In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king set a decree concerning the house of God which is in Jerusalem: Let the house be built, and the place where they sacrifice the sacrifices; and he set its elevation at sixty cubits in height, its breadth sixty cubits;
And the vessels of the house of God, the silver and the golden ones, which Nabouchodonosor brought out from the house which is in Jerusalem and carried to Babylon — let them be given back and go to the temple which is in Jerusalem, to the place where it was set in the house of God.
Now you shall give, O governors beyond the river, Satharbouzana and their fellow servants the Apharsachaeans who are beyond the river, being far away from there;
And a decree has been set by me, that you do nothing at all against the elders of the Judeans for the building of that house of God; and from the king's property, from the tributes beyond the river, let the expense be diligently given to those men, so that the work not be stopped.
And whatever is lacking — young bulls and rams and lambs for whole burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, oil — according to the word of the priests who are in Jerusalem, let it be given to them day by day, whatever they ask.
And from me a decree has been set: that every man who shall alter this word, a beam shall be pulled down out of his house, and he shall be set upright and fastened upon it, and his house shall be made mine.
And the God whose name dwells there shall overthrow every king and people who shall stretch out his hand to alter or to destroy that house of God which is in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have set a decree; let it be done with care.
Then Thanthanai, prefect beyond the River, Satharbouzana and his fellow servants, according to that which Darius the king had sent, so they did with care.
And the elders of the Jews were building, and the Levites, at the prophecy of Haggai the prophet and of Zechariah son of Addo; and they built up and brought it to completion by the decree of the God of Israel and by the decree of Cyrus and Darius and Arthasastha, kings of the Persians.
And the sons of Israel, the priests and the Levites and the rest of the sons of the deportation, kept the dedication of the house of God with gladness.
And they offered at the dedication of the house of God a hundred calves, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and he-goats of the goats for sin on behalf of all Israel, twelve, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.
And they set the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their allotments for the service of God who is in Jerusalem, according to the writing of the book of Moses.
for the priests and the Levites had been purified, to a man all of them clean; and they slaughtered the passover for all the sons of the deportation and for their brothers the priests and for themselves.
And the sons of Israel who were of the deportation ate the passover, and everyone who separated himself from the uncleanness of the nations of the land and joined them, to seek out the Lord God of Israel.
And they kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with gladness, for the Lord had gladdened them and had turned the heart of the king of Assour toward them, to strengthen their hands in the works of the house of the God of Israel.