1 Now news came to the haters of Judah and Benjamin that the people who had come back were building a Temple to the Lord, the God of Israel;2 Then they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of families, and said to them, Let us take part in the building with you; for we are servants of your God, even as you are; and we have been making offerings to him from the days of Esar-haddon, king of Assyria, who put us here.3 But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of families in Israel said to them, You have no part with us in the building of a house for our God; we ourselves will do the work together for the Lord, the God of Israel, as Cyrus, king of Persia, has given us orders.4 Then the people of the land made the hands of the people of Judah feeble, troubling them with fear in their building;5 And they gave payment to men who made designs against them and kept them from effecting their purpose, all through the time of Cyrus, king of Persia, till Darius became king.6 And in the time of Ahasuerus, when he first became king, they put on record a statement against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.7 And in the time of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his friends, sent a letter to Artaxerxes, king of Persia, writing it in the Aramaean writing and language.8 Rehum, the chief ruler, and Shimshai the scribe, sent a letter against Jerusalem, to Artaxerxes the king;9 The letter was sent by Rehum, the chief ruler, and Shimshai the scribe and their friends; the Dinaites and the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Shushanchites, the Dehaites, the Elamites,10 And the rest of the nations which the great and noble Osnappar took over and put in Samaria and the rest of the country over the river:11 This is a copy of the letter which they sent to Artaxerxes the king: Your servants living across the river send these words:12 We give news to the king that the Jews who came from you have come to us at Jerusalem; they are building up again that uncontrolled and evil town; the walls are complete and they are joining up the bases.13 The king may be certain that when the building of this town and its walls is complete, they will give no tax or payment in goods or forced payments, and in the end it will be a cause of loss to the kings.14 Now because we are responsible to the king, and it is not right for us to see the king's honour damaged, we have sent to give the king word of these things,15 So that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers: and you will see in the book of the records that this town has been uncontrolled, and a cause of trouble to kings and countries, and that there were outbursts against authority there in the past: for which reason the town was made waste.16 We give you word, that if the building of this town and its walls is made complete, there will be an end of your power in the country across the river.17 Then the king sent an answer to Rehum, the chief ruler, and Shimshai the scribe, and their friends living in Samaria, and to the rest of those across the river, saying, Peace to you:18 And now the sense of the letter which you sent to us has been made clear to me,19 And I gave orders for a search to be made, and it is certain that in the past this town has made trouble for kings, and that outbursts against authority have taken place there.20 Further, there have been great kings in Jerusalem, ruling over all the country across the river, to whom they gave taxes and payments in goods and forced payments.21 Give an order now, that these men are to do nothing more, and that the building of the town is to be stopped, till I give an order.22 Be certain to do this with all care: do not let trouble be increased to the king's damage.23 Then, after reading the king's letter, Rehum and Shimshai the scribe and their friends went quickly to Jerusalem, to the Jews, and had them stopped by force.24 So the work of the house of God at Jerusalem came to an end; so it was stopped, till the second year of the rule of Darius, king of Persia.

1 Audierunt autem hostes Jud et Benjamin, quia filii captivitatis dificarent templum Domino Deo Isral : 2 et accedentes ad Zorobabel, et ad principes patrum, dixerunt eis : dificemus vobiscum, quia ita ut vos, qurimus Deum vestrum : ecce nos immolavimus victimas a diebus Asor Haddan regis Assur, qui adduxit nos huc. 3 Et dixit eis Zorobabel, et Josue, et reliqui principes patrum Isral : Non est vobis et nobis ut dificemus domum Deo nostro, sed nos ipsi soli dificabimus Domino Deo nostro, sicut prcepit nobis Cyrus rex Persarum. 4 Factum est igitur ut populus terr impediret manus populi Jud, et turbaret eos in dificando. 5 Conduxerunt autem adversus eos consiliatores, ut destruerent consilium eorum omnibus diebus Cyri regis Persarum, et usque ad regnum Darii regis Persarum.6 In regno autem Assueri, in principio regni ejus, scripserunt accusationem adversus habitatores Jud et Jerusalem. 7 Et in diebus Artaxerxis scripsit Beselam, Mithridates, et Thabeel, et reliqui qui erant in consilio eorum, ad Artaxerxem regem Persarum : epistola autem accusationis scripta erat syriace, et legebatur sermone syro. 8 Reum Beelteem, et Samsai scriba, scripserunt epistolam unam de Jerusalem Artaxerxi regi, hujuscemodi : 9 Reum Beelteem, et Samsai scriba, et reliqui consiliatores eorum, Dini, et Apharsathachi, Terphali, Apharsi, Erchui, Babylonii, Susanechi, Dievi, et lamit, 10 et ceteri de gentibus, quas transtulit Asenaphar magnus et gloriosus, et habitare eas fecit in civitatibus Samari, et in reliquis regionibus trans flumen in pace 11 (hoc est exemplar epistol, quam miserunt ad eum), Artaxerxi regi, servi tui, viri qui sunt trans fluvium, salutem dicunt. 12 Notum sit regi quia Judi, qui ascenderunt a te ad nos, venerunt in Jerusalem civitatem rebellem et pessimam, quam dificant exstruentes muros ejus, et parietes componentes. 13 Nunc igitur notum sit regi, quia si civitas illa dificata fuerit, et muri ejus instaurati, tributum, et vectigal, et annuos reditus non dabunt, et usque ad reges hc noxa perveniet. 14 Nos autem memores salis, quod in palatio comedimus, et quia lsiones regis videre nefas ducimus, idcirco misimus et nuntiavimus regi, 15 ut recenseas in libris historiarum patrum tuorum, et invenies scriptum in commentariis : et scies quoniam urbs illa, urbs rebellis est, et nocens regibus et provinciis, et bella concitantur in ea ex diebus antiquis : quam ob rem et civitas ipsa destructa est. 16 Nuntiamus nos regi, quoniam si civitas illa dificata fuerit, et muri ipsius instaurati, possessionem trans fluvium non habebis.17 Verbum misit rex ad Reum Beelteem, et Samsai scribam, et ad reliquos, qui erant in consilio eorum habitatores Samari, et ceteris trans fluvium, salutem dicens et pacem. 18 Accusatio, quam misistis ad nos, manifeste lecta est coram me, 19 et a me prceptum est : et recensuerunt, inveneruntque quoniam civitas illa a diebus antiquis adversum reges rebellat, et seditiones, et prlia concitantur in ea : 20 nam et reges fortissimi fuerunt in Jerusalem, qui et dominati sunt omni regioni qu trans fluvium est : tributum quoque et vectigal, et reditus accipiebant. 21 Nunc ergo audite sententiam : prohibeatis viros illos, ut urbs illa non dificetur donec si forte a me jussum fuerit. 22 Videte ne negligenter hoc impleatis, et paulatim crescat malum contra reges.23 Itaque exemplum edicti Artaxerxis regis lectum est coram Reum Beelteem, et Samsai scriba, et consiliariis eorum : et abierunt festini in Jerusalem ad Judos, et prohibuerunt eos in brachio et robore. 24 Tunc intermissum est opus domus Domini in Jerusalem, et non fiebat usque ad annum secundum regni Darii regis Persarum.