Ezra 4:8

4:8 Rehum the commander ¹  and Shimshai the scribe ²  wrote a letter concerning ³  Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows:

Ezra 4:14

4:14 In light of the fact that we are loyal to the king, ⁴  and since it does not seem appropriate to us that the king should sustain damage, ⁵  we are sending the king this information ⁶ 

Ezra 7:14

7:14 You are authorized ⁷  by the king and his seven advisers to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of your God which is in your possession, ⁸ 

Ezra 7:23-24

7:23 Everything that the God of heaven has required should be precisely done for the temple of the God of heaven. Why should there be wrath ⁹  against the empire of the king and his sons? 7:24 Furthermore, be aware of the fact ¹⁰  that you have no authority to impose tax, tribute, or toll on any of the priests, the Levites, the musicians, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or the attendants at the temple of this God.

[4:8]  ¹ tn Aram “lord of the command.” So also in vv. 9, 17.

[4:8]  ² sn Like Rehum, Shimshai was apparently a fairly high-ranking official charged with overseeing Persian interests in this part of the empire. His title was “scribe” or “secretary,” but in a more elevated political sense than that word sometimes has elsewhere. American governmental titles such as “Secretary of State” perhaps provide an analogy in that the word “secretary” can have a broad range of meaning.

[4:8]  ³ tn Or perhaps “against.”

[4:14]  ⁴ tn Aram “we eat the salt of the palace.”

[4:14]  ⁵ tn Aram “the dishonor of the king is not fitting for us to see.”

[4:14]  ⁶ tn Aram “and we have made known.”

[7:14]  ⁷ tn Aram “sent.”

[7:14]  ⁸ tn Aram “in your hand.”

[7:23]  ⁹ tn The Aramaic word used here for “wrath” (קְצַף, qÿtsaf; cf. Heb קָצַף, qatsaf) is usually used in the Hebrew Bible for God’s anger as opposed to human anger (but contra Eccl 5:17 [MT 5:16]; Esth 1:18; 2 Kgs 3:27). The fact that this word is used in v. 23 may have theological significance, pointing to the possibility of divine judgment if the responsible parties should fail to make available these provisions for the temple.

[7:24]  ¹⁰ tn Aram “we are making known to you.”