Ezra 1
1 During the first year that Cyrus ruled [the] Persian [Empire], he did something that fulfilled what Jeremiah had prophesied. Yahweh motivated Cyrus to write this message, and then Cyrus sent this message throughout his empire:
In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD stirred the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to send a proclamation throughout his kingdom and to put it in writing as follows:
2 “I, King Cyrus, who rule [the] Persian [Empire], declare this: 'Yahweh, the God [who is in/rules] from heaven, has caused me to become the ruler of all the kingdoms [that I know about] on the earth. And he has appointed me [to enable his people] to build a temple for him in Jerusalem, in Judah [land].
“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has appointed me to build a house for Him at Jerusalem in Judah.
3 All you people who belong to God may go up to Jerusalem to rebuild this temple for Yahweh, the God who lives in Jerusalem, the God [who is worshiped by you] Israeli people. I desire/hope that your God will be with you [and help those who go there].
Whoever among you belongs to His people, may his God be with him, and may he go to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of the LORD, the God of Israel; He is the God who is in Jerusalem.
4 Those people who are in places where Israelis are living, whose ancestors were exiled here, should contribute silver and gold to those who go. They should also give them supplies [that they will need for the journey to Jerusalem]. They should also give them some livestock, and gifts of money to help build the temple of God in Jerusalem.'”
And let every survivor, wherever he lives, be assisted by the men of that region with silver, gold, goods, and livestock, along with a freewill offering for the house of God in Jerusalem.’”
5 Then God motivated some of the priests and (Levites/men who did work in the temple) and some of the leaders of the tribes that were descended from Judah and Benjamin to return to Jerusalem. Those whom God motivated got ready to return to Jerusalem and build the temple for Yahweh there.
So the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred—prepared to go up and rebuild the house of the LORD in Jerusalem.
6 All of their neighbors helped them by giving them things made of silver and things made of gold, and supplies for the journey, and livestock. They also gave them other valuable gifts, and also gave them money [to buy things for building the temple].
And all their neighbors supported them with articles of silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with valuables, in addition to all their freewill offerings.
7 King Cyrus brought out the valuable things that King Nebuchadnezzar’s [soldiers] had taken from the temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem and put in the temple of Nebuchadnezzar’s gods [in Babylon].
King Cyrus also brought out the articles belonging to the house of the LORD that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the temple of his gods.
8 Cyrus commanded Mithredath, the treasurer of [the] Persian [Empire], to count all these items and then give them to Sheshbazzar, the leader of [the group that was going to return to] Judah.
Cyrus king of Persia had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah.
9 This is a list of the items that Cyrus donated: 30 large gold dishes 1,000 large silver dishes 29 silver (censers/incense burning pans)
This was the inventory: 30 gold dishes, 1,000 silver dishes, 29 silver utensils,
10 30 gold bowls 410 silver bowls 1,000 other items.
30 gold bowls, 410 matching silver bowls, and 1,000 other articles.
11 All together, there were 5,400 items made of silver or gold, that [were given to] Sheshbazzar [to] take with him when he and the others returned to Jerusalem.
In all, there were 5,400 gold and silver articles. Sheshbazzar brought all these along when the exiles went up from Babylon to Jerusalem.
