Chapter Six

1-2. Renewal of the building of the temple. 3-6. The involvement of the governor of Syria Sisinni. 7-22. The text of the letter sent by him to King Darius. 23-34. The reply of Darius.

1 Esdras 6:1. In the second year of the reign of Darius the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Addo prophesied to the Judeans who were in Judea and Jerusalem, in the name of the Lord God of Israel. 1. Chapter 6 presents an account of chapters 5-7 of the book of Ezra.—Zechariah son of Addo. According to Zechariah 1:1, 7, the prophet was the son of Berechiah and grandson or descendant of Iddo (see Nehemiah 12:16, 4).

1 Esdras 6:2. Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak arose and began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, in the presence of the prophets of the Lord who helped them. 1 Esdras 6:3. At that time Sisinni the governor of Syria and Phoenicia appeared to them, along with Shathruzanai and his colleagues, and said to them: 1 Esdras 6:4. By whose permission do you build this house and complete this work and all these other things? And who are the builders accomplishing this? 4. The name of the governor of Syria and Phoenicia who sent a report to the king about the Judeans was according to Ezra 5 Tattenai. According to some interpreters, this name sounded like Shammai in Greek pronunciation, from which Sisinni arose. Shathruzanai: according to Ezra 5 Shethar-Bozenai.

1 Esdras 6:5. But the elders of the Judeans received mercy from the Lord, who had regard for their captivity, 1 Esdras 6:6. and they were not forbidden to build, until a report should be made to Darius about them, and an answer should be received. 1 Esdras 6:7. Here is a copy of the letter which Sisinni sent and which was sent to Darius: Sisinni the governor of Syria and Phoenicia, and Shathruzanai and his colleagues, the commanders in Syria and Phoenicia, greetings to King Darius. 1 Esdras 6:8. Let all this be known to our lord the king: we came into the province of Judea and entered the city of Jerusalem and found the returned elders of the Judeans in the city of Jerusalem, 1 Esdras 6:9. who were building a new great house for the Lord out of costly hewn stones, laying beams in the walls; 1 Esdras 6:10. and this work is being pursued with zeal, and the work is progressing favorably in their hands and is being completed with great magnificence and care. 1 Esdras 6:11. Then we asked these elders, saying: By whose permission are you building this house and doing this work? 1 Esdras 6:12. So we asked them to inform you and to write to you the names of their leaders, and we requested from them a written list of the leaders. 1 Esdras 6:13. They answered us saying: We are servants of the Lord who made the heaven and the earth. 1 Esdras 6:14. And this house was built many years ago by a mighty and great king of Israel, and it was completed. 1 Esdras 6:15. But because our fathers sinned against the heavenly Lord of Israel, he handed them over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of the Chaldeans. 1 Esdras 6:16. They destroyed this house and burned it, and the people were taken captive into Babylon. 1 Esdras 6:17. But in the first year of the reign of Cyrus over the land of Babylon, King Cyrus commanded this house to be built. 1 Esdras 6:18. And the sacred vessels, golden and silver, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and placed in his temple, King Cyrus took them out from the temple of Babylon and gave them to Prince Sheshbazzar Zerubbabel. 1 Esdras 6:19. And he commanded him to take all these vessels and place them in the temple in Jerusalem and to build the temple of the Lord at his place. 1 Esdras 6:20. Then Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundation of the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, and from that time to the present it has been under construction and has not been completed. 1 Esdras 6:21. Now therefore, O king, if it pleases you, let a search be made in the royal archives of Cyrus, 1 Esdras 6:22. and if it is found that the building of the house of the Lord in Jerusalem was done by order of King Cyrus, and if it pleases our lord the king, let him send us word. 1 Esdras 6:23. Then King Darius commanded a search in the record office located in Babylon, and a record was found in Ecbatana, the city in the Median province, in which it was written: 1 Esdras 6:24. In the first year of the reign of Cyrus, King Cyrus commanded the house of the Lord in Jerusalem to be built, where they offer sacrifices on a perpetual fire. 1 Esdras 6:25. The height of the temple shall be sixty cubits, and its width shall be sixty cubits, with three stories of hewn stone and one story of new timber from the country, and the expenses shall be paid from the treasury of King Cyrus. 1 Esdras 6:26. And the sacred vessels of the house of the Lord, golden and silver, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the house in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, are to be restored to the house in Jerusalem and placed in their appointed place. 1 Esdras 6:27. And I have commanded Sisinni the governor of Syria and Phoenicia and Shathruzanai and his colleagues and the appointed officials in Syria and Phoenicia to keep away from this place and to leave the servant of the Lord Zerubbabel the prince of Judea and the elders of the Judeans to build this house of the Lord at its place. 27. In 1 Esdras 6:6 the decree of Darius begins. The author of 2 Esdras attributes this to Cyrus, which creates a contradiction: Sisinni lives in the time of Darius and receives his command from Cyrus.

1 Esdras 6:28. I have commanded to rebuild it completely and to see to it that full aid is given to those who have returned from the captivity of Judea for the complete building of the house of the Lord. 1 Esdras 6:29. And that from the taxes of Coele-Syria and Phoenicia a portion be given to these men without hindrance for sacrifices to the Lord, to the prince Zerubbabel, for bulls and rams and lambs. 1 Esdras 6:30. In like manner also, so that grain, salt, wine, and oil may continually be given year by year without any hindrance, as the priests in Jerusalem may request, as needed for each day; 1 Esdras 6:31. so that they may bring offerings to the Most High God for the king and his children and pray for their lives. 1 Esdras 6:32. And let it be made known that whoever violates or changes anything written here shall have timber taken from his own property and be hanged upon it, and his property shall be forfeited to the king. 1 Esdras 6:33. May the Lord, whose name is invoked there, destroy every king and people who shall stretch out their hand to hinder or damage this house of the Lord in Jerusalem. 1 Esdras 6:34. I, King Darius, have determined that this be done with precision.