Ezra 6

Ezra · Chapter 6

Ezra 6:1

1Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.2And there was found at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein was a record thus written:3In the first year of Cyrus the king the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits;4With three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house:5And also let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to his place, and place them in the house of God.6Now therefore, Tatnai, governor beyond the river, Shetharboznai, and your companions the Apharsachites, which are beyond the river, be ye far from thence:7Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in his place.8Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to the elders of these Jews for the building of this house of God: that of the king’s goods, even of the tribute beyond the river, forthwith expenses be given unto these men, that they be not hindered.9And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the appointment of the priests which are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail:10That they may offer sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons.11Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let timber be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this.12And the God that hath caused his name to dwell there destroy all kings and people, that shall put to their hand to alter and to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree; let it be done with speed.13Then Tatnai, governor on this side the river, Shetharboznai, and their companions, according to that which Darius the king had sent, so they did speedily.14And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded, 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.15And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.16And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy,17And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.18And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses.19And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month.20For the priests and the Levites were purified together, all of them were pure, and killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.21And the children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the LORD God of Israel, did eat,22And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the LORD had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.

King James Version (1769)

Other translations

VerseKJVBSBASV
1Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.Thus King Darius ordered a search of the archives stored in the treasury of Babylon.Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the archives, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.

In context

Who is speaking and to whom, what is happening, when and where, and why it matters, each with its sources. Coming with the context cards.

Where

Locations from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Some ancient sites are uncertain.

Original Aramaic words

This passage was written in Aramaic, the common language of the Babylonian and Persian empires, which the Jews of the exile also spoke. It uses the same alphabet as Hebrew.

EnglishAramaicSay itStrong'sMeaning
in thenבֵּאדַ֛יִןbe-DA-yinH0116
then

אֱדַ֫יִן (e.da.yin) then, afterwards, thereupon, from that time Aramaic of az (אָז "then" H0227A)

Dariusדָּרְיָ֥וֶשׁda-re-YA-veshH1868G
Darius

דָּֽרְיָ֫וֶשׁ (dar.ya.vesh) A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Ezr.4.5 Aramaic of dar.ya.vesh (דָּֽרְיָ֫וֶשׁ "Darius" H1867H) § Darius = "lord" 1) Darius the Mede, the son of Ahasuerus, king of the Chaldeans, who succeeded to the Babylonian kingdom on the death of Belshazzar; probably the same as "Astyages" the last king of the Medes (538 BC) (same as dar.ya.vesh (דָּֽרְיָ֫וֶשׁ "Darius" H1867) (1)) 2) Darius, the son of Hystaspes, the founder of the Perso-Arian dynasty (521 BC) (same as (2)) 3) Darius II or Darius III …

king theמַלְכָּ֖אmal-KA'H4430
king

מֶ֫לֶךְ (me.lekh) king Aramaic of me.lekh (מֶ֫לֶךְ "king" H4428) § 1) king

he madeשָׂ֣םsamH7761G
to set: make

שׂוּם (sum) 1) to set, make, appoint 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to make, make decree, setout (decree) 1a2) to make, appoint 1a3) to set, fix 1b) (Ithp'al) to be made, be set, be laid

a decreeטְעֵ֑םte-'EMH2942
command

טְעֵם (te.em) 1) report, taste 1a) taste 1b) report

and they searchedוּבַקַּ֣רוּ׀u-va-KA-ruH1240
to enquire

בְּקַר (be.qar) 1) to seek, enquire 1a) (Pael) to enquire 1b) (Ithpael) to let search be made

in [the] houseבְּבֵ֣יתbe-VEITH1005
house

בַּ֫יִת (ba.yit) 1) house (of men) 2) house (of God)

books theסִפְרַיָּ֗אsif-rai-YA'H5609
scroll

סְפַר (se.phar) scroll, book Aramaic of se.pher (סֵ֫פֶר ": document" H5612A)

whereדִּ֧יdiH1768
that

דִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because

treasures theגִנְזַיָּ֛אgin-zai-YA'H1596
treasure

גְּנַז (ge.naz) treasure Aramaic of ge.nez (גְּנָזִים "treasury" H1595)

[were] depositedמְהַחֲתִ֥יןme-ha-cha-TINH5182
to descend

נְחֵת (ne.chat) 1) to descend 1a) (P'al) to descend 1b) (Aphel) to deposit 1c) (Hophal) to be deposed, be cast down

thereתַּמָּ֖הta-MAHH8536
there

תַּמָּה (tam.mah) there Aramaic of sham (שָׁם "there" H8033)

in Babylonבְּבָבֶֽל׃be-va-VELH0895
Babylon

בָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶל (ba.vel) Aramaic of ba.vel (בָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶל "Babylon" H0894) § Babel or Babylon = "confusion (by mixing)" Babel or Babylon, the ancient site and/or capital of Babylonia (modern Hillah) situated on the Euphrates

Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.