Ezra 6

1 Thus King [ruler, monarch] Darius [a title for Persian kings] ordered [gave a command, decreed] a search [to carefully examine, investigate] of the archives [house of the rolls, library] stored [laid up, deposited] in the treasury [house of treasures, storehouse] of Babylon [a city and empire]. word study 2 And a scroll [a rolled-up book, a record] was found [discovered, came across] in the fortress [citadel, strong fortress] of Ecbatana [Achmetha, the summer capital of Persia], in the province [region, district] of Media [a country in central Asia], with the following written on it: Memorandum [a written record, a note]: word study 3 In the first [initial, beginning] year of King Cyrus [the Persian monarch], he issued a decree [a royal command, proclamation] concerning the house [temple, place of worship] of God [Elohim, the supreme Creator] in Jerusalem [the city of peace, teaching of peace]: Let the house be rebuilt [restored, reconstructed] as a place for offering sacrifices [a location for atonement, worship], and let its foundations [base, starting point] be firmly laid [strongly established, securely founded]. It is to be sixty [a multiple of ten] cubits [an ancient unit of measurement, roughly 18 inches long] high and sixty cubits wide [broad, expansive], word study 4 with three [rows, courses] layers of cut [great, large] stones and one [row, course] of [new, fresh] timbers [wood, wooden beams]. The costs [expenses, outlay] are to be paid [given, provided] from the royal [king’s] treasury [house, storehouse]. word study 5 Furthermore, the gold [precious, valuable] and silver articles [utensils, vessels] of the house [temple, dwelling place] of God [Elohim, the supreme deity], which Nebuchadnezzar [king of Babylon] took [removed, carried away] from the temple [sacred building, place of worship] in Jerusalem [city of peace, teaching of peace] and carried [brought, transported] to Babylon [city of confusion, mixing], must also be returned [restored, brought back] to the temple [place of worship, sacred building] in Jerusalem [city of peace, teaching of peace] and deposited [laid down, placed] in the house [temple, dwelling place] of God [Elohim, the supreme deity]. word study 6 Therefore [at this time, now] Darius decreed: To Tattenai [ruler] governor of the region [province, territory] west of the Euphrates [beyond the river], Shethar-bozenai [a high-ranking official], and your associates [companions, fellow officials] and officials [governors, leaders] in the region: You must stay [be, remain] away [far, at a distance] from that place [there, thence]! word study 7 Leave this work [service, labor, or ritual] on the house [physical building, temple] of God [Eloah, the one true God] alone [undisturbed, without interference]. Let the governor [high-ranking official, prefect] and elders [respected leaders, gray-haired men] of the Jews [people of Judah, Israelites] rebuild [construct, restore] this house [temple, place of worship] of God on its original [former, traditional] site [location, place]. word study 8 I hereby decree [make a formal declaration, issue a command] what you must do for these elders [respected leaders, spiritual guides] of the Jews [people of Judah, God’s chosen] who are rebuilding [restoring, reconstructing] this house [temple, place of worship] of God [Elohim, the supreme Creator]: The cost [expense, financial outlay] is to be paid in full [completely, without delay] to these men from the royal [king’s, sovereign] treasury [storehouse, repository] out of the taxes [tribute, payment] of the provinces [regions, territories] west [beyond, on the other side] of the Euphrates [a major river, geographical boundary], so that the work [labor, task] will not be hindered [obstructed, delayed, ceased]. word study 9 Whatever is needed [that which they have need of]—young bulls [calves, for holocausts], rams, and lambs [a young sheep, for sacrifice] for burnt offerings [completely burned up, like the offerings made to God] to the God [Elohim, the supreme Creator] of heaven [the sky and the abode of God], as well as wheat [a type of grain, for provision], salt [for flavoring and preserving], wine, and oil [for anointing and lamps], as requested by the priests [those who serve God] in Jerusalem [the city of peace, the capital of Judah]—must be given to them daily [each day] without fail [without neglect, faithfully]. word study 10 Then they will be able to offer sacrifices [of sweet savors, pleasing aromas] of a sweet aroma to the God [the supreme deity] of heaven [the sky, the abode of God] and to pray [asking for help, seeking guidance] for the lives [well-being, prosperity] of the king [ruler, monarch] and his sons [children, descendants]. word study 11 I also decree [issue a command, make a formal declaration] that if any man [human being, person] interferes with [alters, changes] this directive [edict, official command], a beam [wood, timber] is to be torn [pulled away, ripped] from his house [physical building, dwelling] and raised up [lifted, set up], and he is to be impaled [smitten, struck] on it [the beam, the wood]. And his own house [dwelling, home] shall be made [turned into, transformed] a pile of rubble [dunghill, waste heap] for this [this transgression] offense. word study 12 May God [the supreme Creator, Elohim], who has caused His Name [His identity, character] to dwell [to reside, to rest] there [in Jerusalem], overthrow [to destroy, to cast down] any king [ruler, monarch] or people [nation, community] who lifts a hand [exerts power, takes action] to alter [to change, to modify] this decree [command, instruction] or to destroy [to demolish, to ruin] this house [temple, place of worship] of God [the Almighty, the divine] in Jerusalem [the city of peace, the holy city]. I, Darius [the king, the ruler], have issued [declared, commanded] the decree [instruction, command]. Let it be carried out [executed, fulfilled] with diligence [care, eagerness, speed]. word study 13 In response [as a result, accordingly], Tattenai [a high-ranking official] the governor [prefect, ruler] of the region [province, territory] west [beyond, on the other side] of the Euphrates [a major river], Shethar-bozenai [a Persian officer, a companion], and their associates [companions, fellow officials] diligently [with all diligence, eagerly] carried out [executed, performed] what King [a ruler] Darius [a title for Persian kings, a monarch] had decreed [sent, commanded, given an order]. word study 14 So the Jewish [Hebrew, from the tribe of Judah] elders [responsible leaders, those who are gray] built [constructed, established] and prospered [advanced, succeeded] through the prophesying [inspired teaching, speaking God’s message] of Haggai [Jehovah’s messenger, prophet] the prophet [one who speaks God’s message] and Zechariah [Jehovah remembers, prophet] son [descendant, offspring] of Iddo [beloved, honored]. They finished [completed, brought to an end] building [constructing, establishing] according to the command [decree, instruction] of the God [Elohim, supreme Creator] of Israel [chosen people, descendants of Jacob] and the decrees [commands, laws] of Cyrus [king of Persia, ruler], Darius [king of the Medes, ruler], and Artaxerxes [king of Persia, ruler], kings [monarchs, rulers] of Persia [ancient Eastern country]. word study 15 And this [specific, particular] temple [house of worship, sacred building] was completed [finished, brought to an end] on the third [a significant point in time] day of the month of Adar [the twelfth month, a time of glory], in the sixth year of the reign [kingdom, period of rule] of King Darius [the ruler, monarch]. word study 16 Then the people [children, sons] of Israel [God’s chosen nation]—the priests [spiritual leaders, mediators], the Levites [assistants to the priests], and the rest [remainder, surviving remnant] of the exiles [captives, those in bondage]—celebrated [kept, observed with joy] the dedication [consecration, setting apart] of the house [temple, place of worship] of God [the one true God, Elohim] with joy [rejoicing, delight]. word study 17 For the dedication [consecration, setting apart] of the house [temple, sacred building] of God [Elohim, the supreme Deity] they offered a hundred [one hundred, a multitude] bulls [young oxen, bullocks], two hundred [a large number] rams [male sheep, strong animals], four hundred [a numerous quantity] lambs [young sheep, innocent creatures], and a sin offering [atonement, sacrifice for wrongdoing] for all [the entirety of] Israel [the chosen people, descendants of Jacob] of twelve male goats [he-goats], one [a single, unique] for each [every individual] tribe [clan, family group] of Israel [the nation, God’s people]. word study 18 They also appointed the priests [by their orders, in their divisions] by their divisions and the Levites [members of the tribe of Levi, ministers] by their groups [classes, courses] to the service [work, worship, ministry] of God [Eloah, the one true God] in Jerusalem [the city of peace, the capital of Judah], according to what is written [recorded, inscribed] in the Book [scroll] of Moses. word study 19 On the fourteenth day of the first [primary, initial] month, the exiles [children of the captivity, those who had returned from Babylon] kept [observed, celebrated] the Passover [a Jewish festival commemorating liberation]. word study 20 All the priests [who served God and led others in worship] and Levites [descendants of Levi, one of Jacob’s 12 sons] had purified [made themselves ceremonially clean, become tahor] themselves and were ceremonially clean [pure, without moral or ritual defect]. And the Levites slaughtered [killed, offered as a sacrifice] the Passover lamb [the animal sacrificed during the Jewish festival] for all the exiles [those who had been taken captive, in a state of captivity], for their priestly brothers [fellow priests, spiritual siblings], and for themselves [their own households, families]. word study 21 The Israelites [sons of Jacob, God’s chosen people] who had returned [come back, turned back] from exile [captivity, a state of being held captive] ate it, together with all [everything, every person] who had separated [set apart, divided] themselves from the uncleanness [impurity, sinful state] of the peoples [Gentiles, non-Hebrews] of the land [earth, territory] to seek [search for, ask] the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God], the God [Elohim, the supreme Being] of Israel [the descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen nation]. word study 22 For seven days they kept the Feast [festival, celebration] of Unleavened Bread [sweet bread made without yeast] with joy [gladness, happiness], because the LORD [Yehovah, the one true God] had made them joyful [rejoice, be glad] and turned the heart [inner being, emotions] of the king of Assyria [Asshur, the ancestor of the Assyrians] toward them to strengthen [give courage, empower] their hands [ability, power] in the work [labor, task] on the house [dwelling place, temple] of the God [Elohim, the supreme God] of Israel [the chosen people, descendants of Jacob]. word study