1 Esdras 2:16-18

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

¹⁶ “To King Artaxerxes our lord, your servants the recorder Rehum and the scribe Shimshai and the other members of their council, and the judges in Coelesyria and Phoenicia:^{(A) 17} Let it now be known to our lord the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem and are building that rebellious and wicked city, repairing its marketplaces and walls and laying the foundations for a temple. ¹⁸ Now if this city is built and the walls finished, they will not only refuse to pay tribute but will even resist kings. Since the building of the temple is now going on, we think it best not to neglect such a matter but to speak to our lord the king in order that, if it seems good to you, search may be made in the records of your ancestors.