Ezra 4 · a question people ask
Is Ezra 4 told in time order?
The chapter names the kings of Persia in this order: "King Cyrus the king of Persia" (4:3); "all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia" (4:5); "In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign" (4:6); "In the days of Artaxerxes" (4:7), and the letters of his days fill 4:7-23; and last, "It stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia" (4:24). Ezra doesn't say why the accusation of Ahasuerus's reign and the letters of Artaxerxes' days stand between the two mentions of Darius, or when any of them was written. It doesn't say whether the Artaxerxes of 4:7 is the Artaxerxes of 7:1. These notes quote the verses as they stand, and don't bring in outside history to date the kings or to set the verses in another order. One thing you can see from the text itself: the letter and the king's answer speak of the city and its walls (4:12-13, 4:16, 4:21), while 4:1-5 and 4:24 speak of "a temple to the LORD" (4:1), "a house to our God" (4:3) and "God’s house" (4:24).
The verses
“But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers’ households of Israel said to them, “You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we ourselves together will build to the LORD, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.””
“They hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia. In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his companions wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in Syrian and delivered in the Syrian language.”
“Be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us to Jerusalem. They are building the rebellious and bad city, and have finished the walls and repaired the foundations. Be it known now to the king that if this city is built and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and in the end it will be hurtful to the kings.”
“We inform the king that if this city is built and the walls finished, then you will have no possession beyond the River.”