they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the clans and said to them, “Let us build with you, since we too worship your God; we have been offering sacrifices since the time of King Esarhaddon of Assyria, who brought us here.”
Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of the clans of Israel answered them, “It is not for you and us to build a House to our God, but we alone will build it to the ETERNAL God of Israel, in accord with the charge that the king, King Cyrus of Persia, laid upon us.”
Word-by-Word Analysis
ויאמר
257
להם
75
זרבבל
241
וישוע
392
ושאר
507
ראשי
511
האבות
414
לישראל
571
לאלכם
121
ולנו
92
לבנות
488
בית
412
לאלהינו
132
כי
30
אנחנו
115
יחד
22
נבנה
107
ליהוה
56
אלהי
46
ישראל
541
כאשר
521
צונו
152
המלך
95
כורש
526
מלךפרס
430
Ezra 4:4
Gematria: 2172
ויהיעםהארץמרפיםידיעםיהודהומבלהיםומבהליםאותםלבנות
Thereupon the people of the land undermined the resolve of the people of Judah, and made them afraid to build.
And in the time of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their colleagues wrote to King Artaxerxes of Persia, a letter written in Aramaic and translated.atranslated Cf. below v. 18 and note there. Aramaic:bAramaic: A note indicating that what follows is in the Aramaic language.
cThese verses amplify v. 8. (Then Rehum the commissioner and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues, the judges, officials, officers, and overseers, of [the peoples from] Erech, and Babylon, and Susa—that is the Elamites—
and other peoples whom the great and glorious Osnappar deported and settled in the city of Samaria and the rest of the province Beyond the River [wrote]—and now
this is the text of the letter that they sent to him:)—“To King Artaxerxes [from] your servants, the populace of the province Beyond the River. And now
be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have reached Jerusalem and are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city; they are completing the walls and repairing the foundation.
Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls completed, they will not pay tribute, poll-tax, or land-tax, and in the end it will harm the kingdom.
so that you may search the records of your ancestors and find in the records and know that this city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and states. Sedition has been rife in it from early times; on that account this city was destroyed.
The king sent back the following message: “To Rehum the commissioner and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues, who dwell in Samaria and in the rest of the province of Beyond the River, greetings. Now
Word-by-Word Analysis
פתגמא
524
שלח
338
מלכא
91
עלרחום
354
בעלטעם
221
ושמשי
656
ספרא
341
ושאר
507
כנותהון
537
די
14
יתבין
472
בשמרין
602
ושאר
507
עברנהרה
532
שלם
370
וכעתפ
576
Ezra 4:18
Gematria: 2860
נשתונאדישלחתוןעלינאמפרשקריקדמי
the letter that you wrote me has been read to me in translation.din translation From Aramaic to Persian.
At my order a search has been made, and it has been found that this city has from earliest times risen against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been rife in it.
Powerful kings have ruled over Jerusalem and exercised authority over the whole province of Beyond the River, and tribute, poll-tax, and land-tax were paid to them.
When the text of the letter of King Artaxerxes was read before Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their colleagues, they hurried to Jerusalem, to the Jews, and stopped them by main force.