41 When Zerubbabel finished speaking, everyone shouted, “Truth is great! Truth is the strongest of all!”

42 King Darius said, “Zerubbabel, you are the wisest, and I will give you whatever you ask for, even more than I promised. You will sit next to me, and you will receive the title, ‘Relative of the King.’ ”

43 Zerubbabel replied, “Your Majesty, the day you became king, you made a solemn promise to rebuild Jerusalem. 44 You also promised to give back all the sacred things from the Jerusalem temple. King Cyrus saved them when he started to tear down Babylon, and he promised to send them back to Jerusalem. 45 And you promised to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem—the temple that was burned down by the Edomites after Judah was crushed by the Babylonians. 46 Your Majesty, all I ask is that you show how great you are by keeping these promises you made to God, the King of Heaven.”

47 King Darius got up and kissed him, then he wrote letters to the governors, generals, and officials in the provinces of Persia. The letters said: 48 The governors in Southwest Syria Province 49 No governor, official, or tax collector is allowed to stop the work on Jerusalem, or to enter the Jews' homes to force them to pay taxes. 50 In fact, those Jews who are returning to Judah will not have to pay any taxes on their land. 51 Every year until the Jerusalem temple is finished, my treasurer will give the Jews 686 kilograms of silver to help with the cost of building. 52 He will also give them another 343 kilograms of silver a year, to buy animals for the 17 sacrifices that must be offered each day to please God. 53 The priests and other Jews who returned to rebuild Jerusalem are to be set free, together with their children. 54-55 Until the temple is finished and Jerusalem is rebuilt, my treasurer will give the priests and Levites money to live on. Furthermore, each priest is to be given one of the special robes that he must wear to serve in the temple. 56 Those men who guard the city must be given a piece of land, and they must be paid wages. 57 King Cyrus had kept many of the sacred things that came from the Jerusalem temple. These must now be returned to Jerusalem, along with anything else Cyrus promised to return.

58 After Zerubbabel left the palace, he faced Jerusalem and looked up toward heaven. Then he praised the King of Heaven and prayed, 59 “Our Lord, you are the one who gives victory and wisdom. So you should receive all the honor for what has happened here today. I am only your servant, 60 just as our ancestors were. I thank you and praise you for giving me wisdom.”

61 Zerubbabel took the letters to Babylon and told his relatives what had happened. 62 They all praised God, because he was allowing them 63 to go and rebuild Jerusalem and his temple. Then they held a big celebration for seven days, with music and lots of food.

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version ®. Copyright © 1995 American Bible Society. Used by permission.