Ezrachapter 6
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Key verse
Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.
It stands in The scroll found at Achmetha, and Darius makes the enemies pay, verses 1 to 12.
The chapter
Chapter summary
Search is made, and at Ecbatana in Media a roll turns up with Cyrus's decree, the dimensions, and the costs charged to the king's house. Darius rules accordingly: let the governors keep far from thence, let the expenses and the daily supplies come out of the king's revenue, that they may sacrifice and pray for the life of the king and his sons; and whoever alters this word, let a beam be pulled from his house and himself fastened upon it. So the elders built and prospered through Haggai and Zechariah, and the house was finished the third of Adar in Darius's sixth year, dedication with joy, then Passover, for Jehovah had turned the king's heart toward them.
Context
History · Ezra · Ezra overview
Where the chapter sits
Ezra 6 falls in First return under Zerubbabel (chapters 1–6). Cyrus's decree (538 BC); the altar restored; temple foundation laid amid weeping and shouting; Samaritan opposition; Haggai and Zechariah's prodding; the temple finished in 515 BC.
Temple finished. The decree renewed by Darius; dedication; Passover kept.
After it: Ezra's return and covenant reform, chapters 7–10.
The whole shape of Ezra→The world behind this chapter
Ezra 6The history
Darius orders a search, and the record is not found in Babylon. It turns up at Ecbatana, in the palace in the province of Media, the summer capital, in the cooler highlands, where the court went to escape the heat. Cyrus had spent time there in his first year, so that is where his memorandum was filed.
The rest of the history, and what it meant to them
The document found is a memorandum rather than a public proclamation, and it reads like an accounting note: the house to be built, dimensions given, costs to be paid out of the king's house, and the vessels restored. Persian archives really did keep this kind of record, and the detail that it was found in the right regional archive rather than the main one is the sort of thing a fiction writer would not bother with.
Darius's response goes further than the Jews asked. He orders Tattenai to keep away, funds the work out of the province's own tribute revenue, provides bulls, rams, lambs, wheat, salt, wine, and oil for the sacrifices, and asks for prayers for the king and his sons. Persian kings routinely supported local sanctuaries and asked their gods' favor, a similar practice appears in the Jewish community's papyri at Elephantine in Egypt.
He attaches a penalty clause of the kind Persian decrees used: anyone who alters this will have a beam pulled out of his house and be hanged on it.
The temple was finished on 12 March 516 BC, about seventy years after Nebuchadnezzar burned the first one in 586 BC. They dedicated it with sacrifices, appointed the priests and Levites by their divisions as written in the book of Moses, and then kept Passover the following month.
What it meant to them
For the community, the great reversal here is who is paying. The empire that had once funded the destruction of the temple was now funding its sacrifices out of tax revenue.
The dedication is modest compared with Solomon's, hundreds of animals, not tens of thousands, and the text does not pretend otherwise. But they "kept the feast with joy: for the LORD had made them joyful," and the sin offering was twelve goats, one for each tribe. A community of two tribes' worth of people offered for all twelve.
Sources cited
- Edwin Yamauchi, Persia and the Bible
- K. A. Kitchen, On the Reliability of the Old Testament
- Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews (Whiston translation)
The structure of this chapter
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
A. The scroll found at Achmetha, and Darius makes the enemies pay
1. (vv. 1-2)
Ezra 6:1
“Then King Darius commanded, etc. Josephus (Antiq. XI, 3) mentioned the name of the place where these letters of Cyrus were found thus: And a book was found in Ecbatana in a constructed tower, in the region of Media. Moreover, another translation has it thus: …”
Bede· written before 735· Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah· Ezra 6:1patristic
Ezra 6:1, 3 more voicesWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Ezra 6:1
“A “house of the rolls” was discovered at Koyunjik, the ancient Nineveh, in 1850 - a set of chambers, i. e., in the palace devoted exclusively to the storing of public documents. These were in baked clay, and covered the floor to the depth of more than a foot. Such a “house” was probably that at Babylon.”
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:1evangelical
Ezra 6:1
“The cuneiform characters on most of them were singularly sharp and well-defined, but so minute in some instances as to be almost illegible without a magnifying glass.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)· Ezra 6:1reformed
Ezra 6:1
“But, when it was not found there, Darius did not make that a pretence to conclude that therefore there was no such decree, and thereupon to give judgment against the Jews; but it is probable, having himself heard that such a decree was certainly made, he ordered the rolls in other places to be searched…”
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and at length it was found at Achmetha, in the province of the Medes,
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:1puritan
Ezra 6:2
“Achmetha--long supposed to be the capital of Greater Media (the Ecbatana of classical, the Hamadan of modern times), [is] at the foot of the Elwund range of hills, where, for its coolness and salubrity, Cyrus and his successors on the Persian throne established their summer residence.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)· Ezra 6:2reformed
Ezra 6:2, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:2
“Perhaps some that durst not destroy it, yet hid it there, out of ill will to the Jews, that they might lose the benefit of it. But Providence so ordered that it came to light; and it is here inserted,”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:2puritan
a.the house of the rolls: Darius orders the archive searched, and the roll does not turn up in Babylon but at Achmetha in Media, the summer residence of the Persian kings where records travelled with the court. Cyrus's decree had lain filed for years, safe from the same officials who now doubt it exists. Matthew Henry reads the discovery as providence: the record was hidden from ill will yet came to light on its own schedule. The empire's own paperwork ends up vindicating the very people some in that empire wanted stopped.
2. (vv. 3-5)
Ezra 6:3
“It is difficult to reconcile the dimentions here with expressions in Zechariah Zec 4:10, Haggai Hag 2:3, and even Ezra Ezr 3:12, which imply that the second temple was smaller than the first (compare 1Ki 6:2). Perhaps the dimensions here are those which Cyrus required the Jews not to exceed.”
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:3evangelical
Ezra 6:3, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:3
“Cubits - Those proportions differ from those of Solomon's temple, which was but thirty cubits high, only the porch was a hundred and twenty cubits high, and but twenty cubits in breadth. Either therefore Solomon's cubits were sacred cubits, which were larger than the other, and these but common cubits.”
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Or, the sixty cubits of height are meant only for the porch.
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)· Ezra 6:3evangelical
Ezra 6:4
“Three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber - We have noticed this kind of building before, three courses of stones, and then a course of strong balk; and this continued to the square of the building.”
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And let the expenses be given - Cyrus had ordered wood to be cut at Libanus, and conveyed to Joppa at his expense; but it does not appear that he furnished the other expenses of the building, for we have already seen that the Jews contributed for the defraying of all others.
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)· Ezra 6:4evangelical
Ezra 6:5
“And also let the golden and silver vessels,.... See Ezr 1:7 and which confirms what the Jews said to Tatnai, Ezr 5:14.”
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:5reformed
Ezra 6:5, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:5
“But the golden and silver vessels of the temple, etc. It states that the vessels were then placed in the temple of God, signifying the temple of the Babylonians, in which Nebuchadnezzar had placed them, as is more clearly read above, from which Cyrus had …”
Bede· written before 735· Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah· Ezra 6:5patristic
a.Let the house be builded: The roll preserves Cyrus's own words: let the house be built on its old site, the foundations firmly laid, three courses of stone to a course of new timber, and the cost charged to the king's own treasury. The order reaches further than money. The gold and silver vessels Nebuchadnezzar carried off are to go back to the house of God, every one to its place, so the temple's furniture and the temple's funding both trace back to one pagan signature.
3. (vv. 6-8)
Ezra 6:6
“Now therefore Tatnai, governor beyond the river,....”
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The river Euphrates, that side of it towards the land of Israel; Josephus (z) calls this man master of the horse: Shetharboznai, and your companions the Apharsachites, which are beyond the river, be ye far from thence; keep at a distance from the Jews, and give them no disturbance, nor interrupt them in their work of building of the temple, but mind your own business and government. (z) Ibid. (Antiqu.) l. 11. c. 4. sect. 7.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:6reformed
Ezra 6:7
“Let the work of this house of God alone,....”
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Suffer them to go on with it, and do not hinder them; it looks, by these expressions, as if he had some suspicion or hint given him that they were inclined to molest them, or that there were some that stirred them up to it, and were desirous of it: let the governor of the Jews, and the elders of the Jews, build this house of God in his place; where it formerly stood; that is, go on with the building of it.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:7reformed
Ezra 6:7, 6 more voices
Ezra 6:7
“Thus was the wrath of the enemy made to praise God and the remainder thereof did he restrain. (2.) He orders them out of his own revenue to assist the builders with money, [1.] For carrying on the building,”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:7puritan
Ezra 6:7
“Ezra, the priest of God, restored the law, which had been burned by the Chaldeans in the archives of the temple. For indeed he was full of the same spirit with which the Scriptures had previously been filled. [De Mirabilibus Sacrae Scripturae, 2.33]”
Augustine of Hippo· written before 430· Commentary (church-history corpus)· Ezra 6:7patristic
Ezra 6:7
“And this was nothing wonderful for God to do, who, in the captivity of the people under Nebuchadnezzar, when the Scriptures had been destroyed, and the Jews had returned to their own country after seventy years, afterwards, in the time of Artaxerxes, king of the Persians, inspired Ezra the priest, of the tribe of Levi…”
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to relate all the words of the former prophets, and to restore to the people the legislation of Moses. [quoting Irenaeus] Such are the words of Irenaeus.
Eusebius of Caesarea· written before 339· The Church History of Eusebius, Book 5· Ezra 6:7patristic
Ezra 6:7
“If (Noah) had not had this (conservative power) by so short a route, there would (still) be this (consideration) to warrant our assertion of (the genuineness of) this Scripture: he could equally have renewed it, under the Spirit's inspiration, after it had been destroyed by the violence of the deluge, as…”
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after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonian storming of it, every document of the Jewish literature is generally agreed to have been restored through Ezra.
Tertullian· written before 220· On the Apparel of Women Book I· Ezra 6:7patristic
Ezra 6:7
“We must certainly understand by this day the time of the composition of the history, whether you prefer the view that Moses was the author of the Pentateuch or that Ezra re-edited it. In either case I make no objection.”
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The question now is whether the words unto this day are to be referred to the time of publishing or writing the books, and if so it is for him to show, now that so many years have rolled away since that day, that either the idols hidden beneath the oak have been found, or the grave of Moses discovered; for he obstinately maintains that what does not happen so long as the point of time indicated by until and unto has not been attained, begins to be when that point has been reached.
Jerome· written before 420· The Perpetual Virginity of Blessed Mary· Ezra 6:7patristic
Ezra 6:7
“And there was nothing astonishing in God having done this,-He who, when, during the captivity of the people under Nebuchadnezzar, the Scriptures had been corrupted, and when, after seventy years, the Jews had returned to their own land, then, in the times of Artaxerxes king of the Persians, inspired Esdras the priest, of the tribe of Levi…”
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to recast all the words of the former prophets, and to re-establish with the people the Mosaic legislation.
Irenaeus· written before 202· Irenaeus Against Heresies Book 3· Ezra 6:7patristic
Ezra 6:8
“Moreover, I make a decree, what ye shall do to the elders of these Jews, for the building of this house of God,....”
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:8reformed
Ezra 6:8, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:8
“But also it has been commanded by me, etc. For who could explain how much the Church has been aided or even enriched throughout the world by the liberality of royal gifts? Although it can also be understood allegorically, that expenses from the king's treasury …”
Bede· written before 735· Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah· Ezra 6:8patristic
a.be ye far from thence: Darius answers Tatnai's own inquiry by name, ordering the governor and his companions to keep clear and let the elders of the Jews build in their place. The order does more than remove opposition. Darius funds the very work his own officer had reported with suspicion, drawing the cost from the royal tribute of the province beyond the river so that nothing hinders it. A king who could have shut the project down instead becomes its paymaster.
4. (vv. 9-10)
Ezra 6:9
“He was content it should be a rent-charge upon his revenue, and ordered it to be paid every day, and this without fail, that they might offer sacrifices and prayers with them (for the patriarchs, when they offered sacrifice, called on the name of the Lord, so did Samuel, Elijah, and others) for the life (that is…”
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the happiness and prosperity) of the king and his sons,
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:9puritan
Ezra 6:10
“And pray for the life of the king, and of his sons - Even heathens believed that offerings made in their behalf to the God of the Jews would be available.”
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And this principle has had considerable influence in certain states where there was even a form of religion established by the law, to induce them to tolerate other forms, that the state might have the benefit of their prayers.
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)· Ezra 6:10evangelical
a.wheat, salt, wine, and oil: The decree specifies bullocks, rams, lambs, wheat, salt, wine and oil, supplied day by day without fail so the priests can offer sacrifices unto the God of heaven, the court title for Israel's God that Persian-era writers share with the book of Daniel. Darius asks something in return, prayer for the life of the king and of his sons. Matthew Henry notes the exchange plainly, a pagan ruler who wanted the benefit of a praying people's intercession.
5. (vv. 11-12)
Ezra 6:11
“Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word,....”
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Act contrary to this command, will not obey it, but as much as in him lies changes and revokes it: let timber be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him, be hanged thereon; that is, let a beam be taken from it, and a gallows or gibbet made of it, and hang him on it: and let his house be made a dunghill for this; be pulled down, and never rebuilt more; see Gill on Dan 2:2; see Gill on Dan 2:9.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:11reformed
Ezra 6:11, 2 more voices
Ezra 6:11
“Being set up, let him be hanged thereon - Rather, “let him be lifted up and crucified upon it.” Crucifixion was the most common form of capital punishment among the Persians.”
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:11evangelical
Ezra 6:11
“11, 12. whosoever shall alter this word--The warning was specially directed against the turbulent and fanatical Samaritans. The extremely favorable purport of this edict was no doubt owing in some measure to the influence of Cyrus, of whom Darius entertained a high admiration, and whose two daughters he had married.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)· Ezra 6:11reformed
Ezra 6:12
“Destroy all - A similar malediction is found at the end of the great inscription of this same king Darius at Behistun: If anyone injures the tablet which he has set up, he prays that Ormazd will be their enemy, and that they may have no offspring, and that whatever they do, Ormazd may curse it for them.”
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To alter and to destroy this house - i. e., to alter the decree, and then proceed to destroy the house.
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:12evangelical
Ezra 6:12, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:12
“Destroy - Tho' this temple was at length most justly destroyed by the righteous hand of God, yet perhaps the Romans, who were the instruments of that destruction, felt the effects of this curse. For that empire sensibly declined ever after, 'till it was wholly destroyed.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)· Ezra 6:12evangelical
a.made a dunghill for this: Darius backs the decree with a threat as severe as the grant is generous: whoever alters this word will have a beam pulled from his own house to be hanged on, and the house itself left a dunghill. He closes by asking the God who caused his name to dwell there to destroy any king or people who lift a hand against the temple. Matthew Henry draws the larger lesson from the whole chapter here, that the heart of kings is in the hand of God, who turns it wherever he pleases.
B. The house finished with joy in the sixth year of Darius
1. (vv. 13-15)
Ezra 6:13
“Then Tatnai . . . did speedily--A concurrence of favorable events is mentioned as accelerating the restoration of the temple and infusing a new spirit and energy into the workmen, who now labored with unabating assiduity till it was brought to a completion. Its foundation was laid in April, 536 B.C.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)· Ezra 6:13reformed
Ezra 6:14
“And they built and constructed, etc. He says Artaxerxes, who reigned after Darius, during whose time Ezra ascended from Babylon to Jerusalem. However, it is questioned how it is said that, by order not only of Cyrus and Darius but also Artaxerxes, the house of …”
Bede· written before 735· Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah· Ezra 6:14patristic
Ezra 6:14, 2 more voices
Ezra 6:14
“According to the commandment of the God of Israel - He first gave the order, and stirred up the hearts of the following Persian kings to second that order. Of Cyrus - This sovereign gave his orders for the rebuilding of the temple about A.M. 3468. And Darius - Darius Hystaspes confirmed the above orders, A. M. 3485.”
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And Artaxerxes - Artaxerxes Longimanus sent Ezra to Judea with new privileges, A.M. 3547. With the permission of the same king, Nehemiah came to Judea in 3550. The writer recapitulates the different sovereigns who favored the Jews after the Babylonish captivity.
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)· Ezra 6:14evangelical
Ezra 6:14
“Through the prophesying - This is a seasonable intimation that this great and unexpected success was not to be ascribed to chance, or to the kindness or good humour of Darius, but unto God only, who by his prophets had required and encouraged them to proceed in the work…”
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and by his mighty power disposed Darius's heart to such kind and noble purposes.
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)· Ezra 6:14evangelical
Ezra 6:15
“And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar,.... The twelfth month of the year with the Jews, and answers to part of our February and part of March: which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king; four years after the decree came forth.”
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:15reformed
Ezra 6:15, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:15
“Adar” was the twelfth or last month of the Jewish year, corresponding nearly with our March. The sixth year of Darius was 516-515 B.C.
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:15evangelical
a.so they did speedily: Tatnai and his companions obey speedily, exactly as Darius sent, and the delay that once stopped the work becomes the channel that funds it. Verse 14 names the true cause behind the king's paperwork: the elders builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, the narrative anchor for both prophetic books. Wesley reads the same verse against any thought that Darius acted from mere kindness, tracing the success instead to God, who by his prophets required the work and then moved a pagan king's heart to fund it. The house is finished on the third day of Adar, in the sixth year of Darius, four years after the decree that restarted the work.
2. (vv. 16-18)
Ezra 6:16
“And the children of Israel,....”
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Those of the ten tribes that remained after the body of the people were carried captive, or came with the Jews at their return: the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity; those of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin: kept the dedication of this house of God with joy; they set it apart for sacred use and service, with feasting and other expressions of joy and gladness, as follows.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:16reformed
Ezra 6:17
“Compare with this modest sacrifice, which suits well “the day of small things” Zec 4:10, the lavish offering of Solomon (see the marginal reference “n”).”
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:17evangelical
Ezra 6:17, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:17
“These hundreds were more to them than Solomon's thousands were to him. But, besides these, they offered twelve he-goats for sin-offerings, one for every tribe, to make atonement for their sins, which they looked upon as necessary in order to the acceptance of their services.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:17puritan
Ezra 6:18
“And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God which is at Jerusalem,....”
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All in their proper classes and courses, to do the work of the temple at Jerusalem in their turns: as it is written in the book of Moses; see Num 3:6, from hence it is plain the Pentateuch was not written by Ezra, as suspected by Spinosa (m), but by Moses; see the argument of the book of Genesis. See Gill on Gen 1:1. (m) Tract. Theolog. Polit. c. 8. p. 163.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:18reformed
Ezra 6:18, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:18
“Though the temple service could not now be performed with so much pomp and plenty as formerly, because of their poverty, yet perhaps it was performed with as much purity and close adherence to the divine institution as ever, which was the true glory of it. No beauty like the beauty of holiness.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:18puritan
a.kept the dedication of this house: Israel keeps the dedication with joy, the priests, the Levites and the rest of the returned captivity together. The offerings are modest next to Solomon's thousands, a hundred bullocks, two hundred rams and four hundred lambs, but the sin offering carries its own signature: twelve he goats, one for every tribe of Israel, a remnant of two provinces still counting itself as the whole twelve-tribe nation. The priests are set in their divisions and the Levites in their courses for the service of God, exactly as it is written in the book of Moses, worship resuming by the old pattern rather than a new one.
C. A Passover kept by all who had separated themselves
1. (vv. 19-20)
Ezra 6:19
“And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month. The month Nisan or Abib, which was the month following that in which the temple was finished, Ezr 6:15, this passover was kept at the exact time the law commanded, Exo 12:2.”
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)· Ezra 6:19reformed
Ezra 6:19, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:19
“With this verse the writer resumes the use of the Hebrew language, which he had discarded for the Chaldee from Ezr 4:8. With the exception of the letter of Artaxerxes Ezr 7:12-26, all the remainder of the book is in Hebrew.”
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)· Ezra 6:19evangelical
Ezra 6:20
“The Levites were purified together - They were all ready at one time to observe the proper rites and ceremonies, and had no need of having a second passover, which was appointed by the law for those who had been accidentally defiled, or were at a distance from the tabernacle. See 2Ch 30:3.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)· Ezra 6:20evangelical
a.upon the fourteenth day of the first month: With the passover the narrative itself changes language: the Aramaic of the Persian correspondence that has run since 4:8 gives way here to Hebrew, the record's own tongue returning as worship resumes on native ground. The children of the captivity keep the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month, exactly the day the law commands. The priests and the Levites purify themselves together, all of them pure at once, and kill the passover for the returned captivity, for their brother priests, and for themselves.
2. (vv. 21-22)
Ezra 6:21
“And all such as had separated themselves - These were the proselytes who had embraced the Jewish religion by having mingled with the Jews in their captivity. This proves that there the poor captives had so acted according to the principles of their religion, that the heathens saw it, and walked in the light of the Lord with them.”
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A good example is very persuasive; and particularly so when founded on pure principles.
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)· Ezra 6:21evangelical
Ezra 6:21, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:21
“They separated themselves from the filthiness of sin and fellowship with sinners, joined themselves with the Israel of God in conformity and communion, and set themselves to seek the God of Israel; and those that do so in sincerity, though strangers and foreigners, are welcome to eat of the gospel feast…”
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as fellow-citizens with the saints and of the household of God.
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)· Ezra 6:21puritan
Ezra 6:22
“And they kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread, etc. The Apostle teaches us how we ought to keep this feast spiritually, saying: "Let us therefore feast not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of …”
Bede· written before 735· Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah· Ezra 6:22patristic
Ezra 6:22, 1 more voice
Ezra 6:22
“Turned the heart of the king of Assyria - I am of Calmet’s mind, that king of Assyria is here put for king of Persia. Cyrus and his successors possessed all the rights and estates of the ancient kings of Assyria, and therefore the same monarch may be styled king of Assyria as well as king of Persia.”
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Darius had a very high character, as a wise, just, and merciful prince.
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)· Ezra 6:22evangelical
a.the filthiness of the heathen of the land: The table includes more than the returned exiles. All who had separated themselves from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the Lord God of Israel, eat with them, proselytes joining a remnant that receives rather than excludes those who turn to the law. They keep the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy, and the chapter closes by naming the source of that joy: the Lord had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, the old empire's own title given to Darius as the providence formula runs its full course. Adam Clarke reads king of Assyria as Persia's king wearing an older crown, since Cyrus and his successors inherited the rights of the Assyrian throne.
This page carries no textual note on Ezra 6. Where this site has examined a place the manuscripts differ, the examination is in the manuscripts room. Every place this site examines →
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This page draws on Adam Clarke; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Commentary (church-history corpus); Bede, Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah; Eusebius of Caesarea, The Church History of Eusebius, Book 5; Irenaeus, Irenaeus Against Heresies Book 3; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871); Jerome, The Perpetual Virginity of Blessed Mary; John Gill; John Wesley; Matthew Henry and Tertullian, On the Apparel of Women Book I.
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