To this very day they observe their earlier practices. They do not worship ¹  the Lord; they do not obey the rules, regulations, law, and commandments that the Lord gave ²  the descendants of Jacob, whom he renamed Israel.

At that time King Hezekiah of Judah stripped the metal overlays from the doors of the Lord’s temple and from the posts which he had plated ¹  and gave them to the king of Assyria.

I will not make Israel again leave the land I gave to their ancestors, ¹  provided that they carefully obey all I commanded them, the whole law my servant Moses ordered them to obey.”

Hilkiah the high priest informed Shaphan the scribe, “I found the law scroll in the Lord’s temple.” Hilkiah gave the scroll to Shaphan and he read it.

(His Judahite wife gave birth to Jered the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Soco, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.) These were the sons of Pharaoh’s daughter Bithiah, whom Mered married. ¹ 

All these were the sons of Heman, the king’s prophet. God had promised him these sons in order to make him prestigious. ¹  God gave Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.

He gave him ¹  the blueprints of all he envisioned ²  for the courts of the Lord’s temple, all the surrounding rooms, the storehouses of God’s temple, and the storehouses for the holy items.

He gave him the regulations ¹  for the divisions of priests and Levites, for all the assigned responsibilities within the Lord’s temple, and for all the items used in the service of the Lord’s temple.

He gave him ¹  the prescribed weight for all the gold items to be used in various types of service in the Lord’s temple, for all the silver items to be used in various types of service, ² 

and for the refined gold of the incense altar. He gave him ¹  the blueprint for the seat ²  of the gold cherubim that spread their wings ³  and provide shelter for the ark of the Lord’s covenant.

When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, he gave this message to Shemaiah: ¹  “They have humbled themselves, so I will not destroy them. I will deliver them soon. ²  My anger will not be unleashed against ³  Jerusalem through ⁴  Shishak.

He did evil in the sight of ¹  the Lord like Ahab’s dynasty because, after his father’s death, they ²  gave him advice that led to his destruction.

In those days Hezekiah was stricken with a terminal illness. ¹  He prayed to the Lord, who answered him and gave him a sign confirming that he would be healed. ² 

I will not make Israel again leave the land I gave to their ancestors, ¹  provided that they carefully obey all I commanded them, the whole law, the rules and regulations given to Moses.”

They gave money to the craftsmen and builders to buy chiseled stone and wood for the braces and rafters of the buildings that the kings of Judah had allowed to fall into disrepair. ¹ 

So I gave orders, ¹  and it was determined ²  that this city from long ago has been engaging in insurrection against kings. It has continually engaged in ³  rebellion and revolt.

At that time Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues came to them and asked, “Who gave you authority ¹  to rebuild this temple and to complete this structure?” ² 

What follows ¹  is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priestly scribe. ²  Ezra was ³  a scribe in matters pertaining to the commandments of the Lord and his statutes over Israel:

Then they presented the decrees of the king to the king’s satraps and to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, who gave help to the people and to the temple of God.

Then the king, with his consort ¹  sitting beside him, replied, “How long would your trip take, and when would you return?” Since the king was amenable to dispatching me, ²  I gave him a time.