1 ¶ Then Darius the king gave an order, and a search was made in Babylon, in the house where the valuable records were stored.

2 But it was in the palace at Achmetha, in the province of the Medes, that a scroll was found, on which this was written:

3 In the first year of Cyrus the king, he made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the temple be rebuilt, as a place to offer sacrifices, and let its foundations be securely laid; its height being sixty cubits, and its width sixty cubits;

4 With three courses of large stones, and a course of new timber: and let the expenses be paid from the royal treasury:

5 And also let the gold and silver vessels belonging to the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar removed from the temple at Jerusalem, and brought to Babylon, be restored, and taken back to the temple at Jerusalem, each one to its place, and place them in the house of God.

6 Now therefore, Tattenai, the governor west of the Euphrates, Shethar-boznai, and your companions the Apharsachites, who are beyond the river, are to keep far away from there:

7 Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in its place.

8 Moreover I issue this order about how you should assist the elders of the Jews to build this temple of God: from the king’s money, even from the taxes west of the Euphrates, the cost is to be given to these men right away, so that they are not delayed.

9 And all that the priests who are at Jerusalem say they need, including young bulls, rams, and lambs, for the burnt offerings to the God of heaven, and wheat, salt, wine, and oil, is to be given them daily 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 I am also ordering, that anyone who violates this order, should be hung on a timber pulled from his house and erected; and let his house be made a dunghill for this.

12 And may the God who has caused his name to dwell there destroy every king and people, who shall try to change this order and destroy this temple of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have given the order; let it be carried out quickly.

13 ¶ Then Tattenai, the governor west of the Euphrates, Shethar-boznai, and their companions, quickly carried out the order that Darius the king had sent.

14 And the elders of the Jews continued to build successfully, under the preaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built, and completed it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.

15 And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.

16 And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of those who returned from captivity, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy,

17 And offered at the dedication of this house of God one hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and as a sin offering for all of Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.

18 And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses.

19 And the children who returned from captivity kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.

20 For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves together, all of them were clean, so they killed the passover lamb for all those who had returned from captivity, for their fellow priests, and for themselves.

21 And it was eaten by all the children of Israel, who had returned from captivity, and by all who had separated themselves from the filthiness of the heathen in the land, to seek the LORD God of Israel,

22 So for seven days they joyfully celebrated the feast of unleavened bread: for the LORD had made them joyful, by turning the heart of the king of Assyria to them, so that he helped them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.