Dario Ma Asɔredansie Ho Ɛkwan
1Enti, ɔhene Dario hyɛɛ sɛ, wɔnkɔnpɛnsɛmpɛnsɛm Babilonia nneɛma dada akoraeɛ hɔ baabi a wɔkora nneɛma a ɛsom bo no. 2Na Ekbatana aban a ɛwɔ Mediaman no mu na wɔhunuu krataa mmobɔeɛ bi. Na emu nsɛm nie:
Asɛnkaeɛ krataa:
3Ɔhene Kores dii adeɛ nʼafe a ɛdi so no, wɔhyɛɛ mmara faa Onyankopɔn asɔredan a ɛwɔ Yerusalem no ho.
Ɛkaa sɛ, ɛsɛ sɛ wɔsane si no wɔ beaeɛ a na Yudafoɔ bɔ wɔn afɔdeɛ hɔ, wɔ fapem dada no so. Ɛsɛ sɛ ne ɔsorokɔ yɛ anammɔn aduɔkron, na ne tɛtrɛtɛ mu nso yɛ anammɔn aduɔkron. 4Aboɔ a wɔasiesie no sononko no ntosoɔ mmiɛnsa biara so no, ɛsɛ sɛ wɔde nnua gu so. Na adehyeɛ fotoɔ mu na wɔbɛfiri atua ho ka. 5Sikakɔkɔɔ ne dwetɛ nkuku ne nkaka a Nebukadnessar tase firii Onyankopɔn asɔredan a ɛsi Yerusalem no mu de kɔɔ Babilonia no, ɛsɛ sɛ wɔsane de kɔ Yerusalem, de kɔgu Onyankopɔn asɔredan no mu sɛdeɛ na ɛteɛ no.
6Na ɔhene Dario too saa nkra yi: Mede krataa yi kɔma amrado Tatenai a ɔwɔ asuo Eufrate atɔeɛ fam ne Setar-Bosnai ne mo mfɛfoɔ ne mpanimfoɔ a wɔwɔ Eufrate atɔeɛ fam sɛ monnkɔ hɔ. 7Monnkɔtwintwane Onyankopɔn asɔredan no sie. Wɔnsi no wɔ beaeɛ dada mu hɔ ara, na monntwintwane Yuda amrado ne Yudafoɔ mpanimfoɔ ananmu wɔ adwuma no yɛ mu.
8Na mesane hyɛ mo bio sɛ, mommoa saa Yudafoɔ mpanimfoɔ no wɔ Onyankopɔn asɔredan no sie mu.
Ɛsɛ sɛ motua adansie no ho ka nyinaa firi me toɔ a mogyegye firi Eufrate asuogya hɔ, a monntwentwɛn so koraa, sɛdeɛ ɛbɛyɛ a adwuma no bɛkɔ so ama wɔawie. 9Biribiara a ɛho hia asɔfoɔ a wɔwɔ Yerusalem, sɛ ebia, nantwie mma, nnwennini ne nnwammaa a wɔde bɛbɔ ɔhyeɛ afɔdeɛ ama Onyankopɔn a ɔwɔ ɔsorosoro no, momfa mma wɔn. Afei, momma wɔn atokoɔ, nkyene, nsã ne ngo a ɛho bɛhia wɔn da biara a monnto mu. 10Sɛ ɛba saa a, wɔbɛtumi abɔ afɔdeɛ a ɛsɔ ani ama ɔsorosoro Onyankopɔn, na wɔabɔ mpaeɛ ama me ne me mmammarima.
11Wɔn a wɔbɛbu mmara no so wɔ ɛkwan biara so no, wɔbɛyi wɔn adan so mpunan. Na wɔde wɔn abobɔ mu, abɔ wɔn mmaa, ama wɔn afie adwiri, adane nkunkumasie. 12Onyankopɔn a wayi Yerusalem kuro sɛ beaeɛ a wɔnhyɛ ne din animuonyam no nsɛe ɔhene anaa ɔman biara a wɔbɛbu ne mmara so asɛe asɔredan no.
Me Dario na mahyɛ saa mmara yi. Ma ɔmanfoɔ ntie no aso pa mu.
13Na Tatenai a ɔyɛ asuo Eufrate atɔeɛ amrado ne Setar-Bosnai ne nʼafɛfoɔ dii Dario mmara a ɔhyɛeɛ no so prɛko pɛ. 14Enti, Yudafoɔ mpanimfoɔ toaa wɔn dwumadie no so na asɛnka a adiyifoɔ Hagai ne Ido babarima Sakaria kaeɛ no hyɛɛ wɔn nkuran. Na, wɔwiee asɔredan no sie, sɛdeɛ, Israel Onyankopɔn hyɛeɛ na Kores, Dario ne Persiahene Artasasta hyɛɛ mmara no. 15Wɔwiee asɔredan no sie Abib (bɛyɛ Ɔbɛnem) da a ɛtɔ so dumienu, wɔ ɔhene Dario ahennie mfeɛ nsia so.
16Israelfoɔ, asɔfoɔ, Lewifoɔ ne nnipa no nkaeɛ a wɔfiri asutwa mu aba no de ahosɛpɛ too Onyankopɔn asɔredan no din. 17Onyankopɔn asɔredan no dintoɔ afahyɛ no mu no, wɔde anantwie mma ɔha, nnwennini ahanu ne nnwammaa ahanan bɔɔ afɔdeɛ. Na wɔmaa mmirekyie dumienu sɛ bɔne ho afɔrebɔdeɛ, de gyinaa hɔ maa Israel mmusuakuo dumienu no. 18Afei, wɔkyekyɛɛ asɔfoɔ ne Lewifoɔ no mu, sɛdeɛ wɔn akuo ahodoɔ teɛ no, ma wɔsomm wɔ Onyankopɔn asɔredan no mu wɔ Yerusalem, sɛdeɛ wɔatwerɛ wɔ Mose Nwoma mu no.
19Adar bosome (bɛyɛ Oforisuo) da a ɛtɔ so aduonu baako no, wɔn a wɔatwa wɔn asu no a wɔasane aba no dii Twam Afahyɛ. 20Asɔfoɔ no ne Lewifoɔ no dwiraa wɔn ho, ma wɔn ho te maa afahyɛ no. Enti, wɔkumm Twam Afahyɛ dwammaa maa wɔn a wɔtwaa wɔn asu no a wɔasane aba no nyinaa ne asɔfoɔ a wɔaka ne wɔn ankasa wɔn ho. 21Nnipa a wɔwɔ Israel a wɔfiri asutwa mu aba no ne nnipa no nkaeɛ a wɔwɔ ɔman no mu no a wɔadane afiri wɔn amumuyɛ akwan ho abɛsom Awurade Israel Onyankopɔn no na wɔdii twam aduane no. 22Wɔdii Twam Afahyɛ aduane no, ɛnna wɔde nnanson nso dii Apiti Afahyɛ no. Ahosɛpɛ baa ɔman no mu afanan nyinaa, ɛfiri sɛ, Awurade sesaa Asiriahene adwene a ɔwɔ wɔ wɔn ho, ma ɔboaa wɔn ma wɔsii Onyankopɔn, Israel Onyankopɔn, asɔredan no.
King Darius’s Reply to Tattenai
1King Darius gave an order. He had a search made in the official records stored among the treasures at Babylon. 2A book was found in a safe storeroom at Ecbatana in the land of Media. Here is what was written on it.
This is my official reply to your letter.
3In the first year that Cyrus was king, he gave an order. It concerned God’s temple in Jerusalem. King Cyrus said,
Rebuild the temple. Then the Jews can offer sacrifices there. Lay its foundations. The temple must be 90 feet high and 90 feet wide. 4Its walls must have three layers of large stones. They must also have a layer of beautiful wood. Use money from the royal treasures to pay for everything. 5The gold and silver objects from the house of God must be returned. Nebuchadnezzar had taken them from the first temple in Jerusalem. And he had brought them to Babylon. Now they must be returned to their places in the temple at Jerusalem. They must be put in the house of God there.
6Tattenai, you are governor of the land west of the Euphrates River. I want you to stay away from the temple in Jerusalem. I also want you, Shethar-Bozenai, and you other officials of that area to stay away from it. 7Don’t try to stop the work on the temple of God. Let the governor of the Jews and their elders rebuild the house of their God. Let them build it in the same place where it stood before.
8Here is what I want you to do for the elders of the Jews. Here is how you must help them to build the house of their God.
Pay all their expenses from the royal treasures. Use the money you collect from the people who live west of the Euphrates. Don’t let the work on the temple stop. 9Don’t fail to give the priests in Jerusalem what they ask for each day. Give them what they need. Give them young bulls, rams and male lambs. The priests can use them to sacrifice burnt offerings to the God of heaven. Also give them wheat, salt, wine and olive oil. 10Give them those things so they can offer sacrifices that please the God of heaven. And I want them to pray that things will go well for me and my sons.
11Don’t change this order. If anyone tries to change it, they must be put to death. A pole must be pulled from their house. The pole must be stuck through their body. Because that person tried to change my royal order, their house must be broken to pieces. 12God has chosen to put his Name in the temple at Jerusalem. May he wipe out any king or nation that lifts a hand to change this order. May he also wipe out anyone who tries to destroy the temple in Jerusalem.
That’s what I have ordered. I am King Darius. Make sure you carry out my order.
The Temple Is Completed and Set Apart to God
13The governor Tattenai and Shethar-Bozenai carried out King Darius’s order. And so did their friends. 14The elders of the Jews continued to build the temple. They enjoyed great success because of the preaching of Haggai and Zechariah, the prophets. Zechariah belonged to the family line of Iddo. The people finished building the temple. That’s what the God of Israel had commanded them to do. Cyrus and Darius had given orders allowing them to do it. Later, Artaxerxes supplied many things that were needed in the temple. Those three men were kings of Persia. 15So the temple was completed on the third day of the month of Adar. It was in the sixth year that Darius was king.
16When the house of God was set apart, the people of Israel celebrated with joy. The priests and Levites joined them. So did the rest of those who had returned from the land of Babylon. 17When the house of God was set apart to him, the people sacrificed 100 bulls. They also sacrificed 200 rams and 400 male lambs. As a sin offering for the whole nation of Israel, the people sacrificed 12 male goats. One goat was sacrificed for each tribe in Israel. 18The priests were appointed to their groups. And the Levites were appointed to their groups. All of them served God at Jerusalem. They served him in keeping with what is written in the Book of Moses.
The People Celebrate the Passover Feast
19The people who had returned from the land of Babylon celebrated the Passover Feast. It was on the 14th day of the first month. 20The priests and Levites had made themselves pure and “clean.” The Levites killed Passover lambs for the people who had returned from Babylon. They also did it for themselves and their relatives, the priests. 21So the Israelites who had returned ate the Passover lamb. They ate it together with all those who had separated themselves from the practices of their Gentile neighbors. Those practices were “unclean.” The people worshiped the Lord. He is the God of Israel. 22For seven days they celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread with joy. That’s because the Lord had filled them with joy. They were glad because he had changed the mind of the king of Persia. So the king had helped them with the work on the house of the God of Israel.
