Esdras going from Babylon to Ierusalem, 9. carieth king Artaxerxes
fauourable letters, 14. with licence to take gold, siluer, and al
thinges necessarie at their pleasure. 31. The chief men that goe with
him are recited. 51. He voweth a fast praying for good success in their
iorney. 56. weigheth the gold and siluer, which he deliuereth to the
Priestes, and Leuites. 69. And seuerely admonisheth the people to
repentance, for their mariages made with infideles.
AND after him when Artaxerxes king of the Persians reigned, came Esdras
the sonne of Azarias, the sonne of Helcias the sonne of Salome, (1 Esd
7:1) 2 the sonne of Sadoc, the sonne of Achitob, the sonne of Ameri,
the sonne of Azahel, the sonne of Bocci, the sonne of Abisue, the sonne
of Phinees the sonne of Eleazar, the sonne of Aaron the first priest. 3
This Esdras came vp from Babylon being scribe & wise in the law of
Moyses, which was geuen of our Lord the God of Israel to teach and to
doe. 4 And the king gaue him glorie, because he had found grace in al
dignitie and desire in his sight. 5 And there went vp with him of the
children of Israel, and the Priestes, and the Leuites, and the sacred
singers of the temple, and the porters, and the seuantes of the temple
into Ierusalem. 6 In the seuenth yeare when Artaxerxes reigned in the
fifth moneth, this is the seuenth yeare of his reigne, going forth of
Babylon in the newmoone of the fifth moneth, 7 they came to Ierusalem
according to his commandment, according to the prosperitie of their
iourney, which their Lord gaue them. 8 For in these Esdras had great
knowlege, that he would not pretermitte anie of those thinges, which
were according to the law, and the preceptes of our Lord, and in
teaching al Israel al iusticie and iudgement. 9 And they that wrote the
writinges of Araxerxes the king, coming deliuered the writing which was
granted of Artaxerxes the king to Esdras the Priest, & the reader of
the law of our Lord, the copie wherof here foloweth. 10 KING Artaxerxes
to Esdras the Priest, and reader of the law of the Lord, greeting. 11 I
of curtesie esteming it among benifites, haue commanded them that of
their owne accord are desirous of the nation of the Iewes, and of the
Priestes and Leuites, which are in my kingdom, to goe with thee into
Ierusalem. 12 If anie therfore desire to goe with thee, let them come
together, and set forward as it hath pleased me, and my seuen freindes
my counselers: 13 that they may visite those thinges which are done
touching Iurie and Ierusalem, obseruing as thou hast in the law of the
Lord. 14 And let them carie the giftes to the Lord the God of Israel,
which I haue vowed and my freindes to Ierusalem, and al the gold and
siluer, that shal be found in the countrie of Babylon to the Lord in
Ierusalem, with that, 15 which is geuen for the nation it self vnto the
temple of their Lord which is in Ierusalem: that this gold and siluer
be gathered for oxen, and rammes, and lambes, and kiddes, and for the
thinges that are agreable to these, 16 that they may offer hostes to
the Lord vpon the altar of their Lord, which is in Ierusalem. 17 And al
thinges whatsoeuer thou with thy brethren wilt doe with gold and
siluer, doe it at thy pleasure according to the precept of the Lord thy
God. 18 And the sacred vessels, which are geuen thee to the workes of
the house of the Lord thy God, which is in Ierusalem. 19 And other
thinges whatsoeuer shal helpe thee to the workes of the temple of thy
God, thou shalt geue it out of the kings treasure. 20 When thou with
thy brethren wilt doe ought with gold and siluer, doe according to the
wil of the Lord. 21 And I king Artaxerxes haue geuen commandment to the
keepers of the treasure of Syria and Phaenice, that what thinges soeuer
Esdras the Priest and reader of the law of the Lord, shal write for,
they geue him vnto an hundred talentes of siluer, likewise also of
gold. 22 And vnto an hundred measures of corne, & an hundred vessels of
wine, and other thinges whatsoeuer abound without taxing. 23 Let al
thinges be done to the most high God according to the law of God, lest
perhaps there arise wrath in the reigne of the king, and of his sonne,
and his sonnes. 24 And to you it is sayd, that vpon al the Priestes,
and Leuites, and sacred singers, and seruantes of the temple, & scribes
of this temple 25 no tribute, nor any other taxe be sette, and that no
man haue auctoritie to obiect any thing to them. 26 But thou Esdras
according to the wisedom of God appoynt iudges, and arbitrers in al
Syria and Phaenice: and teach al them that know no the law of thy God:
27 that whosoeuer shal transgresse the law, they be diligently punished
either with death, or with torment, or els with a forfeite of money, or
with banishment. 28 And Esdras the scribe sayd: Blessed be the God of
our fathers, which hath geuen this wil into the kings hart, to glorifie
his house, which is in Ierusalem. 29 And hath honoured me in the sight
of the king, and of his counselers, and freindes, and them that weare
purple. 30 And I was made constant in minde according to the ayde of
our Lord my God, and gathered together of Israel men, that should goe
vp together with me. 31 And these are the princes according to their
kindredes, and seueral principalities of them that came vp from Babylon
the kingdom of Artaxerxes. (1 Esd 8:1) 32 Of the children of Phares,
Gerfomus: and of the children of Siemarith, Amenus: of the children of
Dauid, Acchus the sonne of Scecilia: 33 Of the children of Phares,
Zacharias, and with him returned an hundred fiftie men. 34 Of the
children of leader Moabilion, Zaraei, and with him two hundred fiftie
men: 35 Of the children of Zachues, Iechonias of Zechoel, and with him
two hundred fiftie men: 36 of the children of Sala, Maasias of
Gotholia, & with him seuentie men: 37 of the children of Saphatia,
Zarias of Michel, and with him eightie men: 38 of the children of Iob,
Abdias of Iehel, and with him two hundred twelue men: 39 of the
children of Bania, Salimoth, the sonne of Iosaphia, and with him an
hundred sixtie men: 40 of the children of Beer, Zacharias Bebei, and
with him two hundred eight men: 41 of the children of Ezead, Ioannes of
Eccetan, and with him an hundred ten men: 42 of the children of
Adonicam, which were last, and these are their names, Eliphalam the
sonne of Gebel, and Semeias, and with him seuentie men. 43 And I
gathered them together to the riuer that is called Thia, and we camped
there three dayes, and vewed them againe. 44 And of the children of the
Priestes and Leuites I found not there. 45 And I sent to Eleazarus, and
Eccelon, and Masman, and Maloban, and Enaathan, and Samea, and Ioribum,
Nathan, Enuaugam, Zacharias, and Mosolam the leaders them selues, and
that were skilful. 46 And I sayd to them that they should come to
Loddeus, who was at the place of the treasurie. 47 And I commanded them
to say to Loddeus, and his brethren, and to them that were in the
treasurie, that they should send vs them that might doe the function of
priesthood in the house of the Lord our God. 48 And they brought vnto
vs according to the mightie hand of the Lord our God cunning men: of
the children of Moholi, the sonne of Leui, the sonne of Israel,
Sebebia, & his sonnes and brethren, which were eightene: 49 Asbia, and
Amin of the sonnes of the children of Chananeus, and their children
twentie men. 50 And of them that serued the temple, whom Dauid gaue,
and the princes themselues to the ministerie of the Leuites of them
that serued the temple, two hundred twentie. Al their names were
signified in writings. 51 And I vowed there a fast to the yong men in
the sight of God, that I might aske of him a good iourney for vs, and
them that were with vs, and for the children, and the cattel because of
ambushementes. 52 For I was ashamed to aske of the king footemen and
horsemen in my companie, to guard vs, against our aduersaries. 53 For
we sayd to the king that the power of our Lord wil be with them that
seeke him with al affection. 54 And agayne we besought the Lord our God
according to these thinges: whom also we had propicious, and we
obteyned of our God. 55 And I separated of the rulers of the people,
and of the Priestes of the temple, twelue men, and Sedebia, and Asanna,
and with them of their brethren ten men. 56 And I weyed to them the
gold and siluer, and the vessels of the house of our God perteyning to
the Priestes, which the king had geuen, and his counselers, and the
princes, and al Israel. 57 And when I had weyed it, I deliuered of
siluer an hundred fiftie talentes, and siluer vessels of an hundred
talentes, and of gold an hundred talentes. 58 And of vessels of gold
seuen score and twelue brasen vessels good of shyning brasse,
resembling the forme of gold. 59 And I sayd to them: You are also
sanctified to our Lord, and the vessels be holie, and the gold and
siluer is vowed to our Lord the God of our fathers. 60 Watch and keepe,
til you deliuer them to some of the rulers of the people, and to the
Priestes, and Leuites, and to the princes of the cities of Israel in
Ierusalem, in the treasurie of the house of our God. 61 And those
Priestes and Leuites that receiued the gold and siluer and vessels,
brought it to Ierusalem into the temple of our Lord. 62 And we went
forward from the riuer Thia, the twelfth day of the first moneth, til
we entred into Ierusalem. 63 And when the third day was come, in the
fourth day the gold being weyed, and the siluer, was deliuered in the
house of the Lord our God, to Marimoth Priest the sonne of Iori. 64 And
with him was Eleazar the sonne of Phinees: and with them were Iosadus
the sonne of Iesus, and Medias, and Banni the sonne of a Leuite, by
number and weight al thinges. 65 And the weight of them was writen the
same houre. 66 And they that came out of the captiuitie, offered
sacrifice to our Lord the God of Israel, oxen twelue, for al Israel,
rammes eightie six, 67 lambes seuentie two, bucke goates for sinne
twelue, and for health twelue kyne, al for the sacrifice of our Lord.
68 And they read againe the preceptes of the king to the kinges
officers, and to the deputies of Coelesyria, and Phoenice: and they
honored the nation, and the temple of our Lord. 69 And these thinges
being finished, the rulers came to me, saying: The stocke of Isreal,
and the princes, and the Priestes, and the Leuites, (1 Esd 9:1) 70 and
the strange people, and nations of the land haue not separated their
vncleannes from the Chananeites, and Hetheites, and Pherezeites, and
Iebuseites, and Moobites, & AEgyptians, and Idumeians. 71 For they are
ioyned to their daughters both themselues, and their sonnes: and the
holie sede is mingled with the strange nations of the earth, and the
rulers and magistrates were partakers of that iniquitie from the
beginning of the reigne it self. 72 And forthwith as I heard these
thinges, I rent my garmentes and sacred tunike: and tearing the heares
of my head, and my beard, I sate sorowful and heauie. 73 And there
assembled to me mourning vpon this iniquitie, as manie as were then
moued by the word of our Lord the God of Israel, and I sate sad vntil
the euening sacrifice. 74 And I rising vp from fasting, hauing my
garmentes rent and the sacred tunike, kneeling, and stretching forth my
handes to our Lord, 75 I sayd: Lord I am confounded, and ashamed before
thy face, 76 for our sinnes are multiplied ouer our heades, and our
iniquities are exalted euen to heauen. 77 Because from the times of our
fathers we are in great sinne vnto this day. 78 And for the sinnes of
vs, and of our fathers we haue bene deliuered with our brethren, and
with our Priestes to the kinges of the earth, into sword and
captiuitie, and spoile with confusion vnto this present day. 79 And now
what a great thing is this that mercie hath happened to vs from thee o
Lord God, & leaue thou vnto vs a roote, and a name in the place of thy
sanctification, 80 to discouer our light in the house of the Lord our
God, to geue vs meate in al the time of our bondage. 81 And when we
serued, we were not forsaken of the Lord our God: but he sette vs in
fauour, appointing the kinges of the Persians to geue us meate, 82 and
to glorifie the temple of the Lord our God, and to build the
desolations of Sion, to geue vs stabilitie in Iurie, and Ierusalem. 83
And now what say we Lord, hauing these thinges? For we haue
transgressed thy preceptes, which thou gauest into the handes of thy
seruantes the prophetes, 84 saying: That the land into which ye entred
to possesse the inheritance therof, is a land polluted with the
coinquinations of the strangers of the land, and their vncleanes hath
filled it wholy with their filthines. 85 And now your daughters you
shal not match with their sonnes, and their daughters you shal not take
for your sonnes. 86 And you shal not seeke to haue peace with them for
euer, that growing strong you may eate the best things of the land, and
may distribute the inheritance to your children for euer. 87 And the
thinges that happen to vs, al are done for our nauhtie workes, and our
great sinnes. 88 And thou gauest vs such a roote, and we are returned
againe to transgresse thy ordinances, that we would be mingled with the
vncleannes of the nations of this land. 89 Wilt not thou be wrath with
vs to destroy vs, til there be no roote left nor our name? 90 Lord God
of Israel thou art true. For there is a roote left vntil this present
day. 91 Behold, now we are in thy sight in our iniquities. For it is
not to stand any longer before thee in these matters. 92 And when
Esdras with adoration confessed weeping, lying flat on the ground
before the temple, there were gathered before him out of Ierusalem a
verie great multitude, men and wemen, and yong men and yong wemen. For
there was great weeping in the multitude it self. (1 Esd 10:1) 93 And
when he had cried, Iechonias of Ieheli of the children of Israel, sayd
to Esdras: We haue sinned against our Lord, for that we haue taken vnto
vs in mariage strange wemen of the nations of the land. 94 And now thou
art ouer al Israel, in these therfore let there be an othe from our
Lord to expel al our wiues that are of strangers with their children.
95 As it was decreed to thee of the ancesters according to the law of
our Lord, rising vp declare it. 96 For to thee the busines perteineth,
and we are with thee: doe manfully. 97 And Esdras rysing vp adiured the
princes of the Priestes and Leuites, and al Israel to doe according to
these thinges and they sware.