Ezra:6-7
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Then Darius the king made a decree ,
and search was made in the house of the rolls ,
where the treasures were laid up in Babylon .
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And there was found at Achmetha ,
in the palace that is in the province of the Medes ,
a roll ,
and therein was a record thus written :
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In the first year of Cyrus the king the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem ,
Let the house be builded ,
the place where they offered sacrifices ,
and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid ;
the height thereof threescore cubits ,
and the breadth thereof threescore cubits ;
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With three rows of great stones ,
and a row of new timber :
and let the expenses be given out of the king '
s house :
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And also let the golden and silver vessels of the house of God ,
which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem ,
and brought unto Babylon ,
be restored ,
and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem ,
every one to his place ,
and place them in the house of God .
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Now therefore ,
Tatnai ,
governor beyond the river ,
Shetharboznai ,
and your companions the Apharsachites ,
which are beyond the river ,
be ye far from thence :
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Let the work of this house of God alone ;
let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in his place .
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Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to the elders of these Jews for the building of this house of God :
that of the king '
s goods ,
even of the tribute beyond the river ,
forthwith expenses be given unto these men ,
that they be not hindered .
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And that which they have need of ,
both young bullocks ,
and rams ,
and lambs ,
for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven ,
wheat ,
salt ,
wine ,
and oil ,
according to the appointment of the priests which are at Jerusalem ,
let it be given them day by day without fail :
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That they may offer sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven ,
and pray for the life of the king ,
and of his sons .
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Also I have made a decree ,
that whosoever shall alter this word ,
let timber be pulled down from his house ,
and being set up ,
let him be hanged thereon ;
and let his house be made a dunghill for this .
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And the God that hath caused his name to dwell there destroy all kings and people ,
that shall put to their hand to alter and to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem .
I Darius have made a decree ;
let it be done with speed .
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Then Tatnai ,
governor on this side the river ,
Shetharboznai ,
and their companions ,
according to that which Darius the king had sent ,
so they did speedily .
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And the elders of the Jews builded ,
and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo .
And they builded ,
and finished it ,
according to the commandment of the God of Israel ,
and according to the commandment of Cyrus ,
and Darius ,
and Artaxerxes king of Persia .
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And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar ,
which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king .
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And the children of Israel ,
the priests ,
and the Levites ,
and the rest of the children of the captivity ,
kept the dedication of this house of God with joy ,
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And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks ,
two hundred rams ,
four hundred lambs ;
and for a sin offering for all Israel ,
twelve he goats ,
according to the number of the tribes of Israel .
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And they set the priests in their divisions ,
and the Levites in their courses ,
for the service of God ,
which is at Jerusalem ;
as it is written in the book of Moses .
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And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month .
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For the priests and the Levites were purified together ,
all of them were pure ,
and killed the passover for all the children of the captivity ,
and for their brethren the priests ,
and for themselves .
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And the children of Israel ,
which were come again out of captivity ,
and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land ,
to seek the LORD God of Israel ,
did eat ,
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And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy :
for the LORD had made them joyful ,
and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them ,
to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God ,
the God of Israel .
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Now after these things ,
in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia ,
Ezra the son of Seraiah ,
the son of Azariah ,
the son of Hilkiah ,
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The son of Shallum ,
the son of Zadok ,
the son of Ahitub ,
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The son of Amariah ,
the son of Azariah ,
the son of Meraioth ,
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The son of Zerahiah ,
the son of Uzzi ,
the son of Bukki ,
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The son of Abishua ,
the son of Phinehas ,
the son of Eleazar ,
the son of Aaron the chief priest :
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This Ezra went up from Babylon ;
and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses ,
which the LORD God of Israel had given :
and the king granted him all his request ,
according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him .
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And there went up some of the children of Israel ,
and of the priests ,
and the Levites ,
and the singers ,
and the porters ,
and the Nethinims ,
unto Jerusalem ,
in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king .
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And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month ,
which was in the seventh year of the king .
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For upon the first day of the first month began he to go up from Babylon ,
and on the first day of the fifth month came he to Jerusalem ,
according to the good hand of his God upon him .
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For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD ,
and to do it ,
and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments .
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Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest ,
the scribe ,
even a scribe of the words of the commandments of the LORD ,
and of his statutes to Israel .
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Artaxerxes ,
king of kings ,
unto Ezra the priest ,
a scribe of the law of the God of heaven ,
perfect peace ,
and at such a time .
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I make a decree ,
that all they of the people of Israel ,
and of his priests and Levites ,
in my realm ,
which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem ,
go with thee .
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Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king ,
and of his seven counsellors ,
to enquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem ,
according to the law of thy God which is in thine hand ;
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And to carry the silver and gold ,
which the king and his counsellors have freely offered unto the God of Israel ,
whose habitation is in Jerusalem ,
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And all the silver and gold that thou canst find in all the province of Babylon ,
with the freewill offering of the people ,
and of the priests ,
offering willingly for the house of their God which is in Jerusalem :
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That thou mayest buy speedily with this money bullocks ,
rams ,
lambs ,
with their meat offerings and their drink offerings ,
and offer them upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerusalem .
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And whatsoever shall seem good to thee ,
and to thy brethren ,
to do with the rest of the silver and the gold ,
that do after the will of your God .
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The vessels also that are given thee for the service of the house of thy God ,
those deliver thou before the God of Jerusalem .
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And whatsoever more shall be needful for the house of thy God ,
which thou shalt have occasion to bestow ,
bestow it out of the king '
s treasure house .
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And I ,
even I Artaxerxes the king ,
do make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river ,
that whatsoever Ezra the priest ,
the scribe of the law of the God of heaven ,
shall require of you ,
it be done speedily ,
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Unto an hundred talents of silver ,
and to an hundred measures of wheat ,
and to an hundred baths of wine ,
and to an hundred baths of oil ,
and salt without prescribing how much .
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Whatsoever is commanded by the God of heaven ,
let it be diligently done for the house of the God of heaven :
for why should there be wrath against the realm of the king and his sons ?
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Also we certify you ,
that touching any of the priests and Levites ,
singers ,
porters ,
Nethinims ,
or ministers of this house of God ,
it shall not be lawful to impose toll ,
tribute ,
or custom ,
upon them .
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And thou ,
Ezra ,
after the wisdom of thy God ,
that is in thine hand ,
set magistrates and judges ,
which may judge all the people that are beyond the river ,
all such as know the laws of thy God ;
and teach ye them that know them not .
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And whosoever will not do the law of thy God ,
and the law of the king ,
let judgment be executed speedily upon him ,
whether it be unto death ,
or to banishment ,
or to confiscation of goods ,
or to imprisonment .
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Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers ,
which hath put such a thing as this in the king '
s heart ,
to beautify the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem :
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And hath extended mercy unto me before the king ,
and his counsellors ,
and before all the king '
s mighty princes .
And I was strengthened as the hand of the LORD my God was upon me ,
and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me .
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These are now the chief of their fathers ,
and this is the genealogy of them that went up with me from Babylon ,
in the reign of Artaxerxes the king .