Ezra 5:11-15

Contemporary English Version

¹¹They claimed to be servants of the God who rules heaven and earth. And they said they were rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago by one of Israel's greatest kings.^[a]

¹²^(A) We were told that their people had made God angry, and he let them be captured by Nebuchadnezzar,^[b] the Babylonian king^[c] who took them away as captives to Babylonia. Nebuchadnezzar tore down their temple, ^13-15^(B) took its gold and silver articles, and put them in the temple of his own god in Babylon.

They also said that during the first year Cyrus was king of Babylonia,^[d] he gave orders for God's temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem where it had stood before. So Cyrus appointed Sheshbazzar governor of Judah and sent these gold and silver articles for him to put in the temple.

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Footnotes

5.11 one of Israel's greatest kings: Solomon (ruled from about 970 to 931 b.c.).
5.12 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 1.7.
5.12 the Babylonian king: Aramaic “the Babylonian king from Chaldea,” but Chaldea is another name for Babylonia.
5.13-15 Cyrus was king of Babylonia: King Cyrus of Persia became king of Babylonia when the Persians conquered the city of Babylon in 539 b.c.