Ezra, Chapter 4:

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Verses from Ezra, Chapter 4 of the book of Ezra in the Bible.

Ezra - Old Testament — Ezra – Old Testament

Opposition to Reconstruction

1. When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were rebuilding the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel,
2. They came to Zerubbabel and the heads of the families, saying, “Allow us to help you with the construction, for we also seek your God and have offered sacrifices to him since the time of Esar-haddon king of Assyria, who brought it here.”
3. But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other leaders of Israel replied, “It is not for you to participate in the rebuilding of the temple of our God. We ourselves will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, as Cyrus, king of Persia, commanded us.”
4. Then the people of the region began to discourage and frighten the people of Judah, so that they would stop building.
5. They bribed advisors to frustrate their plans and acted like this throughout the reign of Cyrus, king of Persia, until the reign of Darius.
6. In the reign of Xerxes, at the beginning of his reign, they brought an accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
7. During the reign of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, Bishlam, Mitredath, Tabeel and the other companions wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. The letter was written in Aramaic and the Aramaic language.
8. Governor Rehum and Secretary Shinshai wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes. The content of the letter was as follows:
9. Of Rehum the governor, and of Shinsai the secretary, together with their companions, the judges and officials of Tripoli, Persia, Erek, and Babylon, the Elamites of Shushan,
10. and from other regions that the great and famous Asnapper deported and settled in the cities of Samaria and in other parts of the Trans-Euphrates. Here is the content of the letter they sent:
11. (This is a copy of the letter they sent.) To King Artaxerxes, His servants, the men on this side of the Euphrates:
12. Know that the Jews who came to us from you have reached Jerusalem and are rebuilding this rebellious and wicked city. They are restoring its walls and rebuilding its foundations.
13. Now know that if this city is rebuilt and its walls restored, they will no longer pay taxes, tributes or tolls, and this will harm the royal income.
14. Now, as we are loyal to the palace, it does not seem right to us to ignore the king's dishonor, so we send this message,
15. so that research can be done in the records of previous kings. In these records you will find and discover that this city has been rebellious and harmful to kings and provinces, causing revolt since ancient times. That's why it was destroyed.
16. Now we inform the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls restored, there will be nothing left west of the Euphrates.
17. The king sent the following reply: To Rehum the governor, to Shinshai the secretary, and to their companions who dwell in Samaria and in other parts of the Trans-Euphrates, greetings.
18. The letter you sent was read and translated before me.
19. And by my order an investigation was made, and it was found that this city has a long history of rebellion against the kings, and there have been rebellions and revolts in it.
20. There were powerful kings in Jerusalem who ruled over the entire Trans-Euphrates, to whom taxes, tributes and tolls were paid.
21. Therefore, now order these men to stop work, so that this city will not be rebuilt until I give further orders.
22. Be aware of this and do not be negligent. May the interests of the kingdom not be harmed because of this matter.
23. When the copy of King Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum and Shinshai the secretary and his companions, they rushed to Jerusalem and forced the people to stop the construction.
24. Thus, the work of rebuilding the temple of God in Jerusalem was halted and was interrupted until the second year of the reign of Darius, king of Persia.