They bribed agents to work against them and to frustrate their plans. This went on during the entire reign of King Cyrus of Persia and lasted until King Darius of Persia took the throne.
Parallel translations
- WEB They hired counselors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
- KJV And hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
- BSB They hired counselors against them to frustrate their plans throughout the reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.
- NKJV and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
- NASB and bribed advisers against them to frustrate their advice all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
They bribed officials to frustrate the work, from Cyrus's reign until Darius. Persistent political pressure stalled the rebuilding for years.
Overview
The opposition used influence and counsel to obstruct the project over a long span of time. This sustained resistance explains the lengthy delay in completing the temple. The verse reminds us that God's work may be hindered for a season, yet His timing ultimately prevails (Ezra 6:14-15).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Nah 1:11There is one gone out of you, who devises evil against Yahweh, who counsels wickedness.
- Ezra 5:5But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not make them cease, until the matter should come to Darius, and an answer should be returned by letter concerning it.
- Ps 2:1–2Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot a vain thing?
- Acts 24:1–27After five days, the high priest, Ananias, came down with certain elders and an orator, one Tertullus. They informed the governor against Paul.
- Ezra 4:24Then work stopped on God’s house which is at Jerusalem. It stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The return from exile and the rebuilt altar keep alive the hope of a greater restoration — the true return from our deeper exile of sin accomplished by Christ.
How Ezra 4:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.