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Ezra and Nehemiah, Books of
The Edict of Cyrus (1:1–11). There are two accounts given in
the Book of Ezra of the edict of Cyrus: a Jewish version in Hebrew,
and a Persian version in Aramaic. The Jewish/Hebrew
version has Cyrus declare that God has given him “all the
kingdoms of the earth,” that He has ordered the reconstruction
of the Temple, and that any of God’s people who so wish
may return to assist in the carrying out of the order (1:1–3).
The Persian/Aramaic version gives extra details detailing the
specifications of the Temple to be built (e.g., its height and
width should be 60 cubits, emulating the Temple destroyed
by the Babylonians), that expenses for the Temple will be paid
by the state, and that precious utensils captured by *Nebuchadnezzar
and brought to Babylon will be returned (6:3–5).
This last fact is actually mentioned in the first chapter of Ezra
(v. 7). Cyrus released the cult objects and delivered them to
Sheshbazzar, the governor of Judah, via Mithredath, the state
treasurer. The Cyrus cylinder records similar acts of amnesty
and favor shown to the peoples and deities of other countries
following his conquest of Babylon in 539 (Cogan).
A List of the First Returnees (2:1–3:1). The list of the returning
exiles with Zerubbabel is itemized by family, place of origin,
occupation (e.g., priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, etc.).
Because this list is repeated in its entirety in Nehemiah (Neh.
7:6–8:1a) there has been much discussion of the list’s purpose,
and where the list originally belonged. Most likely, the writer in
the Book of Ezra was using a later list compiled for other uses,
and its purpose at the beginning of Ezra is to magnify the first
response of the exiles to Cyrus’ edict. However, in the Book of
Nehemiah, the list is used for a different purpose, as a starting
point of a campaign to induce those who had settled elsewhere
in Judah to move to Jerusalem, which needed repopulation.
Restoration of Worship and Laying Foundations of the Temple
(3:2–13). Among the first activities of the returning exiles
in 538 were to erect an altar on the site of the Temple, renew
sacrificial worship, and celebrate the festival of Tabernacles.
Preparations were then made for the rebuilding of the Temple,
parallel to the preparations made for Solomon’s Temple. The
laying of the foundations was performed with a special service:
prayer and song. The people’s response was enthusiastic and
they wept out of joy. However, there were a number of the returned
exiles who had seen the first Temple, and these people
wept in memory of this destroyed Temple to such an extent
that the weeping for joy could not be distinguished from those
weeping in memory of the destroyed Temple.
Opposition to the Temple Building (4:1–24). Work on the Temple
did not proceed smoothly and, although it was started in
the second year after the return (537), work was not continued
on it until the second year of Darius I (521). The long delay of
some 21 years between the laying of the Temple’s foundations
in 537 and its completion in 516 is explained as due to opposition
by the local population. The opposition arose primarily
as a result of the exclusionary policy of the returnees about
permitting the indigenous population to participate in the re-
building effort. The returnees believed that they were the true
representatives of the people of God who had gone into exile,
and that those who had not gone into exile but remained in
the land, or were descendants of displaced peoples who had
subsequently adopted Israel’s religion, were not entitled to
join in this project. The opponents are called ןִמָיְנִ בוּ הדוּהְי ָ ירָצ ֵ
“adversaries of Judah and Benjamin” and ץרֶאָ ָה־םע ַ “people of
the land,” and they attempted to thwart the rebuilding effort
by various means including writing accusatory letters to the
Persian kings. These accusatory letters contained in 4:6–23
are problematic on two counts: first, because they do not deal
with the rebuilding of the Temple but with the rebuilding of
the city, and second because these letters are addressed to
Persian kings who reigned long after the Temple was actually
completed (516). These letters are sent to *Xerxes I (486–465)
and *Artaxerxes I (465–424). That the section containing these
letters is misplaced is clear from the fact that it is put in a different
place in I Esdras, where these letters occur in chapter
2, and not in chapter 4 as in the Masoretic text.
Appeal to Darius and Favorable Response (5:1–6:14). The end
of chapter 4 reverts back to the proper chronology, that of
the second year of Darius (521), at which time the prophets
*Haggai and *Zechariah encouraged the Jews to persist in the
building of the Temple. The renewed activity led to an investigation
by local Persian authorities, and a letter of inquiry (not
a complaint like the preceding communications) was sent to
Darius. The Persian authorities reported that they had gone
to Jerusalem, observed the state of building operations, and
had requested information on the authorization of the project.
They were informed by the Jewish leaders of the edict of Cyrus
granting the Jews permission to rebuild the Temple, and the
letter asked the king to verify whether or not Cyrus did issue
this edict. Darius then ordered a search in the royal archives,
and the edict was found and is reproduced in his reply to the
local authorities (see above). Darius issues instruction that the
Cyrus decree be honored, and that expenses for the project be
defrayed from the tax income accruing to the royal treasury
from the province. Moreover, provisions were to be made for
daily religious observances so that prayers could be made for
the welfare of the king and his family. The aforementioned
Cyrus Cylinder is often pointed to as an example of a Persian
monarch who requested prayer from other peoples for his
own and his son’s welfare.
Completion of the Temple (6:15–22). The reconstruction on the
Temple was completed in the sixth year of the reign of Darius I
(516); the work had taken 21 years since the foundation was
laid in the second year of Cyrus (537). A joyful dedication ceremony
took place with enormous amounts of sacrifices, “one
hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and
twelve goats.” Shortly afterwards the returned exiles celebrated
the Passover, together with those of the indigenous population
who had “separated themselves from the uncleanliness of the
nations of the lands,” a hint that the returnees were open to
permitting others into their fold (see also Neh. 10:29).
658 ENCYCLOPAEDIA JUDAICA, Second Edition, Volume 6