View source for Ezra 5

{{Short description|A chapter in the Book of Ezra}}
{{Bible chapter|letname= Ezra 5 |previouslink= Ezra 4 |previousletter=chapter 4 |nextlink= Ezra 6 |nextletter= chapter 6 |book=[[Book of Ezra]] |biblepart=[[Old Testament]] | booknum= 15 |category= [[Ketuvim]] | filename= Leningrad-codex-24-ezra.pdf| size=250px |caption=<div style="width: 250px; text-align: center; line-height: 1em">The whole book of [[Ezra–Nehemiah]] in the [[Leningrad Codex]] (1008 C.E.) from an old fascimile edition.</div>}}
'''Ezra 5''' is the fifth chapter of the [[Book of Ezra]] in the [[Old Testament]] of the [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Bible]],{{sfn|Halley|1965|p=233}} or the book of [[Ezra–Nehemiah]] in the [[Hebrew Bible]], which treats the book of Ezra and [[book of Nehemiah]] as one book.{{sfn|Grabbe|2003|p=313}} Jewish tradition states that [[Ezra]] is the author of Ezra–Nehemiah as well as the [[Book of Chronicles]],<ref>[[Babylonian Talmud]] ''Baba Bathra'' 15a, ''apud'' Fensham 1982, p. 2</ref> modern scholars generally claim that a compiler from the 5th century BCE (the so-called "[[The Chronicler|Chronicler]]") is the final author of these books.{{sfn|Fensham|1982|pp=2–4}} The section comprising [[Ezra 1|chapter 1]] to [[Ezra 6|6]] describes the history before the arrival of [[Ezra]] to the land of Judah {{sfn|Grabbe|2003|p=314}}{{sfn|Fensham|1982|p=4}} in 468 BCE.<ref>Davies, G. I., ''Introduction to the Pentateuch'' in Barton, J. and Muddiman, J. (2001), [https://b-ok.org/dl/946961/8f5f43 The Oxford Bible Commentary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171122193211/http://b-ok.org/dl/946961/8f5f43 |date=2017-11-22}}, p. 19</ref> This chapter records the contribution of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to the [[Second Temple|temple]] building project and the investigation by Persian officials.{{sfn|Levering|2007|p=69, 72}}

==Text==
[[Chapters and verses of the Bible|This chapter is divided into]] 17 verses. The original text of this chapter is written in [[Aramaic]].<ref>Note ''d'' on Ezra 4:8 in [[New King James Version|NKJV]]: "The original language of Ezra 4:8 through 6:18 is Aramaic".</ref>

===Textual witnesses===
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in [[Aramaic]] are of the [[Masoretic Text]], which includes [[Leningrad Codex|Codex Leningradensis]] (1008).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=36-37}}{{efn|Since 1947 the current text of [[Aleppo Codex]] is missing the whole book of Ezra-Nehemiah.<ref>{{citation |author=P. W. Skehan |contribution=BIBLE (TEXTS) |title=[[New Catholic Encyclopedia]] |edition=2nd |volume=2 |publisher=Gale |year=2003 |pages=355–362}}</ref>}} A fragment containing a part of this chapter in Hebrew was found among the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]], that is, 4Q117 (4QEzra; 50 BCE) with the extant verse 17 (= 1 Esdras 6:20).{{sfn|Ulrich|2010|p=777}}<ref name=thewaytoyahuweh>[https://thewaytoyahuweh.com/dead-sea-scrolls/general-info/#ezra Dead sea scrolls - Ezra]</ref>{{sfn|Fitzmyer|2008|p=43}}<ref>[http://www.deadseascrolls.org.il/explore-the-archive/manuscript/4Q117-1 4Q117 at the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library]</ref>

There is also a translation into [[Koine Greek]] known as the [[Septuagint]], made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the [[Septuagint]] version include [[Codex Vaticanus]] ('''B'''; <math> \mathfrak{G}</math><sup>B</sup>; 4th century), and [[Codex Alexandrinus]] ('''A'''; <math> \mathfrak{G}</math><sup>A</sup>; 5th century).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=73–74}}{{efn|The extant [[Codex Sinaiticus]] only contains Ezra 9:9–10:44.{{sfn|Würthwein|1973|p=}}{{sfn|Swete|1902|pp=129–130}}{{sfn|Fenlon|1908}} }}

An ancient Greek book called [[1 Esdras]] (Greek: {{lang|grc|Ἔσδρας Αʹ}}) containing some parts of [[Books of Chronicles|2 Chronicles]], [[Book of Ezra|Ezra]] and [[Book of Nehemiah|Nehemiah]]  is included in most editions of the Septuagint and is placed before the single book of [[Ezra–Nehemiah]] (which is titled in Greek: {{lang|grc|Ἔσδρας Βʹ}}). 1 Esdras 6:1–22 is an equivalent of Ezra 5 (The second year of Darius's reign).{{sfn|Souvay|1909}}{{sfn|Gottheil|Littmann|Kohler|1903}}

==Renewed effort (5:1–2)==
Through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, God sent the message of inspiration so the people began the repair of temple again{{sfn|Larson|Dahlen|Anders|2005|p=56}}

===Verse 1===
:''Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto them.''<ref>{{bibleverse|Ezra|5:1|KJV}} [[King James Version|KJV]]</ref>
The prophecies of [[Haggai]] and [[Zechariah (Hebrew prophet)|Zechariah]] are recorded in the Hebrew Bible in the [[Book of Haggai]] and [[Book of Zechariah]] respectively.{{sfn|McConville|1985|p=32}} Haggai's prophecy period completely covers the time mentioned here ([[Ezra 4:24]]; 520 BC), whereas Zechariah's only partly.{{sfn|McConville|1985|p=32}}

===Verse 2===
:''Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem: and with them were the prophets of God helping them.''<ref>{{bibleverse|Ezra|5:2|KJV}} KJV</ref>
*"[[Zerubbabel]]": is the leader of the group and of Davidic line ({{bibleverse|1 Chronicles|3:19|KJV}}), so he is associated with the messianic hope in the [[book of Zechariah]], although none of it is mentioned in this book.{{sfn|McConville|1985|p=14}} His office is not named in this book, but he is identified as the “governor of Judah” in [[Haggai 1:1]], {{bibleverse|Haggai|1:14|KJV|14}}; {{bibleverse-nb|Haggai|2:2|KJV}}.{{sfn|Grabbe|2003|p=314}}
*"[[Jeshua the High Priest|Jeshua]]": or "Joshua".<ref>Notes [a] on Ezra 3:2 in [[New King James Version|NKJV]]</ref> His office is not named in this book, but he is identified as the “[[High Priest of Israel|high priest]]” in [[Haggai 1:1]], {{bibleverse|Haggai|1:12|KJV|12}}, {{bibleverse|Haggai|1:14|KJV|14}}; {{bibleverse-nb|Haggai|2:2|KJV}}; {{bibleverse|Zechariah|3:1|KJV}}.{{sfn|Grabbe|2003|p=314}}
*"Jozadak": or "[[Jehozadak]]" ({{bibleverse|1 Chronicles|6:14|KJV}}).<ref>Notes [a] on Ezra 5:2 in NKJV</ref>

==The investigation (5:3–17)==
Based on the complaint of the non-Jews, the governor of the area began an investigation into the building project, interviewing the Jewish leaders and sending an inquiry to [[Darius the Great|Darius]], the king of Persia.{{sfn|Larson|Dahlen|Anders|2005|p=56}}

===Verse 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?"''<ref>{{bibleref2|Ezra|5:3|WEB}} [[World English Bible|WEB]]</ref>
*[[Tattenai]] was the governor beyond the River, that is, "Persian governor of the province west of the [[Euphrates]] River (''eber nāri'', "beyond the river") during the reign of Darius I" (522–486 BCE).<ref>{{Britannica|title=Tattenai}}</ref> A number of cuneiform tablets bearing the name Tattenai have survived as part of what may have been a family archive, with one tablet functioning as a promissory note bearing a witness to the transaction involving a servant of "''Tattannu, governor of Across-the-River''".{{sfn|Mykytiuk|2014|pp=42-50}} The [[clay tablet]] can be dated accurately to June 5, 502 [[BCE]] (the 20th year of Darius I).{{sfn|Mykytiuk|2017|p=48}}
*”House”: refers to "Temple".<ref>Notes [a] on Ezra 5:3 in NKJV</ref>

===Verse 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.''<ref>{{bibleref2|Ezra|5:6|WEB}} WEB</ref>
*"The Apharsachites": is considered the same as "Apharsites" and "Apharsathchites" ([[Ezra 4:9]]) as the three forms of provincial variants of the word "''Parsaya''" in {{bibleverse|Daniel|6:28|KJV}}, which is the Chaldaean equivalent of "Persian", so these people as the "companions" of Tatnai and Shethar-boznai are possibly the Persians who became their body-guard and their soldiers.{{sfn|Spence-Jones|Exell|1884}}

===Verse 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.''<ref>{{bibleref2|Ezra|5:8|WEB}} WEB</ref>
*"House": refers to "Temple".<ref>Notes [a] on Ezra 5:8 in NKJV</ref>
*"Great stones": ''lit.'' "stones of rolling", that is, "stones too heavy to be carried",<ref>Note ''e'' on Ezra 5:8 in NKJV</ref> which were therefore moved on rollers.<ref name=Ryle>[[H. E. Ryle|Ryle, H. E.]] (1901), [https://biblehub.com/commentaries/cambridge/ezra/5.htm Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges] on Ezra 5, accessed 21 June 2020</ref>

===Verse 11===
:''And thus they returned us an answer, saying: “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed.''<ref>{{bibleverse|Ezra|5:11|NKJV}} NKJV</ref>
The "great king of Israel" was [[Solomon]].<ref name=Ryle /> The conventional dates of Solomon's reign are about 970 to 931 BCE. The Jewish historian [[Josephus]] says that "the [[Solomon's Temple|temple]] was burnt four hundred and seventy years, six months, and ten days after it was built".<ref name=AJ_10.8.5 />

==See also==
*[[Darius I]]
*[[Jerusalem]]
*Related [[Bible]] parts: [[Ezra 4]], [[Haggai 1]], [[Haggai 2]], [[Zechariah 1]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==

===Citations===
{{reflist|refs=

<ref name=AJ_10.8.5>{{cite Josephus|PACEJ=1|text=AJ|bookno=10|chap=8|sec=5}}</ref>

}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|2|indent=yes}}
*{{cite CE1913|first=John Francis |last=Fenlon|volume=4|wstitle=Codex Sinaiticus}}
*{{cite book|last= Fensham| first=F. Charles | title=The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah | series=New international commentary on the Old Testament | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |edition= illustrated | date = 1982 | isbn = 978-0802825278 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IfxMeDl6BZgC | access-date=October 28, 2019}}
* {{Cite book|title = A Guide to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature|last = Fitzmyer|first = Joseph A.| author-link= Joseph Fitzmyer |publisher = William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=TILXeWJ2eNAC | year = 2008|isbn = 9780802862419|location = Grand Rapids, MI }}
*{{cite JE1906|first1=Richard |last1=Gottheil|first2= Enno|last2= Littmann|first3= Kaufmann |last3=Kohler|title=Esdras, Books of|volume=5|url=http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/5852-esdras-books-of#1248}}{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFGottheilLittmannKohler1903}}
*{{cite book|last= Grabbe| first= Lester L.|author-link= Lester L. Grabbe | chapter = Ezra | title=Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible | editor-first1=James D. G.| editor-last1=Dunn  |editor1-link = James Dunn (theologian) | editor-first2=John William| editor-last2= Rogerson |editor2-link =  John W. Rogerson | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |edition= illustrated | date = 2003 | pages = 313–319 | isbn = 978-0802837110 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Vo-11umIZQC | access-date=October 28, 2019}}
*{{cite book|last= Halley| first= Henry H.| author-link= Henry Hampton Halley| title= Halley's Bible Handbook: an abbreviated Bible commentary |edition=24th (revised)|publisher= Zondervan Publishing House |date= 1965 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=zsG4oLToI7oC | isbn= 0-310-25720-4}}
*{{cite book|last1= Larson| first1= Knute|last2=Dahlen |first2=Kathy |last3=Anders|first3= Max E. | title=Holman Old Testament Commentary - Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther | series= Holman Old Testament commentary|volume= 9  | editor-first=Max E.| editor-last=Anders | publisher =  B&H Publishing Group|edition= illustrated | date = 2005 | isbn = 978-0805494693 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4MmHIVtd6r0C | access-date=October 28, 2019}}
*{{cite book|last= Levering| first=Matthew | title=Ezra & Nehemiah | series=Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible | publisher = Brazos Press | date = 2007| isbn = 978-1587431616 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TYhGQVLlL4IC | access-date=October 28, 2019}}
*{{cite book|last= McConville| first=J. G. | title=Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther | series=The daily study Bible : Old Testament | publisher = Westminster John Knox Press | date = 1985 | isbn = 978-0664245832 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AhyPOmOzZhoC | access-date=October 28, 2019}}
*{{cite journal|last=Mykytiuk|first= Lawrence|title=Archaeology Confirms 50 Real People in the Bible|journal=Biblical Archaeology Review|volume= 40|issue=2 |date=2014|pages=  42–50|url=https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/40/2/4}}
*{{cite journal|last=Mykytiuk|first= Lawrence|title=Archaeology confirms 3 more bible people|journal=Biblical Archaeology Review|volume= 43|issue=3 |date=2017|pages= 48–52|url=https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/43/3/6}}
*{{cite book|last= Smith-Christopher| first= Daniel L.|author-link= Daniel L. Smith-Christopher | chapter = 15. Ezra-Nehemiah | title=The Oxford Bible Commentary | editor-first1=John| editor-last1=Barton |editor1-link = John Barton (theologian) | editor-first2=John| editor-last2= Muddiman |editor2-link = John Muddiman | publisher = Oxford University Press |edition= first (paperback) | date = 2007 | pages = 308–324 | isbn = 978-0199277186 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZJdVkgEACAAJ| access-date=February 6, 2019}}
*{{cite book|editor1-last=Spence-Jones|editor1-first= H. D. M. |editor2-first=Joseph S.|editor2-last= Exell |title=The Pulpit Commentary|url=https://biblehub.com/commentaries/pulpit/ezra/5.htm|volume=7. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job|year=1884}}
*{{cite CE1913|first=Charles Léon |last=Souvay|wstitle=Esdras|volume=5}}
*{{Cite book |last=Swete |first=Henry Barclay |author-link= Henry Barclay Swete |title= An Introduction to the Old Testament in Greek |publisher= Macmillan and Co. |location=Cambridge |year=1902 |url= https://archive.org/stream/anintrotooldtes00swetuoft#page/128/mode/2up }}
* {{Cite book
| editor-last  = Ulrich
| editor-first = Eugene |editor-link = Eugene Ulrich
| title        = The Biblical Qumran Scrolls: Transcriptions and Textual Variants
| year         = 2010
| publisher    = Brill
| url          = https://archive.org/details/TheBiblicalQumranScrolls}}
*{{cite book|last=Würthwein|first=Ernst |title=Der Text des Alten Testaments: eine Einführung in die Biblia Hebraica|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LqXuwwEACAAJ|year=1973|publisher=Württembergische Bibelanstalt|isbn=978-3-438-06006-8}}
*{{cite book | last = Würthwein | first = Ernst | author-link = Ernst Würthwein | title = The Text of the Old Testament | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans |location = Grand Rapids, MI | year=  1995 | translator-first1 = Erroll F.| translator-last1 = Rhodes |isbn = 0-8028-0788-7 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FSNKSBObCYwC | access-date= January 26, 2019}}

{{refend}}

==External links==
* [[Judaism|Jewish]] translations:
** [https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/16502 Ezra - Chapter 5 (Judaica Press)] translation [with [[Rashi]]'s commentary] at Chabad.org
* [[Christianity|Christian]] translations:
** [http://www.gospelhall.org/bible/bible.php?passage=Ezra+5 ''Online Bible'' at GospelHall.org] (ESV, KJV, Darby, American Standard Version, Bible in Basic English)
** [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=15&chapter=5&version=9 Book of Ezra Chapter 5. Bible Gateway]

{{Book of Ezra}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ezra 5}}
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[[Category:Book of Ezra chapters|05]]