And in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, so that the Word of Jehovah by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, Jehovah stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also in writing, saying,

So says Cyrus king of Persia, Jehovah, the God of Heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

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

And the chiefs of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, and all whose spirit God had raised, rose up to go up to build the house of Jehovah which is in Jerusalem.

And all those who were around them made their hands strong with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, and with animals, and with precious things, besides all being willingly offered.

All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these Sheshbazzar brought up, when the exiles were brought up from Babylon to Jerusalem.

All the temple-slaves, and the sons of Solomon's servants three hundred and ninety-two.

The whole congregation together was forty-two thousand, three hundred and sixty,

And the priests, and the Levites, and many of the people, and the singers, and the gatekeepers, and the temple slaves, lived in their cities. And all Israel in their cities.

And afterward they offered the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons and of all the set feasts of Jehovah that were set apart, and of everyone who willingly offered a freewill offering to Jehovah.

They gave silver also to the masons and to the carpenters. And they gave meat and drink and oil to the people of Sidon and to the people of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea of Joppa, according to the grant which they had from Cyrus king of Persia.

And in the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brothers the priests and the Levites, and all they who had come out of the captivity to Jerusalem, began. And they chose the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to set forward the work of the house of Jehovah.

And they sang, praising and giving thanks to Jehovah, because He is good, for His mercy endures forever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout when they praised Jehovah, because the foundation of the house of Jehovah was laid.

But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said to them, You have nothing to do with us to build a house to our God. But we ourselves together will build to Jehovah, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.

And they 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.

And let it be known to the king that if this city is built and the walls set up, then they will not pay toll, taxes, or custom, and you shall endanger the revenue of the kings.

There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all Beyond the River. And toll, taxes, and custom was paid to them.

At the same time Tatnai, governor of the province Beyond the River, and Shethar-boznai, and their companions, came to them and said this to them Who has commanded you to build this house and to make this wall?

They sent a letter to him, in which this was written, To Darius the king, all peace:

And that which they have need of, both young bulls and rams and lambs, for the burnt offerings of the God of Heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the choice of the priests at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail,

And may the God who has caused His name to dwell there destroy all kings and people who shall put their hand to alter or to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I, Darius, have made a decree. Let it be done with speed.

And they offered at the dedication of this house of God a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs. And for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he-goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.

For the priests and the Levites were purified together, all of them pure. And they slaughtered the passover lamb for all the sons of the captivity, and for their brothers the priests, and for themselves.

And the sons of Israel ate, all who had come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves to them from the uncleanness of the nations of the land, in order to seek Jehovah, the God of Israel.

this Ezra went up from Babylon. And he was a ready scribe in the Law of Moses, which Jehovah, the God of Israel had given. And the king granted him all he asked, according to the hand of Jehovah his God on him.

From me was made a decree that everyone of the people of Israel, and their priests and Levites in my kingdom, who desire of their own free will to go up to Jerusalem, go with you;

and all the silver and gold which you can find in all the province of Babylon, with the free will offering of the people and of the priests, offering willingly for the house of their God in Jerusalem.

Before all of this, you shall diligently buy with this money, bulls, rams, lambs, with their food offerings and their drink offerings, and offer them on the altar of the house of your God in Jerusalem.

And whatever shall seem good to you and to your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, do that after the will of your God.

And I, Artaxerxes the king, make a decree to all the treasurers who are Beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of Heaven, shall ask of you, it shall be done exactly,

to a hundred talents of silver, and to a hundred measures of wheat, and to a hundred baths of wine, and to a hundred baths of oil, and salt without saying.

And now, Ezra, after the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, set officers and judges who may judge all the people who are Beyond the River, all who know the Laws of your God; and teach them who do not know.

And whoever will not do the Law of your God, and the law of the king, let judgment be executed speedily on him, whether it is to death, or to exile, or to confiscation of goods, or imprisonment.

and has extended mercy before the king and his counselors and before all the king's mighty princes. And I was made strong as the hand of Jehovah my God was on me, and I gathered out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

From the sons of Pahath-moab, Eli-hoenai the son of Zerahiah, and with him two hundred males.

also of the temple slaves whom David and the rulers had chosen for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty temple slaves. All of them were called by name.

Then I called a fast there at the river Ahava, so that we might humble ourselves before our God, in order to seek from Him a right way for us and for our little ones, and for all our goods.

For I was ashamed to ask of the king troops and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way, because we had spoken to the king, saying, The hand of our God is on all those who seek Him for good, but His power and His wrath are against all those who forsake Him.

And I weighed to them the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, the offering of the house of our God, which the king and his counselors and his lords, and all Israel who were there, had offered.

And I said to them, You are holy to Jehovah, and the vessels are holy. And the silver and the gold are a free-will offering to Jehovah, the God of your fathers.

They were weighed by number and by weight of every one. And all the weight was written at that time.

The sons of those who had been exiled, who had come out of the captivity, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, twelve young bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, twelve he-goats for a sin offering. All this was a burnt offering to Jehovah.

For we were slaves, yet our God has not left us in our bondage, but has given mercy to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us some life, to set up the house of our God, and to repair its waste, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.

And after all that has come on us for our evil deeds and for our great sin, since You our God have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us such an escape as this,

And now let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the women, and such as have been born of them, according to the counsel of the Lord, and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God. And let it be done according to the Law.

Arise, for this matter belongs to you. We also will be with you. Be of good courage and act.

Then Ezra arose and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel to swear that they should do according to this word. And they swore.

And they made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the sons of the captivity, to gather themselves to Jerusalem,

and that who ever would not come within three days, according to the advice of the rulers and the elders, all he owned would be lost, and he himself separated from the congregation of the exiles.

Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves to Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth of the month. And all the people sat in the street of the house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain.

Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice, As you have said, so we must do.

And let our rulers of all the congregation stand, and let all those who have taken strange women in our cities, come at a set time, and with them the elders of every city and its judges, until the fierce wrath of our God for this matter has turned from us.

And the sons of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain heads of the fathers, after the house of their fathers, and all of them by names, were separated. And they sat down in the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter.

And they made an end with all the men who had taken strange women by the first day of the first month.

And from the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Eliah.

From the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, and Uel,

All these had taken strange women. And many of them had women by whom they had sons.