Ezra 6

Thomson^{(i) 1} Thereupon Darius the king passed a decree, He hath caused search to be made in the libraries where the royal treasure is kept at Babylon, ² and there hath been found in the city, in the royal palace, a roll, in which is written this memorandum, ³ In the first year of king Cyrus, Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the holy house of God at Jerusalem, Let the house be built, and the place where they offer sacrifices. Moreover he hath fixed the dimensions, the length sixty cubits and the breadth sixty cubits. ⁴ And there are to be three strong stories of stone and one of wood; and the expence is to be defrayed out of the king's house: ⁵ And let the vessels of the house of God, both of silver and gold, which Nabuchodonosar took out of the house in Jerusalem, and brought to Babylon, be given, and go back to the temple at Jerusalem, to the place where they were deposited in the house of God. ⁶ Now therefore you governors beyond the river, Satharbouzani, and you their fellow servants the Apharsachaians, who are beyond the river, keep at a distance from that place. ⁷ Let the work of the house of God alone. Let the rulers of the Jews, and the elders of the Jews build the house of God in its place. ⁸ Furthermore, by me a decree is made in regard to what you may do for the elders of the Jews, that the house of God may be built. Out of the king's substance, the tributes beyond the river, let the expence be carefully paid to those men, that they may not be forced to stop; ⁹ and whatever they may stand in need of, such as young bulls and rams and lambs for whole burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine and oil, according to the order of the priests at Jerusalem; let whatever they ask be given them day by day, ¹⁰ that they may offer continually to the God of heaven sweet smelling sacrifices, and pray for the life of the king and his sons. ¹¹ Moreover by me a decree is made, that if any man counteract this mandate, a beam be taken from his house, and that he being suspended, be executed thereon, and his house confiscated. ¹² And may the God whose name dwelleth there, destroy every king and people who shall stretch forth their hands to alter or destroy the house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have passed the decree. Let it be strictly observed. ¹³ Upon this Thanthani the chief governor on this side the river, and Satharbouzani and his fellow servants conformed strictly to what Darius the king sent. ¹⁴ And the elders of the Jews and the Levites went on with the building by the prophesying of Aggaius the prophet, and Zacharias the son of Addo, and they rebuilt and fitted it up again by the decree of the God of Israel, and by the decree of Cyrus and Darius, and Arthasastha, kings of Persia; ¹⁵ and having finished the house on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of king Darius, ¹⁶ the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of the house of God with joy, ¹⁷ and offered for the dedication of the house of God, a hundred young bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and twelve he goats, for a sin offering, for all Israel, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. ¹⁸ And they set the priests in their courses, and the Levites in their divisions over the service of God at Jerusalem, according to the writing of the book of Moses. ¹⁹ And on the fourteenth day of the first month, the children of the captivity kept the passover. ²⁰ For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves till all were pure. And the Levites killed the paschal lambs for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren, the priests, and for themselves. ²¹ So the children of Israel who were of the captivity, and every one who had separated himself from the impurity of the nations of the land and had come to them to seek the Lord God of Israel, ate the passover, ²² and kept the festival of unleavened bread seven days, with joy; for the Lord had made them joyful, and had turned the heart of the king of Assur to them, to strengthen their hands in the works of the house of the God of Israel.