1. When the seventh month had come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.

2. Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak stood up with his brothers the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and his brothers, and built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.

3. In spite of their fear because of the peoples of the surrounding lands, they set the altar on its base; and they offered burnt offerings on it to The LORD, even burnt offerings morning and evening.

4. They kept the feast of tents, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the ordinance, as the duty of every day required;

5. and afterward the continual burnt offering, the offerings of the new moons, of all the set feasts of the LORD that were consecrated, and of everyone who willingly offered a freewill offering to The LORD.

6. From the first day of the seventh month, they began to offer burnt offerings to The LORD; but the foundation of The LORD's temple was not yet laid.

7. They also gave money to the masons, and to the carpenters. They also gave food, drink, and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the grant that they had from Cyrus King of Persia.

8. Now in the second year of their coming to God's house at Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brothers the priests and the Levites, and all those who had come out of the captivity to Jerusalem, began the work and appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to have the oversight of the work of The LORD's house.

9. Then Jeshua stood with his sons and his brothers, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah, together, to have the oversight of the workmen in God's house: the sons of Henadad, with their sons and their brothers the Levites.

10. When the builders laid the foundation of The LORD's temple, they set the priests in their clothing with trumpets, with the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise The LORD, according to the directions of David king of Israel.

11. They sang to one another in praising and giving thanks to The LORD, "For he is good, for his loving kindness endures forever toward Israel." All the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised The LORD, because the foundation of The LORD's house had been laid.

12. But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers' households, the old men who had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice. Many also shouted aloud for joy,

13. so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people; for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard far away.

1. Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity were building a temple to The LORD, the God of Israel;

2. they came near to Zerubbabel, and to the heads of fathers' households, and said to them, "Let us build with you; for we seek your God, as you do; and we have been sacrificing to him since the days of Esar Haddon king of Assyria, who brought us up here."

3. But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' households of Israel, said to them, "You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we ourselves together will build to The LORD, the God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us."

4. Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building.

5. They hired counselors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

6. In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

7. In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his companions, wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in Syrian, and delivered in the Syrian language.

8. Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows,

9. then Rehum the chancellor, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions, the Dinaites, and the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Shushanchites, the Dehaites, the Elamites,

10. and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnappar brought over, and set in the city of Samaria, and in the rest of the country beyond the River, and so forth, wrote.

11. This is the copy of the letter that they sent:To King Artaxerxes,From your servants the men beyond the River.

12. Be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us to Jerusalem. They are building the rebellious and bad city, and have finished the walls, and repaired the foundations.

13. Be it known now to the king that if this city is built and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and in the end it will be hurtful to the kings.

14. Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not appropriate for us to see the king's dishonor, therefore we have sent and informed the king,

15. that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will see in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful to kings and provinces, and that they have started rebellions within it in the past. That is why this city was destroyed.

16. We inform the king that, if this city is built and the walls finished, then you will have no possession beyond the River.

17. Then the king sent an answer to Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions who live in Samaria, and in the rest of the country beyond the River:Peace.

18. The letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

19. I decreed, and search has been made, and it was found that this city has made insurrection against kings in the past, and that rebellion and revolts have been made in it.

20. There have also been mighty kings over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all the country beyond the River; and tribute, custom, and toll, was paid to them.

21. Make a decree now to cause these men to cease, and that this city not be built, until a decree is made by me.

22. Be careful that you not be slack doing so. Why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?

23. Then when the copy of king Artaxerxes' letter was read before Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went in haste to Jerusalem to the Jews, and made them to cease by force of arms.

24. Then work stopped on God's house which is at Jerusalem. It stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

1. Now the prophets, Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem. They prophesied to them in the name of the God of Israel.

2. Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak rose up and began to build God's house which is at Jerusalem; and with them were the prophets of God, helping them.

3. At the same time Tattenai, the governor beyond the River came to them, with Shetharbozenai, and their companions, and asked them, "Who gave you a decree to build this house, and to finish this wall?"

4. They also asked for the names of the men were who were making this building.

5. But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not make them cease, until the matter should come to Darius, and an answer should be returned by letter concerning it.

6. The copy of the letter that Tattenai, the governor beyond the River, and Shetharbozenai, and his companions the Apharsachites, who were beyond the River, sent to Darius the king follows.

7. They sent a letter to him, in which was written:To Darius the king, all peace.

8. Be it known to the king that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, which is built with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls. This work goes on with diligence and prospers in their hands.

9. Then we asked those elders, and said to them thus, "Who gave you a decree to build this house, and to finish this wall?"

10. We asked them their names also, to inform you that we might write the names of the men who were at their head.

11. Thus they returned us answer, saying, "We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and are building the house that was built these many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished.

12. But after that our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, he gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house, and carried the people away into Babylon.

13. But in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree to build this house of God.

14. The gold and silver vessels of God's house, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem, and brought into the temple of Babylon, those Cyrus the king also took out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor.

15. He said to him, 'Take these vessels, go, put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let God's house be built in its place.'

16. Then the same Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of God's house which is in Jerusalem. Since that time even until now has it been in building, and yet it is not completed.

17. Now therefore, if it seems good to the king, let a search be made in the king's treasure house, which is there at Babylon, whether it is so, that a decree was made of Cyrus the king to build this house of God at Jerusalem; and let the king send his pleasure to us concerning this matter."