1 Now after these things, when Artaxerxes was king of Persia, Ezra, the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,2 The son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub,3 The son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth,4 The son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki,5 The son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest:6 This Ezra went up from Babylon; and he was a scribe, expert in the law of Moses which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given: and the king, moved by the Lord his God, gave him whatever he made request for.7 And some of the children of Israel went up, with some of the priests and the Levites and the music-makers and the door-keepers and the Nethinim, to Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king.8 And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, in the seventh year of the king's rule.9 For, starting his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, he came to Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, by the good help of his God.10 For Ezra had given his mind to learning the law of the Lord and doing it, and to teaching his rules and decisions in Israel.11 Now this is a copy of the letter which King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra, the priest and the scribe, who put into writing the words of the orders of the Lord, and of his rules for Israel:12 Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, scribe of the law of the God of heaven, all peace;13 And now it is my order that all those of the people of Israel, and their priests and Levites in my kingdom, who are ready and have a desire to go to Jerusalem, are to go with you.14 Because you are sent by the king and his seven wise men, to get knowledge about Judah and Jerusalem, as you are ordered by the law of your God which is in your hand;15 And to take with you the silver and gold freely offered by the king and his wise men to the God of Israel, whose Temple is in Jerusalem,16 As well as all the silver and gold which you get from the land of Babylon, together with the offering of the people and of the priests, freely given for the house of their God, which is in Jerusalem:17 So with this money get with care oxen, sheep, and lambs, with their meal offerings and their drink offerings, to be offered on the altar of the house of your God, which is in Jerusalem.18 And whatever seems right to you and to your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and gold, that do, as may be pleasing to your God.19 And the vessels which have been given to you for the uses of the house of your God, you are to give to the God of Jerusalem.20 And whatever more is needed for the house of your God, and which you may have to give, take it from the king's store-house.21 And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, now give orders to all keepers of the king's money across the river, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, may have need of from you, is to be done with all care,22 Up to a hundred talents of silver, a hundred measures of grain, a hundred measures of wine, and a hundred measures of oil, and salt without measure.23 Whatever is ordered by the God of heaven, let it be done completely for the house of the God of heaven; so that there may not be wrath against the kingdom of the king and his sons.24 In addition, we make it clear to you, that it will be against the law to put any tax or payment in goods or forced payment on any of the priests or Levites, the music-makers, door-keepers, Nethinim, or any servants of this house of God.25 And you, Ezra, by the wisdom of your God which is in you, are to put rulers and judges to have authority over all the people across the river who have knowledge of the laws of your God; and you are to give teaching to him who has no knowledge of them.26 And if anyone does not keep the law of your God and the law of the king, take care that punishment is given to him, by death or by driving him from his country or by taking away his goods or by putting him in prison.27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our fathers, who has put such a thing into the heart of the king, to make fair the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem;28 And has given mercy to me before the king and his government and before all the king's great captains. And I was made strong by the hand of the Lord my God which was on me, and I got together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

1 Post hc autem verba in regno Artaxerxis regis Persarum, Esdras filius Sarai, filii Azari, filii Helci, 2 filii Sellum, filii Sadoc, filii Achitob, 3 filii Amari, filii Azari, filii Maraioth, 4 filii Zarahi, filii Ozi, filii Bocci, 5 filii Abisue, filii Phinees, filii Eleazar, filii Aaron sacerdotis ab initio. 6 Ipse Esdras ascendit de Babylone, et ipse scriba velox in lege Moysi, quam Dominus Deus dedit Isral : et dedit ei rex secundum manum Domini Dei ejus super eum, omnem petitionem ejus. 7 Et ascenderunt de filiis Isral, et de filiis sacerdotum, et de filiis Levitarum, et de cantoribus, et de janitoribus, et de Nathinis, in Jerusalem, anno septimo Artaxerxis regis. 8 Et venerunt in Jerusalem mense quinto, ipse est annus septimus regis. 9 Quia in primo die mensis primi cpit ascendere de Babylone, et in primo die mensis quinti venit in Jerusalem, juxta manum Dei sui bonam super se. 10 Esdras enim paravit cor suum, ut investigaret legem Domini, et faceret et doceret in Isral prceptum et judicium.11 Hoc est autem exemplar epistol edicti, quod dedit rex Artaxerxes Esdr sacerdoti, scrib erudito in sermonibus et prceptis Domini, et cremoniis ejus in Isral. 12 Artaxerxes rex regum Esdr sacerdoti scrib legis Dei cli doctissimo, salutem. 13 A me decretum est, ut cuicumque placuerit in regno meo de populo Isral, et de sacerdotibus ejus, et de Levitis, ire in Jerusalem, tecum vadat. 14 A facie enim regis, et septem consiliatorum ejus, missus es, ut visites Judam et Jerusalem in lege Dei tui, qu est in manu tua : 15 et ut feras argentum et aurum quod rex, et consiliatores ejus, sponte obtulerunt Deo Isral, cujus in Jerusalem tabernaculum est. 16 Et omne argentum et aurum quodcumque inveneris in universa provincia Babylonis, et populus offerre voluerit, et de sacerdotibus qu sponte obtulerint domui Dei sui, qu est in Jerusalem, 17 libere accipe, et studiose eme de hac pecunia vitulos, arietes, agnos, et sacrificia, et libamina eorum, et offer ea super altare templi Dei vestri, quod est in Jerusalem. 18 Sed et si quid tibi et fratribus tuis placuerit de reliquo argento et auro ut faciatis, juxta voluntatem Dei vestri facite. 19 Vasa quoque, qu dantur tibi in ministerium domus Dei tui, trade in conspectu Dei in Jerusalem. 20 Sed et cetera, quibus opus fuerit in domum Dei tui, quantumcumque necesse est ut expendas, dabitur de thesauro, et de fisco regis, 21 et a me. Ego Artaxerxes rex, statui atque decrevi omnibus custodibus arc public, qui sunt trans flumen, ut quodcumque petierit a vobis Esdras sacerdos, scriba legis Dei cli, absque mora detis, 22 usque ad argenti talenta centum, et usque ad frumenti coros centum, et usque ad vini batos centum, et usque ad batos olei centum, sal vero absque mensura. 23 Omne quod ad ritum Dei cli pertinet, tribuatur diligenter in domo Dei cli : ne forte irascatur contra regnum regis, et filiorum ejus. 24 Vobis quoque notum facimus de universis sacerdotibus, et Levitis, et cantoribus, et janitoribus, Nathinis, et ministris domus Dei hujus, ut vectigal, et tributum, et annonas non habeatis potestatem imponendi super eos. 25 Tu autem Esdra, secundum sapientiam Dei tui, qu est in manu tua, constitue judices et prsides, ut judicent omni populo qui est trans flumen, his videlicet qui noverunt legem Dei tui : sed et imperitos docete libere. 26 Et omnis qui non fecerit legem Dei tui, et legem regis, diligenter, judicium erit de eo sive in mortem, sive in exilium, sive in condemnationem substanti ejus, vel certe in carcerem.27 Benedictus Dominus Deus patrum nostrorum, qui dedit hoc in corde regis ut glorificaret domum Domini qu est in Jerusalem, 28 et in me inclinavit misericordiam suam coram rege et consiliatoribus ejus, et universis principibus regis potentibus : et ego confortatus manu Domini Dei mei, qu erat in me, congregavi de Isral principes qui ascenderent mecum.