ESV Global Study Bible :: Footnotes for Ezra 6

6:1–22 King Darius Discovers and Reaffirms Cyrus’s Decree, and the Work Is Completed. A record of Cyrus’s decree is discovered, and King Darius confirms that the Jews are to be allowed to continue the work.

Ezra 6:1–2 King Darius’s search for Cyrus’s decree is made first in Babylonia. This is where Cyrus had declared himself king in 539 b.c. and where many exiled Jews lived. But the scroll containing it was found in Ecbatana, a summer residence of Persian kings, where Cyrus may have gone soon after his triumph over Babylon. The province of Media was formerly the seat of an empire itself, but Cyrus had made it part of Persia. The document discovered is a record, apparently a memorandum on the decree rather than the decree itself, which would probably have been on a clay tablet.

Ezra 6:3–5 This record is not identical with the decree as recorded in 1:2–4. It gives new specifications about the building, its location, its size, and its materials. Perhaps a copy of the original decree had been found (see note on 6:1–2), and instructions may have been added to it. Also, different copies of Cyrus’s original decree may have been made for different purposes (the one in 1:2–4 included wording for public proclamation, while this version in 6:3–5 was for the royal archives). The size of the temple might be specified in order to limit it, since public funds were being used to pay for it. The absence of a length dimension is odd, and the greater breadth than Solomon’s temple is unexpected (compare 1 Kings 6:2), especially in view of Ezra 3:12.

Ezra 6:4 Using three layers of great stones and one layer of timber follows the construction of the older temple (1 Kings 6:36; 7:12). While the original decree had required people in Babylon to help pay for the project (Ezra 1:4), this record requires that the cost be met from the royal treasury.

Ezra 6:7 Governor of the Jews refers to Zerubbabel (compare Hag. 1:1). What became of the first governor, Sheshbazzar, is not known.

Ezra 6:8–10 Darius confirms Cyrus’s decree and also provides for costs from taxes raised in the province Beyond the River itself (v. 8). He also provides materials for sacrifices (v. 9), with the political condition that the Jews would pray for the life of the king and his sons (v. 10). Darius’s generosity was part of his plan for maintaining Persian power.

Ezra 6:11–12 Darius makes a further decree, backed up with a typical threat. He borrows language from the Israelite way of speaking about God’s presence in Jerusalem (the God who has caused his name to dwell there, compare Deut. 12:5). This does not necessarily mean that Darius believes in the one true God (compare note on Ezra 1:3–4).

Ezra 6:14 God, speaking here through his prophets, is the real power behind events. But the actions of the Persian kings on behalf of the Jews are also acknowledged.

Ezra 6:15 The month of Adar (February/March) was the last month of the year. The sixth year of the reign of Darius was 515 b.c., almost exactly 70 years after the destruction of the first temple (586), fulfilling the prophecy of 70 years of exile (see note on 1:1).

Ezra 6:16–17 the people of Israel. Even though the returned exiles consisted of only three tribes (see note on 1:5), they represent all 12, the number of the tribes of Israel. The other divisions, the priests and the Levites and the laity, are a typical way of describing the whole community in Ezra. with joy. The Lord had fulfilled his prophecies and answered his people’s prayers. There is spontaneous joy when God’s people see evidence that he is working in the world. The dedication of this house follows its completion.

Ezra 6:18 The priests and Levites are set in their divisions, grouped according to their temple duties, as King David had done (1 Chronicles 23–27).

Ezra 6:19–22 The text returns from Aramaic to Hebrew in v. 19 (see note on 4:7–8). The Passover is kept on its appointed date, followed immediately by the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which lasts for seven days (see Lev. 23:5–6). Participating are the people of Israel and the people of the land who had joined them (see note on Ezra 6:21). Persia’s king now ruled over the territorial empire of the Assyrians, so he could be called king of Assyria.

Ezra 6:21 Remarkably, the returning Jews are joined by every one who had . . . separated himself from the uncleanness of the peoples of the land to worship the Lord. The community was based on faith rather than on ancestry. Non-Israelites who expressed faith in God and a willingness to follow his law were welcome.