EZRA 5:1 The Work Is Resumed, and Local Officials Seek Confirmation of Cyrus’s Decree. After a period of inactivity, the leaders resume work on rebuilding the temple, and provincial officials inquire into its legitimacy. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=im... [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:3 The officials TATTENAI and SHETHAR-BOZENAI are much more neutral than the officials in Ezra 4:8. Clearly they have no knowledge of Cyrus’s decree, probably because the work had long been stopped. They are interested only in the proper authorization of this work. They do not int... [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:6 Verse Ezra 5:6 introduces the COPY OF THE LETTER sent by TATTENAI and SHETHAR-BOZENAI to DARIUS, and vv. Ezra 5:8 recite the letter itself. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img") [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:8 The PROVINCE OF JUDAH lay within the Persian province Beyond the River (see also note on 2:69). Tattenai (Ezra 5:6) served as governor of the province, in Samaria. THE HOUSE OF THE GREAT GOD is a diplomatic way of referring to the temple and the God of Israel. It does not imply... [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:11 The letter writers probably got their information from the returned exiles themselves, since it reflects their understanding of the situation. Instead of giving their actual names when asked, the returned exiles say, WE ARE THE SERVANTS OF THE GOD OF HEAVEN AND EARTH. That is,... [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:12 This verse sums up the message of 1–2 Kings. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:13 These verses repeat information given in Ezra 1:2. The text stops short of claiming that Cyrus had also commanded that the rebuilding be funded by donations from places in Babylon where the exiles lived (see note on 1:3–4). This was perhaps more than Tattenai or even the exile... [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:14 SHESHBAZZAR was one of the early leaders of the returning exiles (see Ezra 1:8). Here he is called GOVERNOR, a name applied to Tattenai himself in Ezra 5:3. The term could be used loosely, since Judah would not have had a “governor” on a par with the governor of the entire pro... [ Continue Reading ]
EZRA—NOTE ON EZRA 5:16 IT HAS BEEN IN BUILDING. The period when building had stopped was irrelevant both to the information Tattenai was giving and the request he was making. Tattenai, following the Jews’ own account, wants to link the original authorization and the present building activity. So he... [ Continue Reading ]