Ezra 4
1 Berita bahwa orang-orang bekas buangan itu sedang membangun Rumah TUHAN, Allah Israel, terdengar oleh musuh orang Yehuda dan Benyamin.
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity were building a temple unto the LORD, the God of Israel;
2 Sebab itu mereka menemui Zerubabel dan para kepala kaum, lalu mengusulkan, "Izinkanlah kami ikut membangun Rumah TUHAN itu, sebab kami juga berbakti kepada Allah saudara-saudara, sama seperti saudara sekalian. Kami selalu mempersembahkan kurban kepadanya sejak Esar-Hadon, raja Asyur membawa kami ke mari."
then they drew near to Zerubbabel, and to the heads of fathers' houses, and said unto them: 'Let us build with you; for we seek your God, as ye do; and we do sacrifice unto Him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us up hither.'
3 Tetapi Zerubabel, Yesua dan para kepala kaum itu menjawab, "Kami tidak memerlukan bantuan kalian untuk membangun rumah bagi TUHAN Allah kami. Kami akan membangunnya sendiri sesuai dengan perintah Kores, raja Persia, kepada kami."
But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses of Israel, said unto them: 'Ye have nothing to do with us to build a house unto our God; but we ourselves together will build unto the LORD, the God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia hath commanded us.'
4 Kemudian penduduk yang sudah lama tinggal di negeri itu mulai melemahkan semangat orang Yahudi serta menakut-nakuti mereka supaya pembangunan itu dihentikan.
Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and harried them while they were building,
5 Mereka menyogok pejabat-pejabat pemerintah Persia supaya menggagalkan rencana orang Yahudi itu. Hal itu terus berlangsung selama pemerintahan Raja Kores sampai pemerintahan Raja Darius.
and hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
6 Pada awal pemerintahan Raja Ahasyweros, musuh-musuh penduduk Yerusalem dan Yehuda menulis surat gugatan.
And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, wrote they an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
7 Juga pada zaman pemerintahan Artahsasta, kaisar Persia, kejadian itu berulang: Bislam, Mitredat, Tabeel dan rekan-rekan mereka menulis surat kepada raja. Surat itu ditulis dalam bahasa Aram, dan harus diterjemahkan ketika dibacakan.
And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his companions, unto Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in the Aramaic character, and set forth in the Aramaic tongue.
8 Artahsasta juga menerima surat mengenai Yerusalem. Surat itu dikirim oleh Gubernur Rehum dan Simsai sekretaris provinsi dan didukung oleh rekan-rekan mereka, yaitu para hakim dan semua pejabat Persia lain yang berasal dari Erekh, Babel, dan Susan di negeri Elam,
Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king in this sort —
then wrote Rehum the commander, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions; the Dinites, and the Apharesattechites, the Tarpelites, the Apharesites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Shushanchites, the Dehites, the Elamites,
10 juga oleh bangsa-bangsa lain yang telah diangkut Asnapar Yang Agung dan disuruh menetap di kota Samaria dan di kota-kota lain dalam provinsi Efrat Barat.
and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Asenappar brought over, and set in the city of Samaria, and the rest that are in the country beyond the River: — 'And now —
11 Begini bunyi surat itu, "Ke hadapan Raja Artahsasta, dari para hamba Baginda yang tinggal di Efrat Barat. Salam.
this is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king — thy servants the men beyond the River — and now
12 Kiranya Baginda maklum, bahwa orang Yahudi yang telah meninggalkan wilayah-wilayah lain dalam kerajaan Baginda, kini menetap di Yerusalem dan sedang membangun kembali kota yang jahat dan suka memberontak itu. Mereka sudah mulai mendirikan lagi tembok-temboknya dan tak lama lagi akan menyelesaikan pekerjaan itu.
be it known unto the king, that the Jews that came up from thee are come to us unto Jerusalem; they are building the rebellious and the bad city, and have finished the walls, and are digging out the foundations.
13 Jika kota itu berhasil dibangun kembali dan tembok-temboknya selesai didirikan, penduduknya tidak akan mau lagi membayar pajak, lalu pendapatan kerajaan akan berkurang.
Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, impost, or toll, and so thou wilt endamage the revenue of the kings.
14 Kami sudah berhutang budi kepada Baginda dan tidak ingin melihat Baginda dirugikan. Karena itu kami mengusulkan,
Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not meet for us to see the king's dishonour, therefore have we sent and announced to the king,
15 agar Baginda menyuruh meneliti arsip para leluhur Baginda. Dari isinya Baginda akan mengetahui bahwa kota Yerusalem memang suka memberontak dan sejak dahulu selalu merugikan para raja dan penguasa provinsi. Penduduknya selalu susah dipimpin. Itu sebabnya kota itu telah dihancurkan.
that search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers; so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time; for which cause was this city laid waste.
16 Jadi, kami yakin, bahwa apabila kota itu dibangun kembali dan tembok-temboknya didirikan, Baginda tidak akan dapat lagi menguasai provinsi Efrat Barat ini."
We announce to the king that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, by this means thou shalt have no portion beyond the River.'
17 Raja mengirim jawaban ini, "Kepada Gubernur Rehum dan Simsai sekretaris provinsi, serta rekan-rekan mereka yang tinggal di Samaria dan di kota-kota lain di provinsi Efrat Barat. Salam.
Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the commander, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and unto the rest beyond the River: 'Peace, and now
18 Surat yang Saudara-saudara kirimkan telah diterjemahkan dan dibacakan kepadaku.
the letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.
19 Lalu atas perintahku sudah diadakan penelitian, dan memang terbukti bahwa sejak zaman dahulu Yerusalem selalu melawan kuasa raja-raja dan banyak di antara penduduknya adalah pemberontak dan perusuh.
And I decreed, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein.
20 Pernah raja-raja yang perkasa memerintah di sana dan menguasai seluruh provinsi Efrat Barat serta menjalankan pajak dan upeti.
There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all the country beyond the River; and tribute, impost, and toll, was paid unto them.
21 Sebab itu, keluarkanlah perintah untuk menghentikan pekerjaan orang-orang itu, supaya kota itu jangan dibangun kembali sampai aku memberi perintah lain.
Make ye now a decree to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until a decree shall be made by me.
22 Laksanakanlah perintahku itu dengan segera supaya jangan bertambah besar lagi kerugianku!"
And take heed that ye be not slack herein; why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?'
23 Segera setelah surat Artahsasta itu dibacakan kepada Rehum, Simsai dan rekan-rekan mereka, berangkatlah mereka ke Yerusalem dan memaksa orang Yahudi menghentikan pekerjaan membangun kembali kota itu.
Then when the copy of king Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
24 Pekerjaan Rumah TUHAN telah dihentikan dan tidak diteruskan sampai tahun kedua pemerintahan Darius, raja Persia.
Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem; and it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
