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¹Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying:

²“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to rebuild for Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

³Whoever there is among you of all His people, may his God be with him! Go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel; He is the God who is in Jerusalem.

⁴And every survivor, at whatever place he may live, the people of that place are to support him with silver and gold, with equipment and cattle, together with a voluntary offering for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.’ ”

⁵Then the heads of fathers’ households of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites rose up, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem.

⁶And all of those around them encouraged them with articles of silver, with gold, with equipment, cattle, and with valuables, aside from everything that was given as a voluntary offering.

⁷Also King Cyrus brought out the articles of the house of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and put in the house of his gods;

⁸and Cyrus, king of Persia, had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and he counted them out to Sheshbazzar, the leader of Judah.

⁹Now this was their number: thirty gold dishes, a thousand silver dishes, twenty nine duplicates;

¹⁰thirty gold bowls, 410 silver bowls of a second kind, and a thousand other articles.

¹¹All the articles of gold and silver totaled 5,400. Sheshbazzar brought them all up with the exiles who went up from Babylon to Jerusalem.

¹Now these are the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had taken into exile to Babylon, and they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his city.

²These came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, and Baanah. T his is the number of the men of the people of Israel:

³the sons of Parosh, 2,172;

⁴the sons of Shephatiah, 372;

⁵the sons of Arah, 775;

⁶the sons of Pahath-moab of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, 2,812;

⁷the sons of Elam, 1,254;

⁸the sons of Zattu, 945;

⁹the sons of Zaccai, 760;

¹⁰the sons of Bani, 642;

¹¹the sons of Bebai, 623;

¹²the sons of Azgad, 1,222;

¹³the sons of Adonikam, 666;

¹⁴the sons of Bigvai, 2,056;

¹⁵the sons of Adin, 454;

¹⁶the sons of Ater, of Hezekiah, 98;

¹⁷the sons of Bezai, 323;

¹⁸the sons of Jorah, 112;

¹⁹the sons of Hashum, 223;

²⁰the sons of Gibbar, 95;

²¹the men of Bethlehem, 123;

²²the men of Netophah, 56;

²³the men of Anathoth, 128;

²⁴the sons of Azmaveth, 42;

²⁵the sons of Kiriath-arim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, 743;

²⁶the sons of Ramah and Geba, 621;

²⁷the men of Michmas, 122;

²⁸the men of Bethel and Ai, 223;

²⁹the sons of Nebo, 52;

³⁰the sons of Magbish, 156;

³¹the sons of the other Elam, 1,254;

³²the sons of Harim, 320;

³³the sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, 725;

³⁴the men of Jericho, 345;

³⁵the sons of Senaah, 3,630.

³⁶The priests: the sons of Jedaiah of the house of Jeshua, 973;

³⁷the sons of Immer, 1,052;

³⁸the sons of Pashhur, 1,247;

³⁹the sons of Harim, 1,017.

⁴⁰The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the sons of Hodaviah, 74.

⁴¹The singers: the sons of Asaph, 128.

⁴²The sons of the gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, and the sons of Shobai, 139 in all.

⁴³The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth,

⁴⁴the sons of Keros, the sons of Siaha, the sons of Padon,

⁴⁵the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of Akkub,

⁴⁶the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shalmai, the sons of Hanan,

⁴⁷the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, the sons of Reaiah,

⁴⁸the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Gazzam,

⁴⁹the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Besai,

⁵⁰the sons of Asnah, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nephisim,

⁵¹the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur,

⁵²the sons of Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha,

⁵³the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah,

⁵⁴the sons of Neziah, and the sons of Hatipha.

⁵⁵The sons of Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of Hassophereth, the sons of Peruda,

⁵⁶the sons of Jaalah, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel,

⁵⁷the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth-hazzebaim, and the sons of Ami.

⁵⁸All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon’s servants totaled 392.

⁵⁹Now these were the ones who came up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addan, and Immer, but they were not able to provide evidence of their fathers’ households and their descendants, whether they were of Israel:

⁶⁰the sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, and the sons of Nekoda, 652.

⁶¹Of the sons of the priests: the sons of Hobaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of Barzillai, who took a wife from the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and he was called by their name.

⁶²These searched among their genealogical registration but they could not be located; so they were considered defiled and excluded from the priesthood.

⁶³The governor said to them that they were not to eat from the most holy things until a priest stood up with Urim and Thummim.

⁶⁴The whole assembly together totaled 42,360,

⁶⁵besides their male and female slaves who totaled 7,337; and they had two hundred singing men and women.

⁶⁶Their horses numbered 736; their mules, 245;

⁶⁷their camels, 435; their donkeys, 6,720.

⁶⁸Some of the heads of fathers’ households, when they arrived at the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem, offered willingly for the house of God to erect it on its site.

⁶⁹According to their ability they gave to the treasury for the work sixty-one thousand gold drachmas, five thousand silver minas, and a hundred priestly garments.

⁷⁰Now the priests and the Levites, some of the people, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived in their cities, and all Israel in their cities.

¹Now when the seventh month came, and the sons of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered together as one person to Jerusalem.

²Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak and his brothers the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brothers, rose up and built the altar of the God of Israel to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the Law of Moses, the man of God.

³So they set up the altar on its foundation, because they were terrified of the peoples of the lands; and they offered burnt offerings on it to the LORD, burnt offerings morning and evening.

⁴They also celebrated the Feast of Booths, as it is written, and offered the prescribed number of burnt offerings daily, according to the ordinance, as each day required;

⁵and afterward there was a continual burnt offering, also for the new moons and for all the appointed festivals of the LORD that were consecrated, and from everyone who offered a voluntary offering to the LORD.

⁶From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the LORD, but the foundation of the temple of the LORD had not been laid.

⁷Then they gave money to the masons and carpenters, and food, drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians to bring cedar wood from Lebanon to the sea at Joppa, according to the permission they had from Cyrus king of Persia.

⁸Now in the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brothers the priests and the Levites, and all who came from the captivity to Jerusalem, began the work and appointed the Levites who were twenty years old and upward to oversee the work of the house of the LORD.

⁹Then Jeshua with his sons and brothers stood united with Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah and the sons of Henadad with their sons and brothers the Levites, to oversee the workmen in the temple of God.

¹⁰Now when the builders had laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the LORD according to the directions of King David of Israel.

¹¹And they sang, praising and giving thanks to the LORD, saying, “For He is good, for His favor is upon Israel forever.” And all the people shouted with a great shout of joy when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.

¹²Yet many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ households, the old men who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud voice when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, while many shouted aloud for joy,

¹³so that the people could not distinguish the sound of the shout of joy from the sound of the weeping of the people, because the people were shouting with a loud shout, and the sound was heard far away.

¹Now when the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the people of the exile were building a temple to the LORD God of Israel,

²they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers’ households, and said to them, “Let us build with you, for like you, we seek your God; and we have been sacrificing to Him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us up here.”

³But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of fathers’ households of Israel said to them, “You have nothing in common with us in building a house to our God; but we ourselves will together build for the LORD God of Israel, just as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded us.”

⁴Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah, and frightened them from building,

⁵and bribed advisers against them to frustrate their advice all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

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

⁷And in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his colleagues wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the text of the letter was written in Aramaic and translated from Aramaic.

⁸Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes, as follows—

⁹Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues, the judges and the lesser governors, the officials, the secretaries, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the Elamites,

¹⁰and the rest of the nations which the great and honorable Osnappar deported and settled in the city of Samaria, and in the rest of the region beyond the Euphrates River. And now

¹¹this is a copy of the letter which they sent to him: “To King Artaxerxes: Your servants, the men of the region beyond the Euphrates River; and now

¹²let it be known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us at Jerusalem; they are rebuilding the rebellious and evil city and are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations.

¹³Now let it be known to the king, that if that city is rebuilt and the walls are finished, they will not pay tribute, custom tax, or toll, and it will be detrimental to the revenue of the kings.

¹⁴Now because we are in the service of the palace, and it is not fitting for us to see the king’s shame, for this reason we have sent word and informed the king,

¹⁵so that a search may be conducted in the record books of your fathers. And you will discover in the record books and learn that that city is a rebellious city and detrimental to kings and provinces, and that they have revolted within it in past days; for this reason that city was laid waste.

¹⁶We are informing the king that if that city is rebuilt and the walls finished, then as a result of this you will have no possession in the province beyond the Euphrates River.”

¹⁷Then the king sent a response to Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their colleagues who live in Samaria and in the rest of the provinces beyond the Euphrates River: “Peace. And now,

¹⁸the document which you sent to us has been translated and read before me.

¹⁹And a decree has been issued by me, and a search has been conducted and it has been discovered that that city has risen up against the kings in past days, and that rebellion and revolt have been perpetrated in it,

²⁰that mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem, governing all the provinces beyond the Euphrates River, and that tribute, custom tax, and toll were paid to them.

²¹Now issue a decree to make those men stop work, so that this city will not be rebuilt until a decree is issued by me.

²²And beware of being negligent in carrying out this matter; why should there be great damage, to the detriment of the kings?”

²³Then as soon as the copy of King Artaxerxes’ decree was read before Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their colleagues, they went in a hurry to Jerusalem to the Jews and stopped them by military force.

²⁴Then work on the house of God in Jerusalem was discontinued, and it was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.