The Book of ʽEzra

1 And in the year one of King Cyrus of Persia, for the finishing of Jehovah’s prediction out of the mouth of Jeremiah, Jehovah stirred the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia and he had proclamation made by criers throughout his empire, and also in writing,

2 “Cyrus king of Persia says: Jehovah, God of the heavens, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem in Judah. 3* Whoever of all his people among you will volunteer to go, be his God with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of Jehovah the God of Israel,—he is the God in Jerusalem,— 4*** and let everybody who remains behind, of all the places where he has been living, help him on and make voluntary gifts at his place to Jehovah in silver and gold and chattels and cattle, along with the voluntary gifts for Jehovah’s house at Jerusalem.”

5 And the heads of families of Judah and Benjamin and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God stirred, stood up to go up to build Jehovah’s house at Jerusalem; 6*** and all their neighborhoods lent them a hand with everything, silver and gold and chattels and cattle and rich objects in abundance for everybody who volunteered.

7 And King Cyrus had brought out the vessels of Jehovah’s house which Nebucadnessar had taken out of Jerusalem and had put in the house of his gods; 8 King Cyrus of Persia had brought them out to the hands of Mithradata the treasurer, and he had counted them off to Shashabalassar who was prince for Judah. 9* And this is the count of them: thirty golden urns, a thousand silver urns, twenty-nine censers, 10 thirty golden stoups, two thousand four hundred and ten silver stoups, a thousand other vessels; 11 of all the vessels, gold and silver, there were five thousand four hundred and sixty-nine. Shashabalassar brought all up with the coming up of the deportees from Babylon to Jerusalem.

2 And these are the sons of the province, those who came up out of the serfdom of the deportees whom King Nebucadnessar of Babylon had deported to Babylon and came back to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his city, 2* who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshuaʽ, Nehemiah, Serajah, Raʽamiah, Nahamani, Mordocai, Bishlan, Masparath, Bigvai, Rehum, Baʽanah.

The number of the men of the people of Israel: 3 the sons of Pareosh, twenty-one hundred and seventy-two; 4 the sons of Shephatiah, three hundred and seventy-two; 5 the sons of Arah, seven hundred and seventy-five; 6** the sons of Pahath Moab as regards the sons of Jeshuaʽ Joab, twenty-eight hundred and twelve; 7 the sons of ʽElam, twelve hundred and fifty-four; 8 the sons of Zattu, nine hundred and forty-five; 9 the sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty; 10 the sons of Bani, six hundred and forty-two; 11 the sons of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-three; 12 the sons of ʽAzgad, twelve hundred and twenty-two; 13 the sons of Adonikam, six hundred and sixty-six; 14 the sons of Bigvai, two thousand and fifty-six; 15 the sons of ʽAdin, four hundred and fifty-four; 16 the sons of Ater on Hezekiah’s side, seventy-eight; 17 the sons of Besai, three hundred and twenty-three; 18 the sons of Jorah, a hundred and twelve; 19 the sons of Hashum, two hundred and twenty-three; 20 the sons of Gibbar, ninety-five; 21 the men of Bethlehem, a hundred and twenty-three; 22 the men of Netophah, fifty-six; 23 the men of ʽAnathoth, a hundred and twenty-eight; 24 the men of Beth-ʽAzmaveth, forty-two; 25 the men of Kirjath-Jeʽarim, Kephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty-three; 26 the men of Ramah and Gebaʽ, six hundred and twenty-one; 27 the men of Micmas, a hundred and twenty-two; 28 the men of Bethel and the Ghai, two hundred and twenty-three; 29 the sons of Nebo, fifty-two; 30 the sons of Magbish, a hundred and fifty-three; 31 the sons of the other ʽElam, twelve hundred and fifty-four; 32 the sons of Harim, three hundred and twenty; 33 the sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-five; 34 the sons of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five; 35 the sons of Senaah, thirty-six hundred and thirty.

36 The priests: the sons of Jedaʽiah, of the family of Jeshuaʽ, nine hundred and seventy-three; 37 the sons of Immer, a thousand and fifty-two; 38 the sons of Pashhur, twelve hundred and forty-seven; 39 the sons of Harim, a thousand and seventeen.

40 The Levites: the sons of Jeshuaʽ and Kadmiel, of the sons of Hodaviah, seventy-four.

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

42 The gatemen: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of ʽAkkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai, total a hundred and thirty-nine.

43 The temple servants: the sons of Siha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaʽoth, 44 the sons of Keros, the sons of Siʽaha, the sons of Padon, 45 the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of ʽAkud, 46 the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shalmai, the sons of Hanan, 47 the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, the sons of Reajah, 48 the sons of Resin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Gazzam, 49 the sons of ʽUzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Besai, 50 the sons of Asnah, the sons of Maʽani, the sons of Naphisi, 51 the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur, 52 the sons of Basluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha, 53 the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah, 54 the sons of Nesiah, the sons of Hatipha.

55 The sons of Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of the Sophereth, the sons of Peruda, 56 the sons of Jaʽalah, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel, 57 the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pokereth Hassebajim, the sons of Amon. 58 Total of temple servants and sons of Solomon’s servants, three hundred and ninety-two.

59 And these are those who came up from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Kerub, Addan, Immer, and could not state their families and their blood, whether they belonged to Israel: 60 the sons of Delajah, the sons of Tobijah, the sons of Nekoda, six hundred and fifty-two.

61* And of the priests the sons of Habajah, the sons of Hakkos, the sons of Barzillai who married one of the descendants of Barzillai the Gileadite and took their name,— 62 the registrars looked for the record of these, and they were not to be found; and they were disqualified from priestly functions, 63** and the Tarshata told them they were not to eat any of the holiest of the holy till there should stand a priest with the gift of Urim and Thummim.

64* The whole assembly as a unit came to forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty, 65 besides their slaves; of these, men and women, there were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred singers, men and women. 66 And of their ponies there were seven hundred and thirty-six, of their mules two hundred and forty-five, 67 of their camels four hundred and thirty-five, of donkeys six thousand seven hundred and twenty.

68 And some of the heads of families, when they came to Jehovah’s house at Jerusalem, gave voluntary gifts for God’s house to set it on its site; 69 in proportion to their power they gave to the treasury of the work sixty-one thousand drachmas of gold and five thousand minas of silver, and a hundred priests’ tunics.

70 And the priests and the Levites and part of the people settled in Jerusalem and in the country, and the singers and the gatemen and the temple servants in their cities, and all Israel in their cities.

3 And the seventh month drew on, and the sons of Israel were in the cities; and the people to a man came together in Jerusalem, 2 and Jeshuaʽ the son of Josadak and his brothers the priests and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brothers stood up and built the altar of the God of Israel to offer burnt-offerings on in accordance with what is written in the code of Moses the man of God; 3** and they set the altar in place on its site (for some of the peoples of the countries were at enmity with them) and offered burnt-offerings to Jehovah on it mornings and evenings, 4* and kept the feast in accordance with what is written, with burnt-offerings in due number and with due observance for each day, 5* and thereafter regular burnt-offering and sacrifices for sabbaths and new moons and all Jehovah’s consecrated dates, and for everybody that brought a volunteer offering to Jehovah. 6 From the first day of the seventh month they began offering burnt-offerings to Jehovah, but the foundation of Jehovah’s temple had not been laid.

7* And they gave money to the quarrymen and stonecutters, and food and drink and oil to the Sidonians and Tyrians to bring cedar timber from the Lebanon to the Joppa coast in accordance with King Cyrus of Persia’s authorization to them. 8 And in the year two of their coming to God’s house at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshuaʽ the son of Josadak and the rest of their brothers the priests and Levites, and all that had come out of their serfdom to Jerusalem, began and laid the foundation of God’s house on the new moon of the second month in the year two when they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and set the Levites, from twenty years old up, over the work on Jehovah’s house; 9* and Jeshuaʽ, his sons and his brothers, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, the sons of Henadad, their sons and their brothers the Levites, stood like one man directing those who were doing the work on God’s house. 10* And the builders laid the foundation of Jehovah’s temple, and the priests stood there in their vestments with the trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with the cymbals, to praise Jehovah as prescribed by King David of Israel, 11* and responded in praise and thanksgiving to Jehovah “because he is good, because his friendship to Israel lasts forever”; and all the people raised a great cheer in praise to Jehovah over the laying of the foundation of Jehovah’s house. 12* But to many of the older priests and Levites and heads of families, who had seen the first house, the house seemed miserable; and they were weeping loudly, and many were raising their voices high in cheering and gladness; 13 and the people could not tell the sound of the cheering for gladness from the sound of the people’s weeping, because the people were raising a great cheer and the sound was heard to a great distance.

4 And the foes of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned deportees were building a temple to Israel’s God Jehovah, 2* and they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of families and said to them “We will build with you, because we invoke your God the same as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him since the days of King Esarhaddon of Assyria who brought us up here.” 3 But Zerubbabel and Jeshuaʽ and the rest of Israel’s heads of families said to them “It is not a joint business of yours and ours to build a house for our God, but we as a unit will build to Israel’s God Jehovah, as the king, King Cyrus of Persia, ordered us to.” 4 And the local population were discouraging the people of Judah and scaring them out of building 5 and hiring lobbyists against them to balk their policy throughout the time of King Cyrus of Persia and down to the reign of King Darius of Persia; 6* and in the reign of Xerxes, at the beginning of his reign, they wrote in antagonism to the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. 7*** And in Artaxerxes’s time Bishlam, Mithradata, Tabeel, and the rest of their fellow-colonists wrote to King Artaxerxes of Persia; and the script of the document is written in Aramaic and translated. (In Aramaic:)

8 Commandant Rehum and Secretary Shimshai wrote this letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes, as follows. 9 Then Commandant Rehum and Secretary Shimshai and the rest of their fellow-colonists, the Dinaites and the Apharsathkites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Arkevites, the Babylonians, the Susianans, the Dehites, the ʽElamites, 10* and the rest of the nations that the great and august Asurbanipal deported and settled in the city of Samaria and the rest of Trans-Euphrates, ss. 11 This is a copy of the letter sent to King Artaxerxes by his servants the men of Trans-Euphrates, ss. 12** “Be it known to the king that the Judahites who came up from you to us have come to Jerusalem, the rebellious and malignant city; they are building, and are completing the walls and digging for the foundations. 13* Now be it known to the king that if that city is rebuilt and its walls are completed, they will not pay taxes, levies, and tributes, and it will make trouble for future kings. 14 Now inasmuch as we eat the salt of the palace and it is not proper for us to view the denuding of the king, for this reason we send and notify the king 15 that search be made in the book of your fathers’ history; and you will find in the book of history, and thereby learn, that that city has been a rebellious city and a troublemaker for kings and provinces, and they have been making insurrections in it, long since; that was why that city was laid waste. 16 Now we are notifying the king that if that city is rebuilt and its walls completed, in consequence you with not have any share of Trans-Euphrates.”

17 The king sent a rescript to Commandant Rehum and Secretary Shimshai and the rest of their fellow-colonists resident in Samaria and the rest of Trans-Euphrates, “Peace, ss. 18 The communication you sent me has been read before me point by point, 19 and by my orders they have searched and found that that city has long been insubordinate to kings, and has rebelled and insurrections have been made in it, 20 and there have been mighty kings over Jerusalem, sovereign over all Trans-Euphrates, and taxes, levies, and tributes have been paid to them. 21 Now give orders to have those men leave off, and let that city not be rebuilt until further orders. 22 And beware of negligent dealing as to this, lest mischief should increase to make trouble for kings.”

23* Then, when a copy of King Artaxerxes’s communication had been read before Rehum and Secretary Shimshai and their fellow-colonists, they came rushing to Jerusalem against the Judahites and made them leave off by main force. 24 Then the work on God’s house at Jerusalem was broken off, and was at a standstill till the year two of King Darius of Persia.

5 But Haggai the prophet, and Zecariah the son of ʽIddo the prophets, prophesied to the Judahites in Judah and Jerusalem by the name of Israel’s God upon them. 2 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshuaʽ the son of Josadak stood up and began to build God’s house at Jerusalem, and they had with them God’s prophets backing them up. 3*** At that time Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar Bozenai, and his fellow-colonists, came and spoke thus to them: “Who gave you orders to build this house and to complete this sacred precinct?” 4* Then we said to them as follows: “What are the names of the men that are doing this building?” 5 But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Judahites, and they did not make them leave off until the report should go to Darius and then they should return a communication about this.

6* A copy of the letter that Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar Bozenai, and his fellow-colonists the Apharsekites in Trans-Euphrates sent to King Darius: 7 they sent a statement to him, and this is what was written in it. “To King Darius, all peace. 8 Be it known to the king that we have gone to the province of Judah to the house of the great God; and it is being built in heavy stone, and timber is being set in the walls, and that work is being done thoroughly and is making good progress in their hands. 9 Then we questioned those elders as follows: ‘Who gave you orders to build this house and to complete this sacred precinct?’ 10* and we also asked them their names to be notified to you, which we write down: names of the men at their head. 11 And they returned us a statement as follows: ‘We are the worshipers of the God of heaven and earth, and are rebuilding the house which had been built many years earlier, a great king of Israel having built it and completed it; 12 only when our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath he gave them into the hands of Nebucadnessar, the Chaldean king of Babylon, and he laid this house in ruins and deported the people to Babylon. 13 But, in Cyrus’s first year as king of Babylon, King Cyrus gave orders to rebuild this house of God; 14 and the gold and silver vessels of the house of God also, which Nebucadnessar had taken out of the temple at Jerusalem and had brought to the temple in Babylon, King Cyrus took out of the temple in Babylon and gave them to one Shashabalassar whom he had appointed governor, 15 and said to him “Take these vessels and go and place them in the temple at Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site.” 16 Then that Shashabalassar came and laid the foundations of the house of God at Jerusalem, and from then till now it has been in process of rebuilding and has not been finished.’ 17 Now, if the king thinks best, let search be made in the royal archives there in Babylon whether it is a fact that orders were given by King Cyrus to rebuild that house of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send us word of his pleasure as to this.”

6* Then King Darius gave orders and they searched in the storage library in Babylon, 2* and there was found at Ecbatana, in the palace in the province of Media, a certain roll, and a memorandum thus written in it: 3* “In the year one of King Cyrus, King Cyrus gave orders—House of God at Jerusalem: let the house be rebuilt as a place where they sacrifice sacrifices and present fire-offerings, its height ninety feet and its breadth ninety feet, 4 three courses of heavy stone and one course of timber; and let the expenses be paid out of the royal estate; 5* and also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God which Nebucadnessar took out of the temple at Jerusalem and brought to Babylon be given back and taken to the temple at Jerusalem, to its site, and you shall place them in the house of God.” 6** “Now, Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar Bozenai, and your fellow-colonists the Apharsekites in Trans-Euphrates, keep away from there; 7 let alone the work on that house of God; let the governor of the Judahites and the elders of the Judahites build that house of God on its site. 8** And it is hereby ordered that you cooperate with those elders of the Judahites for building that house of God, and out of the royal funds of the taxes of Trans-Euphrates let the expenses be thoroughly paid to those men that there may be no failure of what they need. 9 And let steers and rams and lambs for burnt-offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil as the priests at Jerusalem may say, be given to them day by day without negligence, 10 that they may offer genial offerings to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and of his sons. 11** And it is hereby ordered that any man who authorizes any action inconsistent with this rescript shall have a timber torn out of his house and be impaled erect upon it, and his house shall be made a garbage-dump for this. 12* And the God who has installed his name there shall overthrow any king or nation that puts forth a hand to act otherwise, to damage that house of God at Jerusalem. I Darius give the order; let it be done thoroughly.”

13* Then Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar Bozenai, and their fellow-colonists, inasmuch as Darius had sent word, did thus thoroughly; 14* and the elders of the Judahites did the building and had good success by the prophesying of the prophet Haggai and Zecariah the son of ʽIddo. And they did the building and completed it, at the order of the God of Israel and of Cyrus and Darius and King Artaxerxes of Persia. 15** And they kept at work on this house till the twenty-third day of the month of Adar; that is the year six of the reign of King Darius.

16 And the sons of Israel, the priests and the Levites and the rest of the returned deportees, held the dedication services of this house of God with festivity, 17 and offered for the dedication of this house of God a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and twelve goats, to the number of the tribes of Israel, for a sin-offering for all Israel; 18 and they set the priests by courses and the Levites by sections for the divine service at Jerusalem as is written in the book of Moses.

19 And the returned deportees kept the passover on the fourteenth of the first month. 20* For the priests and Levites had purified themselves as one man, they were all of them clean, and they killed the passover for all the returned deportees and for their brothers the priests and for themselves; 21 and the sons of Israel who had come back from the deportation ate, and all who had separated themselves from the uncleanness of the local heathens to join them in devotion to Israel’s God Jehovah. 22 And they kept the feast of matzoth seven days with festivity, because Jehovah had gladdened them and turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, Israel’s God.

7 And after these events, in the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia, ʽEzra the son of Serajah the son of ʽAzariah the son of Hilkijah 2 the son of Shallum the son of Sadok the son of Ahitub 3 the son of Amariah the son of ʽAzariah the son of Merajoth 4 the son of Zerahiah the son of ʽUzzi the son of Bukki 5 the son of Abishuaʽ the son of Pinehas the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the first priest— 6* he, ʽEzra, came up from Babylon; and he was an expert scribe in Moses’s code which Israel’s God Jehovah gave; and the king had given him, in accordance with Jehovah’s hand upon him, everything that he had requested; and there came up to Jerusalem 7 some of the sons of Israel and some of the priests and the Levites and the singers and the gatemen and the temple servants, in the year seven of King Artaxerxes. 8* And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month; that is the year seven of King Artaxerxes. 9* For on the first of the first month he began the arrangements for the journey up from Babylon, and on the first of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem in accordance with God’s good hand upon him. 10 For ʽEzra had firmly made up his mind to devote himself to Jehovah’s code and to do and to teach in Jerusalem what was correct and lawful.

11 And this is a copy of the note King Artaxerxes gave to Priest ʽEzra the scribe, scribe of the words of Jehovah’s commandments and rules for Israel: 12 “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Priest ʽEzra, scribe of the law of the God of heaven, etc., ss. 13* It is hereby ordered that anyone in my kingdom of the people of Israel and of its priests and Levites who volunteers to go to Jerusalem with you shall go, 14* inasmuch as you are sent from the king and his seven counselors to examine into conditions about Judah and at Jerusalem from the point of view of the law of your God which you have in your hand, 15 and to bring silver and gold which the king and his counselors have donated to the God of Israel whose abode is in Jerusalem, 16 and all silver and gold that you may find in all the province of Babylon, with the donations of the people and the priests who donate for the house of their God at Jerusalem. 17 In consideration of this you are to buy carefully with this money bulls, rams, lambs, and their grain-offerings and libations, and offer them on the altar of the God of heaven at Jerusalem; 18 and what it seems good to you and your brothers to do with the remainder of the silver and gold in accordance with the pleasure of your God you are to do. 19 And deliver before the God of Jerusalem the vessels that are given you for the service of the house of God. 20 And the rest of the needs of the house of your God which it shall fall to you to provide you shall provide out of the royal treasury. 21 And all subtreasurers in Trans-Euphrates are hereby ordered by me Artaxerxes, the king, that everything that Priest ʽEzra the scribe of the law of the God of heaven asks you for be done thoroughly 22* to the extent of a hundred talents of silver and of a thousand bushels of wheat and of eight hundred gallons of wine and of eight hundred gallons of oil, and salt at discretion. 23 Let everything the God of heaven orders be done precisely for the house of the God of heaven; for why should there be anger against the empire of the king and of his sons? 24 And take notice that it is not permissible to impose taxes, levies, or tributes on any of the priests and Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants, and attendants of this house of God. 25 And you, ʽEzra, in accordance with the wisdom of your God which you have in your hand, are to appoint judges and magistrates who are to judge all the people in Trans-Euphrates, everybody who knows the laws of your God; and him who does not know you are to enlighten. 26 And on anyone who does not live up to your God’s law and the king’s law let sentence be duly executed, whether for death or for excommunication or for fine or for imprisonment.”

27 Blessed be our fathers’ God Jehovah who put such a thing as this into the king’s heart, to give a magnificent status to Jehovah’s house at Jerusalem, 28 and gave the king and his counselors and all his powerful generals a friendly disposition toward me!

And I took courage from the hand of my God Jehovah resting on me, and gathered heads out of Israel to go up with me.

8 And these are the heads of families, and their lists, that came up with me in the reign of King Artaxerxes from Babylon:

2 Of the sons of Pinehas, Gershom. Of the sons of Ithamar, Daniel. Of the sons of David, Hattush, 3* one of the sons of Shecaniah.

Of the sons of Pareosh, Zecariah, and with him were listed, of males, a hundred and fifty.

4 Of the sons of Pahath Moab, Eljehoʽenai the son of Zerahiah, and with him two hundred, the males.

5 Of the sons of Zattu, Shecaniah the son of Jahaziel, and with him three hundred, the males.

6 And of the sons of ʽAdin, ʽEbed the son of Jonathan, and with him fifty, the males.

7 And of the sons of ʽElam, Jeshaʽiah the son of ʽAthaliah, and with him seventy, the males.

8 And of the sons of Shephatiah, Zebadiah the son of Micael, and with him eighty, the males.

9 And of the sons of Joab, ʽObadiah the son of Jehiel, and with him two hundred and eighteen, the males.

10 And of the sons of Bani, Shelomith the son of Josiphiah, and with him a hundred and sixty, the males.

11 And of the sons of Bebai, Zecariah the son of Bebai, and with him twenty-eight, the males.

12 And of the sons of ʽAzgad, Johanan the son of Hakkatan, and with him a hundred and ten, the males.

13* And of the sons of Adonikam latecomers, and these were their names: Eliphelet, Jeʽiel, and Shemaʽiah; and with them sixty, the males.

14* And of the sons of Bigvai, Ghuthai the son of Zaccur, and with him seventy, the males.

15 And I gathered them to the river that runs into Ahava; and when we had been there three days I looked over the people and the priests, and did not find any of the sons of Levi there. 16 And I sent Eliʽezer, Ariel, Shemaʽiah and Elnathan and Jarib and Elnathan and Nathan and Zecariah and Meshullam, headmen, and Jojarib and Elnathan, expounders, 17* and commissioned them to Iddo the head at the place Casiphja, and gave them a message for speaking to Iddo and his brothers the temple servants at the place Casiphja to bring us servitors for the house of our God; 18 and they brought us, in accordance with the good hand of our God resting on us, a sensible man, one of the sons of Mahli the son of Levi the son of Israel, Sherebiah, and his sons and his brothers, eighteen of them; 19* and Hashabiah and with him Jeshaʽiah, of the sons of Merari, his brothers and sons, twenty of them; 20 and of the temple servants whom David and the generals had given for the service of the Levites two hundred and twenty temple servants, all listed by name.

21 And I proclaimed a fast there by the river Ahava to present ourselves submissively before our God to seek from him a clear course for us and our children and all our chattels. 22 For I had been ashamed to ask the king for troops and riders to help us against enemies on the road, because I had said to the king “All who betake themselves to our God have over them his hand for their good, but those who leave him have over them his might and anger.” 23 And we fasted and besought our God about this, and he granted our prayer.

24* And I set apart twelve of the chiefs of the priests, and Sherebiah and Hashabiah and with them ten of their brothers, 25* and weighed out to them the silver and the gold and the vessels, the contribution for the house of our God that the king and his counselors and generals and all of Israel that were to be found had made; 26* and I weighed into their hands six hundred and twenty-five hundredweight of silver, and a hundred silver vessels, two hundredweight, ninety-six hundredweight of gold, 27* and twenty gold stoups, two hundred and seventy ounces, and ten vessels of fine bright bronze as desirable as gold. 28 And I said to them “You are consecrated to Jehovah, and the vessels are sacred, and the silver and gold are a donation to our fathers’ God Jehovah; 29 guard them carefully till you weigh them out before the chiefs of the priests and Levites and the chiefs of families of Israel in the vestries at Jehovah’s house at Jerusalem.” 30* And the priests and Levites received the weighed-out silver and gold and the vessels to bring to Jehovah’s house at Jerusalem.

31 And we set out from the river of Ahava on the twelfth of the first month to go to Jerusalem; and our God’s hand was over us, and he delivered us from the hands of enemy and prowler on the road. 32 And we came to Jerusalem and stayed there three days, 33 and on the fourth day the silver and gold and vessels were weighed out in our God’s house into the hands of Priest Meremoth the son of Urijah, and with him Eleazar the son of Pinehas, and with them the Levites Jozabad the son of Jeshuaʽ and Noʽadiah the son of Binnui, 34 —all by count and by weight; and all the weight was written down.

35* At that time those who had come in from their serfdom, the returned deportees, presented burnt-offerings to the God of Israel: twelve steers on behalf of all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven sheep, twelve he-goats for sin-offering, all a burnt-offering to Jehovah.

36 And they gave the king’s mandates to the king’s satraps and the governors of Trans-Euphrates, and they helped on the people and the house of God.

9** And when these things were finished the chiefs approached me with the word “The people, Israel, and the priests and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the peoples of the countries with their abominable ways, the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Jebusite, the ʽAmmonite, the Moabite, the Egyptian, and the Amorite; 2 for they have taken daughters of theirs as wives for themselves and their sons, and mixed the sacred blood with the peoples of the countries; and the hands of the chiefs and the magnates have been first in this disloyalty.” 3 And when I heard this word I tore my cloak and my robe and tore hair out of my head and beard and sat down horror-struck, 4 and all who were alarmed by the words of the God of Israel came together to me on account of the deportees’ disloyalty. And I sat horror-struck till evening grain-offering 5* and at evening grain-offering I stood up from my abasement and, in the torn pieces of my cloak and robe, fell on my knees and spread out my hands to my God Jehovah and said

6 “My God, I am ashamed and humiliated to raise my face, my God, to you, because our offenses are so many as to overtop our heads and our guilts so great as to reach to the skies. 7* Since our fathers’ days we have been in great guilt up to this day, and for our offenses we, our kings, our priests, have been given into the hands of the kings of one country after another in slaughter, in serfdom, and in plundering and shame of face as at this day. 8 And now for a brief moment there has come favor from our God Jehovah, letting us have an escaping remnant and giving us a peg in his holy place, our God brightening up our eyes and making us germ of a little life in our slavery— 9* for we are slaves, but in our slavery our God has not abandoned us but has given the kings of Persia a friendly disposition toward us, giving us a germ of life for rearing aloft the house of our God and for reoccupying his waste sites, and giving us a fence in Judah and Jerusalem. 10 And now, our God, what shall we say after this, when we have forsaken your commandments 11 which you enjoined upon us through your servants the prophets, ‘The country you are going into to take possession of it is a filthy country by the filth of the peoples of the countries, by their abominable doings in which they have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness; 12 now do not give your daughters to their sons nor take their daughters for your sons; and you are not to attempt anything for their welfare or advantage, world without end, in order that you may be strong and eat the good things of the country and pass the possession on to your sons forever.’ 13 And after all that has come upon us by our evil deeds and our great guilt, when you, our God, have held down part of our guilt and given us such survival as this, 14 should we go back to breaking your commandments and intermarrying with these abominable peoples? will you not be angry at us to the point of finishing us off to leave no remnant or survivors? 15 Jehovah, God of Israel, you are doing the right thing that we remain surviving as we are this day; here we are before you in our guilt, because there is no such thing as standing before you on this account.”

10 And as ʽEzra made his prayer and confession, weeping and throwing himself down before the house of God, there gathered to him a very great assembly out of Israel, men and women and children; for the people were weeping at a great rate. 2 And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, of the sons of ʽElam, replied to ʽEzra “We have been disloyal to our God and taken in foreign women out of the peoples of the country; but now there is a chance of hope for Israel as to this. 3* Now let us make a covenant to our God to turn out all women and what is born from them in accordance with my lord’s recommendations.” And those who were alarmed by the commandments of our God stood up 4 and said “Stand up, because the matter is in your sphere, and you have us with you; take a strong stand, and act.”

5 And ʽEzra stood up and swore the chiefs of the priests and Levites and all Israel to act in accordance with these words, and they took the oath. 6 And ʽEzra left his place before the house of God and went to the vestry of Jehohanan the son of Eljashib and spent the night there, not eating nor drinking water, because he was mourning over the deportees’ disloyalty. 7* And they sent around a proclamation in Judah and Jerusalem to all the returned deportees to gather at Jerusalem; 8 and anybody who did not come in after three days should, by resolution of the chiefs and elders, have all his chattels declared deodand and be excommunicated from the assembly of the deportees.

9* And all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem after three days; that was the ninth month, on the tenth of the month; and all the people sat down in the square of the house of God, shivering over the business and because of the rainy weather. 10 And Priest ʽEzra stood up and said to them “You have been disloyal and taken in foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt. 11 But now give praise to your fathers’ God Jehovah and do what he will approve, and separate yourselves from the peoples of the country and from the foreign women.” 12 And all the assembly answered with a loud voice “We will do just as you are telling us to. 13 The people are numerous, though, and it is the rainy season, and we have not the strength to stand outdoors; and it is not a one-day or two-day business, because we have committed a great deal of crime in this respect. 14 Let our chiefs be a standing commission for all the assembly, and let everybody in our cities who has taken in foreign women come at specified times, and with them the elders and judges of each city, till we have turned back our God’s anger from us as to this matter.” 15 (Only Jonathan the son of ʽAsahel and Jahziah the son of Tikvah made a stand against this, and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them.) 16 And the returned deportees did so; and Priest ʽEzra picked out men, heads of the families they belonged to, all by name, and they took their seats on the first day of the tenth month to see about the matter; 17 and they finished with all the men who had taken in foreign women by the first day of the first month.

18* And there were found of the sons of the priests that had taken in foreign women, of the sons of Jeshuaʽ the son of Josadak and his brothers Maʽasejah and Eliʽezer and Jarib and Gedaliah; 19 and they gave their hands to turn out their wives, and were obligated to indemnity of a ram for their guilt; 20 and of the sons of Immer Hanani and Zebadiah; 21 and of the sons of Harim Maʽasejah and Elijah and Shemaʽiah and Jehiel and ʽUzzijah; 22 and of the sons of Pashhur Eljoʽenai, Maʽasejah, Ishmaʽel, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Eleasah.

23 And of the Levites, Jozabad and Shimei and Kelajah (that is, Kelitah), Pethahiah, Jehudah, and Eliʽezer.

24* And of the singers, Eljashib.

And of the gatemen, Shallum and Telem and Uri.

25 And of Israel, of the sons of Pareosh Ramiah and Izzijah and Malkijah and Mijamin and Eleazar and Malkijah and Benajah; 26 and of the sons of ʽElam Mattaniah and Zecariah and Jehiel and ʽAbdi and Jeremoth and Elijah; 27 and of the sons of Zattu Eljoʽenai, Eljashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth and Zabad and ʽAzizah; 28 and of the sons of Bebai Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, ʽAthli; 29 and of the sons of Bani Meshullam, Malluc, Jedaʽiah, Jashub, Ishal, Jeremoth; 30* and of the sons of Pahath Moab Ghadna and Kelal, Benajah, Maʽasejah, Mattaniah, Besalel and Binnui and Menassheh; 31 and of the sons of Harim Eliʽezer, Isshijah, Malkijah, Shemaʽiah, Shimeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluc, Shemariah; 33 and of the sons of Hashum Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Menassheh, Shimei; 34* and of the sons of Bani Maʽadi, ʽAmram and Uel, 35 Benajah, Bediah, Keluhi, 36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eljashib, 37 Mattaniah, Mattenai and Jaʽasai; 38 and of the sons of Binnui Shimei 39 and Shelemiah and Nathan and ʽAdajah; 40** and of the sons of ʽAzgad Shashai, Sharai, 41 ʽAzarel and Shelemjahu, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah, Joseph; 43 of the sons of Nebo Jeʽiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai and Joel, Benajah.

44* All these had married foreign wives, and some of them wives and had begotten sons.

MARGINAL NOTES TO EZRA