Ezra 4:8

_REHUM THE CHANCELLOR AND SHIMSHAI THE SCRIBE WROTE A LETTER AGAINST JERUSALEM TO ARTAXERXES THE KING IN THIS SORT:_ Rehum the chancellor, х_ Bª`EEL_ (H1169) _ Tª`EEM_ (H2942), lord of judgment]. AND SHIMSHAI THE SCRIBE, х_ CAAPªRA'_ (H5613), secretary to the governor of a province]. ARTAXERXES, х_ 'ARTACHSHAST'_ (H783); Septuagint, Arthasastha] - Smerdis (Rosenmuller, in hoc loco. Jahn, 'Archaol.' 2:, 1, p. 244; Rawlinson's 'Bampton Lectures,' p. 455). The united reigns of Cambyses and Smerdis amounted in duration to a little above eight years. Hengstenberg ('Christology,' 3:, 203) maintains, in opposition to these, that Artachshasta denotes not Smerdis, but Artaxerxes in every other passage of the Bible (see Winer, 'Realworterbuch,' 'Ah

6-24 It is an old slander, that the prosperity of the church would be hurtful to kings and princes. Nothing can be more false, for true godliness teaches us to honour and obey our sovereign. But where the command of God requires one thing and the law of the land another, we must obey God rather than man, and patiently submit to the consequences. All who love the gospel should avoid all appearance of evil, lest they should encourage the adversaries of the church. The world is ever ready to believe any accusation against the people of God, and refuses to listen to them. The king suffered himself to be imposed upon by these frauds and falsehoods. Princes see and hear with other men's eyes and ears, and judge things as represented to them, which are often done falsely. But God's judgment is just; he sees things as they are....

Verse Ezra 4:8. _REHUM THE CHANCELLOR_] With this verse the _Chaldee_ part of the chapter begins; and the same language continues to the end of Ezra 6:18. These men wrote to Darius in their own language; and the king in the same dialect returns an answer, chap. v. This circumstance adds authenticity to what is written: so scrupulous was the inspired penman, that he not only gave the words which each spoke and wrote, but he gave them also in the very language in which they were conceived and in the _character_ peculiar to that language....

THE CHANCELLOR - literally, “Lord of judgment;” the title, apparently, of the Persian governor of the Samaritan province. Every Persian governor was accompanied to his province by a “royal scribe” or “secretary,” who had a separate and independent authority....

EXPOSITION EZRA 4:7 AND IN THE DAYS OF ARTAXERXES. See the comment on Ezra 4:6. If Artaxerxes be the Pseudo-Smerdis, we can readily understand why an application was not made to him at once, and how it came about that the Jews recommenced their building, as they appear from Ezra 4:12, Ezra 4:13 to have done. The Pseudo-Smerdis was a usurper; his reign was a time of partial anarchy; in a distant part of the empire it would not be known for a while who was king. Men would be thrown on themselves, and would do as it seemed good in their own eyes. Later, there may have been some doubt whether a king, who was known to be

REHUM THE CHANCELLOR, AND SHIMSHAI THE SCRIBE, WROTE A LETTER AGAINST JERUSALEM TO ARTAXERXES THE KING IN THIS SORT. This means the same letter as before; which, according to Jarchi, was sent in the name of Mithredath Tabeel and his company, was endited by Rehum, master of words or sense, and written by Shimshai the scribe, whom he makes to be a son of Haman i; but it was written rather in all their names. i So Midrash Esther, fol. 85. 3....

CHAPTER 4 _ 1. The offer of the Samaritans refused (Ezra 4:1)_ 2. The letter to King Artaxerxes (Ezra 4:7) 3. The king's reply (Ezra 4:17) 4. The work is stopped (Ezra 4:23) Ezra 4:1. The adversaries were the Samaritans. (There is an interesting correspondence with the book of Acts. After the Spirit of God had begun His blessed work, the enemy from without and then within started his hindering work.) They had watched silently the work of restoration and then appeared before Zerubbabel and the chief of the fathers and said unto them, “Let us build

EZRA 4:8 TO EZRA 6:18. EXTRACT FROM AN ARAMAIC DOCUMENT. Ezra 4:8 contains a letter, together with the king's reply to it, written by adversaries of the Jews to Artaxerxes for the purpose of frustrating the _building of the city walls._ The writers are different from those mentioned in Ezra 4:7 as writing to Artaxerxes; two letters are, therefore spoken of, so that what is said in Ezra 4:7 cannot be in reference to the letter now dealt with. Moreover, this letter has nothing to do with the events recorded in Ezra

REHUM. From here to Ezra 6:18 is in Syriac, which was like the French of today. Compare 2 Kings 18:26. From Ezra 6:19 -- Ezra 7:11 is Hebrew; and Syriac again from Ezra 7:12. then Hebrew. THE CHANCELLOR. the master of judgments or decrees. THE SCRIBE: or secretary. IN THIS SORT. after this manner....

Note on Ezra 4:7-23 The names of the Persian kings which occur in this chapter occasion special difficulty. Upon their right identification necessarily depends our understanding of the whole passage. (_a_) The Persian kings succeed one another in the following order: (1) Cyrus (died, 529); (2) Cambyses, 529 522; (3) Gomates or Pseudo-Smerdis, 522; (4) Darius Hystaspes, 522 485; (5) Xerxes, 485 465; (6) Artaxerxes I. Longimanus, 465 425; (7, 8) Xerxes II. and Sogdianus; (9) Darius II. Nothus, 424 395, &c. (_b_) In chap. Ezra 4:5 we learn that the work of building the Temple was frustrated by the Samaritans "all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia." Again in Ezra 4:24 (th