Ezra 4:1
in Ezra 4When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity were building a temple unto Jehovah, the God of Israel;
KJV
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the captivity builded the temple unto the Lord God of Israel;
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This verse in Ezra 4
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Adversaries - i. e., the Samaritans, a mixed race, partly Israelite but chiefly foreign, which had replaced to some extent the ancient inhabitants after they were carried into captivity by Sargon (see 2Ki 17:6 note).
This site's exposition
the enemies of Judah and Benjamin
on Ezra 4:1-2
When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin hear that the exiles are building the temple, they come to Zerubbabel with an offer of kinship. They claim to seek the same God and to have sacrificed to Him since the time of Esar-haddon king of Assyria, who brought them here.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
The enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard, etc. The history is known; because it speaks of the Samaritans, the enemies of Judah and Benjamin, whom the king of Assyria transported into their cities and lands from various nations of the ten tribes in captivity. These, …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin,.... The Samaritans, as appears from Ezr 4:2, heard that the children of the captivity; the Jews, who had been in captivity seventy years, and were just come out of it, and still were not quite free, but under the jurisdiction and control of the king of Persia: builded the temple unto the Lord God of Israel; that they were going about it, and had laid the foundation of it, which might soon come to their ears, the distance not being very great.
Israel was God's son, his first-born; but by their iniquity the people sold and enslaved themselves, and so became children of the captivity. But, it should seem, the thought of their being so quickened them to this work, for it was by their neglect of the temple that they lost their freedom.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Now when the adversaries - These were the Samaritans, and the different nations with which the kings of Assyria had peopled Israel, when they had carried the original inhabitants away into captivity, see Ezr 4:9, Ezr 4:10.
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַֽיִּשְׁמְע֔וּ | vaiyishmeu | and they heard | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| צָרֵ֥י | tzarei | [the] opponents of | H6862 → | |
| יְהוּדָ֖ה | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| וּבִנְיָמִ֑ן | uvinyamin | and Benjamin | H1144 → | 166 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| בְנֵ֤י | venei | [the] children of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הַגּוֹלָה֙ | hagolah | the exile | H1473 → | 43 times |
| בּוֹנִ֣ים | bonim | [were] building | H1129 → | 376 times |
| הֵיכָ֔ל | heikhal | a temple | H1964 → | 80 times |
| לַיהוָ֖ה | layahweh | for Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֱלֹהֵ֥י | ʾelohei | [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
וַֽיִּשְׁמְע֔וּand they heard
vaiyishmeuH8085 →1159 times
צָרֵ֥י[the] opponents of
tzareiH6862 →
יְהוּדָ֖הJudah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
וּבִנְיָמִ֑ןand Benjamin
uvinyaminH1144 →166 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
בְנֵ֤י[the] children of
veneiH1121 →4930 times
הַגּוֹלָה֙the exile
hagolahH1473 →43 times
בּוֹנִ֣ים[were] building
bonimH1129 →376 times
הֵיכָ֔לa temple
heikhalH1964 →80 times
לַיהוָ֖הfor Yahweh
layahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֱלֹהֵ֥י[the] God of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
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
Ezra 7:9He had begun the journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his…
it leads to
- 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…
- Nehemiah 2:8
And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel to the temple, for the…
- Nehemiah 2:18
I also told them about the gracious hand of my God upon me, and what the king had said to me. “Let us start rebuilding,” they replied, and they set their hands to this…
- Ezra 7:6
Through
Daniel 9:25Know and understand this: From the issuance of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, until the Messiah, the Prince, there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will be rebuilt with streets…
it leads to
- Ezra 4:24
Thus 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.
- Isaiah 55:4
Behold, I have made him a witness to the nations, a leader and commander of the peoples.
- Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of…
- John 1:41
He first found his brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated as Christ).
- John 4:25
The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When He comes, He will explain everything to us.”
- Ezra 4:24
Where this verse is studied
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); Bede, Commentary on Ezra and Nehemiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.