Ezra 6:1–18
6 Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in Babylonia, in the house of the archives where the documents were stored. 2 And in Ecbatana, the citadel that is in the province of Media, a scroll was found on which this was written: “A record. 3 In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king issued a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be rebuilt, the place where sacrifices were offered, and let its foundations be retained. Its height shall be sixty cubits1 and its breadth sixty cubits, 4 with three layers of great stones and one layer of timber. Let the cost be paid from the royal treasury. 5 And also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that is in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be restored and brought back to the temple that is in Jerusalem, each to its place. You shall put them in the house of God.”
6 “Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province Beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and your2 associates the governors who are in the province Beyond the River, keep away. 7 Let the work on this house of God alone. Let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this house of God on its site. 8 Moreover, I make a decree regarding what you shall do for these elders of the Jews for the rebuilding of this house of God. The cost is to be paid to these men in full and without delay from the royal revenue, the tribute of the province from Beyond the River. 9 And whatever is needed—bulls, rams, or sheep for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, or oil, as the priests at Jerusalem require—let that be given to them day by day without fail, 10 that they may offer pleasing sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons. 11 Also I make a decree that if anyone alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of his house, and he shall be impaled on it, and his house shall be made a dunghill. 12 May the God who has caused his name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who shall put out a hand to alter this, or to destroy this house of God that is in Jerusalem. I Darius make a decree; let it be done with all diligence.”
13 Then, according to the word sent by Darius the king, Tattenai, the governor of the province Beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates did with all diligence what Darius the king had ordered. 14 And the elders of the Jews built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. They finished their building by decree of the God of Israel and by decree of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia; 15 and this house was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.
16 And the people of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the returned exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. 17 They offered at the dedication of this house of God 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel 12 male goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. 18 And they set the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their divisions, for the service of God at Jerusalem, as it is written in the Book of Moses.
1 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters 2 Aramaic their
Section Overview
The third pericope (Ezra 5:1–6:18) of the first episode (chs. 3–6) consists of a concentric structure of seven scenes or segments (cf. Section Outline) and culminates with temple completion. The previous chapter concluded with two requests of the king: first, that Darius order a search of the archives to confirm the elders’ assertion that temple rebuilding was proceeding under the aegis of Cyrus’s decree (5:13), and second, that he deliver his decision. These issues shape expectations for the current chapter. Will Darius locate the decree of Cyrus so central to these early chapters of Ezra? Will Darius, like Artaxerxes later (4:21), permit or instead shutdown this rebuilding project? Those questions are answered directly (6:1–18).
The initial inquiry is answered by the search for and discovery of Cyrus’s decree (d) (6:1–5). Given the event’s importance, it comes appropriately in the very center of the structure identified in the Section Outline below. It also sets off a series of events that mirror the events of chapter 5. The prior letter to Darius (c) (5:6–17) is balanced by the letter from Darius (c') describing his own decree (6:6–12). In response, the named authorities permit the very building activity (b') (6:13) they once questioned (b) (5:3–5). The pericope concludes by highlighting by means of narration the completion of the temple with the prophetic support (a') (6:14–18) previously expressed (a) (5:1–2).
Section Outline
II.B.3. Prophetic Restart to Reconstruction Yields Epistolary Support with Temple Completion (5:1–6:18)
a. Prophets Support Zerubbabel and Jeshua in Rebuilding (5:1–2)
b. Tattenai and Associates Question Leaders’ Authority to Rebuild (5:3–5)
c. Letter from Tattenai Requests Confirmation of Cyrus’s Decree (5:6–17)
d. Archive Search Finds Cyrus’s Decree (6:1–5)
c'. Letter to Tattenai Supports Rebuild by Darius’s Decree (6:6–12)
b'. Tattenai and Associates Heed Darius’s Order (6:13)
a'. Prophetic Support Leads to Temple Completion and Dedication (6:14–18)
Response
The exilic community has experienced incomprehensible loss and heartache, but now the sun is rising. Those suffering, whether from displacement or from loss of identity, business, occupation, home, material possessions, or loved ones, will resonate with that imperceptible moment when the light begins to shine and hope returns. To be human is to taste sorrow in its multiple dimensions, and yet this is not the final destiny of God’s flock. The returning community shows the church in every age, no matter its hardships, that we may celebrate with joy the many facets of God’s grace.
God’s grace topples the temptation to lose hope. Circumstances, of our own creation or others’ (Ezra 5:12), may result in a grim pessimism that believes nothing will ever change. But thankfully, even relentless affliction can, through God’s grace, issue in joy (2 Cor. 8:1–2). In the case of the returnees, God works even in the actions of Persian kings. The finding of the decree of Cyrus, a result never guaranteed, emboldens them to complete the temple. However, more work remains to be done by Ezra the priest, Nehemiah the governor, and all the people to extend the building project beyond the temple in order to include great joy for all Jerusalem (Neh. 12:27–43). And so it is for us. Our global disciple-making mission (Matt. 28:19–20) concludes in an ideal Jerusalem for the redeemed community (Rev. 21:15–16).
However, God does more than we can ask or think (Eph. 3:20), with grace that overflows our expectations. In the case of the returnees, gaining vindication and support from Cyrus’s decree to continue building would be sufficient, but God prompts Darius to go further in commanding that the temple be resurrected with imperial finances (Ezra 6:8). Because of God’s sovereign work, Tattenai and associates, representatives of the empire, are commanded to support the work of temple construction. There may be times when even those who question the missional work of God’s people and their authority to act suddenly find themselves supplying the very materials required for the work (cf. 4:13, 21–22; Neh. 2:7–8). Indeed, Darius even offers “whatever” sacrifices are required for worship (Ezra 6:9); receiving them from the hand of men, the people of God offer them back to God (v. 17). These are God’s gifts through God’s agent to God’s people; his grace does indeed overflow our expectations.
Finally, in the face of opposition God’s grace prospers his people through his Word. In 520 BC that word came through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, who exhorted a discouraged people to persevere in their task. That task—temple completion (“building and prospering”)—was a result of submission to the prophetic word (v. 14; cf. 5:1–2). This truth echoes throughout the Scriptures: the people of God prosper and succeed in their mission to be his people and bring his glory throughout all the earth only as they obey God’s will and Word (Josh. 1:8; 1 Chron. 22:11–13; Neh. 1:11; 2:20; Ps. 1:3).
That final prophetic Word has appeared in the coming of Jesus Christ, who is not only our Prophet (John 6:14; cf. Deut. 18:15–19) but also our Priest and King. Jesus issues the divine decree to “repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). If rejection of the royal decree and opposition to God’s purposes for his people result in warnings of severe judgment in Darius’s day (Ezra 6:11), what will become of those who rebel against the final Word of the divine King (2 Thess. 1:4–10)? Yet Christ has appeared and willingly bore the shame and punishment due to us (Rom. 6:23; Heb. 12:2; 1 John 4:10). We prosper in submission to his Word and by embracing his sacrifice. Jesus, the great Prophet, Priest, and King, builds his repentant and believing people into a great temple, granting them success to “proclaim [his] excellencies” (1 Pet. 2:4–9) in all the world.
A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
Aramaic their
6:1–5 Darius does the next thing expected and orders the search for Cyrus’s decree in Babylonia, that is, the wider region (i.e., satrapy) of which Babylon was the capital (v. 1; cf. 5:17). The search ends in Ecbatana, approximately 280 miles (450 km) northeast of Babylon. The decree’s eventual location in Ecbatana makes sense: previously (550 BC) Cyrus had captured this fortified capital (“citadel”) of Media, whereupon it became the summer residence of the Persian kings and thus a natural place to keep official documents.
The decree begins by identifying its date: “the first year of Cyrus” (6:3), his initial regnal year after taking Babylon (538–537) and assuming the title “king of Babylon” (5:13). Compared with the decree described previously (1:2–4), the archived decree (6:3–5) reveals several unique features. Temple rebuilding becomes the primary topic, as attested by the dual repetition of “the house” (v. 3). Specifications describe temple size, project funding from royal resources, a stone-to-timber construction ratio consistent with Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 6:36), and an explicit command to return vessels to the temple. The clause “let its foundations be retained” encourages maintenance of the original temple footprint and is in keeping with other notices that the temple was built “on its site” (Ezra 2:68; 5:15–16; 6:7). The mention of these details, and particularly the notice concerning temple boundaries, may function to limit the amount of financial support needed by limiting the final size of the building.
Two problems surround the temple’s dimensions. First, its dimensions are open-ended. Its height and breadth are fixed at 60 cubits each (v. 3; c. 90 ft. x 90 ft. [27 m x 27 m]), but its length is not stated. Second, the first temple was 30 cubits high, 20 cubits wide, and 60 cubits long (c. 45 ft. x 30 ft. x 90 ft. [13.5 m x 9 m x 27 m]; 1 Kings 6:2). This makes the new temple six times the size of Solomon’s original, a size not only at odds with prior instructions to retain the former foundations but also in conflict with the assumption that the rebuilt temple was much smaller in scope (Ezra 3:12; Hag. 2:3).
An irrefutable solution to this problem is not possible. Some commentators resolve the issue by asserting scribal error and adopting the dimensions of the first temple (1 Kings 6:2). This solution does not have strong support from ancient versions. Others reasonably assume that the listed height and breadth are the size for the facade only, allowing for a smaller inner structure. A third solution considers the impact of the dimensions on a postexilic audience. It accepts that Cyrus’s decree granted permission for a larger structure than was actually built. Assuming that the unstated length was also 60 cubits (the length of the first temple), then the resulting structure would have been a perfect cube analogous to the smaller cubic structure of the Most Holy Place (1 Kings 6:20). This would also align with the ideal dimensions of Ezekiel’s vision of temple (Ezek. 42:15–20), land (Ezek. 47:13–48:29), and city (Ezek. 48:30–35).
In short, while the building’s actual footprint would have followed that of the original, the idealized dimensions given here would have signified to the original audience not only the holiness of the space but also the fact that the times of renewal promised by Ezekiel were at hand. Further, in the wider sweep of Ezra-Nehemiah, reconstruction of a wood-and-stone temple represents only the first stage in an expanding “house of God.” The fully completed holy space would move beyond the rebuilt temple to include the reconstitution of a “holy people” under Torah (Ezra 7–10; esp. 8:28) and the rebuilding of Jerusalem itself (Nehemiah 1–7). Only then would this “perfected” space be ready for the restored community to commence in the “holy city” the covenant renewal celebration that ends the book of Nehemiah (Neh. 11:1).
6:6–12 Darius responds and balances the prior inquiry (5:6–17). Cyrus’s decree is found, but its contents are reported to Tattenai only indirectly. Instead, Darius offers his decision (6:6–7), including a decree for the payment of costs (vv. 8–10), the mention of severe warnings against disobedience (vv. 11–12a), and a call to action (v. 12b).
“Now therefore” marks the beginning of Darius’s instructions to the authorities. In unequivocal language he answers the question of what to do about temple rebuilding. His response functions like a restraining order: they must “keep away” and “let . . . alone” the work of rebuilding. This suffocates any temptation of the authorities to prevent the work. Positively, the “elders of the Jews” (cf. 5:9) and the unnamed “governor of the Jews” (here Zerubbabel; cf. comment on 5:3–5) are regranted permission to rebuild. This positive outcome provides real world evidence that the protecting “eye of their God” is on them (5:5).
To return to Darius’s decree, it is clear that he saves the best for last (6:8–10). In a remarkable series of commands, he subverts expectations, going beyond merely staving off harassment from outsiders. Remarkably, Darius commands that Tattenai and his associates work on behalf of those they once disturbed. But how? In restating prior commands (v. 4b), Darius reiterates that the empire will finance the project. The irony must not be missed. In a later letter, Artaxerxes will be warned that rebuilding of the Jerusalem walls will impact royal revenue (4:13). In short, royal tribute will now be used to pay costs “in full,” likely distributed by Tattenai himself!
Moreover, this rebuilding is to happen speedily. The phrase translated “and without delay” (6:8) may indicate concern for the payment not to be delayed, but a more probable interpretation understands the concern to be for the rebuilding not to be interrupted. This interpretation is supported by the specific verb used here (Aram. betel), which always refers to the cessation of a building project in Ezra (4:21, 23, 24 [2x]; 5:5; 6:8). The beginning and ending of verse 9 (“And whatever is needed . . . let that be given . . . without fail”) expand the lavish generosity of a king who provides not only the place of worship but the animals and other elements required for sacrifice. Nonetheless, while Darius may be known as the “friend of all the gods,” he remains a king with political motivations, requesting prayers for a long life for himself and his progeny (v. 10). Like Cyrus before him, Darius embraces a hope that his pious actions will prompt the gods to look favorably upon his reign.
The letter shifts topics in verses 11–12. Both Scripture and other ancient texts contain threats of punishment for disobedience or attempts to amend royal edicts or covenants (e.g., Deut. 28:15–68). Specifically, those rebelling against Darius face the threat of public humiliation and death by bodily suspension on a beam (Ezra 6:11). There is evidence of this gruesome practice in Scripture (e.g., Deut. 21:22–23; Josh. 8:29; 10:26–27) and throughout the ancient Near East into the Classical era, including Roman crucifixion. The Persian practice of bodily suspension described in Ezra 6:11 is consistent with Darius’s actions described elsewhere. Likewise, Darius calls upon God (i.e., “the God of Heaven”; vv. 9–10), “who has caused his name to dwell” in the Jerusalem temple, to “overthrow any king or people” (v. 12a) who dare “alter” his decree. Describing the temple as the place where God’s name dwells is more typical of the Jews themselves (Deut. 12:5, 11; 1 Kings 14:21), and it is unlikely that Darius understands the ramifications since it implies that God, not Darius, possesses Jerusalem. In summary, the logic of Ezra 6:11–12 is that anyone who alters or violates the royal decree also threatens God’s house and thereby will meet grave consequences as well as the defilement of his own house (cf. 2 Kings 10:27).
6:13 In verse 12 Darius concluded his edict and its threats for disobedience by stating: “Let it be done with all diligence.” He thus dictates expectation of thorough compliance consistent with other royal edicts (7:21, 26). In 6:13 his servants clearly obey, doing “with all diligence” just as he had said.
6:14–18 The repetition of several themes found in Ezra 1–6 shows that 6:14–15 are key verses. The temple was completed “by decree of the God of Israel,” the divine King. This divine decree was mediated by the prophetic word: the return from exile was from the start a fulfillment of the word of Jeremiah (1:1). Now, near the end of this first narrative movement (chs. 3–6), the narrative return of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, who reinvigorated the rebuilding effort (5:1–2), offers a fitting conclusion. As is the case throughout Scripture, true success for the people of God comes only through submission to the prophetic word. So the temple is restarted, and its completion takes place as foretold by the prophetic word, a fact that further confirms that these prophets are from the Lord (cf. Zech. 4:9).
However, Ezra-Nehemiah also acknowledges the importance of human action. Human kings do not act apart from the will of the divine King, and their decrees contribute to the rebuilding of the temple as well as the remaining building projects in the book. This is the case particularly for Artaxerxes, who has nothing to do with construction of the temple but whose later decrees play a vital part in permitting the “reconstruction” projects of Ezra (Ezra 7–10, people under Torah) and Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1–6, the city of Jerusalem)—projects also ordained by God. For now, the first building project (the temple) concludes in the final month of the calendar (Adar) in Darius’s sixth year. This may approximate the promised seventy years of Jeremiah (Ezra 1:1; Jer. 25:11–12; 29:10–14).
Temple completion leads to “dedication” (Hb. khanukkah) with joy (Ezra 6:16–18). This is neither the first nor the last time the returnees will experience the unrestrained radiance of joy against the backdrop of former sorrows (3:12, 13; 6:16, 22; Neh. 8:10, 12, 17; 12:27, 43 [2x], 44). In restoration of worship they find their deepest identity, calling, and fulfillment. Certainly, the sacrificial numbers pale in comparison to the first temple dedication, yet they may be patterned after the offerings there (1 Kings 8:62–63) or after those offered at the tabernacle’s completion (Numbers 7). The offering of twelve male goats, one for each tribe “for all Israel,” is significant for several reasons. First, it evidences a unified view of Israel beyond the focus on only “Judah and Benjamin” (Ezra 1:5; 4:1; 10:9). This unified “people of Israel” includes priests, Levites, and all returning exiles (6:16). Second, and of central importance, the “sin” or “purification” (NJPS) offering is graciously given to a people whose treasonous covenant rebellion had led to exile (Jer. 11:6–11). As such, the blood of the sin offering purifies a people whose defilement and dishonor touch every aspect of their lives.
It is not clear whether the offering includes purification of the temple itself (Lev. 4:3–12), but this would not be surprising given past history and current context. The explicit mention of “male goats” rather than a bull, female goat, or lamb may point to the sin offering for leaders as representatives of the people (Lev. 4:22–26). At its core, the purification offering would remove defilement of the rebuilt temple (Lev. 15:31; Hag. 2:14).
The final verse (Ezra 6:18) mentions Moses and alludes to David, both in terms of their connection to the first temple. While Moses is present in Ezra-Nehemiah primarily as the deliverer of the law, here “Book of Moses” (6:18; Neh. 13:1) likely refers to his establishment of the general duties of priests and Levites, which would have been followed in the first temple (Exodus 29; Leviticus 8; Numbers 18). As for David, his role in shaping worship is alluded to in the mention of the divisions and sections he assigned to priests, Levites, and others in the first temple (Ezra 3:10; 1 Chronicles 23–26; cf. 1 Chron. 22:13). In both cases, the connection to the first temple helps establish that this second temple is a legitimate house of worship.