Ezra 1:4

1:4 Anyone who survives in any of those places where he is a resident foreigner must be helped by his neighbors ¹  with silver, gold, equipment, and animals, along with voluntary offerings for the temple of God which is in Jerusalem.’”

Ezra 3:2

3:2 Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak ²  and his priestly colleagues ³  and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his colleagues ⁴  started to build ⁵  the altar of the God of Israel so they could offer burnt offerings on it as required by ⁶  the law of Moses the man of God.

Ezra 3:7

Preparations for Rebuilding the Temple

3:7 So they provided money ⁷  for the masons and carpenters, and food, beverages, and olive oil for the people of Sidon ⁸  and Tyre, ⁹  so that they would bring cedar timber from Lebanon to the seaport ¹⁰  at Joppa, in accord with the edict of King Cyrus of Persia.

Ezra 4:2

4:2 they came to Zerubbabel and the leaders ¹¹  and said to them, “Let us help you build, ¹²  for like you we seek your God and we have been sacrificing to him ¹³  from the time ¹⁴  of King Esarhaddon ¹⁵  of Assyria, who brought us here.” ¹⁶ 

Ezra 4:12

4:12 Now ¹⁷  let the king be aware that the Jews who came up to us from you have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and odious city. ¹⁸  They are completing its walls and repairing its foundations.

Ezra 5:17

5:17 “Now if the king is so inclined, ¹⁹  let a search be conducted in the royal archives ²⁰  there in Babylon in order to determine whether King Cyrus did in fact issue orders for this temple of God to be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us a decision concerning this matter.”

Ezra 6:14

6:14 The elders of the Jews continued building and prospering, while at the same time ²¹  Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo continued prophesying. They built and brought it to completion by the command of the God of Israel and by the command of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

Ezra 9:6

9:6 I prayed, ²² 

“O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift my face to you, my God! For our iniquities have climbed higher than our heads, and our guilt extends to the heavens.

¹ tn Heb “the men of his place.”

² sn Jozadak (also in 3:8) is a variant spelling of Jehozadak.

³ tn Heb “his brothers the priests.”

⁴ tn Heb “his brothers.”

⁵ tn Heb “arose and built.”

⁶ tn Heb “written in.” Cf. v. 4.

⁷ tn Heb “silver.”

⁸ map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

⁹ map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

¹⁰ tn Heb “to the sea”

¹¹ tn Heb “the heads of the fathers.” So also in v. 3.

¹² tn Heb “Let us build with you.”

¹³ tc The translation reads with the Qere, a Qumran MS, the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and the Arabic version וְלוֹ (vÿlo, “and him”) rather than the Kethib of the MT, וְלֹא (vÿlo’, “and not”).

¹⁴ tn Heb “days.”

¹⁵ sn Esarhaddon was king of Assyria ca. 681-669 b.c.

¹⁶ sn The Assyrian policy had been to resettle Samaria with peoples from other areas (cf. 2 Kgs 17:24-34). These immigrants acknowledged Yahweh as well as other deities in some cases. The Jews who returned from the Exile regarded them with suspicion and were not hospitable to their offer of help in rebuilding the temple.

¹⁷ tn The MT takes this word with the latter part of v. 11, but in English style it fits better with v. 12.

¹⁸ sn Management of the provinces that were distantly removed from the capital was difficult, and insurrection in such places was a perennial problem. The language used in this report about Jerusalem (i.e., “rebellious,” “odious”) is intentionally inflammatory. It is calculated to draw immediate attention to the perceived problem.

¹⁹ tn Aram “if upon the king it is good.”

²⁰ tn Aram “the house of the treasures of the king.”

²¹ tn Aram “in” or “by,” in the sense of accompaniment.

²² tn Heb “I said.”