Ezra 6:4
in Ezra 6with three layers of cut stones and one of timbers. The costs are to be paid from the royal treasury.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
with three courses of great stones, and a course of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house.
KJV
With three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king’s house:
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This verse in Ezra 6
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThree 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. 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.
This site's exposition
Let the house be rebuilt
on Ezra 6:3-5
The house is to be rebuilt, and the costs paid from the royal treasury. The gold and silver articles Nebuchadnezzar carried to Babylon must be returned and deposited in the house of God. The temple's furnishings and its funding both trace to one decree of a pagan king.
This site's exposition
three layers of cut stones
Tattenai's report at 5:8 found the builders laying large stones with timbers, the method this decree sets out. Adam Clarke notes that Cyrus paid for timber cut on Libanus and carried to Joppa, while the Jews met the other costs themselves. Darius orders the full cost paid in verse 8.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
We do not find that they had received what was here ordered them, the face of things at court being soon changed. A warrant for the restoring of the vessels and utensils of the temple, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken away (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
With three rows of great stones,....
Here is a warrant for the building of the temple: Let the house of God at Jerusalem, yea, let that house be built (so it may be read), within such and such dimensions, and with such and such materials.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The word translated “row” occurs only in this passage. Some regard it as a “course,” and suppose that after every three courses of stone there followed a course of timber. Others understand three “storeys” of stone, with a fourth “storey” of woodwork on the summit (compare 1Ki 6:5-6). Others consider that Cyrus intended to limit the thickness of the walls, which were not to exceed a breadth of three rows of stone, with an inner wooden wainscotting. Let the expenses be given out of the king’s house - i. e., “out of the Persian revenue,” a portion of the decree which was probably not observed during the later years of Cyrus and during the reign of Cambyses, and hence the burthen fell upon the Jews themselves Ezr 2:68-69.
The words behind it
14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| נִדְבָּכִ֞ין | nidbakhin | rows | H5073 → | |
| דִּי־ | di- | of | H1768 → | 345 times |
| אֶ֤בֶן | ʾeven | stone of | H69 → | |
| גְּלָל֙ | gelal | rolling | H1560 → | |
| תְּלָתָ֔א | telata' | three | H8532 → | |
| וְנִדְבָּ֖ךְ | venidbakh | and a row | H5073 → | |
| דִּי־ | di- | of | H1768 → | 345 times |
| אָ֣ע | ʾa' | timber | H636 → | 5 times |
| חֲדַ֑ת | chadat | new | H2323 → | |
| וְנִ֨פְקְתָ֔א | venifketa' | and expense the | H5313 → | |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4481 → | 109 times |
| בֵּ֥ית | beit | [the] house of | H1005 → | 44 times |
| מַלְכָּ֖א | malka' | king the | H4430 → | 180 times |
| תִּתְיְהִֽב׃ | tityehiv | let it be given | H3052 → | 28 times |
נִדְבָּכִ֞יןrows
nidbakhinH5073 →
דִּי־of
di-H1768 →345 times
אֶ֤בֶןstone of
ʾevenH69 →
גְּלָל֙rolling
gelalH1560 →
תְּלָתָ֔אthree
telata'H8532 →
וְנִדְבָּ֖ךְand a row
venidbakhH5073 →
דִּי־of
di-H1768 →345 times
אָ֣עtimber
ʾa'H636 →5 times
חֲדַ֑תnew
chadatH2323 →
וְנִ֨פְקְתָ֔אand expense the
venifketa'H5313 →
מִן־from
min-H4481 →109 times
בֵּ֥ית[the] house of
beitH1005 →44 times
מַלְכָּ֖אking the
malka'H4430 →180 times
תִּתְיְהִֽב׃let it be given
tityehivH3052 →28 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
Psalms 72:10May the kings of Tarshish and distant shores bring tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.
it leads to
- Isaiah 60:6
Caravans of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah, and all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and frankincense and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.
- Psalms 68:29
Because of Your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring You gifts.
- Isaiah 49:7
Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, to Him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the Servant of rulers: “Kings will see You and rise, and princes…
- Psalms 45:12
The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor.
- Isaiah 60:6
Through
Psalms 68:29Because of Your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring You gifts.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 10:10
Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again was such an abundance of spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave…
- 1 Chronicles 29:3
Moreover, because of my delight in the house of my God, I now give for it my personal treasures of gold and silver, over and above all that I have provided for this holy…
- Psalms 76:11
Make and fulfill your vows to the LORD your God; let all the neighboring lands bring tribute to Him who is to be feared.
- Isaiah 60:16–17
You will drink the milk of nations and nurse at the breasts of royalty; you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
- 1 Kings 10:10
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies9
On this verse
About Ezra
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; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.