CHAPTER 4
1 And the enemies of Judah and of Benjamin heard, that the sons of captivity builded a temple to the Lord God of Israel;
2 and they came to Zerubbabel, and to the princes of fathers, and said to them, Build we with you, for so as ye do, we seek your God; lo! we have offered sacrifices from the days of Esar-haddon, king of Assur, that brought us hither into this land.
3 And Zerubbabel, and Joshua, and the other princes of the fathers of Israel, said to them, It is not to us and to you, that we build an house to our God; but we us-selves alone shall build an house to the Lord our God, as Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.
4 And it was done, that the people of the land hindered the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building.
5 And they hired counsellors against the Jews, that they should destroy the counsel, or purpose, of the Jews, in all the days of Cyrus, king of Persia, and unto the realm of Darius, king of Persia.
6 And in the realm of Ahasuerus, he is called Artaxerxes, in the beginning of his realm, they writed accusing against the dwellers of Judah and of Jerusalem;
7 and in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam wrote, and Mithredath, and Tabeel, and others, that were in the counsel of them, to Artaxerxes, king of Persia. And the epistle of accusing was written in the language of Syria, and it was read in the word of Syria.
8 Rehum, B’el T’em, and Shimshai, the scribe, wrote such an epistle from Jerusalem to king Artaxerxes, [on this manner];
9 Rehum, B’el T’em, and Shimshai, the scribe, and [the] other counsellors of them, Dinaites, Apharsathchites, and Tarpelites, Apharistes, Archevites, men of Babylon, Susanchites, Dehavites, men of Elam,
10 and others of heathen men, which the great and glorious Asnapper translated or brought over, and made them to dwell in the cities of Samaria, and in other countries beyond the flood, in peace.
11 This is the exemplar of the epistle, that they sent to the king. To Artaxerxes, king, thy servants, men beyond the flood, say health to thee.
12 Be it known to the king, that the Jews, which went up from thee, be come to us in Jerusalem, a rebel and full evil city, which they build, and they make the ground walls thereof, and they array the walls above.
13 Now therefore be it known to the king, that if that city be builded, and the walls thereof be restored, they shall not give tribute, and toll, and annual rents, and this trespass, or harm, shall come to the king.
14 Therefore we be mindful of the salt, that is, of meats made savory with salt, that we ate in thy palace, and for we held it unleaveful to see the harms of the king, therefore we have sent and told to the king;
15 that thou account and seek in the books of [the] stories of thy fathers, and thou shalt find written in chronicles, and thou shalt know, that that city Jerusalem is a rebel city, and that it annoyeth kings and provinces, and that battles be raised therein of eld [or old] days; wherefore also that city was destroyed.
16 We tell to the king, that if that city be builded, and the walls thereof be restored, thou shalt not have possession beyond the flood.
17 The king sent word to Rehum, B’el T’em, and to Shimshai, the scribe, and to others that were in the counsel of them, to the dwellers of Samaria, and to others beyond the flood, and said, Health and peace.
18 The accusing, which ye sent to us, was read openly before me;
19 and it was commanded of me, and they reckoned, and they found, that that city rebelleth of eld [or old] days against kings, and dissensions and battles be raised therein;
20 for why there were in Jerusalem full strong kings, which also were lords of all the country that is beyond the flood; also those kings took tribute, and toll, and rents.
21 Now therefore hear ye the sentence, that ye forbid those men to build, and that that city be not builded, till if peradventure it be commanded of me.
22 See ye, that this behest be not fulfilled negligently, and evil increase little and little against kings.
23 Therefore the exemplar of the commandment of king Artaxerxes was read before Rehum, B’el T’em, and Shimshai, the scribe, and their counsellors; and they went in haste into Jerusalem to the Jews, and they forbade them to build, with arm and might.
24 Then the work of God’s house in Jerusalem was left [off], and it was not made till to the second year of the realm of Darius, king of Persia.