, saa vil de ikke svare Skat, Afgift eller Skyld, og der bliver Skaar i Kongens Indtægter.
Your Majesty should realize that if this city is rebuilt and its walls repaired, they will not pay tax, tribute, or fees, and the king's revenue will suffer.
14 Da vi nu spiser Paladsets Salt, og det ikke sømmer sig for os at se paa, at Kongen lider Skade, sender vi herved Bud og lader Kongen det vide,
Now because we are in the king's service and it is not right for us to see Your Majesty disrespected, we are sending this letter so that you can be informed,
15 for at der kan blive set efter i dine Fædres Krønikebog; i den vil du finde og se, at denne By er en oprørsk By, der har voldt Konger og Lande Skade, og at der fra gammel Tid har fundet Opstande Sted i den. Det er Grunden til, at denne By blev ødelagt.
and order a search of the royal archives. You will discover in these records that this is a rebellious city, damaging to kings and countries, having often risen up in revolt in the past. That is what led to this city being destroyed.
16 Saa lader vi da Kongen vide, at hvis denne By bygges op og Murerne genopføres, har du ikke mere nogen Besiddelse hinsides Floden!«
We wish to inform Your Majesty that if this city is rebuilt and the walls completed, you will lose this province west of the Euphrates.
17 Kongen sendte da følgende Svar til Statholderen Rehum, Skriveren Sjimsjaj og alle deres andre Embedsbrødre, som boede i Samaria og de andre Lande hinsides Floden: »Hilsen, og saa videre.
The king replied as follows: “To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and fellow officers living in Samaria and in other areas west of the Euphrates: Greetings.
18 Den Skrivelse, I har sendt mig, er forelæst mig grundigt.
The letter you sent to us has been translated and read to me.
19 Og paa mit Bud har man set efter og fundet, at denne By fra gammel Tid har sat sig op mod Konger, og at der har fundet Oprør og Opstande Sted i den;
I ordered a search to be conducted. It was discovered that this city has often risen up in revolt against kings in the past, frequently promoting insurrection and rebellion.
20 over Jerusalem har der hersket mægtige Konger, som udstrakte deres Magt over alt hinsides Floden, og til hvem der svaredes Skat, Afgift og Skyld.
Powerful kings have ruled over Jerusalem and throughout the whole area west of the Euphrates, and they received tax, tribute, and fees.
21 Giv derfor Ordre til at standse disse Mænd og til, at denne By ikke maa genopbygges, før der kommer Befaling fra mig;
Issue an immediate order for these men to stop work. This city is not to be rebuilt until I authorize it.
22 og tag eder vel i Vare for at vise Forsømmelighed i denne Sag, at ikke der skal lides store Tab til Skade for Kongerne!«
See that you do not neglect this matter. Why should this problem be allowed to grow and damage royal interests?”
23 Saa snart Afskriften af denne Skrivelse fra Kong Artaxerxes var blevet læst for Rehum, Skriveren Sjimsjaj og deres Embedsbrødre, begav de sig uopholdelig til Jøderne i Jerusalem og tvang dem med Magt til at standse Arbejdet.
As soon as this letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their fellow officers, they rushed to the Jews in Jerusalem and used their power to forcibly make them stop work.
24 Saa standsede Arbejdet paa Guds Hus i Jerusalem, og det hvilede til Perserkongen Darius's andet Regeringsaar.
Consequently work on God's Temple in Jerusalem came to a halt. The stoppage continued until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia.
