Cyrus Helps the Exiles to Return
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In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD
spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia
to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put in writing:
2
"This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:
'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth
and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah.
3
Anyone of his people among you - may his God be with him,
and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and bluild the temple of the LORD,
the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem.
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And the people of any place where survivors may now be living
are to provide him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock,
and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.'"
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Then the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and Levites -
everyone whose heart God had moved - prepared to go up and
build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem.
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All their neighbors assisted them with articles of silver and gold,
with goods and livestock, and with valuable gifts,
in addition to all the freewill offerings.
7
Moreover, King Cyrus brought out the aritcles belonging to the temple
of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem
and had placed in the temple of his god.
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Cyrus king of Persia had them brought by Mithredath the treasurer,
who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah.
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This was the inventory: gold dishes 30 silver dishes 1,000 silver pans 29
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gold bowls 30 matching silver bowls 410 other a rticles 1,000
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In all, there were 5,400 articles of gold and of silver.
Sheshbazzar brought all these along when the exiles came up
from Babylon to Jerusalem.