King Cyrus' Order Is Rediscovered
1 King Darius ordered someone to go through the old records kept in Babylonia. 2 Finally, a scroll was found in Ecbatana, the capital of Media Province, and it said:
This official record will show 3 that in the first year Cyrus was king, he gave orders to rebuild God's temple in Jerusalem, so that sacrifices and offerings could be presented there. It is to be built 27 meters high and 27 meters wide, 4 with one row of wooden beams for each three rows of large stones. The royal treasury will pay for everything. 5 Then the gold and silver things that Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple and brought to Babylonia are to be returned to their proper places.
King Darius Orders the Work To Continue
6 King Darius sent this message:
Governor Tattenai of Western Province and Shethar Bozenai, you and your advisors must stay away from the temple. 7 Let the Jewish governor and leaders rebuild it where it stood before. And stop slowing them down!
8 Starting at once, I am ordering you to help the leaders by paying their expenses from the tax money collected in Western Province. 9 And don't fail to let the priests in Jerusalem have whatever they need each day so they can offer sacrifices to the God of heaven. Give them young bulls, rams, sheep, as well as wheat, salt, wine, and olive oil. 10 I want them to be able to offer pleasing sacrifices to God and to pray for me and my family.
11 If any of you don't obey this order, a wooden beam will be taken from your house and sharpened on one end. Then it will be driven through your body, and your house will be torn down and turned into a garbage dump. 12 I ask the God who is worshiped in Jerusalem to destroy any king or nation who tries either to change what I have said or to tear down his temple. I, Darius, give these orders, and I expect them to be followed carefully.
The Temple Is Dedicated
13 Governor Tattenai, Shethar Bozenai, and their advisors carefully obeyed King Darius. 14 With great success the Jewish leaders continued working on the temple, while Haggai and Zechariah encouraged them by their preaching. And so, the temple was completed at the command of the God of Israel and by the orders of kings Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes of Persia. 15 On the third day of the month of Adar in the sixth year of the rule of Darius, the temple was finished.
16 The people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, and everyone else who had returned from exile were happy and celebrated as they dedicated God's temple. 17 One hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs were offered as sacrifices at the dedication. Also twelve goats were sacrificed as sin offerings for the twelve tribes of Israel. 18 Then the priests and Levites were assigned their duties in God's temple in Jerusalem, according to the instructions Moses had written.
The Passover
19 Everyone who had returned from exile celebrated Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month. 20 The priests and Levites had gone through a ceremony to make themselves acceptable to lead in worship. Then some of them killed Passover lambs for those who had returned, including the other priests and themselves.
21 The sacrifices were eaten by the Israelites who had returned and by the neighboring people who had given up the sinful customs of other nations in order to worship the Lord God of Israel. 22 For seven days they celebrated the Festival of Thin Bread. Everyone was happy because the Lord God of Israel had made sure that the king of Assyria would be kind to them and help them build the temple.
Koresi mîmās ge ra hōhe
1 Ob ge gao-aob Dariusa ge mîmā, îs gao-aogu ǃnaeǃkhaidi xoaǁguigu, Babilons ǃnâ hâgu ǃnâ ôaǃnâsa dīhe. 2 Tsîs ge Mediaǀkharib ǃnâ ǂnôa ǃās, Ekbatanas ǃnâ xamisa ǂkhanisa ge hōhe, sao ra xoaǁguiba ūhâsa:
3 “ǂGuro kurib ǁîb ǂgaeǂguis dib ǃnâ ge gao-aob Koresa ge mîmā, Tempeli Jerusalems ǃnâ ǁkhawa nî ǂnubikhâihesa, ǁguibadi nî dīǃnâhe ǃkhaib ase. ǁÎb ge ǃnonadisi meterga ǀgapi tsî ǃnonadisi meterga nî ǂhaba. 4 ǂNubiǂgoagu ge ǀgui raib ǃnaoga, mâ ǃnona raigu ǁhāsa ǀuidi hoadi ǀgapiga nî ūhâ. Nē xūn hoan ge gao-aob mariǂgaesa xu nî matarehe. 5 An ǁkhāti ǃhuniǀuri tsî ǀhaiǀuri xapan, gao-aob Nebukadnesari ge Jerusalems ǃnâ mâ Tempela xu ū tsî Babiloniab tawa sī-ū hâ ina, Jerusalems ǃnâ mâ Tempela ǃoa oasī-ūhe.”
Dariusi ge sîsenni nî aiǃgûsa ra mîmā
6 Dariusi ge sao ra ǃereamsa ge sî:
“Eufrati huriǂoasǀkhāb di gowoniab Tatenaib, Setar-Bosnaib tsî sakho sîsenǁare-aogu tsîgo ǃoa.
“Tempela xu ǃnūse hâ, 7 î tā ǁîb di ǂnubihesa ǂhani. A gu Judab di gowoniab tsî Jodeǁîn ǂgaeǂgui-aogu tsîga, Elob di Tempela ǀnaib ge mâ i ǃkhaib ai ǁkhawa ǂnubikhâi. 8 Tsî ta ge ǁkhāti Jodeǁîga du nē omma ǂnubikhâis ǃnâ nî hui ǃkhaisa ra mîmā du. Eufrati huriǂoasǀkhāb tawa ra ǀhaoǀhaohe ǁgui-aimaris, gao-aob ra māhesa xu ǁîga ǁaeb ai matareǂui, îb sîsenna mâ tamase aiǃgû. 9 Mâ tsēs hoasa Jerusalems ǃnâ hâ pristerga ǂhâba gu hâ xūn hoana, ǀûs ose mā: ǂKham ǁgōgu, gūn tsî ǁkhaon, ǀhommi di Elob khauǁguibase nî ǁguibahen, ǃhoro-i, ǂō-i, ǂauxûi-i tsî ǀkhera-oli-i tsîna. 10 ǁNās ge nî dīhe, î gu ǁîga ǀhommi di Eloba ǃgâiba ǁguibade ǁguiba ǁkhā tsî tita tsî ti ôagu tsîge ǁîb di ǀkhaeba ǂganba. 11 ǃAruǀî ta ge ra mîmā, nē mîsa ga ǁnâuǀnamoǃnâ khoe-i omsa xub ge ǃnaoba ǃhomǂuihe, ǀāǀāhe tsî ǁî-i ǃnâ-u nî ǃkhāǃkharuhe tsîs ge ǁî-i omsa nî khôaǂkhūhe. 12 Ab ǁnā Elob, Jerusalemsa ge ǁîb nî ǀgoreǀîǃnâhe ǃkhais ase ǁhûiǂuiba, nē mîmāsa ǃûǂam tsî ga nē Tempela hîkākā ǂgao gao-aob kas, ǁaes kas hoasa ǁnā kai. Tita Dariusta ge nē mîmāsa go mā; ǁîs ge ǀoasase nî ǁnâuǀnamhe.”
Tempeli di doeǂgâhes
13 O gu ge gowoniab Tatenaib, Setar-Bosnaib tsî ǁîkha sîsenǁare-aogu tsîga, gao-aob Dariusi ge mîmā khami ǀgui ge dī. 14 Jodeǁî ǂgaeǂgui-aogu ge Tempela ǂnubikhâis ǀkha kēbo-aokha Hagaib tsî Saxariab hâkha xa gu ge māhe ǁkhoaǂgaosib ǀkha ǃgâise ge aiǃgû. ǁÎgu ge Israeli di Elob tsî Persiab gao-aogu Koresi, Dariusi tsî Artaxerxesi tsîgu xa gu ge mîmāhe khami Tempela ge dītoa. 15 ǁÎgu ge Tempela ǃnonaǁî tsēs Adarǁkhâb dis ai, ǃnaniǁî kurib gao-aob Dariusi ǂgaeǂguis dib ǃnâ ge dītoa. 16 On ge Israelǁîn, pristergu, Leviǁîgu tsî oaǀkhī ge ǃkhōsaben tsîn hoana, dâb ǀkha Tempeli doeǂgâsa ge tsēdī. 17 Tempeli di doeǂgâhes tawan ge ǁîna ǀguikaidisi ǁgōgu, ǀgamkaidisi baigu, hakakaidisi ǁkhaogu tsîga ge ǁguiba, tsî disiǀgamǀa piriga ǁoreǁguibase, ǀguiba mâ ǃhaos Israelǁaes dis hoas ǃaroma. 18 Tsîn ge pristergu tsî Leviǁîgu tsîga Tempelǃoabas ǃaroma Jerusalems ǃnâ ge mâi, Moseb ǂkhanis ǃnâ i a xoaǁguisa khami.
Pasxab
19 ǃHūsisa xu ge oaǀkhī khoen ge Pasxaba, sao ra kurib ǃnâ disihakaǀaǁî tsēs ǂguro ǁkhâb dis ai ge tsēdī. 20 Hoaraga pristergu tsî Leviǁîgu tsîgu ge ge ǃanuǃanusen tsî hoatsama ge ǃanu i. Tsî gu ge Leviǁîga oaǀkhī ge khoen hoan, pristergu tsî ǁîgu ǂûgu tsîn ǃaroma Pasxaǁkhaoga ge ǂā. 21 ǁNātin ge ǃhūsisa xu ge oaǀkhī Israelǁîn tsî nau khoen, ǃhūb ǃnâ hâ ǀūben di ǁnaetiga ge ǃKhūb, Israeli Eloban nî ǃoabaga ǁnāxūn tsîna Pasxaǁkhaoga ge ǂû. 22 Tsîn ge Khūkhū-e ūhâ tama Pere-i Kaitsēsa hû tsēde dâb ǀkha ge tsēdī. ǁÎn ge kai ǃgâiaǂgaoba ge ūhâ i, ǃKhūb ge Asiriab gao-aoba ǁîn ǃoa ǃgâi kai xui-ao, îb ǁîna Israeli di Elob di Tempela ǂnubikhâis ǃnâ mâxōǀkhā.
