The adversaries of Judah and Benjamin approach Zerubbabel offering to help rebuild the Temple, claiming they have worshipped the same God since the Assyrian resettlement. Zerubbabel refuses. The opponents then hire counselors to frustrate the building throughout the reigns of Cyrus and Darius. The narrative jumps forward to the reign of Artaxerxes, where Rehum and Shimshai write an Aramaic letter warning the king that Jerusalem has a history of rebellion. Artaxerxes orders the work stopped, and the rebuilding ceases until the second year of Darius.
What Makes This Chapter Remarkable
This chapter contains one of the most significant linguistic transitions in the Hebrew Bible. At verse 8 the text shifts from Hebrew to Aramaic — the diplomatic language of the Persian Empire — and remains in Aramaic through 6:18. The shift is not accidental: the narrator switches to Aramaic precisely when quoting official Persian correspondence, as if presenting the documents in their original administrative language. The chapter also performs a complex chronological compression, jumping from the early opposition under Cyrus (verses 1-5) forward to the reigns of Xerxes and Artaxerxes (verses 6-23) before returning to the Cyrus-Darius period in verse 24. The opponents' letter to Artaxerxes is a masterpiece of political manipulation — they frame the rebuilding as sedition, invoke Jerusalem's rebellious history, and threaten the king's tax revenue, knowing exactly which arguments will move a Persian bureaucrat.
Translation Friction
The chronological structure of this chapter is the most debated issue in Ezra scholarship. Verses 6-23 describe opposition during the reigns of Ahasuerus (Xerxes I, 486-465 BCE) and Artaxerxes I (465-424 BCE), but the Temple was completed in 515 BCE under Darius I. The opposition in verses 6-23 therefore concerns the city walls, not the Temple — the narrator has grouped all opposition episodes thematically rather than chronologically. We render the text sequentially as the narrator presents it, noting the chronological shift. The identity of the 'adversaries' in verse 1 is also contested: the narrator calls them people resettled by Esarhaddon of Assyria, linking them to the mixed-religion population of 2 Kings 17:24-41. Their offer to help may have been genuine, but Zerubbabel's refusal reflects the returnees' determination to maintain ethnic and religious boundaries.
Connections
The Assyrian resettlement background (verse 2) reaches back to 2 Kings 17:24-33, where foreign peoples brought to Samaria by the Assyrians adopted a syncretistic form of YHWH worship. Zerubbabel's refusal anticipates the stricter boundary-maintenance of chapters 9-10. The appeal to Jerusalem's rebellious history (verse 15) references the revolts of Hezekiah against Assyria (2 Kings 18:7), Jehoiakim against Babylon (2 Kings 24:1), and Zedekiah against Babylon (2 Kings 24:20). The Aramaic correspondence genre will recur in chapters 5-6 and 7, establishing a pattern of imperial letters that shape the community's fate.
When the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a Temple to the LORD, the God of Israel,
KJV Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the LORD God of Israel;
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The narrator immediately labels these people tsarei Yehudah u-Vinyamin ('adversaries of Judah and Benjamin') — the reader is told their character before hearing their words. This editorial framing shapes how we read their offer in verse 2. The term tsarim (from tsarar, 'to bind, press, be hostile') leaves no ambiguity about the narrator's assessment.
they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the ancestral houses and said to them, 'Let us build with you, for we seek your God just as you do. We have been sacrificing to him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.'
KJV Then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said unto them, Let us build with you: for we seek your God, as ye do; and we do sacrifice unto him since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assur, which brought us up hither.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Esarhaddon (681-669 BCE) continued the Assyrian policy of population transfer begun by Sargon II after the fall of Samaria in 722 BCE (2 Kings 17:24). These settlers had adopted YHWH worship — but according to 2 Kings 17:33, they 'feared the LORD and also served their own gods.' Their claim 'we seek your God as you do' may have been sincere from their perspective, but the returnees understood it as syncretism, not genuine covenant commitment.
The verb nidrosh ('we seek/inquire of') is significant — darash implies deliberate, sustained seeking of God, the same verb used in 2 Chronicles 15:2 ('if you seek him, he will be found by you'). The opponents use theologically correct vocabulary.
But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of the ancestral houses of Israel said to them, 'You have no part with us in building a house to our God. We alone will build for the LORD, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus king of Persia commanded us.'
KJV But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said unto them, Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto our God; but we ourselves together will build unto the LORD God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia hath commanded us.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The refusal is absolute: lo lakhem valanu ('not for you and for us'). The justification is Cyrus's decree, which authorized specifically the returned exiles to build. Zerubbabel reframes the question politically — this is not merely a religious disagreement but a matter of imperial authorization. The phrase anachnu yachad ('we ourselves together') emphasizes the exclusivity of the building community.
Then the people of the land set about weakening the hands of the people of Judah and intimidating them from building.
KJV Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building,
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The phrase am ha-arets ('people of the land') here refers to the non-exilic population — those who had remained in the land during the exile or been resettled there. The idiom merappim yedei ('weakening the hands of') describes systematic demoralization, the same expression used of those who undermined Jerusalem's defense before the Babylonian siege (Jeremiah 38:4). The verb mevahalim ('terrifying, alarming') adds a note of active intimidation beyond mere discouragement.
They hired advisors against them to frustrate their plans throughout the reign of Cyrus king of Persia and into the reign of Darius king of Persia.
KJV And hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The word sokherim ('hiring') indicates a sustained, funded campaign — these were paid political operatives working within the Persian bureaucratic system to block the Jews' building permit. The phrase kol yemei Koresh ('all the days of Cyrus') means the opposition persisted from the initial return (538 BCE) through the early reign of Darius I (522 BCE), roughly sixteen years of bureaucratic warfare.
In the reign of Ahasuerus, at the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
KJV And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, wrote they unto him an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Ahasuerus is the Hebrew form of Xerxes (Xerxes I, 486-465 BCE). The word sitnah ('accusation, hostility') shares the same root as satan ('adversary, accuser'). This verse and the next jump forward chronologically to show that opposition continued across multiple reigns. The content of this specific accusation is not preserved — only the fact of its filing.
In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their associates wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia. The letter was written in Aramaic script and composed in the Aramaic language.
KJV And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, unto Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue, and interpreted in the Syrian tongue.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
This verse is the hinge point: it announces that the following letter is in Aramaic, and from verse 8 onward the biblical text itself shifts to Aramaic. The phrase katuv Aramit u-meturgam Aramit ('written in Aramaic and translated/composed in Aramaic') may mean 'written in Aramaic script and in the Aramaic language' — distinguishing script from language, since Aramaic script was used for multiple languages in the Persian period.
Bishlam may be a name or the Aramaic phrase be-shelam ('in peace, with greetings') — a salutation mistaken for a personal name. Tabeel means 'God is good' in Aramaic.
Rehum the royal deputy and Shimshai the secretary wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows:
KJV Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king in this sort:
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The text switches to Aramaic here and will remain in Aramaic through 6:18. Rehum's title be'el te'em ('lord of decree/command') designates a high-ranking provincial official — a royal commissioner or deputy governor. Shimshai the safra ('scribe, secretary') was the professional letter-writer. The Aramaic iggera chada ('one letter') is the standard term for an official dispatch.
Then Rehum the royal deputy, Shimshai the secretary, and the rest of their associates — the judges, the envoys, the officials, the Persians, the people of Erech, the Babylonians, the people of Susa (that is, the Elamites),
KJV Then wrote Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions; the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Susanchites, the Dehavites, and the Elamites,
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The list of co-signers represents a coalition of peoples resettled in Samaria from across the Assyrian and Persian empires. Many of these terms are titles rather than ethnic names: dinaye ('judges'), afarsat-khaye ('envoys' or 'investigators'). The Babylonians, Susanians (from Susa, the Persian capital), and Elamites represent the diverse population that the Assyrians had transplanted into the former northern kingdom.
and the rest of the peoples whom the great and noble Osnappar deported and settled in the city of Samaria and the rest of the province Beyond the River — and so forth.
KJV And the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Asnappar brought over, and set in the cities of Samaria, and the rest that are on this side the river, and at such a time.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Osnappar (Asnappar) is almost certainly Ashurbanipal (669-631 BCE), the last great Assyrian king. The Aramaic form is a corruption of the Akkadian Ashur-bani-apli. The phrase Avar Naharah ('Beyond the River') is the official Persian name for the satrapy west of the Euphrates, encompassing Syria, Phoenicia, and Palestine. The closing phrase ukhe'enet ('and so forth' or 'at this time') is a formulaic letter ending.
This is a copy of the letter they sent to him: 'To King Artaxerxes: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River — greetings.
KJV This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king; Thy servants the men on this side the river, and at such a time.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The word parshegen ('copy') is a Persian loanword (from Old Persian *patigarana) that entered Aramaic and appears also in Esther 3:14; 4:8. The self-designation 'your servants' (avdakh) is standard courtly address to the king. The letter format follows Persian epistolary conventions.
Let the king be informed that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city; they are completing the walls and repairing the foundations.
KJV Be it known unto the king, that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The accusation is carefully crafted: qiryeta maradeta u-vi'ishta ('the rebellious and wicked city') is designed to trigger Persian suspicion. The words are Aramaic but the political calculation is universal — label the enemy as disloyal, and the empire will respond. The claim that they are completing walls (shuraya shakhlelilu) specifically alleges military fortification, not mere urban construction.
Let the king know that if this city is rebuilt and its walls completed, they will not pay tribute, tax, or toll, and the royal revenue will suffer loss.
KJV Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls set up again, then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom, and so thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Three types of taxation are named: mindah (land/property tax), belo (commodity/excise tax), and halakh (road/transit toll). The letter writers know their audience — the threat to revenue is more persuasive to a Persian king than religious arguments. The phrase appetom malkin tehanziq ('the treasury of kings you will damage') makes the financial stakes personal.
Now since we eat the salt of the palace and it is not fitting for us to witness the king's dishonor, we have sent to inform the king,
KJV Now because we have maintenance from the king's palace, and it was not meet for us to see the king's dishonour, therefore have we sent and certified the king;
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The idiom melach heikhala melachna ('we eat the salt of the palace') is a covenant expression — sharing salt signified loyalty and obligation (compare Numbers 18:19, 'a covenant of salt'). The letter writers present themselves as loyal subjects motivated by duty, not malice. The phrase ervat malka ('the king's dishonor/nakedness') uses ervah, a word that in Hebrew means 'nakedness, shame, vulnerability' — they frame Jerusalem's rebuilding as an exposure of royal weakness.
so that a search may be made in the book of records of your predecessors. You will find in the book of records and learn that this city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces, and that sedition has been stirred within it from ancient times. That is why this city was destroyed.
KJV That search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers: so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time: for which cause was this city destroyed.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The appeal to sefer dakhranaya ('the book of records/memorials') invokes the Persian archive system — royal chronicles were meticulously maintained and could be consulted to verify claims (see also Esther 2:23; 6:1). The letter writers weaponize Jerusalem's own history: the revolts of Hezekiah, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah are all on record. The phrase min yomat alma ('from days of eternity, from ancient times') is a sweeping generalization designed to make rebellion seem like Jerusalem's permanent character.
We inform the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls completed, you will have no portion left in the province Beyond the River.
KJV We certify the king that, if this city be builded again, and the walls thereof set up, by this means thou shalt have no portion on this side the river.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
This is the letter's most dramatic claim — that a rebuilt Jerusalem would cost the king the entire province of Beyond the River (Avar Naharah), encompassing all of Syria-Palestine. The claim is wildly exaggerated, but it plays on Persian anxieties about western revolts. The province Beyond the River was strategically vital as the approach route to Egypt.
The king sent this reply: 'To Rehum the royal deputy, Shimshai the secretary, and the rest of their associates who live in Samaria and the rest of the province Beyond the River — greetings, and furthermore:
KJV Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and unto the rest beyond the river, Peace, and at such a time.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The Aramaic pitgama ('edict, official reply') is a Persian loanword (Old Persian *patigama). The formulaic shlam ukhe'et ('peace and now') is standard Persian-Aramaic epistolary greeting. Artaxerxes responds directly to the named officials, confirming the bureaucratic chain of command.
The letter you sent to us has been read and translated in my presence.
KJV The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The word meforash ('plainly, clearly, translated') indicates that the letter was both read and interpreted — possibly translated from Aramaic into Old Persian for the king, or simply read with explanation. The verb qeri ('read') is passive, indicating a court reader performed the reading.
I issued an order and a search was made. It was found that this city has from ancient times risen up against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been carried out within it.
KJV And I commanded, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Artaxerxes confirms the accusation through archival research — the Persian bureaucratic system worked exactly as the letter writers intended. The phrase min yomat alma ('from days of eternity') echoes the accusers' language in verse 15; the king has adopted their framing.
Mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem with authority over the entire province Beyond the River, and tribute, tax, and toll were paid to them.
KJV There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, which have ruled over all countries beyond the river; and toll, tribute, and custom, was paid unto them.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Artaxerxes acknowledges what the accusers implied — Jerusalem once hosted an independent monarchy (David, Solomon) that controlled the very territory now under Persian rule. The irony is that the king recites Israelite royal glory as evidence of danger. The three-tax formula (mindah, belo, halakh) reappears, reinforcing the fiscal anxiety.
Now issue an order to make these men stop. This city is not to be rebuilt until I issue a further decree.
KJV Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given from me.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The phrase ad minni ta'ama yittsam ('until a decree is issued by me') leaves a legal opening — the stop-work order is not permanent but suspended pending royal review. This nuance matters: it allows for the possibility of reversal, which will come under Darius in chapter 6.
Be careful not to be negligent in this matter. Why should damage increase to the detriment of the king?'
KJV Take heed now that ye fail not to do this: why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The word chavala ('damage, harm') carries the sense of financial loss and political injury. Artaxerxes frames the urgency in terms of escalating risk — delay means compounding damage to royal interests.
As soon as the copy of King Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, Shimshai the secretary, and their associates, they went in haste to Jerusalem and forced the Jews to stop by armed power.
KJV Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The phrase be-edra ve-chayil ('by arm and force') indicates military enforcement — this was not a polite request but an armed shutdown. The adverb bi-vehilu ('in haste, urgently') shows the eagerness of the opponents to execute the order. They had the legal backing they needed and acted immediately.
At that time the work on the house of God in Jerusalem stopped. It remained halted until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
KJV Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The narrative returns to the main chronological thread after the Artaxerxes digression (verses 6-23). The second year of Darius I is 520 BCE — the year when Haggai and Zechariah prophesied and the rebuilding resumed (chapter 5). The work had been stalled for approximately sixteen years. This verse is still in Aramaic, bridging into the Aramaic section that continues through chapter 6.