Ezra 1

Ezra 1 is the first chapter of the Book of Ezra in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible,[1] or the book of Ezra-Nehemiah in the Hebrew Bible, which treats the book of Ezra and book of Nehemiah as one book.[2] Jewish tradition states that Ezra is the author of Ezra-Nehemiah as well as the Book of Chronicles,[3] but modern scholars generally accept that a compiler from the 5th century BCE (the so-called "Chronicler") is the final author of these books.[4] This chapter contains the records of King Cyrus's edict and the initial return of exiles to Judah led by Sheshbazzar as well as the restoration of the sacred temple vessels.[5] It also introduces the section comprising chapters 1 to 6 describing the history before the arrival of Ezra in the land of Judah [5][6] in 468 BCE.[7] The opening sentence of this chapter (and this book) is identical to the final sentence of 2 Chronicles.[8]

Ezra 1
Cyrus Restores the Vessels of the Temple (Ezra 1:1-11)
BookBook of Ezra
CategoryKetuvim
Christian Bible partOld Testament
Order in the Christian part15

Text
Right column of p. 575 of the Greek Uncial manuscript Codex Vaticanus (4th century AD), from the Vatican Library, containing 1 Esdras 1:55-2:5.

The original text is written in Hebrew language. This chapter is divided into 11 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text, which includes Codex Leningradensis (1008).[9][lower-alpha 1]

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; B; 4th century), and Codex Alexandrinus (A; A; 5th century).[11][lower-alpha 2]

An ancient Greek book called 1 Esdras (Greek: Ἔσδρας Αʹ) containing some parts of 2 Chronicles, Ezra and Nehemiah is included in most editions of the Septuagint and is placed before the single book of Ezra–Nehemiah (which is titled in Greek: Ἔσδρας Βʹ). 1 Esdras 2:1-14 is an equivalent of Ezra 1:1-11 (Cyrus's edict).[15][16]

God is sovereign (1:1–4)
The Nabonidus Chronicle, which contains the title of Cyrus as the "king of Persia".
Front of the Cyrus Cylinder, containing inscription similar to the Cyrus's edict.

The book starts with a historical context of a real event: “the first year of Cyrus king of Persia”, but immediately follows with the statement about God who has the real control and even already speaks about this event before the birth of Cyrus (Isaiah 44:28; 45:13) and the fulfillment of his word through Jeremiah.[17]

Verse 1
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,[18]

Verse 2
Thus says Cyrus king of Persia:
"The Lord God of heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has charged me to build Him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah."[25]

In the Cyrus Cylinder there is a statement related to the Cyrus's edict which gives the historical background to the book of Ezra:[26]

I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there [i.e., in Babylon], to their places and I let them dwell in eternal abodes. I gathered all their inhabitants and returned to them their dwellings.[27]

Cyrus's edict is significant to the return of the Jews, because it shows that they did not slip away from Babylon but were given official permission by the Persian king in the first year of his rule, and it is a specific fulfillment of the seventy years prophecy of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:11–14; Jeremiah 29:10–14).[5]

Verse 3
Who is there among you of all his people? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of Israel, (he is the God,) which is in Jerusalem.[28]

Verse 4
And whoever is left in any place where he dwells, let the men of his place help him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, besides the freewill offerings for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.[29]
  • "And whoever is left" or "and every survivor" [30] is translated from Hebrew: וכל הנשאר‎, wə-ḵāl ha-nish-’ār,[31] referring to the "Jews who stayed behind";[30] thus, the "Jews who are not returning to Judah", and these people must assist those who are going back to Judah.[32]

Cooperation (1:5–11)

In response to Cyrus's Decree, the family heads of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, the priests and the Levites rose up and went to Jerusalem, but the ten other tribes did not show any reactions.[33] The last three verses detail the inventory of captured temple articles (probably based on the official document authorizing the return[34]) which are counted out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah, to be brought from Babylon to Jerusalem.[35]

Verse 7
Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods;[36]

The Temple treasures that Nebuchadnezzar took away (2 Chronicles 36:18) are now to be returned to Jerusalem.[34]

See also

Notes
  1. Since the anti-Jewish riots in Aleppo in 1947, the whole book of Ezra-Nehemiah has been missing from the text of the Aleppo Codex.[10]
  2. The extant Codex Sinaiticus only contains Ezra 9:9–10:44.[12][13][14]

References
  1. Halley 1965, p. 232.
  2. Grabbe 2003, p. 313.
  3. Babylonian Talmud Baba Bathra 15a, apud Fensham 1982, p. 2
  4. Fensham 1982, pp. 2–4.
  5. Grabbe 2003, p. 314.
  6. Fensham 1982, p. 4.
  7. Davies, G. I., Introduction to the Pentateuch in Barton, J. and Muddiman, J. (2001), The Oxford Bible Commentary, p. 19
  8. Levering 2007, p. 39.
  9. Würthwein 1995, pp. 36-37.
  10. P. W. Skehan (2003), "BIBLE (TEXTS)", New Catholic Encyclopedia, 2 (2nd ed.), Gale, pp. 355–362
  11. Würthwein 1995, pp. 73-74.
  12. Würthwein, Ernst (1988). Der Text des Alten Testaments (2nd ed.). Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft. p. 85. ISBN 3-438-06006-X.
  13. Swete, Henry Barclay (1902). An Introduction to the Old Testament in Greek. Cambridge: Macmillan and Co. pp. 129–130.
  14.  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Codex Sinaiticus". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  15. Catholic Encyclopedia: Esdras: THE BOOKS OF ESDRAS: III Esdras
  16. Jewish Encyclopedia: Esdras, Books of: I Esdras
  17. Larson, Dahlen & Anders 2005, p. 6.
  18. Ezra 1:1 KJV
  19. Fensham 1982, p. 3.
  20. Fensham 1982, p. 42.
  21. Dandamaev 1989, p. 71.
  22. Xenophon, Anabasis I. IX; see also M. A. Dandamaev "Cyrus II", in Encyclopaedia Iranica.
  23. François Vallat (2013). Perrot, Jean (ed.). The Palace of Darius at Susa: The Great Royal Residence of Achaemenid Persia. I.B.Tauris. p. 39. ISBN 978-1-84885-621-9. Retrieved 11 March 2018.
  24. Smith-Christopher 2007, p. 311.
  25. Ezra 1:2 MEV
  26. McConville 1985, p. 8.
  27. Line 32 in Lendering, Jona (5 February 2010). "Cyrus Cylinder (2)". Livius.org. Archived from the original on 11 March 2018. Retrieved 10 January 2007. Text adapted from Schaudig (2001). English translation adapted from Cogan's translation in Hallo & Younger (2003).
  28. Ezra 1:3 KJV
  29. Ezra 1:4 NKJV
  30. Fensham 1982, p. 44.
  31. Hebrew Text Analysis: Ezra 1:4. Biblehub
  32. McConville 1985, p. 9.
  33. Larson, Dahlen & Anders 2005, p. 8.
  34. McConville 1985, p. 11.
  35. Larson, Dahlen & Anders 2005, p. 9.
  36. Ezra 1:7 KJV

Sources
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