The Proclamation of Cyrus (2 Chronicles 36:22–23; Isaiah 45:1–25)
2 UDB "I, King Cyrus, rule the Persian Empire, and I say this: Yahweh, the God who is in heaven, has made me ruler of all the kingdoms on earth. And he has assigned me to make sure that his people build a temple for him in Jerusalem, in Judah. BSB BSB: “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has appointed me to build a house for Him at Jerusalem in Judah.
3 UDB All you people who belong to God may go up to Jerusalem to rebuild this temple for Yahweh, the God who lives in Jerusalem, the God of Israel. BSB BSB: Whoever among you belongs to His people, may his God be with him, and may he go to Jerusalem in Judah and build the house of the LORD, the God of Israel; He is the God who is in Jerusalem.
4 UDB The other people who are living where Israelites are now in exile, whose ancestors were exiled here, must contribute silver and gold to those who go. They should also give the Jews the supplies that they will need for the journey to Jerusalem. They should also give them some livestock and gifts of money to help build the temple of God in Jerusalem." BSB BSB: And let every survivor, wherever he lives, be assisted by the men of that region with silver, gold, goods, and livestock, along with a freewill offering for the house of God in Jerusalem.’”
5 UDB Then God motivated some of the priests and Levites and some of the leaders of the tribes that were descended from Judah and Benjamin to return to Jerusalem. Those whom God motivated got ready to return to Jerusalem and build the temple for him there. BSB BSB: So the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred—prepared to go up and rebuild the house of the LORD in Jerusalem.
6 UDB All of their neighbors helped them by giving them silver and golden things, and supplies for the journey, and livestock. They also gave them other valuable gifts, and also gave them money to buy things for building the temple. BSB BSB: And all their neighbors supported them with articles of silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with valuables, in addition to all their freewill offerings.
Cyrus Restores the Holy Vessels 7 UDB King Cyrus brought out the valuable things that King Nebuchadnezzar's soldiers had taken from the temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem and put in the temples of their gods in Babylon. BSB BSB: King Cyrus also brought out the articles belonging to the house of the LORD that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the temple of his gods.
8 UDB Cyrus commanded Mithredath, the treasurer of the Persian Empire, to count all these items and then give them to Sheshbazzar, the leader of the group that was going to return to Judah. BSB BSB: Cyrus king of Persia had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah.
9 UDB This is a list of the items that Cyrus donated: Thirty gold basins, one thousand silver basins, twenty-nine other basins, BSB BSB: This was the inventory: 30 gold dishes, 1,000 silver dishes, 29 silver utensils,
10 UDB thirty gold bowls, 410 similar silver bowls, and one thousand other objects. BSB BSB: 30 gold bowls, 410 matching silver bowls, and 1,000 other articles.
11 UDB All together, there were 5,400 silver and gold items given to Sheshbazzar to take with him when he and the others returned to Jerusalem. BSB BSB: In all, there were 5,400 gold and silver articles. Sheshbazzar brought all these along when the exiles went up from Babylon to Jerusalem.
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