Ezra 4

1 When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel,

Now some enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the people who had been exiled were now building a temple for Yahweh, the God of Israel.

2 they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the families, saying, “Let us build with you because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to Him since the time of King Esar-haddon of Assyria, who brought us here.”

So they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of their ancestors' clans. They said to them, “Let us build with you, for, like you, we seek your God and have sacrificed to him since the days when Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, brought us to this place.”

3 But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other heads of the families of Israel replied, “You have no part with us in building a house for our God, since we alone must build it for the LORD, the God of Israel, as Cyrus king of Persia has commanded us.”

But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the heads of their ancestors' clans said, “It is not you, but we who must build the house of our God, for it is we who will build for Yahweh, the God of Israel, just as King Cyrus of Persia commanded.”

4 Then the people of the land set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to build.

So the people of the land made the Judeans' hands weak; they made the Judeans afraid to build.

5 They hired counselors against them to frustrate their plans throughout the reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.

They also bribed counselors to frustrate their plans. They did this during all of Cyrus' days and into the reign of Darius king of Persia.

6 At the beginning of the reign of Xerxes, an accusation was lodged against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.

Then at the beginning of Ahasuerus' reign they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

7 And in the days of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. It was written in Aramaic and then translated.

It was during the days of Artaxerxes that Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and their companions wrote to Artaxerxes. The letter was written in Aramaic and translated.

8 Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote the letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows:

Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote this way to Artaxerxes about Jerusalem.

9 From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates—the judges and officials over Tripolis, Persia, Erech and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,

Then Rehum, Shimshai, and their companions, who were judges and other officers in the government, the Persians, men from Erech and Babylon, and the men from Susa (that is, the Elamites)—they wrote a letter—

10 and the rest of the peoples whom the great and honorable Ashurbanipal deported and settled in the cities of Samaria and elsewhere west of the Euphrates.

and they were joined by the people whom the great and noble Ashurbanipal forced to settle in Samaria, along with the rest who were in the Province Beyond the River.

11 (This is the text of the letter they sent to him.) To King Artaxerxes, From your servants, the men west of the Euphrates:

This is a copy of the letter that they sent to Artaxerxes: “Your servants, men of the Province Beyond the River, write this:

12 Let it be known to the king that the Jews who came from you to us have returned to Jerusalem. And they are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city, restoring its walls, and repairing its foundations.

Let the king know that the Jews who went from you have come against us in Jerusalem to build a rebellious city. They have completed the walls and repaired the foundations.

13 Let it now be known to the king that if that city is rebuilt and its walls are restored, they will not pay tribute, duty, or toll, and the royal treasury will suffer.

Now let the king know that if this city is built and the wall is completed, they will not give any tribute and taxes, but they will harm the kings.

14 Now because we are in the service of the palace and it is not fitting for us to allow the king to be dishonored, we have sent to inform the king

Surely because we have eaten the palace salt, it is not fitting for us to see any dishonor happen to the king. It is because of this that we are informing the king

15 that a search should be made of the record books of your fathers. In these books you will discover and verify that the city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces, inciting sedition from ancient times. That is why this city was destroyed.

to search your father's record and to verify that this is a rebellious city that will harm kings and provinces. It has caused many problems to the kings and provinces. It has been a center for rebellion from long ago. It was for this reason that the city was destroyed.

16 We advise the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls are restored, you will have no dominion west of the Euphrates.

We are informing the king that if this city and wall are built, then there will be nothing remaining for you in the Province Beyond the River.”

17 Then the king sent this reply: To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of your associates living in Samaria and elsewhere in the region west of the Euphrates: Greetings.

So the king sent out a reply to Rehum and Shimshai and their companions in Samaria and the rest who were in the Province Beyond the River: “May peace be yours.

18 The letter you sent us has been translated and read in my presence.

The letter that you sent me has been translated and read to me.

19 I issued a decree, and a search was conducted. It was discovered that this city has revolted against kings from ancient times, engaging in rebellion and sedition.

So I ordered an investigation and discovered that in previous days they had rebelled and revolted against kings.

20 And mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem and exercised authority over the whole region west of the Euphrates; and tribute, duty, and toll were paid to them.

Mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem and had power over everything in the Province Beyond the River. Tribute and taxes were paid to them.

21 Now, therefore, issue an order for these men to stop, so that this city will not be rebuilt until I so order.

Now, make a decree for these men to stop and not build this city until I make a decree.

22 See that you do not neglect this matter. Why allow this threat to increase and the royal interests to suffer?

Be careful not to neglect this. Why allow this threat to grow and cause more loss for the royal interests?

23 When the text of the letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their associates, they went immediately to the Jews in Jerusalem and forcibly stopped them.

When King Artaxerxes' decree was read before Rehum, Shimshai, and their companions, they went out quickly to Jerusalem and forced the Jews to stop building.

24 Thus the construction of the house of God in Jerusalem ceased, and it remained at a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

So the work on the house of God in Jerusalem stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.