Ezra 5

¹ Then the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo began to prophesy to the Jews of Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel who was with them.

² At this, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak started again to build the Temple of God in Jerusalem; the prophets of God were with the people, giving them courage.

³ It was then that Tattenai, satrap of Transeuphrates, Shethar-bozenai and their colleagues came to them and asked, ‘Who gave you authority to build this Temple and to do this woodwork?

⁴ What are the names of the men responsible for this building?’

⁵ But the eyes of their God were on the elders of the Jews; they were not compelled to stop while a report on the matter was sent to Darius and an official edict awaited.

⁶ Copy of the letter that Tattenai, satrap of Transeuphrates, Shethar-bozenai and his colleagues, the officials in Transeuphrates, sent to King Darius.

⁷ They sent a report to him which ran as follows: ‘To King Darius, all peace!

⁸ The king should be informed that we went to the district of Judah, to the Temple of the great God: it is being built of blocks of stone; the walls are being panelled with wood; the work is being done with great care and makes progress in their hands.

⁹ Questioning the elders, we asked, “Who gave you authority to build this Temple and to do this woodwork?”

¹⁰ We also asked their names so that you might be informed; hence we have been able to list the names of those who are superintending these men.

¹¹ ‘They gave us this answer, “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth; we are rebuilding a Temple which until recently had been standing for many years and which was built and finished by a great king of Israel.

¹² But our ancestors angered the God of heaven and he delivered them into the power of Nebuchadnezzar the Chaldaean, king of Babylon, who destroyed that Temple and deported the people to Babylon.

¹³ In the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, however, King Cyrus authorised the rebuilding of this Temple of God;

¹⁴ furthermore, those vessels of gold and silver belonging to the Temple of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had removed from the sanctuary in Jerusalem and taken to that of Babylon, King Cyrus in turn removed from the sanctuary in Babylon and handed back to a man called Sheshbazzar, whom he appointed high commissioner,

¹⁵ with the words: Take these vessels; go and return them to the sanctuary in Jerusalem and let the Temple of God be rebuilt on its original site;

¹⁶ the aforesaid Sheshbazzar therefore came and laid the foundations of the Temple of God in Jerusalem; they have been building it ever since, and it is still not finished.”

¹⁷ “Wherefore, if it please the king, let search be made in the king’s muniment rooms in Babylon, to find out if it is true that King Cyrus gave permission for the rebuilding of this Temple of God in Jerusalem. And let the king’s decision on this matter be sent to us.’