In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, the word of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The Lord put it into the mind of King Cyrus to issue a proclamation throughout his entire kingdom and to put it in writing:

Descendants of Pahath-moab; that is, through Jeshua and Joab: 2,812

the descendants of Ater (through Hezekiah): 98;

The priests: the descendants of Jedaiah (through the family of Jeshua): 973;

The Levites: the descendants of Jeshua and Kadmiel (through the line of Hodaviah): 74.

And they gave payment to men who made designs against them and kept them from effecting their purpose, all through the time of Cyrus, king of Persia, till Darius became king.

Let it be known to the king that we went to the house of the great God in the province of Judah. It is being built with cut stones, and its beams are being set in the walls. This work is being done diligently and succeeding through the people’s efforts.

And the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built, and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

And through the good hand of our God upon us, they brought us a wise man from among the children of Mahli the son of Levi the son of Israel, even Sherebiah, with his sons and brethren, eighteen;

You gave through Your servants the prophets, saying: “The land you are entering to possess is an impure land. The surrounding peoples have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness by their impurity and detestable practices.

And they sent a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem to all the {returned exiles} to assemble in Jerusalem.

And the children of the captivity did even so. And Ezra the priest, and the ancient heads through the house of their fathers, and all that were now rehearsed by name, separated themselves; and sat them down on the first day of the tenth month to examine this matter.