Adversaries Hinder the Work

1And the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the sons of the captivity were building the temple of YHWH, God of Israel, 2and they came to Zerubbabel and the heads of the fathers and said to them, “Let us build with you⁺, for like you⁺, we seek your⁺ God, and to Him we have sacrificed since the days of Esar-haddon king of Assyria, who brought us up us here.”

3And Zerubbabel said to them, and Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of the fathers of Israel, “Nothing is to you⁺ and to us to build a house for our God, but we alone will build to YHWH, God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.”

4And it came to pass, the people of the land tried to make feeble the hands of the people of Judah, and they troubled them in building 5and hired against them counselors to frustrate their counsel all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Opposition under Xerxes and Artaxerxes

6And in the reign of Ahasuerus,† in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against those dwelling in Judah and Jerusalem.

7And in the days of Artaxerxes, wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabel, and the rest of his companions, to Artaxerxes king of Persia, and the letter was written in Aramaic and translated in Aramaic.†

8Rehum the owner of the command and Shimshai the scribe wrote one letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes, thus:

9Then Rehum the owner of the command, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions, Dinaites, and Apharsathchites, Tarpelites, Apharsites, Archevites, Babylonians, Susanchites who are Elamite, 10and the rest of the nations whom the great and honorable Osnappar† removed and settled them in the city of Samaria, and the remainder beyond the River,† and now.

11(This is a copy of the letter that they sent to him:)

To Artaxerxes the king,

from your servants, the men beyond the River, and now,

12be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have come to Jerusalem; the rebellious and wicked city they are building, and its walls they are finishing, and the foundations they are repairing.

13Now be it known to the king that if this city is built and the walls are completed, tax, tribute, and custom they will not pay, and the treasury of the king will be diminished.

14Now according to all that the salt of the palace is our salt,† and the nakedness of the king it was not proper for us to see, on account of this we have sent and informed the king, 15that he may search in the book of the records of your fathers. And you will find in the book of the records, and you will know that this city is a rebellious city, causing loss to kings and provinces, and that they have incited sedition within the city from the days of old. On account of this was this city destroyed.

16We are making known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls are completed, upon this, dominion beyond the River is not unto you.

The Decree of Artaxerxes

17The king sent an answer:

To Rehum the owner of the command, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions who dwell in Samaria and the remainder beyond the River,

Peace.

And now, 18the letter that you⁺ sent to us has been read clearly before me. 19And I made a decree, and a search has been made, and it was found that this city in former times has revolted against kings, and rebellion and sedition have been made in it. 20And there have been mighty kings over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all beyond the River; and tax, tribute, and custom were paid to them.

21Now give the command to make these men cease, that this city may not be built until a decree is made by me. 22And take heed of negligence to do upon this. Why should the damage become great to the harm of the kings?

23Then from the time that the copy of the letter of King Artaxerxes was read before Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem against the Jews, and made them cease by force and strength.

24Then ceased the work of the house of God that is in Jerusalem. And it was discontinued until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.