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Ezra 7
EasyEnglish Bible
Ezra 7
EasyEnglish Bible
Ezra arrives in Jerusalem
7 After these things, Ezra came to Jerusalem from Babylon. This happened while Artaxerxes was king of Persia.
This is the list of Ezra's ancestors: He was the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah. 2 Hilkiah was the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub. 3 Ahitub was the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth. 4 Meraioth was the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki. 5 Bukki was the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar. Eleazar was a son of Aaron, the leader of the priests.
6 This man Ezra arrived from Babylon. He was a teacher who knew the law of Moses very well. The Lord, Israel's God, had given that law to Moses. Ezra served the Lord as his God. The Lord was kind and he helped Ezra, so that the king of Persia gave him everything that he asked for. 7 In the seventh year that Artaxerxes was king, Ezra came together with other Israelites. They included priests, Levites, and singers, servants and guards for the temple.
8 Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of Artaxerxes' seventh year as king. 9 He left Babylon on the first day of the first month and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month. God had helped him with his journey. 10 God was kind to Ezra because Ezra had decided to study the law of the Lord. Ezra always obeyed its rules. He also taught the law and its rules to the Israelite people.
King Artaxerxes' letter to Ezra
11 This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes had given to Ezra, the priest and teacher. Ezra had studied the Lord's commands and laws for Israel.
12 ‘From Artaxerxes, king of all kings.
To Ezra the priest, who has studied very well the law of the God of heaven. I hope that you are well.
13 I have given this command: When you travel to Jerusalem, any other Israelites who live in my kingdom may go with you. Anyone who wants to go may go. That includes priests and Levites. 14 The king and his seven officers are sending you with their authority. You have the law of your God that he has given to you. Go and see if your people in Judah and Jerusalem are obeying his law. 15 Take with you the gold and silver that I and my officers have sent. They are a free gift for Israel's God, whose house is in Jerusalem. 16 Also take the gold and silver that other people in Babylonia give to you. And take the gifts that the people and the priests have given for their God's temple in Jerusalem. 17 You must use the money to buy bulls, male sheep and lambs. You must also buy grain and wine to offer to your God. Offer them as sacrifices on the altar of your God's temple in Jerusalem.
18 You and your friends may then use the rest of the silver and gold in the way that you choose. Decide what your God wants you to do. 19 Also take the valuable things that you use to worship your God in his temple. Take them safely to him in Jerusalem. 20 You may need other things to worship your God in his temple. You may take what you need from the royal store rooms.
21 I, King Artaxerxes, give this command to all my officers in the region on the west side of the Euphrates river: You must give Ezra anything that he asks for. He is a priest who studies the law of the God of heaven. 22 This is how much you may give to him:
3,400 kilograms of silver,
22,000 litres of grain,
2,200 litres of wine,
2,200 litres of oil,
and all the salt that he wants.
23 Be careful to give Ezra everything that the God of heaven wants for his temple. I do not want the God of heaven to be angry with the kingdom that I and my sons rule. 24 You must not take any kinds of taxes from the men who serve this God in his house. You have no authority to do this. Take no taxes from the priests, the Levites, or the singers, guards, and servants who work in the temple.
25 Ezra, your God has helped you to be wise. So you must choose judges and officers who know the laws of your God. Then they will decide things for all the people who live in the region on the west side of the Euphrates river. If the people do not know the laws of your God, you must teach them. 26 Everyone must obey the laws of your God and also the laws of the king. If they do not obey, they deserve the right punishment. They may have to die. They may have to leave the country. They may have to lose their valuable things. They may have to go to prison.’
Ezra praises God
27 I praise the Lord, the God that our ancestors worshipped. He has caused the king to give honour to him. He made the king decide to make the Lord's temple in Jerusalem very great. 28 The Lord has been kind to me, so that the king, his helpers and his powerful officers have helped me. Because the Lord my God has been with me, he has helped me to be strong. I have been able to bring many of the leaders of Israel to Jerusalem with me.
Ezra 7
New International Version
Ezra 7
New International Version
Ezra Comes to Jerusalem
7 After these things, during the reign of Artaxerxes(A) king of Persia, Ezra son of Seraiah,(B) the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,(C) 2 the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok,(D) the son of Ahitub,(E) 3 the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, 4 the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki, 5 the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas,(F) the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest— 6 this Ezra(G) came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted(H) him everything he asked, for the hand of the Lord his God was on him.(I) 7 Some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers and temple servants, also came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes.(J)
8 Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king. 9 He had begun his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was on him.(K) 10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching(L) its decrees and laws in Israel.
King Artaxerxes’ Letter to Ezra
11 This is a copy of the letter King Artaxerxes had given to Ezra the priest, a teacher of the Law, a man learned in matters concerning the commands and decrees of the Lord for Israel:
12 Artaxerxes, king of kings,(M)
To Ezra the priest, teacher of the Law of the God of heaven:
Greetings.
13 Now I decree that any of the Israelites in my kingdom, including priests and Levites, who volunteer to go to Jerusalem with you, may go. 14 You are sent by the king and his seven advisers(N) to inquire about Judah and Jerusalem with regard to the Law of your God, which is in your hand. 15 Moreover, you are to take with you the silver and gold that the king and his advisers have freely given(O) to the God of Israel, whose dwelling(P) is in Jerusalem, 16 together with all the silver and gold(Q) you may obtain from the province of Babylon, as well as the freewill offerings of the people and priests for the temple of their God in Jerusalem.(R) 17 With this money be sure to buy bulls, rams and male lambs,(S) together with their grain offerings and drink offerings,(T) and sacrifice(U) them on the altar of the temple of your God in Jerusalem.
18 You and your fellow Israelites may then do whatever seems best with the rest of the silver and gold, in accordance with the will of your God. 19 Deliver(V) to the God of Jerusalem all the articles entrusted to you for worship in the temple of your God. 20 And anything else needed for the temple of your God that you are responsible to supply, you may provide from the royal treasury.(W)
21 Now I, King Artaxerxes, decree that all the treasurers of Trans-Euphrates are to provide with diligence whatever Ezra the priest, the teacher of the Law of the God of heaven, may ask of you— 22 up to a hundred talents[a] of silver, a hundred cors[b] of wheat, a hundred baths[c] of wine, a hundred baths[d] of olive oil, and salt without limit. 23 Whatever the God of heaven has prescribed, let it be done with diligence for the temple of the God of heaven. Why should his wrath fall on the realm of the king and of his sons?(X) 24 You are also to know that you have no authority to impose taxes, tribute or duty(Y) on any of the priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers, temple servants or other workers at this house of God.(Z)
25 And you, Ezra, in accordance with the wisdom of your God, which you possess, appoint(AA) magistrates and judges to administer justice to all the people of Trans-Euphrates—all who know the laws of your God. And you are to teach(AB) any who do not know them. 26 Whoever does not obey the law of your God and the law of the king must surely be punished by death, banishment, confiscation of property, or imprisonment.[e](AC)
27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart(AD) to bring honor(AE) to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way 28 and who has extended his good favor(AF) to me before the king and his advisers and all the king’s powerful officials. Because the hand of the Lord my God was on me,(AG) I took courage and gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.
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