1 Esdras
1Esdr.1
1 Josiah kept the passover to his Lord in Jerusalem; he killed the passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the first month,
2 having placed the priests according to their divisions, arrayed in their garments, in the temple of the Lord.
3 And he told the Levites, the temple servants of Israel, that they should sanctify themselves to the Lord and put the holy ark of the Lord in the house which Solomon the king, the son of David, had built;
4 and he said, "You need no longer carry it upon your shoulders. Now worship the Lord your God and serve his people Israel; and prepare yourselves by your families and kindred,
5 in accordance with the directions of David king of Israel and the magnificence of Solomon his son. Stand in order in the temple according to the groupings of the fathers' houses of you Levites, who minister before your brethren the people of Israel,
6 and kill the passover lamb and prepare the sacrifices for your brethren, and keep the passover according to the commandment of the Lord which was given to Moses."
7 And Josiah gave to the people who were present thirty thousand lambs and kids, and three thousand calves; these were given from the king's possessions, as he promised, to the people and the priests and Levites.
8 And Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, the chief officers of the temple, gave to the priests for the passover two thousand six hundred sheep and three hundred calves.
9 And Jeconiah and Shemaiah and Nethanel his brother, and Hashabiah and Ochiel and Joram, captains over thousands, gave the Levites for the passover five thousand sheep and seven hundred calves.
10 And this is what took place. The priests and the Levites, properly arrayed and having the unleavened bread, stood according to kindred
11 and the grouping of the fathers' houses, before the people, to make the offering to the Lord as it is written in the book of Moses; this they did in the morning.
12 They roasted the passover lamb with fire, as required; and they boiled the sacrifices in brass pots and caldrons, with a pleasing odor,
13 and carried them to all the people. Afterward they prepared the passover for themselves and for their brethren the priests, the sons of Aaron,
14 because the priests were offering the fat until night; so the Levites prepared it for themselves and for their brethren the priests, the sons of Aaron.
15 And the temple singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their place according to the arrangement made by David, and also Asaph, Zechariah, and Eddinus, who represented the king.
16 The gatekeepers were at each gate; no one needed to depart from his duties, for their brethren the Levites prepared the passover for them.
17 So the things that had to do with the sacrifices to the Lord were accomplished that day: the passover was kept
18 and the sacrifices were offered on the altar of the Lord, according to the command of King Josiah.
19 And the people of Israel who were present at that time kept the passover and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.
20 No passover like it had been kept in Israel since the times of Samuel the prophet;
21 none of the kings of Israel had kept such a passover as was kept by Josiah and the priests and Levites and the men of Judah and all of Israel who were dwelling in Jerusalem.
22 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah this passover was kept.
23 And the deeds of Josiah were upright in the sight of the Lord, for his heart was full of godliness.
24 The events of his reign have been recorded in the past, concerning those who sinned and acted wickedly toward the Lord beyond any other people or kingdom, and how they grieved the Lord deeply, so that the words of the Lord rose up against Israel.
25 After all these acts of Josiah, it happened that Pharaoh, king of Egypt, went to make war at Carchemish on the Euphrates, and Josiah went out against him.
26 And the king of Egypt sent word to him saying, "What have we to do with each other, king of Judea?
27 I was not sent against you by the Lord God, for my war is at the Euphrates. And now the Lord is with me! The Lord is with me, urging me on! Stand aside, and do not oppose the Lord."
28 But Josiah did not turn back to his chariot, but tried to fight with him, and did not heed the words of Jeremiah the prophet from the mouth of the Lord.
29 He joined battle with him in the plain of Megiddo, and the commanders came down against King Josiah.
30 And the king said to his servants, "Take me away from the battle, for I am very weak." And immediately his servants took him out of the line of battle.
31 And he got into his second chariot; and after he was brought back to Jerusalem he died, and was buried in the tomb of his fathers.
32 And in all Judea they mourned for Josiah. Jeremiah the prophet lamented for Josiah, and the principal men, with the women, have made lamentation for him to this day; it was ordained that this should always be done throughout the whole nation of Israel.
33 These things are written in the book of the histories of the kings of Judea; and every one of the acts of Josiah, and his splendor, and his understanding of the law of the Lord, and the things that he had done before and these that are now told, are recorded in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
34 And the men of the nation took Jeconiah the son of Josiah, who was twenty-three years old, and made him king in succession to Josiah his father.
35 And he reigned three months in Judah and Jerusalem. Then the king of Egypt deposed him from reigning in Jerusalem,
36 and fined the nation a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
37 And the king of Egypt made Jehoiakim his brother king of Judea and Jerusalem.
38 Jehoiakim put the nobles in prison, and seized his brother Zarius and brought him up out of Egypt.
39 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign in Judea and Jerusalem, and he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
40 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against him, and bound him with a chain of brass and took him away to Babylon.
41 Nebuchadnezzar also took some holy vessels of the Lord, and carried them away, and stored them in his temple in Babylon.
42 But the things that are reported about Jehoiakim and his uncleanness and impiety are written in the chronicles of the kings.
43 Jehoiachin his son became king in his stead; when he was made king he was eighteen years old,
44 and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
45 So after a year Nebuchadnezzar sent and removed him to Babylon, with the holy vessels of the Lord,
46 and made Zedekiah king of Judea and Jerusalem.
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old, and he reigned eleven years.
47 He also did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not heed the words that were spoken by Jeremiah the prophet from the mouth of the Lord.
48 And though King Nebuchadnezzar had made him swear by the name of the Lord, he broke his oath and rebelled; and he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart and transgressed the laws of the Lord, the God of Israel.
49 Even the leaders of the people and of the priests committed many acts of sacrilege and lawlessness beyond all the unclean deeds of all the nations, and polluted the temple of the Lord which had been hallowed in Jerusalem.
50 So the God of their fathers sent by his messenger to call them back, because he would have spared them and his dwelling place.
51 But they mocked his messengers, and whenever the Lord spoke, they scoffed at his prophets,
52 until in his anger against his people because of their ungodly acts he gave command to bring against them the kings of the Chaldeans.
53 These slew their young men with the sword around their holy temple, and did not spare young man or virgin, old man or child, for he gave them all into their hands.
54 And all the holy vessels of the Lord, great and small, and the treasure chests of the Lord, and the royal stores, they took and carried away to Babylon.
55 And they burned the house of the Lord and broke down the walls of Jerusalem and burned their towers with fire,
56 and utterly destroyed all its glorious things. The survivors he led away to Babylon with the sword,
57 and they were servants to him and to his sons until the Persians began to reign, in fulfilment of the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah:
58 "Until the land has enjoyed its sabbaths, it shall keep sabbath all the time of its desolation until the completion of seventy years."
1Esdr.2
1 In the first year of Cyrus as king of the Persians, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished,
2 the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of the Persians, and he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:
3 "Thus says Cyrus king of the Persians: The Lord of Israel, the Lord Most High, has made me king of the world,
4 and he has commanded me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judea.
5 If any one of you, therefore, is of his people, may his Lord be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judea, and build the house of the Lord of Israel -- he is the Lord who dwells in Jerusalem,
6 and let each man, wherever he may live, be helped by the men of his place with gold and silver,
7 with gifts and with horses and cattle, besides the other things added as votive offerings for the temple of the Lord which is in Jerusalem."
8 Then arose the heads of families of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, and all whose spirit the Lord had stirred to go up to build the house in Jerusalem for the Lord;
9 and their neighbors helped them with everything, with silver and gold, with horses and cattle, and with a very great number of votive offerings from many whose hearts were stirred.
10 Cyrus the king also brought out the holy vessels of the Lord which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and stored in his temple of idols.
11 When Cyrus king of the Perians brought these out, he gave them to Mithridates his treasurer,
12 and by him they were given to Sheshbazzar the governor of Judea.
13 The number of these was: a thousand gold cups, a thousand silver cups, twenty-nine silver censers, thirty gold bowls, two thousand four hundred and ten silver bowls, and a thousand other vessels.
14 All the vessels were handed over, gold and silver, five thousand four hundred and sixty-nine,
15 and they were carried back by Sheshbazzar with the returning exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem.
16 But in the time of Artaxerxes king of the Persians, Bishlam, Mithridates, Tabeel, Rehum, Beltethmus, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates, living in Samaria and other places, wrote him the following letter, against those who were living in Judea and Jerusalem:
17 "To King Artaxerxes our lord, Your servants Rehum the recorder and Shimshai the scribe and the other judges of their council in Coelesyria and Phoenicia:
18 Now be it known to our lord the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem and are building that rebellious and wicked city, repairing its market places and walls and laying the foundations for a temple.
19 Now if this city is built and the walls finished, they will not only refuse to pay tribute but will even resist kings.
20 And since the building of the temple is now going on, we think it best not to neglect such a matter,
21 but to speak to our lord the king, in order that, if it seems good to you, search may be made in the records of your fathers.
22 You will find in the chronicles what has been written about them, and will learn that this city was rebellious, troubling both kings and other cities,
23 and that the Jews were rebels and kept setting up blockades in it from of old. That is why this city was laid waste.
24 Therefore we now make known to you, O lord and king, that if this city is built and its walls finished, you will no longer have access to Coelesyria and Phoenicia."
25 Then the king, in reply to Rehum the recorder and Beltethmus and Shimshai the scribe and the others associated with them and living in Samaria and Syria and Phoenicia, wrote as follows:
26 "I have read the letter which you sent me. So I ordered search to be made, and it has been found that this city from of old has fought against kings,
27 and that the men in it were given to rebellion and war, and that mighty and cruel kings ruled in Jerusalem and exacted tribute from Coelesyria and Phoenicia.
28 Therefore I have now issued orders to prevent these men from building the city and to take care that nothing more be done
29 and that such wicked proceedings go no further to the annoyance of kings."
30 Then, when the letter from King Artaxerxes was read, Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their associates went in haste to Jerusalem, with horsemen and a multitude in battle array, and began to hinder the builders. And the building of the temple in Jerusalem ceased until the second year of the reign of Darius king of the Persians.
1Esdr.3
1 Now King Darius gave a great banquet for all that were under him and all that were born in his house and all the nobles of Media and Persia
2 and all the satraps and generals and governors that were under him in the hundred and twenty-seven satrapies from India to Ethiopia.
3 They ate and drank, and when they were satisfied they departed; and Darius the king went to his bedroom, and went to sleep, and then awoke.
4 Then the three young men of the bodyguard, who kept guard over the person of the king, said to one another,
5 "Let each of us state what one thing is strongest; and to him whose statement seems wisest, Darius the king will give rich gifts and great honors of victory.
6 He shall be clothed in purple, and drink from gold cups, and sleep on a gold bed, and have a chariot with gold bridles, and a turban of fine linen, and a necklace about his neck;
7 and because of his wisdom he shall sit next to Darius and shall be called kinsman of Darius."
8 Then each wrote his own statement, and they sealed them and put them under the pillow of Darius the king,
9 and said, "When the king wakes, they will give him the writing; and to the one whose statement the king and the three nobles of Persia judge to be wisest the victory shall be given according to what is written."
10 The first wrote, "Wine is strongest."
11 The second wrote, "The king is strongest."
12 The third wrote, "Women are strongest, but truth is victor over all things."
13 When the king awoke, they took the writing and gave it to him, and he read it.
14 Then he sent and summoned all the nobles of Persia and Media and the satraps and generals and governors and prefects,
15 and he took his seat in the council chamber, and the writing was read in their presence.
16 And he said, "Call the young men, and they shall explain their statements." So they were summoned, and came in.
17 And they said to them, "Explain to us what you have written."
Then the first, who had spoken of the strength of wine, began and said:
18 "Gentlemen, how is wine the strongest? It leads astray the minds of all who drink it.
19 It makes equal the mind of the king and the orphan, of the slave and the free, of the poor and the rich.
20 It turns every thought to feasting and mirth, and forgets all sorrow and debt.
21 It makes all hearts feel rich, forgets kings and satraps, and makes every one talk in millions.
22 When men drink they forget to be friendly with friends and brothers, and before long they draw their swords.
23 And when they recover from the wine, they do not remember what they have done.
24 Gentlemen, is not wine the strongest, since it forces men to do these things?" When he had said this, he stopped speaking.
1Esdr.4
1 Then the second, who had spoken of the strength of the king, began to speak:
2 "Gentlemen, are not men strongest, who rule over land and sea and all that is in them?
3 But the king is stronger; he is their lord and master, and whatever he says to them they obey.
4 If he tells them to make war on one another, they do it; and if he sends them out against the enemy, they go, and conquer mountains, walls, and towers.
5 They kill and are killed, and do not disobey the king's command; if they win the victory, they bring everything to the king -- whatever spoil they take and everything else.
6 Likewise those who do not serve in the army or make war but till the soil, whenever they sow, reap the harvest and bring some to the king; and they compel one another to pay taxes to the king.
7 And yet he is only one man! If he tells them to kill, they kill; if he tells them to release, they release;
8 if he tells them to attack, they attack; if he tells them to lay waste, they lay waste; if he tells them to build, they build;
9 if he tells them to cut down, they cut down; if he tells them to plant, they plant.
10 All his people and his armies obey him. Moreover, he reclines, he eats and drinks and sleeps,
11 but they keep watch around him and no one may go away to attend to his own affairs, nor do they disobey him.
12 Gentlemen, why is not the king the strongest, since he is to be obeyed in this fashion?" And he stopped speaking.
13 Then the third, that is Zerubbabel, who had spoken of women and truth, began to speak:
14 Gentlemen, is not the king great, and are not men many, and is not wine strong? Who then is their master, or who is their lord? Is it not women?
15 Women gave birth to the king and to every people that rules over sea and land.
16 From women they came; and women brought up the very men who plant the vineyards from which comes wine.
17 Women make men's clothes; they bring men glory; men cannot exist without women.
18 If men gather gold and silver or any other beautiful thing, and then see a woman lovely in appearance and beauty,
19 they let all those things go, and gape at her, and with open mouths stare at her, and all prefer her to gold or silver or any other beautiful thing.
20 A man leaves his own father, who brought him up, and his own country, and cleaves to his wife.
21 With his wife he ends his days, with no thought of his father or his mother or his country.
22 Hence you must realize that women rule over you!
"Do you not labor and toil, and bring everything and give it to women?
23 A man takes his sword, and goes out to travel and rob and steal and to sail the sea and rivers;
24 he faces lions, and he walks in darkness, and when he steals and robs and plunders, he brings it back to the woman he loves.
25 A man loves his wife more than his father or his mother.
26 Many men have lost their minds because of women, and have become slaves because of them.
27 Many have perished, or stumbled, or sinned, because of women.
28 And now do you not believe me?
"Is not the king great in his power? Do not all lands fear to touch him?
29 Yet I have seen him with Apame, the king's concubine, the daughter of the illustrious Bartacus; she would sit at the king's right hand
30 and take the crown from the king's head and put it on her own, and slap the king with her left hand.
31 At this the king would gaze at her with mouth agape. If she smiles at him, he laughs; if she loses her temper with him, he flatters her, that she may be reconciled to him.
32 Gentlemen, why are not women strong, since they do such things?"
33 Then the king and the nobles looked at one another; and he began to speak about truth:
34 "Gentlemen, are not women strong? The earth is vast, and heaven is high, and the sun is swift in its course, for it makes the circuit of the heavens and returns to its place in one day.
35 Is he not great who does these things? But truth is great, and stronger than all things.
36 The whole earth calls upon truth, and heaven blesses her. All God's works quake and tremble, and with him there is nothing unrighteous.
37 Wine is unrighteous, the king is unrighteous, women are unrighteous, all the sons of men are unrighteous, all their works are unrighteous, and all such things. There is no truth in them and in their unrighteousness they will perish.
38 But truth endures and is strong for ever, and lives and prevails for ever and ever.
39 With her there is no partiality or preference, but she does what is righteous instead of anything that is unrighteous or wicked. All men approve her deeds,
40 and there is nothing unrighteous in her judgment. To her belongs the strength and the kingship and the power and the majesty of all the ages. Blessed be the God of truth!"
41 He ceased speaking; then all the people shouted, and said, "Great is truth, and strongest of all!"
42 Then the king said to him, "Ask what you wish, even beyond what is written, and we will give it to you, for you have been found to be the wisest. And you shall sit next to me, and be called my kinsman."
43 Then he said to the king, "Remember the vow which you made to build Jerusalem, in the day when you became king,
44 and to send back all the vessels that were taken from Jerusalem, which Cyrus set apart when he began to destroy Babylon, and vowed to send them back there.
45 You also vowed to build the temple, which the Edomites burned when Judea was laid waste by the Chaldeans.
46 And now, O lord the king, this is what I ask and request of you, and this befits your greatness. I pray therefore that you fulfil the vow whose fulfilment you vowed to the King of heaven with your own lips."
47 Then Darius the king rose, and kissed him, and wrote letters for him to all the treasurers and governors and generals and satraps, that they should give escort to him and all who were going up with him to build Jerusalem.
48 And he wrote letters to all the governors in Coelesyria and Phoenicia and to those in Lebanon, to bring cedar timber from Lebanon to Jerusalem, and to help him build the city.
49 And he wrote for all the Jews who were going up from his kingdom to Judea, in the interest of their freedom, that no officer or satrap or governor or treasurer should forcibly enter their doors;
50 that all the country which they would occupy should be theirs without tribute; that the Idumeans should give up the villages of the Jews which they held;
51 that twenty talents a year should be given for the building of the temple until it was completed,
52 and an additional ten talents a year for burnt offerings to be offered on the altar every day, in accordance with the commandment to make seventeen offerings;
53 and that all who came from Babylonia to build the city should have their freedom, they and their children and all the priests who came.
54 He wrote also concerning their support and the priests' garments in which they were to minister.
55 He wrote that the support for the Levites should be provided until the day when the temple should be finished and Jerusalem built.
56 He wrote that land and wages should be provided for all who guarded the city.
57 And he sent back from Babylon all the vessels which Cyrus had set apart; everything that Cyrus had ordered to be done, he also commanded to be done and to be sent to Jerusalem.
58 When the young man went out, he lifted up his face to heaven toward Jerusalem, and praised the King of heaven, saying,
59 "From thee is the victory; from thee is wisdom, and thine is the glory. I am thy servant.
60 Blessed art thou, who hast given me wisdom; I give thee thanks, O Lord of our fathers."
61 So he took the letters, and went to Babylon and told this to all his brethren.
62 And they praised the God of their fathers, because he had given them release and permission
63 to go up and build Jerusalem and the temple which is called by his name; and they feasted, with music and rejoicing, for seven days.
1Esdr.5
1 After this the heads of fathers' houses were chosen to go up, according to their tribes, with their wives and sons and daughters, and their menservants and maidservants, and their cattle.
2 And Darius sent with them a thousand horsemen to take them back to Jerusalem in safety, with the music of drums and flutes;
3 and all their brethren were making merry. And he made them go up with them.
4 These are the names of the men who went up, according to their fathers' houses in the tribes, over their groups:
5 the priests, the sons of Phinehas, son of Aaron; Jeshua the son of Jozadak, son of Seraiah, and Joakim the son of Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, of the house of David, of the lineage of Phares, of the tribe of Judah,
6 who spoke wise words before Darius the king of the Persians, in the second year of his reign, in the month of Nisan, the first month.
7 These are the men of Judea who came up out of their sojourn in captivity, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon
8 and who returned to Jerusalem and the rest of Judea, each to his own town. They came with Zerubbabel and Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Resaiah, Bigvai, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Reeliah, Rehum, and Baanah, their leaders.
9 The number of the men of the nation and their leaders: the sons of Parosh, two thousand one hundred and seventy-two. The sons of Shephatiah, four hundred and seventy-two.
10 The sons of Arah, seven hundred and fifty-six.
11 The sons of Pahathmoab, of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and twelve.
12 The sons of Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four. The sons of Zattu, nine hundred and forty-five. The sons of Chorbe, seven hundred and five. The sons of Bani, six hundred and forty-eight.
13 The sons of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-three. The sons of Azgad, one thousand three hundred and twenty-two.
14 The sons of Adonikam, six hundred and sixty-seven. The sons of Bigvai, two thousand and sixty-six. The sons of Adin, four hundred and fifty-four.
15 The sons of Ater, namely of Hezekiah, ninety-two. The sons of Kilan and Azetas, sixty-seven. The sons of Azaru, four hundred and thirty-two.
16 The sons of Annias, one hundred and one. The sons of Arom. The sons of Bezai, three hundred and twenty-three. The sons of Jorah, one hundred and twelve.
17 The sons of Baiterus, three thousand and five. The sons of Bethlehem, one hundred and twenty-three.
18 The men of Netophah, fifty-five. The men of Anathoth, one hundred and fifty-eight. The men of Bethasmoth, forty-two.
19 The men of Kiriatharim, twenty-five. The men of Chephirah and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty-three.
20 The Chadiasans and Ammidians, four hundred and twenty-two. The men of Ramah and Geba, six hundred and twenty-one.
21 The men of Michmas, one hundred and twenty-two. The men of Bethel, fifty-two. The sons of Magbish, one hundred and fifty-six.
22 The sons of the other Elam and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-five. The sons of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five.
23 The sons of Senaah, three thousand three hundred and thirty.
24 The priests: the sons of Jedaiah the son of Jeshua, of the sons of Anasib, nine hundred and seventy-two. The sons of Immer, one thousand and fifty-two.
25 The sons of Pashhur, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven. The sons of Harim, one thousand and seventeen.
The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel and Bannas and Sudias, seventy-four.
27 The temple singers: the sons of Asaph, one hundred and twenty-eight.
28 The gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai, in all one hundred and thirty-nine.
29 The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth, the sons of Keros, the sons of Siaha, the sons of Padon, the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah,
30 the sons of Akkub, the sons of Uthai, the sons of Ketab, the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shamlai, the sons of Hana, the sons of Cathua, the sons of Gahar,
31 The sons of Reaiah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Chezib, the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Hasrah, the sons of Besai, the sons of Asnah, the sons of the Meunites, the sons of Nephisim, the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Asur, the sons of Pharakim, the sons of Bazluth,
32 the sons of Mehida, the sons of Cutha, the sons of Charea, the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah, the sons of Neziah, the sons of Hatipha.
33 The sons of Solomon's servants: the sons of Hassophereth, the sons of Peruda, the sons of Jaalah, the sons of Lozon, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Shephatiah,
34 the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth-hazzebaim, the sons of Sarothie, the sons of Masiah, the sons of Gas, the sons of Addus, the sons of Subas, the sons of Apherra, the sons of Barodis, the sons of Shaphat, the sons of Ami.
35 All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon's servants were three hundred and seventy-two.
36 The following are those who came up from Telmelah and Telharsha, under the leadership of Cherub, Addan, and Immer,
37 though they could not prove by their fathers' houses or lineage that they belonged to Israel: the sons of Delaiah the son of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, six hundred and fifty-two.
38 Of the priests the following had assumed the priesthood but were not found registered: the sons of Habaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of Jaddus who had married Agia, one of the daughters of Barzillai, and was called by his name.
39 And when the genealogy of these men was sought in the register and was not found, they were excluded from serving as priests.
40 And Nehemiah and Attharias told them not to share in the holy things until a high priest should appear wearing Urim and Thummim.
41 All those of Israel, twelve or more years of age, besides menservants and maidservants, were forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty;
42 their menservants and maidservants were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; there were two hundred and forty-five musicians and singers.
43 There were four hundred and thirty-five camels, and seven thousand and thirty-six horses, two hundred and forty-five mules, and five thousand five hundred and twenty-five asses.
44 Some of the heads of families, when they came to the temple of God which is in Jerusalem, vowed that they would erect the house on its site, to the best of their ability,
45 and that they would give to the sacred treasury for the work a thousand minas of gold, five thousand minas of silver, and one hundred priests' garments.
46 The priests, the Levites, and some of the people settled in Jerusalem and its vicinity; and the temple singers, the gatekeepers, and all Israel in their towns.
47 When the seventh month came, and the sons of Israel were each in his own home, they gathered as one man in the square before the first gate toward the east.
48 Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak, with his fellow priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, with his kinsmen, took their places and prepared the altar of the God of Israel,
49 to offer burnt offerings upon it, in accordance with the directions in the book of Moses the man of God.
50 And some joined them from the other peoples of the land. And they erected the altar in its place, for all the peoples of the land were hostile to them and were stronger than they; and they offered sacrifices at the proper times and burnt offerings to the Lord morning and evening.
51 They kept the feast of booths, as it is commanded in the law, and offered the proper sacrifices every day,
52 and thereafter the continual offerings and sacrifices on sabbaths and at new moons and at all the consecrated feasts.
53 And all who had made any vow to God began to offer sacrifices to God, from the new moon of the seventh month, though the temple of God was not yet built.
54 And they gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and food and drink
55 and carts to the Sidonians and the Tyrians, to bring cedar logs from Lebanon and convey them in rafts to the harbor of Joppa, according to the decree which they had in writing from Cyrus king of the Persians.
56 In the second year after their coming to the temple of God in Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak made a beginning, together with their brethren and the Levitical priests and all who had come to Jerusalem from the captivity;
57 and they laid the foundation of the temple of God on the new moon of the second month in the second year after they came to Judea and Jerusalem.
58 And they appointed the Levites who were twenty or more years of age to have charge of the work of the Lord. And Jeshua arose, and his sons and brethren and Kadmiel his brother and the sons of Jeshua Emadabun and the sons of Joda son of Iliadun, with their sons and brethren, all the Levites, as one man pressing forward the work on the house of God.
So the builders built the temple of the Lord.
59 And the priests stood arrayed in their garments, with musical instruments and trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals,
60 praising the Lord and blessing him, according to the directions of David king of Israel;
61 and they sang hymns, giving thanks to the Lord, because his goodness and his glory are for ever upon all Israel.
62 And all the people sounded trumpets and shouted with a great shout, praising the Lord for the erection of the house of the Lord.
63 Some of the Levitical priests and heads of fathers' houses, old men who had seen the former house, came to the building of this one with outcries and loud weeping,
64 while many came with trumpets and a joyful noise,
65 so that the people could not hear the trumpets because of the weeping of the people.
For the multitude sounded the trumpets loudly, so that the sound was heard afar;
66 and when the enemies of the tribe of Judah and Benjamin heard it, they came to find out what the sound of the trumpets meant.
67 And they learned that those who had returned from captivity were building the temple for the Lord God of Israel.
68 So they approached Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the heads of the fathers' houses and said to them, "We will build with you.
69 For we obey your Lord just as you do and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of the Assyrians, who brought us here."
70 But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the heads of the fathers' houses in Israel said to them, "You have nothing to do with us in building the house for the Lord our God,
71 for we alone will build it for the Lord of Israel, as Cyrus the king of the Persians has commanded us."
72 But the peoples of the land pressed hard upon those in Judea, cut off their supplies, and hindered their building;
73 and by plots and demagoguery and uprisings they prevented the completion of the building as long as King Cyrus lived. And they were kept from building for two years, until the reign of Darius.