Temple Rebuilding Resumes (Haggai 1:1–11)
1 UDB At that time two prophets were giving messages from God to the Jews in Jerusalem and other cities in Judah. The prophets were Haggai and Zechariah, who was a descendant of Iddo. They spoke those messages representing the God that the people of Israel worshiped. BSB BSB: Later, the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them.
2 UDB Then Zerubbabel and Jeshua led many other people to being to rebuild the temple of God in Jerusalem. God's prophets Haggai and Zechariah were also with them and helped them. BSB BSB: Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak rose up and began to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them, helping them.
3 UDB But Tattenai, the governor of the province west of the Euphrates River, and Shethar-Bozenai, his assistant, together with some of their officials went to Jerusalem and said to the people, "Who has permitted you to rebuild this temple?" BSB BSB: At that time Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates went to the Jews and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?”
4 UDB They also asked the Jews to tell them the names of the men who were working on the temple. BSB BSB: They also asked, “What are the names of the men who are constructing this building?”
5 UDB However, God was taking care of the Jewish leaders and they were not stopped by their enemies. They were waiting for King Darius to make a royal decree that would either give them permission and his protection so they could finish their work on the temple, or stop their work completely. BSB BSB: But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, so that they were not stopped until a report was sent to Darius and written instructions about this matter were returned.
Tattenai’s Letter to Darius 6 UDB So Tattenai, Shethar-Bozenai, and their officials sent a report to King Darius. BSB BSB: This is the text of the letter that Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates, the officials in the region, sent to King Darius.
7 UDB This is what they wrote: "King Darius, we hope that things are going well for you. BSB BSB: The report they sent him read as follows: To King Darius: All peace.
8 UDB We want you to know that we went to Judah, where the temple of the great God is being rebuilt. The people are building it with huge stones, and they are putting wooden beams in the walls. The work is being done very carefully, and they are progressing well. BSB BSB: Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God. The people are rebuilding it with large stones and placing timbers in the walls. This work is being carried out diligently and is prospering in their hands.
9 UDB We asked the Jewish leaders, 'Who has permitted you to rebuild this temple?' BSB BSB: So we questioned the elders and asked, “Who authorized you to rebuild this temple and restore this structure?”
10 UDB We also requested them to tell us the names of their leaders, in order that we could tell you who they were. BSB BSB: We also asked for their names, so that we could write down the names of their leaders for your information.
11 UDB But instead of telling us their leaders' names, what they said was, 'We serve the God who created the heaven and the earth. Many years ago a great king of Israel told our ancestors to build a temple here, and now we are rebuilding it. BSB BSB: And this is the answer they returned: “We are servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed.
12 UDB But God, who rules in heaven, allowed the armies of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia, to destroy that temple, because our ancestors did things that caused God to become very angry. Nebuchadnezzar's army took many of the Israelite people to Babylonia. BSB BSB: But since our fathers angered the God of heaven, He delivered them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean who destroyed this temple and carried away the people to Babylon.
13 UDB However, during the first year that Cyrus king of Babylon started to rule, he decreed that the temple of God should be rebuilt. BSB BSB: In the first year of his reign, however, Cyrus king of Babylon issued a decree to rebuild this house of God.
14 UDB Cyrus returned to our leaders all the gold and silver objects that had been taken from the temple and put in the temple in Babylon. Those objects were given to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom King Cyrus had appointed to be the governor in Judah. BSB BSB: He also removed from the temple of Babylon the gold and silver articles belonging to the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken and carried there from the temple in Jerusalem. King Cyrus gave these articles to a man named Sheshbazzar, whom he appointed governor
15 UDB The king instructed him to take the objects back to Jerusalem, to the place from where they had been taken. He also decreed that they should rebuild the temple at the place where it had been before. So Cyrus appointed Sheshbazzar to be the governor in Judah. He also sent all those things made of gold and silver, for Sheshbazzar to put into the new temple. BSB BSB: and instructed, ‘Take these articles, put them in the temple in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its original site.’
16 UDB So Sheshbazzar did that. He came here to Jerusalem and supervised the men who laid the foundation of the temple. And since that time, the people have been working on the temple, but it is not finished yet.' BSB BSB: So this Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundation of the house of God in Jerusalem, and from that time until now it has been under construction, but it has not yet been completed.”
17 UDB Therefore, your Majesty, please order someone to search in the place in Babylon where the important records are kept, to find out whether it is true that King Cyrus decreed that God's temple should be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Then you can tell us what you want us to do about this matter." BSB BSB: Now, therefore, if it pleases the king, let a search be made of the royal archives in Babylon to see if King Cyrus did indeed issue a decree to rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us his decision in this matter.
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