²⁶ So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit^(A) of Pul^(B) king of Assyria (that is, Tiglath-Pileser^(C) king of Assyria), who took the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh into exile. He took them to Halah,^(D) Habor, Hara and the river of Gozan, where they are to this day.

Cyrus Helps the Exiles to Return^(A)

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah,^(B) the Lord moved the heart^(C) of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

⁵ Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin,^(A) and the priests and Levites—everyone whose heart God had moved^(B)—prepared to go up and build the house^(C) of the Lord in Jerusalem.