Discovery BoxEzra 4:3 
Context4:3 But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the leaders of Israel said to them, “You have no right 1 to help us build the temple of our God. We will build it by ourselves for the Lord God of Israel, just as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, has commanded us.”
Ezra 6:22
Context6:22 They observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, for the Lord had given them joy and had changed the opinion 2 of the king of Assyria 3 toward them, so that he assisted 4 them in the work on the temple of God, the God of Israel.
Ezra 7:28
Context7:28 He has also conferred his favor on me before the king, his advisers, and all the influential leaders of the king. I gained strength as the hand of the Lord my God was on me, and I gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.
Ezra 8:35
Context8:35 The exiles who were returning from the captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel – twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven male lambs, along with twelve male goats as a sin offering. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord.
Ezra 9:8
Context9:8 “But now briefly 5 we have received mercy from the Lord our God, in that he has left us a remnant and has given us a secure position 6 in his holy place. Thus our God has enlightened our eyes 7 and has given us a little relief in our time of servitude.
Ezra 10:3
Context10:3 Therefore let us enact 8 a covenant with our God to send away all these women and their offspring, in keeping with your counsel, my lord, 9 and that of those who respect 10 the commandments of our God. And let it be done according to the law.
1 tn Heb “not to you and to us.”
2 tn Heb “heart.”
3 sn The expression “king of Assyria” is anachronistic, since Assyria fell in 612
4 tn Heb “to strengthen their hands.”
5 tn Heb “according to a little moment.”
6 tn Heb “a peg” or “tent peg.” The imagery behind this word is drawn from the experience of nomads who put down pegs as they pitched their tents and made camp after times of travel.
7 tn Heb “to cause our eyes to shine.” The expression is a figure of speech for “to revive.” See DCH 1:160 s.v. אור Hi.7.
8 tn Heb “cut.”
9 tn The MT vocalizes this word as a plural, which could be understood as a reference to God. But the context seems to suggest that a human lord is intended. The apparatus of BHS suggests repointing the word as a singular (“my lord”), but this is unnecessary. The plural (“my lords”) can be understood in an honorific sense even when a human being is in view. Most English versions regard this as a reference to Ezra, so the present translation supplies “your” before “counsel” to make this clear.
10 tn Heb “who tremble at”; NAB, NIV “who fear.”
