Ezra 7:21

THE MESSAGE

I, Artaxerxes the king, have formally authorized and ordered all the treasurers of the land across the Euphrates to give Ezra the priest, scholar of the Teaching of the God-of-Heaven, the full amount of whatever he asks for up to 100 talents of silver, 650 bushels of wheat, and 607 gallons each of wine and olive oil. There is no limit on the salt. Everything the God-of-Heaven requires for The Temple of God must be given without hesitation. Why would the king and his sons risk stirring up his wrath?

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
I, King Artaxerxes, issue a decree to all the treasurers in the region west of the Euphrates River:

Hebrew Names Version
I, even I Artachshasta the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers who are beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the Kohen, the Sofer of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done with all diligence,

King James Version
And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done speedily,

English Standard Version
"And I, Artaxerxes the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the province Beyond the River: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, requires of you, let it be done with all diligence,

New Century Version
Now I, King Artaxerxes, give this order to all the men in charge of the treasury of Trans-Euphrates: Give Ezra, a priest and a teacher of the Law of the God of heaven, whatever he asks for.

New English Translation
"I, King Artaxerxes, hereby issue orders to all the treasurers of Trans-Euphrates, that you precisely execute all that Ezra the priestly scribe of the law of the God of heaven may request of you—

Amplified Bible
"And I, Artaxerxes the king, issue a decree to all the treasurers in the provinces west of the [Euphrates] River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, it shall be done diligently and at once—

New American Standard Bible
"I myself, King Artaxerxes, issue a decree to all the treasurers who are in the provinces beyond the Euphrates River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, it shall be done diligently,

World English Bible
I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers who are beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done with all diligence,

Geneva Bible (1587)
And I King Artahshashte haue giuen commandemet to all the treasurers which are beyond the Riuer, that whatsoeuer Ezra the Priest and Scribe of the Law of the God of heauen shall require of you, that it be done incontinently,

Legacy Standard Bible
"So I, even I, King Artaxerxes, issue a decree to all the treasurers who are in the provinces beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, may ask of you, it shall be done with all diligence,

Berean Standard Bible
I, King Artaxerxes, decree to all the treasurers west of the Euphrates: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, it must be provided promptly,

Contemporary English Version
Ezra, you are a priest and an expert in the laws of the God of heaven, and I order all treasurers in Western Province to do their very best to help you.

Complete Jewish Bible
"I, Artach'shashta the king, herewith order all the treasurers in the territory beyond the [Euphrates] River to do carefully anything ‘Ezra the cohen, scribe of the law of the God of heaven, requires of you,

Darby Translation
And I, I Artaxerxes the king, do give orders to all the treasurers that are beyond the river, that whatever Ezra the priest and scribe of the law of the God of the heavens shall require of you, it be done diligently,

Easy-to-Read Version
Now I, King Artaxerxes, give this order: I order all the men who keep the king's money in the area west of the Euphrates River to give Ezra anything he wants. Ezra is a priest and a teacher of the Law of the God of heaven. Do this quickly and completely.

George Lamsa Translation
And I, Artakhshisht the king, do make a decree to all treasurers who are beyond the River, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe learned in the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, you shall do it speedily,

Good News Translation
"I command all the treasury officials in West-of-Euphrates Province to provide promptly for Ezra, the priest and scholar in the Law of the God of Heaven, everything he asks you for,

Lexham English Bible
"I, even I, King Artaxerxes, issue forth a decree to all the treasurers who are in the province Beyond the River. Whatever the priest Ezra, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, may ask of you, let it be done with diligence,

Literal Translation
And I, Artaxerxes the king, made a decree to all the treasurers who are Beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of Heaven, shall ask of you, it shall be done exactly,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
I kynge Artaxerses haue commaunded all the treasurers beyonde the water, yt loke what so euer E?dras the prest and scrybe in the lawe of the God of heaue, requyreth of you, that ye fulfyll the same diligently,

American Standard Version
And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers that are beyond the River, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done with all diligence,

Bible in Basic English
And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, now give orders to all keepers of the king's money across the river, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, may have need of from you, is to be done with all care,

Bishop's Bible (1568)
I king Artaxerxes haue commaunded all the treasures beyond the water, that loke what soeuer Esdras the priest and scribe in the law of the God of heauen requireth of you, that ye fulfill the same speedylie,

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers that are beyond the River, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done with all diligence,

King James Version (1611)
And I, euen I Artaxerxes the king, doe make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the riuer, that whatsoeuer Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heauen, shall require of you, it be done speedily,

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
and from me, whatever it shall seem good to thee to give.

English Revised Version
And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done with all diligence,

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Y Artaxerses, kyng, haue ordeyned, and demyd to alle the keperis of the comyn arke, that ben biyende the flood, that what euer thing Esdras, the preest, writere of the lawe of God of heuene, axith of you, ye yyue with out tariyng,

Update Bible Version
And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, make a decree to all the treasurers that are beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it is to be done with all diligence,

Webster's Bible Translation
And I, [even] I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers who [are] beyond the river, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done speedily,

New King James Version
And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, issue a decree to all the treasurers who are in the region beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, let it be done diligently,

New Living Translation
"I, Artaxerxes the king, hereby send this decree to all the treasurers in the province west of the Euphrates River: ‘You are to give Ezra, the priest and teacher of the law of the God of heaven, whatever he requests of you.

New Life Bible
I, King Artaxerxes, here make this known to all those who take care of the money in the lands on the other side of the River. You should be ready and willing to give Ezra, the religious leader and writer who knows the Law of the God of heaven, whatever he needs.

New Revised Standard
"I, King Artaxerxes, decree to all the treasurers in the province Beyond the River: Whatever the priest Ezra, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, requires of you, let it be done with all diligence,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, from me myself, Artaxerxes the king, issueth an edict, to all the treasurers who are Beyond the River, - that, whatsoever Ezra the priest the scribe of the law of the God of the heavens shall ask of you, with diligence, shall it be done:

Douay-Rheims Bible
I Artaxerxes the king have ordered and decreed to all the keepers of the public chest, that are beyond the river, that whatsoever Esdras the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, you give it without delay,

Revised Standard Version
"And I, Ar-ta-xerx'es the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the province Beyond the River: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, requires of you, be it done with all diligence,

Young's Literal Translation
`And by me -- I Artaxerxes the king -- is made a decree to all treasurers who [are] beyond the river, that all that Ezra the priest, scribe of the law of the God of heaven, doth ask of you, be done speedily:

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"I, even I, King Artaxerxes, issue a decree to all the treasurers who are in the provinces beyond the River, that whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, may require of you, it shall be done diligently,

Contextual Overview

¹¹ What follows is the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra, priest and scholar, expert in matters involving the truths and ways of God concerning Israel: ¹²Artaxerxes, King of Kings, to Ezra the priest, a scholar of the Teaching of the God-of-Heaven. Peace. I hereby decree that any of the people of Israel living in my kingdom who want to go to Jerusalem, including their priests and Levites, may go with you. You are being sent by the king and his seven advisors to carry out an investigation of Judah and Jerusalem in relation to the Teaching of your God that you are carrying with you. You are also authorized to take the silver and gold that the king and his advisors are giving for the God of Israel, whose residence is in Jerusalem, along with all the silver and gold that has been collected from the generously donated offerings all over Babylon, including that from the people and the priests, for The Temple of their God in Jerusalem. Use this money carefully to buy bulls, rams, lambs, and the ingredients for Grain-Offerings and Drink-Offerings and then offer them on the Altar of The Temple of your God in Jerusalem. You are free to use whatever is left over from the silver and gold for what you and your brothers decide is in keeping with the will of your God. Deliver to the God of Jerusalem the vessels given to you for the services of worship in The Temple of your God. Whatever else you need for The Temple of your God you may pay for out of the royal bank. ²¹I, Artaxerxes the king, have formally authorized and ordered all the treasurers of the land across the Euphrates to give Ezra the priest, scholar of the Teaching of the God-of-Heaven, the full amount of whatever he asks for up to 100 talents of silver, 650 bushels of wheat, and 607 gallons each of wine and olive oil. There is no limit on the salt. Everything the God-of-Heaven requires for The Temple of God must be given without hesitation. Why would the king and his sons risk stirring up his wrath? ²⁴ Also, let it be clear that no one is permitted to impose tribute, tax, or duty on any priest, Levite, singer, temple security guard, temple servant, or any other worker connected with The Temple of God. ²⁵ I authorize you, Ezra, exercising the wisdom of God that you have in your hands, to appoint magistrates and judges so they can administer justice among all the people of the land across the Euphrates who live by the Teaching of your God. Anyone who does not know the Teaching, you teach them. ²⁶ Anyone who does not obey the Teaching of your God and the king must be tried and sentenced at once—death, banishment, a fine, prison, whatever.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Artaxerxes: Ezra 7:12, Ezra 7:13

beyond the river: Ezra 4:16, Ezra 4:20, Ezra 6:6

Ezra the priest: Ezra 7:6, Ezra 7:10, Ezra 7:11

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 32:31 - General Judges 5:3 - even I Ezra 5:3 - Tatnai Ezra 8:36 - the king's commissions Nehemiah 2:7 - let letters Daniel 3:3 - the treasurers Matthew 13:52 - scribe Revelation 16:11 - the God

Cross-References

Genesis 6:13
God said to Noah, "It's all over. It's the end of the human race. The violence is everywhere; I'm making a clean sweep.

Genesis 6:17
"I'm going to bring a flood on the Earth that will destroy everything alive under Heaven. Total destruction.

Genesis 7:6
Noah was 600 years old when the floodwaters covered the Earth. Noah and his wife and sons and their wives boarded the ship to escape the flood. Clean and unclean animals, birds, and all the crawling creatures came in pairs to Noah and to the ship, male and female, just as God had commanded Noah. In seven days the floodwaters came.

Genesis 7:17
The flood continued forty days and the waters rose and lifted the ship high over the Earth. The waters kept rising, the flood deepened on the Earth, the ship floated on the surface. The flood got worse until all the highest mountains were covered—the high-water mark reached twenty feet above the crest of the mountains. Everything died. Anything that moved—dead. Birds, farm animals, wild animals, the entire teeming exuberance of life—dead. And all people—dead. Every living, breathing creature that lived on dry land died; he wiped out the whole works—people and animals, crawling creatures and flying birds, every last one of them, gone. Only Noah and his company on the ship lived.

Isaiah 24:19
The Landscape Will Be a Moonscape Danger ahead! God 's about to ravish the earth and leave it in ruins, Rip everything out by the roots and send everyone scurrying: priests and laypeople alike, owners and workers alike, celebrities and nobodies alike, buyers and sellers alike, bankers and beggars alike, the haves and have-nots alike. The landscape will be a moonscape, totally wasted. And why? Because God says so. He's issued the orders. The earth turns gaunt and gray, the world silent and sad, sky and land lifeless, colorless. Earth is polluted by its very own people, who have broken its laws, Disrupted its order, violated the sacred and eternal covenant. Therefore a curse, like a cancer, ravages the earth. Its people pay the price of their sacrilege. They dwindle away, dying out one by one. No more wine, no more vineyards, no more songs or singers. The laughter of castanets is gone, the shouts of celebrants, gone, the laughter of fiddles, gone. No more parties with toasts of champagne. Serious drinkers gag on their drinks. The chaotic cities are unlivable. Anarchy reigns. Every house is boarded up, condemned. People riot in the streets for wine, but the good times are gone forever— no more joy for this old world. The city is dead and deserted, bulldozed into piles of rubble. That's the way it will be on this earth. This is the fate of all nations: An olive tree shaken clean of its olives, a grapevine picked clean of its grapes. But there are some who will break into glad song. Out of the west they'll shout of God 's majesty. Yes, from the east God 's glory will ascend. Every island of the sea Will broadcast God 's fame, the fame of the God of Israel. From the four winds and the seven seas we hear the singing: "All praise to the Righteous One!" But I said, "That's all well and good for somebody, but all I can see is doom, doom, and more doom." All of them at one another's throats, yes, all of them at one another's throats. Terror and pits and booby traps are everywhere, whoever you are. If you run from the terror, you'll fall into the pit. If you climb out of the pit, you'll get caught in the trap. Chaos pours out of the skies. The foundations of earth are crumbling. Earth is smashed to pieces, earth is ripped to shreds, earth is wobbling out of control, Earth staggers like a drunk, sways like a shack in a high wind. Its piled-up sins are too much for it. It collapses and won't get up again. That's when God will call on the carpet rebel powers in the skies and Rebel kings on earth. They'll be rounded up like prisoners in a jail, Corralled and locked up in a jail, and then sentenced and put to hard labor. Shamefaced moon will cower, humiliated, red-faced sun will skulk, disgraced, Because God -of-the-Angel-Armies will take over, ruling from Mount Zion and Jerusalem, Splendid and glorious before all his leaders.

Zephaniah 1:3
"Men and women and animals, including birds and fish— Anything and everything that causes sin—will go, but especially people.

Romans 8:22
All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it's not only around us; it's within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We're also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don't see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river,.... The receivers of his tribute, tax, and custom, beyond the river Euphrates, on the side towards the land of Israel:

that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven; see Ezra 7:12,

shall require of you, it be done speedily; which seems at first a grant at large for whatsoever he should want or demand, but is limited and restrained by what follows.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

All the treasurers - The Persian system of taxing the provinces through the satraps involved the establishment in each province of at least one local treasury.