Artaxerxes sent him to Judah as governor of the province with a mission to rebuild, letters explaining his support for the venture, and provision for timber from the king's forest. Learning that the remnant in Judah were in distress and that the walls of Jerusalem were broken down, he asked the king for permission to return and rebuild the city. In the 20th year of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, (445/444 BC), Nehemiah was cup-bearer to the king. 5th century BC).Īccording to most scholars, Nehemiah was a real historical figure and the Nehemiah Memoir, a name given by scholars to certain portions of the book written in the first person, is historically reliable. He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (c. Nehemiah (/ˌniːəˈmaɪə/ or /ˌniːhəˈmaɪə/ נְחֶמְיָה, "Yahweh comforts", long version of the name "Nahum" which also means comforter Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya, Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh) is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah, which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period. Once this task was completed Nehemiah had Ezra read the Law of Moses (the Torah) to the assembled Israelites, and the people and priests entered into a covenant to keep the law and separate themselves from all other peoples. Some years later Artaxerxes sent Nehemiah (a Jewish noble in his personal service) to Jerusalem as governor with the task of rebuilding the city walls. He tore his garments in despair and confessed the sins of Israel before God, then braved the opposition of some of his own countrymen to purify the community by enforcing the dissolution of the sinful marriages. Ezra led a large body of exiles back to Jerusalem, where he discovered that Jewish men had been marrying non-Jewish women. 457 BCE) of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, the king sent him to Jerusalem to teach the laws of God to any who did not know them. Ezra was living in Babylon when in the seventh year (c. A few parts of the Book of Ezra (4:8 to 6:18 and 7:12-26) were written in Aramaic, and the majority in Hebrew, Ezra himself being skilled in both languages. Modern Hebrew Bibles call the two books Ezra and Nehemiah, as do other modern Bible translations. (Nehemiah 3:32, footnote) Later the Jews divided this scroll and called it First and Second Ezra. The books of Ezra-Nehemiah were originally one scroll. He was described as exhorting the Israelite people to be sure to follow the Torah Law so as not to intermarry with people of particular different religions, a set of commandments described in the Pentateuch.Įzra, known as "Ezra the scribe" in Chazalic literature, is a highly respected figure in Judaism. The Book of Ezra describes how he led a group of Judean exiles living in Babylon to their home city of Jerusalem (Ezra 8.2-14) where he is said to have enforced observance of the Torah. In the Greek Septuagint the name is rendered Ésdrās (Ἔσδρας), from which the Latin name Esdras comes. His name may be an abbreviation of עזריהו Azaryahu, "God-helps". One tradition says that he is buried in al-Uzayr near Basra (Iraq), while another tradition alleges that he is buried in Tadif near Aleppo, in northern Syria. Several traditions have developed over his place of burial. Rabbinic tradition holds that he was only a common priest. According to 1 Esdras, a Greek translation of the Book of Ezra still in use in Eastern Orthodoxy, he was also a High Priest. He returned from Babylonian exile and reintroduced the Torah in Jerusalem (Ezra 7-10 and Neh 8). According to the Hebrew Bible he was a descendant of Seraiah (Ezra 7:1) the last High Priest to serve in the First Temple (2 Kings 25:18), and a close relative of Joshua the first High Priest of the Second Temple (1 Chronicles 5:40-41 CJB and similar translations only see also Ezra 3:2). In Greco-Latin Ezra is called Esdras (Greek: Ἔσδρας). 480-440 BCE), also called Ezra the Scribe (עזרא הסופר, Ezra ha-Sofer) and Ezra the Priest in the Book of Ezra, was a Jewish scribe and a priest.
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