Ezra 4:18

Easy-to-Read Version

The letter you sent us has been translated and read to me.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The letter you sent us has been translated and read in my presence.

Hebrew Names Version
The letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

King James Version
The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.

English Standard Version
the letter that you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

New Century Version
The letter you sent to us has been translated and read to me.

New English Translation
The letter you sent to us has been translated and read in my presence.

Amplified Bible
The document which you sent to us has been translated and read before me.

New American Standard Bible
the document which you sent to us has been translated and read before me.

World English Bible
The letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

Geneva Bible (1587)
The letter which yee sent vnto vs, hath bene openly read before me,

Legacy Standard Bible
the document which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

Berean Standard Bible
The letter you sent us has been translated and read in my presence.

Contemporary English Version
After your letter was translated and read to me,

Complete Jewish Bible
"The letter you sent us has now been translated for me.

Darby Translation
The letter that ye sent to us has been read before me distinctly.

George Lamsa Translation
When the letter which you sent to us arrived it was plainly read before me,

Good News Translation
"The letter which you sent has been translated and read to me.

Lexham English Bible
the letter that you sent to us has been translated and read before me.

Literal Translation
the letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
The letter which ye sent vnto vs, hath bene opely red before me,

American Standard Version
The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.

Bible in Basic English
And now the sense of the letter which you sent to us has been made clear to me,

Bishop's Bible (1568)
The letter which ye sent vnto vs, hath ben openly read before me.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
the letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.

King James Version (1611)
The letter, which ye sent vnto vs, hath bene plainly read before me.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
The tribute-gatherer whom ye sent to us, has been called before me.

English Revised Version
The letter which ye sent unto us hath been plainly read before me.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
The accusyng, which ye senten to vs, was red opynli bifor me;

Update Bible Version
The letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

Webster's Bible Translation
The letter which ye sent to us hath been plainly read before me.

New King James Version
The letter which you sent to us has been clearly read before me.

New Living Translation
"The letter you sent has been translated and read to me.

New Life Bible
The letter you sent to us has been put into our language and read to me.

New Revised Standard
the letter that you sent to us has been read in translation before me.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The letter which ye sent unto us, was distinctly read before me;

Douay-Rheims Bible
The accusation, which you have sent to us, hath been plainly read before me,

Revised Standard Version
the letter which you sent to us has been plainly read before me.

Young's Literal Translation
The letter that ye sent unto us, explained, hath been read before me,

New American Standard Bible (1995)
the document which you sent to us has been translated and read before me.

Contextual Overview

¹⁷ Then King Artaxerxes sent this answer: To Rehum the commanding officer, Shimshai the secretary, and all the people with them living in Samaria and other places west of the Euphrates River. Greetings: ¹⁸ The letter you sent us has been translated and read to me. ¹⁹ I gave an order for the writings of the kings before me to be searched. The writings were read, and we found out that Jerusalem has a long history of rebellion against kings. Jerusalem has been a place where rebellion and revolt has happened often. ²⁰ Jerusalem has had powerful kings ruling over it and over the whole area west of the Euphrates River. Their kings received taxes, customs, fees, and tribute. ²¹ Now, you must give an order for these men to stop work. That order must be given to keep Jerusalem from being rebuilt until I say so. ²² Be careful not to overlook this matter. We should not let the building of Jerusalem continue. If that work continues, I will not get any more money from Jerusalem. ²³ So a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes sent was read to Rehum, Shimshai the secretary, and the people with them. They went very quickly to the Jews in Jerusalem and forced them to stop building. ²⁴ So the work stopped on God's Temple in Jerusalem. The work did not continue until the second year that Darius was king of Persia.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Cross-References

Genesis 5:21
After Enoch was 65 years old, he had a son named Methuselah.

Genesis 36:2
Esau married women from the land of Canaan. His wives were Adah, the daughter of Elon the Hittite, Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah, the son of Zibeon the Hivite, and

Gill's Notes on the Bible

The letter which ye sent unto us,.... The plural number is used, being now become courtly for kings thus to speak of themselves:

hath been plainly before me; by such that understood both the Syrian and Persian languages; the letter was written in the Syrian language, and the king being a Persian, it was necessary it should be interpreted and explained to him.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Hath been ... read - It is doubtful if the Persian monarchs could ordinarily read. At any rate, it was their habit to have documents read to them (compare Esther 6:1). This is still the ordinary practice in Eastern courts.