Ezra comes to Jerusalem
1Ezra came to Jerusalem later when Artaxerxes was king of Persia. Ezra was the son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah, 2son of Shallum, son of Zadok, son of Ahitub, 3son of Amariah, son of Azariah, son of Meraioth, 4son of Zerahiah, son of Uzzi, son of Bukki 5son of Abishua, son of Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the high-priest.
6Ezra came from the land of Babylon. He was a scribe who knew the laws of Moses well. These were the laws that the Lord God of Israel had given to his people. The Lord was with Ezra and blessed him, so the king gave Ezra everything that he asked for. 7There were many Israelites, priests and Levites who sang, gatekeepers and temple-servants who came with Ezra to Jerusalem. It was in the 7th year after Artaxerxes had become king.
8Ezra came to Jerusalem in the 5th month of the 7th year after Artaxerxes had become king. 9Ezra was the leader of the people who came from the land of Babylon. They started walking on the first day of the first month and they came into Jerusalem on the first day of the 5th month. Ezra's God protected him 10because he always asked what the laws of God said and he always listened to God. He also taught the Israelites what the Lord wanted and what He had decided.
The letter that the king gave to Ezra
11The priest Ezra knew the laws of the Lord well. King Artaxerxes gave Ezra a letter. In the letter the king wrote:
12‘I, Artaxerxes, king of kings, am writing to Ezra the priest who knows the laws of the God of heaven. 13I am saying that every Israelite in my land and every priest and Levite who wants to go back to Jerusalem may go with you. 14I, the king, and my 7 advisors send you to Judah and Jerusalem to see how things are there. You must go and see if the people of Judah who live there do as your God said and if they obey his laws that you have with you. 15You must take the silver and gold that my advisors and I have given to the God of Israel, whose temple is in Jerusalem. 16You must also take all the silver and gold that you can get in the province of Babylon. You must take it with the other gifts that the people and the priests have given to the temple of their God in Jerusalem. 17You must use this money to buy bulls, rams and lambs and also the grain-offerings and drink-offerings that they must sacrifice on the altar, at the temple of your God in Jerusalem.
18You and the other priests may use the other silver and gold as you think is right. Use it as God wants. 19Take everything that people give you to use for work in the temple of your God. Take it to the God of Jerusalem. 20If there are other things that you need for the temple, you may get them with the money that belongs to the king. You may use that money to pay for those things.
21I, King Artaxerxes, am now telling all the people who work with the king's money in the lands west of the Euphrates River: You must give everything that the priest Ezra asks you to give. He is the scribe who knows the laws of the God of heaven. 22You may give him 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of olive oil and all the salt they need. 23You must give Ezra everything that the God of heaven says and they must do everything as He wants in his temple. Then God will not be angry with us and He will not punish the land of the king and his sons. 24We are also telling you now that no one must tell the priests and Levites to pay tax. The people who sing and the gatekeepers, the temple-servants and the other workers at this temple must also not pay tax.
25Ezra, your God has given you wisdom. You must choose rulers and judges so that they can judge over everyone in the lands west of the Euphrates River. These leaders must know all the laws of God and you must teach these laws to all the people who do not know them. 26You must judge and punish everyone who does not do what the laws of your God and the laws of the king say. They must die, or you must chase them out of the land, or they must pay or go to jail.’
27Ezra said: ‘I praise the Lord, the God of our forefathers. He made the king decide to honour the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem and to make it beautiful. 28He made the king and his advisors and all the important_officials friendly towards me. The Lord has helped me and He has encouraged me so that I could bring many Israelite leaders back to Jerusalem.’
