Ezra 4:9

Ezra 4:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then wrote Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions; the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Susanchites, the Dehavites, and the Elamites,
• New International Version (NIV)Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary, together with the rest of their associates—the judges, officials and administrators over the people from Persia, Uruk and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,
• English Standard Version (ESV)Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates, the judges, the governors, the officials, the Persians, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the Elamites,
• New King James Version (NKJV)From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions—representatives of the Dinaites, the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the people of Persia and Erech and Babylon and Shushan, the Dehavites, the Elamites,

Context of Ezra 4:9

7Even later, during the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia, the enemies of Judah, led by Bishlam, Mithredath, and Tabeel, sent a letter to Artaxerxes in the Aramaic language, and it was translated for the king. 8Rehum the governor and Shimshai the court secretary wrote the letter, telling King Artaxerxes about the situation in Jerusalem. They greeted the king for all their colleagues—the judges and local leaders, the people of Tarpel, the Persians, the Babylonians, and the people of Erech and Susa (that is, Elam). 10They also sent greetings from the rest of the people whom the great and noble Ashurbanipal had deported and relocated in Samaria and throughout the neighboring lands of the province west of the Euphrates River. 11This is a copy of their letter: “To King Artaxerxes, from your loyal subjects in the province west of the Euphrates River.

Ezra 4:9 word by word

אֱדַ֜יִן רְח֣וּם בְּעֵל־טְעֵ֗ם וְשִׁמְשַׁי֙ סָֽפְרָ֔א וּשְׁאָ֖ר כְּנָוָתְה֑וֹן דִּ֠ינָיֵא וַאֲפַרְסַתְכָיֵ֞א טַרְפְּלָיֵ֣א אֲפָֽרְסָיֵ֗א אַרְכְּוָיֵ֤א בָבְלָיֵא֙ שֽׁוּשַׁנְכָיֵ֔א דֶּהָיֵ֖א עֵלְמָיֵֽא׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Thenאֱדַ֫יִן'ĕdayin · thenH116
• Rehumרְחוּםrechûm · RehumH7348
• the chancellorטְעֵםţe‛êm · commandH2942
• the chancellorבְּעֵלbe‛êl · ownerH1169
• and Shimshaiשִׁמְשַׁיshimshay · ShimshaiH8124
• the scribeסָפִרsâphêr · scribeH5613
• and the restשְׁאָרshe'âr · remainderH7606
• of their companionsכְּנָתkenâth · associateH3675
• the Dinaitesדִּינָיֵאdîynay · judgeH1784
• the Apharsathchitesאֲפָֽרְסַתְּכָיֵא'ăpharsekay 'ăpharsathkay · governorsH671
• the Tarpelitesטַרְפְּלָיֵאţarpelay · officialsH2967
• the Apharsitesאֲפָֽרְסָיֵא'ăphâresay · PersiaH670
• the Archevitesאַרְכְּוָיֵא'arkevay · ErechH756
• the Babyloniansבָּֽבְלַיbablîy · BabylonianH896
• the Susanchitesשׁוּשַׁנְכָיֵאshûshankîy · SusaH7801
• the Dehavitesדֵּהָיֵאdahăvâ' · DehaviteH1723
• the Elamitesעֵלְמָיֵא‛almîy · ElamiteH5962

Cross-references for Ezra 4:9

• 2 Kings 17:24The king of Assyria transported groups of people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and resettled them in the towns of Samaria, replacing the people of Israel. They took possession of Samaria and lived in its towns.
• Ezra 5:6This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai the governor, Shethar-bozenai, and the other officials of the province west of the Euphrates River sent to King Darius:
• Ezra 6:6So King Darius sent this message: “Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province west of the Euphrates River, and Shethar-bozenai, and your colleagues and other officials west of the Euphrates River—stay away from there!
• Esther 1:2At that time Xerxes ruled his empire from his royal throne at the fortress of Susa.
• Esther 2:3Let the king appoint agents in each province to bring these beautiful young women into the royal harem at the fortress of Susa. Hegai, the king’s eunuch in charge of the harem, will see that they are all given beauty treatments.
• Daniel 8:2In this vision I was at the fortress of Susa, in the province of Elam, standing beside the Ulai River.
• Genesis 10:22The descendants of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.
• Isaiah 21:2I see a terrifying vision: I see the betrayer betraying, the destroyer destroying. Go ahead, you Elamites and Medes, attack and lay siege. I will make an end to all the groaning Babylon caused.
• Jeremiah 25:25and to the kings of Zimri, Elam, and Media.
• Jeremiah 49:34This message concerning Elam came to the prophet Jeremiah from the Lord at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah.
• Ezekiel 32:24“Elam lies there surrounded by the graves of all its hordes, those who were slaughtered by the sword. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have descended as outcasts to the world below. Now they lie in the pit and share the shame of those who have gone before them.
• Acts 2:9Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia,

Commentaries on Ezra 4:9

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9These verses form the superscription or address of the letter (Ezra 4:11, etc.) sent to Artaxerxes. The Dinaites were probably colonists from Dayan, a country often mentioned in the Assyrian inscriptions as bordering on Cilicia and Cappadocia. No satisfactory explanation can be given of the name Apharsathchites (see Ezra 5:6 note). The Tarpelites were colonists from the nation which the Assyrians called Tuplai, the Greeks “Tibareni,” and the Hebrews…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-24Verses 6-24 It is an old slander, that the prosperity of the church would be hurtful to kings and princes. Nothing can be more false, for true godliness teaches us to honour and obey our sovereign. But where the command of God requires one thing and the law of the land another, we must obey God rather than man, and patiently submit to the consequences. All who love the gospel should avoid all appearance of evil, lest they should encourage the adversaries…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9Including greetings from important political figures and local ethnic leaders would strengthen the letter's accusations and give it more political impact. Judges were trusted court officials familiar with Persian laws. Support from people in the Mesopotamian cities of Babylon and Erech, as well as the Persian city of Susa, would make the case against the Jews more convincing.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. the Dinaites--The people named were the colonists sent by the Babylonian monarch to occupy the territory of the ten tribes. "The great and noble Asnappar" was Esar-haddon. Immediately after the murder of Sennacherib, the Babylonians, Medes, Armenians, and other tributary people seized the opportunity of throwing off the Assyrian yoke. But Esar-haddon having, in the thirtieth year of his reign, recovered Babylon and subdued the other rebellious…Read the comment

Topics related to Ezra 4:9

• Accusation, False
• Apharsathchites
• Apharsites
• Archevites
• Artaxerxes
• Ava
• Babylon
• Bishlam
• Chancellor
• Colonization
• Dehavites
• Government
• Persia
• Rehum
• Samaria
• Shimshai
• Susanchites
• Tarpelites

In the dictionaries

• Elam; Elamites
• Tarpelites, the
• Apharsites
• Archevite
• Certify
• Chaldee language
• Chancellor
• Dehavites
• Endamage
• Erech

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