English Standard Version
Ezra 4:3
3But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses in Israel said to them, "You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us."
Ezra 4:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said unto them, Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto our God; but we ourselves together will build unto the Lord God of Israel, as king Cyrus the king of Persia hath commanded us.
- New International Version (NIV)But Zerubbabel, Joshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, “You have no part with us in building a temple to our God. We alone will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.”
- New King James Version (NKJV)But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the fathers’ houses of Israel said to them, “You may do nothing with us to build a house for our God; but we alone will build to the Lord God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the other leaders of Israel replied, “You may have no part in this work. We alone will build the Temple for the Lord, the God of Israel, just as King Cyrus of Persia commanded us.”
Context of Ezra 4:3
1Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel, 2they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers' houses and said to them, "Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria who brought us here." But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses in Israel said to them, "You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us." 4Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build 5and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Read all of Ezra 4Ezra 4:3 word by word
וַיֹּאמֶר֩ לָהֶ֨ם זְרֻבָּבֶ֜ל וְיֵשׁ֗וּעַ וּשְׁאָ֨ר רָאשֵׁ֤י הָֽאָבוֹת֙ לְיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לֹֽא־לָ֣כֶם וָלָ֔נוּ לִבְנ֥וֹת בַּ֖יִת לֵאלֹהֵ֑ינוּ כִּי֩ אֲנַ֨חְנוּ יַ֜חַד נִבְנֶ֗ה לַֽיהוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר צִוָּ֔נוּ הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ כּ֥וֹרֶשׁ מֶֽלֶךְ־פָּרָֽס׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- But Zerubbabelזְרֻבָּבֶ֫לzerûbbâbel · ZerubbabelH2216
- and Jeshuaיֵשׁוּעַyêshûa‛ · JeshuaH3442
- and the restשְׁאָרshe'âr · remnantH7605
- of the chiefרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: leaderH7218
- of the fathersאָב'âb · fatherH1
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto them, Ye have nothing to do with us to buildבָּנָהbânâh · to buildH1129
- an houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: templeH1004
- unto our Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- but we ourselves togetherיַ֫חַדyachad · unitednessH3162
- unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- as kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- Cyrusכּ֫וֹרֶשׁkôresh kôresh · CyrusH3566
- of Persiaפָּרַסpâras · PersiaH6539
- hath commandedצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
Cross-references for Ezra 4:3
- Nehemiah 2:20Then I replied to them, "The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem."
- John 4:22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
- Acts 8:21You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
- Romans 9:4They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises.
- 3 John 1:9I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority.
- Ezra 1:1In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:
- Ezra 6:3In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king issued a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be rebuilt, the place where sacrifices were offered, and let its foundations be retained. Its height shall be sixty cubits and its breadth sixty cubits,
- 2 Chronicles 36:22Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:
- Isaiah 44:28who says of Cyrus, 'He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose'; saying of Jerusalem, 'She shall be built,' and of the temple, 'Your foundation shall be laid.'"
- Isaiah 45:1Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed:
- Matthew 10:16"Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.
Commentaries on Ezra 4:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Ye have nothing to do with us - We cannot acknowledge you as worshippers of the true God, and cannot participate with you in anything that relates to his worship.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Ye have nothing to do with us - Because the Samaritans had united idolatrous rites with the worship of Yahweh 2 Kings 17:29-41. To have allowed them a share in restoring the temple would have been destructive of all purity of religion. As king Cyrus commanded us - The exact words of the edict gave the right of building exclusively to those who should “go up” from Babylonia to Judaea Ezra 1:3.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The main political, religious, and tribal leaders united against the foreigners' proposal. They believed it would introduce idolatrous beliefs. The Jews wanted to avoid repeating their ancestors' mistake of worshiping Canaanite false gods, which led to exile. as Cyrus king of Persia has commanded us: See Ezra 1:2–4.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. But Zerubbabel and Jeshua ... said ... Ye have nothing to do with us to build an house unto our God--This refusal to co-operate with the Samaritans, from whatever motives it sprang, was overruled by Providence for ultimate good; for, had the two peoples worked together, familiar acquaintanceship and intermarriage would have ensued, and the result might have been a relapse of the Jews into idolatry. Most certainly, confusion and obscurity in the…Read the comment
Topics related to Ezra 4:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezra 4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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Commentaries