Ezra 1-4

21st Century King James Version

1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and put it also in writing, saying,

² “Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia: ‘The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and He hath charged me to build Him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

³ Who is there among you of all His people? His God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel (He is the God), which is in Jerusalem.

⁴ And whosoever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver and with gold, and with goods and with beasts, besides the freewill offering for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.’”

⁵ Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, with all those whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem.

⁶ And all those who were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with beasts, and with precious things, besides all that was willingly offered.

⁷ Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem and had put them in the house of his gods;

⁸ even those did Cyrus king of Persia bring forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and counted them over to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah.

⁹ And this is the number of them: thirty chargers of gold, a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives,

¹⁰ thirty basins of gold, four hundred and ten silver basins of a second sort, and other vessels a thousand.

¹¹ All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with those of the captivity, who were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem.

2 Now these are the children of the province who came up out of the captivity, of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away unto Babylon, and came again unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city,

² who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:

³ the children of Parosh, two thousand a hundred seventy and two;

⁴ the children of Shephatiah, three hundred seventy and two;

⁵ the children of Arah, seven hundred seventy and five;

⁶ the children of Pahathmoab, of the children of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and twelve;

⁷ the children of Elam, a thousand two hundred fifty and four;

⁸ the children of Zattu, nine hundred forty and five;

⁹ the children of Zaccai, seven hundred and threescore;

¹⁰ the children of Bani, six hundred forty and two;

¹¹ the children of Bebai, six hundred twenty and three;

¹² the children of Azgad, a thousand two hundred twenty and two;

¹³ the children of Adonikam, six hundred sixty and six;

¹⁴ the children of Bigvai, two thousand fifty and six;

¹⁵ the children of Adin, four hundred fifty and four;

¹⁶ the children of Ater of Hezekiah, ninety and eight;

¹⁷ the children of Bezai, three hundred twenty and three;

¹⁸ the children of Jorah, a hundred and twelve;

¹⁹ the children of Hashum, two hundred twenty and three;

²⁰ the children of Gibbar, ninety and five;

²¹ the children of Bethlehem, a hundred twenty and three;

²² the men of Netophah, fifty and six;

²³ the men of Anathoth, a hundred twenty and eight;

²⁴ the children of Azmaveth, forty and two;

²⁵ the children of Kirjatharim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty and three;

²⁶ the children of Ramah and Geba, six hundred twenty and one;

²⁷ the men of Michmas, a hundred twenty and two;

²⁸ the men of Bethel and Ai, two hundred twenty and three;

²⁹ the children of Nebo, fifty and two;

³⁰ the children of Magbish, a hundred fifty and six;

³¹ the children of the other Elam, a thousand two hundred fifty and four;

³² the children of Harim, three hundred and twenty;

³³ the children of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred twenty and five;

³⁴ the children of Jericho, three hundred forty and five;

³⁵ the children of Senaah, three thousand six hundred and thirty.

³⁶ The priests: the children of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred seventy and three;

³⁷ the children of Immer, a thousand fifty and two;

³⁸ the children of Pashhur, a thousand two hundred forty and seven;

³⁹ the children of Harim, a thousand and seventeen.

⁴⁰ The Levites: the children of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the children of Hodaviah, seventy and four.

⁴¹ The singers: the children of Asaph, a hundred twenty and eight.

⁴² The children of the gatekeepers: the children of Shallum, the children of Ater, the children of Talmon, the children of Akkub, the children of Hatita, the children of Shobai, in all a hundred thirty and nine.

⁴³ The Nethinim: the children of Ziha, the children of Hasupha, the children of Tabbaoth,

⁴⁴ the children of Keros, the children of Siaha, the children of Padon,

⁴⁵ the children of Lebanah, the children of Hagabah, the children of Akkub,

⁴⁶ the children of Hagab, the children of Shalmai, the children of Hanan,

⁴⁷ the children of Giddel, the children of Gahar, the children of Reaiah,

⁴⁸ the children of Rezin, the children of Nekoda, the children of Gazzam,

⁴⁹ the children of Uzza, the children of Paseah, the children of Besai,

⁵⁰ the children of Asnah, the children of Meunim, the children of Nephusim,

⁵¹ the children of Bakbuk, the children of Hakupha, the children of Harhur,

⁵² the children of Bazluth, the children of Mehida, the children of Harsha,

⁵³ the children of Barkos, the children of Sisera, the children of Thamah,

⁵⁴ the children of Neziah, the children of Hatipha.

⁵⁵ The children of Solomon’s servants: the children of Sotai, the children of Sophereth, the children of Peruda,

⁵⁶ the children of Jaalah, the children of Darkon, the children of Giddel,

⁵⁷ the children of Shephatiah, the children of Hattil, the children of Pochereth of Zebaim, the children of Ami.

⁵⁸ All the Nethinim and the children of Solomon’s servants were three hundred ninety and two.

⁵⁹ And these were they who went up from Telmelah, Telharsa, Cherub, Addan, and Immer; but they could not show their father’s house and their seed, whether they were of Israel:

⁶⁰ the children of Delaiah, the children of Tobiah, the children of Nekoda, six hundred fifty and two.

⁶¹ And of the children of the priests: the children of Habaiah, the children of Koz, the children of Barzillai, who took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called after their name.

⁶² These sought their register among those who were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found; therefore were they as polluted, put from the priesthood.

⁶³ And the Tirshatha said unto them that they should not eat of the most holy things until there stood up a priest with Urim and with Thummim.

⁶⁴ The whole congregation together was forty and two thousand three hundred and threescore,

⁶⁵ besides their servants and their maids, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven; and there were among them two hundred singing men and singing women.

⁶⁶ Their horses were seven hundred thirty and six, their mules two hundred forty and five,

⁶⁷ their camels four hundred thirty and five, their asses six thousand seven hundred and twenty.

⁶⁸ And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came to the house of the Lord which is at Jerusalem, offered freely for the house of God to set it up in his place.

⁶⁹ They gave according to their ability to the treasury of the work, threescore and one thousand drams of gold, and five thousand pounds of silver, and one hundred priests’ garments.

⁷⁰ So the priests and the Levites and some of the people, and the singers and the gatekeepers and the Nethinim, dwelt in their cities, and all Israel in their cities.

3 And when the seventh month had come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.

² Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brethren, and built the altar of the God of Israel to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses, the man of God.

³ And they set the altar upon his bases, for fear was upon them because of the people of those countries; and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord, even burnt offerings morning and evening.

⁴ They kept also the Feast of Tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number according to the custom, as the duty of every day required;

⁵ and afterward offered the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons and of all the set feasts of the Lord that were consecrated, and of every one who willingly offered a freewill offering unto the Lord.

⁶ From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings unto the Lord. But the foundation of the temple of the Lord was not yet laid.

⁷ They gave money also unto the masons and to the carpenters, and meat and drink and oil unto those of Sidon and to those of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea at Joppa, according to the grant that they had from Cyrus king of Persia.

⁸ Now in the second year of their coming unto the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the remnant of their brethren, the priests and the Levites, and all those who had come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem; and they appointed the Levites from twenty years old and upward, to press forward the work of the house of the Lord.

⁹ Then stood Jeshua with his sons and his brethren, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah together, to supervise the workmen in the house of God: the sons of Henadad with their sons and their brethren the Levites.

¹⁰ And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals to praise the Lord, according to the ordinance of David king of Israel.

¹¹ And they sang together by course, praising and giving thanks unto the Lord: “Because He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever toward Israel.” And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.

¹² But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers who were elderly men who had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy,

¹³ so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people; for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.

4 Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity were building the temple unto the Lord God of Israel,

² then they came to Zerubbabel and to the chief of the fathers, and said unto them, “Let us build with you, for we seek your God as ye do; and we have done sacrifice unto Him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us up hither.”

³ But Zerubbabel and Jeshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel said unto them, “Ye have nothing to do with us in building a house unto our God; but we ourselves together will build unto the Lord God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia hath commanded us.”

⁴ Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building,

⁵ and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

⁶ And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote unto him an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

⁷ And in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel and the rest of their companions wrote unto Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue, and interpreted in the Syrian tongue.

⁸ Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king of this sort:

⁹ Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions, the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Shushanites, the Dehavites, and the Elamites,

¹⁰ and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnapper brought over and set in the cities of Samaria, and the rest who are on this side of the river and at such a time:

¹¹ (This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king.) “Thy servants, the men on this side of the river, and at such a time.

¹² Be it known unto the king that the Jews who came up from thee to us have come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations.

¹³ Be it known now unto the king that, if this city be built and the walls set up again, then they will not pay toll, tribute, and custom, and so thou shalt bring damage to the revenue of the kings.

¹⁴ Now because we have maintenance from the king’s palace, and it was not meet for us to see the king’s dishonor, therefore have we sent and certified this to the king,

¹⁵ 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 in old times, for which cause this city was destroyed.

¹⁶ We certify to the king that if this city be built again, and the walls thereof set up, by this means thou shalt have no portion on this side of the river.”

¹⁷ Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions who dwell in Samaria, and unto the rest beyond the river: “Peace, and at such a time.

¹⁸ The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.

¹⁹ And I commanded, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city in old times hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein.

²⁰ There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all countries beyond the river; and toll, tribute, and custom were paid unto them.

²¹ Give ye now command to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not built until another command shall be given from me.

²² Take heed now that ye fail not to do this. Why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?”

²³ Now when the copy of King Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them cease by force and power.

²⁴ Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.