King James Version, with Nii Okai's journal notes · 6 notes
1Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the LORD God of Israel;
2Then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said unto them, Let us build with you: for we seek your God, as ye do; and we do sacrifice unto him since the days of Esar-haddon king of Assur, which brought us up hither.
3But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said unto them, Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto our God; but we ourselves together will build unto the LORD God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia hath commanded us.
The Israelites did not tolerate any mixture or pollution of their stock or worship 🛐.
How come we in Christ do tolerate all manner of inconsistencies?
The fact that God continues to work with our excesses does not normalize or make them acceptable.
There is the perfect or ideal that God expects us to work towards.
Israel was in excess for centuries, yet God worked and loved them, but that never, no matter how long, made it right.
So also with us. The church ⛪ is filled with such corruption and wickedness.
We should accept that we have fallen and work towards it, rather than to form new doctrines out of them.
4Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building,
5And hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
it is apt to say that cyrus might not have believed in GOD the hebrew GOD, but made a decree for all the gods of the peeople but then the religious interpretation in ezra is biased towards the jewish GOD because ezra was jew.
in that case then cyrus was just making a decree probably due to a wild dream he had which he believed was the gods speaking to him or
maybe he really bwleived the hebrew Gdo but of political correctness generalise dthe decree to robe in veryone.
I penned the above down due to a google search of the Cyrus cylinder which reach ""From [Babylon] to Aššur and (from) Susa, Agade, Ešnuna, the cities of Zamban, Me-Turnu, Der, as far as the region of the Gutium, the sanctuaries across the river Tigris—whose shrines had earlier become ruins—I returned the gods who dwelt there to their places and made permanent sanctuaries for them."
"I collected all their peoples and returned them to their habitations. And the gods of Sumer and Akkad, whom Nabonidus—to the anger of the lord of the gods—had brought into Babylon, I returned them unharmed to their cells, in the sanctuaries that make them happy."
And they could not go back to Cyrus to enforce the decree because much like today, leaders have so many things to do and their place over full.
A minor religious hindrance not directly affecting the throne or politic of the realm was likely not to even get to the deputies, much less the king.
It was up to them to make the most of the situation , because to even have a life line as this was more than enough and indeed a risk in itself to the realm
6And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, wrote they unto him an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
7And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, unto Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue, and interpreted in the Syrian tongue.
8Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king in this sort:
9Then wrote Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions; the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Susanchites, the Dehavites, and the Elamites,
10And the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Asnappar brought over, and set in the cities of Samaria, and the rest that are on this side the river, and at such a time.
It is in the keeping of records and journals that we have these stories that we now read — beautiful 👌
11This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king; Thy servants the men on this side the river, and at such a time.
12Be it known unto the king, that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations.
13Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls set up again, then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom, and so thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings.
14Now because we have maintenance from the king’s palace, and it was not meet for us to see the king’s dishonour, therefore have we sent and certified the king;
15That search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers: so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time: for which cause was this city destroyed.
They were generous enough to notify the king to check his archives of old wars and israels rebellion but quite conveniently did not mention to the king to check the archives of their predecessor kings who decreed for the temple and its walls to be rebuilt.
Hmm the adversary.
16We certify the king that, if this city be builded again, and the walls thereof set up, by this means thou shalt have no portion on this side the river.
17Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and unto the rest beyond the river, Peace, and at such a time.
18The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.
19And I commanded, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein.
20There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, which have ruled over all countries beyond the river; and toll, tribute, and custom, was paid unto them.
21Give ye now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until another commandment shall be given from me.
22Take heed now that ye fail not to do this: why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?
23Now when the copy of king Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power.
24Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
The children of Israel had been so reduced to nothing.
Because of their idolatry and immorality.
No wonder the Lord said that the strange woman will reduce one to a piece of bread, and even an entire nation has fallen prey to this saying because of their immorality towards God.