Ezra 4:5

4:5 They were hiring advisers to oppose them, so as to frustrate their plans, throughout the time ¹  of King Cyrus of Persia until the reign of King Darius ²  of Persia. ³ 

Ezra 6:22

6:22 They observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, for the Lord had given them joy and had changed the opinion ⁴  of the king of Assyria ⁵  toward them, so that he assisted ⁶  them in the work on the temple of God, the God of Israel.

Ezra 8:15

The Exiles Travel to Jerusalem

8:15 I had them assemble ⁷  at the canal ⁸  that flows toward Ahava, and we camped there for three days. I observed that the people and the priests were present, but I found no Levites there.

Ezra 9:12

9:12 Therefore do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons, and do not take their daughters in marriage for your sons. Do not ever seek their peace or welfare, so that you may be strong and may eat the good of the land and may leave it as an inheritance for your children ⁹  forever.’

Ezra 3:11

3:11 With antiphonal response they sang, ¹⁰  praising and glorifying the Lord:

“For he is good;

his loyal love toward Israel is forever.”

All the people gave a loud ¹¹  shout as they praised the Lord when the temple of the Lord was established.

Ezra 4:14

4:14 In light of the fact that we are loyal to the king, ¹²  and since it does not seem appropriate to us that the king should sustain damage, ¹³  we are sending the king this information ¹⁴ 

Ezra 8:32

8:32 So we came to Jerusalem, and we stayed there for three days.

Ezra 4:4

4:4 Then the local people ¹⁵  began to discourage ¹⁶  the people of Judah and to dishearten them from building.

Ezra 8:21

8:21 I called for a fast there by the Ahava Canal, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and seek from him a safe journey ¹⁷  for us, our children, and all our property.

Ezra 3:3-4

3:3 They established the altar on its foundations, even though they were in terror of the local peoples, ¹⁸  and they offered burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and the evening offerings. 3:4 They observed the Festival of Temporary Shelters ¹⁹  as required ²⁰  and offered the proper number of ²¹  daily burnt offerings according to the requirement for each day.

Ezra 4:12

4:12 Now ²²  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. ²³  They are completing its walls and repairing its foundations.

Ezra 6:21

6:21 The Israelites who were returning from the exile ate it, along with all those who had joined them ²⁴  in separating themselves from the uncleanness of the nations of the land to seek the Lord God of Israel.

Ezra 8:31

8:31 On the twelfth day of the first month we began traveling from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from our enemy and from bandits ²⁵  along the way.

Ezra 9:8

9:8 “But now briefly ²⁶  we have received mercy from the Lord our God, in that he has left us a remnant and has given us a secure position ²⁷  in his holy place. Thus our God has enlightened our eyes ²⁸  and has given us a little relief in our time of servitude.

Ezra 10:13

10:13 However, the people are numerous and it is the rainy season. ²⁹  We are unable to stand here outside. Furthermore, this business cannot be resolved in a day or two, for we have sinned greatly in this matter.

[4:5]  ¹ tn Heb “all the days of.”

[4:5]  ² sn Darius ruled Persia ca. 522-486 B.C.

[4:5]  ³ sn The purpose of the opening verses of this chapter is to summarize why the Jews returning from the exile were unable to complete the rebuilding of the temple more quickly than they did. The delay was due not to disinterest on their part but to the repeated obstacles that had been placed in their path by determined foes.

[6:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “heart.”

[6:22]  ⁵ sn The expression “king of Assyria” is anachronistic, since Assyria fell in 612 b.c., long before the events of this chapter. Perhaps the expression is intended subtly to contrast earlier kings of Assyria who were hostile toward Israel with this Persian king who showed them favor.

[6:22]  ⁶ tn Heb “to strengthen their hands.”

[8:15]  ⁷ tn Or “I gathered them.”

[8:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “river.” So also in vv. 21, 31.

[9:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “sons”; cf. KJV, NAB, NIV, NLT “children”; NCV, TEV “descendants.”

[3:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “they answered.”

[3:11]  ¹¹ tn Heb “great.”

[4:14]  ¹² tn Aram “we eat the salt of the palace.”

[4:14]  ¹³ tn Aram “the dishonor of the king is not fitting for us to see.”

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

[4:4]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the people of the land.” Elsewhere this expression sometimes has a negative connotation, referring to a lay population that was less zealous for Judaism than it should have been. Here, however, it seems to refer to the resident population of the area without any negative connotation.

[4:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “were making slack the hands of.”

[8:21]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “a straight way.”

[3:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the peoples of the lands.”

[3:4]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew phrase אֶת חַג־הַסֻּכּוֹת (’et khag-hassukot, “festival of huts” [or “shelters”]) is traditionally known as the Feast of Tabernacles. The rendering “booths” (cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV) is probably better than the traditional “tabernacles” in light of the meaning of the term סֻכָּה (sukkah, “hut; booth”), but “booths” are frequently associated with trade shows and craft fairs in contemporary American English. The nature of the celebration during this feast as a commemoration of the wanderings of the Israelites after they left Egypt suggests that a translation like “temporary shelters” is more appropriate.

[3:4]  ²⁰ tn Heb “according to what is written.”

[3:4]  ²¹ tn Heb “by number.”

[4:12]  ²² tn The MT takes this word with the latter part of v. 11, but in English style it fits better with v. 12.

[4:12]  ²³ 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.

[6:21]  ²⁴ tn Heb “who had separated from the uncleanness of the nations of the land to them.”

[8:31]  ²⁵ tn Heb “from the hand of the enemy and the one who lies in wait.” Some modern English versions render the latter phrase as “ambushes” (cf. NASB, NRSV).

[9:8]  ²⁶ tn Heb “according to a little moment.”

[9:8]  ²⁷ tn Heb “a peg” or “tent peg.” The imagery behind this word is drawn from the experience of nomads who put down pegs as they pitched their tents and made camp after times of travel.

[9:8]  ²⁸ tn Heb “to cause our eyes to shine.” The expression is a figure of speech for “to revive.” See DCH 1:160 s.v. אור Hi.7.

[10:13]  ²⁹ tn Heb “the time [is] rain showers.”