Ezra 4:24
in Ezra 4Thus the construction of the house of God in Jerusalem ceased, and it remained at a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem; and it ceased until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
KJV
Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem. So it ceased unto the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
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This verse in Ezra 4
Commentary
8 notes on this verseSo it ceased unto the second year of - Darius - They had begun in the first year of Cyrus, b.c. 536, to go up to Jerusalem, and they were obliged to desist from the building b.c. 522; and thus they continued till the second year of Darius, b.c. 519. See the chronology in Hag 1:1 (note) and Zec 1:1 (note) and the following chapter, Ezra 5 (note).
This site's exposition
they went immediately to the Jews in Jerusalem
on Ezra 4:23-24
Verse 24 closes the parenthesis where it opened, returning to the temple, whose work ceased until the second year of the reign of Darius. Keil takes verses 6 to 23 as a deliberate aside on opposition, since chapter 5 resumes the work already halted at 4:5.
This site's exposition
it remained at a standstill
Adam Clarke dates the return to 536 BC, the stoppage to 522 BC and the restart to 519 BC. Matthew Henry holds that the Jews could have kept building had they cared for the house of God, and he cites the prophets' rebuke. Chapter 5 opens with those prophets.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Though now a stop was put to it by the violence of the Samaritans, yet that they might soon after have gone on by connivance, if they had had a due affection to the work, appears by this, that before they had that express warrant from the king for doing it ( ch. vi. ) they were reproved by the prophets for not doing it, ch.
The gospel kingdom was, in like manner, to be set up with much struggling and contention. In this respect the glory of the latter house was greater than the glory of the former, and it was more a figure of the temple of Christ's church, in that Solomon built his temple when there was no adversary nor evil occurrent, ( 1 Kings
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Then ceased the work of the house of God, which is at Jerusalem,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Then ceased the work of the house of God--It was this occurrence that first gave rise to the strong religious antipathy between the Jews and the Samaritans, which was afterwards greatly aggravated by the erection of a rival temple on Mount Gerizim.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
It ceased - The stoppage of the building by the Pseudo-Smerdis is in complete harmony with his character. He was a Magus, devoted to the Magian elemental worship, and opposed to belief in a personal god. His religion did not approve of temples; and as he persecuted the Zoroastrian so would he naturally be hostile to the Jewish faith. The building was resumed in the second year of Darius (520 B.C.), and was only interrupted for about two years; since the Pseudo-Smerdis reigned less than one year.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בֵּאדַ֗יִן | bedayin | <in> then | H116 → | 57 times |
| בְּטֵלַת֙ | betelat | it ceased | H989 → | 6 times |
| עֲבִידַ֣ת | ʾavidat | [the] work of | H5673 → | 6 times |
| בֵּית־ | beit- | [the] house of | H1005 → | 44 times |
| אֱלָהָ֔א | ʾelaha' | <the> God | H426 → | 95 times |
| דִּ֖י | di | which | H1768 → | 345 times |
| בִּירוּשְׁלֶ֑ם | birushelem | [is] in Jerusalem | H3390 → | 26 times |
| וַהֲוָת֙ | vahavat | and it was | H1934 → | 71 times |
| בָּֽטְלָ֔א | batela' | ceasing | H989 → | 6 times |
| עַ֚ד | ʾad | until | H5705 → | 35 times |
| שְׁנַ֣ת | shenat | year | H8140 → | 7 times |
| תַּרְתֵּ֔ין | tartein | two | H8648 → | |
| לְמַלְכ֖וּת | lemalkhut | of [the] reign of | H4437 → | 57 times |
| דָּרְיָ֥וֶשׁ | dareyavesh | Darius | H1868 → | 15 times |
| מֶֽלֶךְ־ | melekh- | [the] king of | H4430 → | 180 times |
| פָּרָֽס׃ פ | paras | Persia | H6540 → |
בֵּאדַ֗יִן<in> then
bedayinH116 →57 times
בְּטֵלַת֙it ceased
betelatH989 →6 times
עֲבִידַ֣ת[the] work of
ʾavidatH5673 →6 times
בֵּית־[the] house of
beit-H1005 →44 times
אֱלָהָ֔א<the> God
ʾelaha'H426 →95 times
דִּ֖יwhich
diH1768 →345 times
בִּירוּשְׁלֶ֑ם[is] in Jerusalem
birushelemH3390 →26 times
וַהֲוָת֙and it was
vahavatH1934 →71 times
בָּֽטְלָ֔אceasing
batela'H989 →6 times
עַ֚דuntil
ʾadH5705 →35 times
שְׁנַ֣תyear
shenatH8140 →7 times
תַּרְתֵּ֔יןtwo
tarteinH8648 →
לְמַלְכ֖וּתof [the] reign of
lemalkhutH4437 →57 times
דָּרְיָ֥וֶשׁDarius
dareyaveshH1868 →15 times
מֶֽלֶךְ־[the] king of
melekh-H4430 →180 times
פָּרָֽס׃ פPersia
parasH6540 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Job 20:5the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?
it leads to
- Psalms 37:35–36
I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree,
- Psalms 37:35–36
Through
Nehemiah 6:3So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it to go down to you?”
it leads to
- Matthew 10:16
Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
- John 9:4
While it is daytime, we must do the works of Him who sent Me. Night is coming, when no one can work.
- 1 Timothy 4:15–16
Be diligent in these matters and absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all.
- Matthew 10:16
Through
Ezra 5:5But 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.
it leads to
- Psalms 33:18
Surely the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His loving devotion
- Ezra 7:28
and who has shown me favor before the king, his counselors, and all his powerful officials. And because the hand of the LORD my God was upon me, I took courage and gathered the…
- Ezra 7:6
this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted Ezra all his requests, for…
- Psalms 33:18
Through
Ezra 6:1Thus King Darius ordered a search of the archives stored in the treasury of Babylon.
it leads to
- Ezra 5:17
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…
- Ezra 5:17
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Ezra
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Berean Standard Bible, Ezra 5; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil, The Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and W. F. Adeney, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther (Expositor's Bible).