Artaxerxes, king of kings. To Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Greetings.
Parallel translations
- WEB Artaxerxes, king of kings, To Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the perfect God of heaven. Now
- KJV Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time.
- NKJV Artaxerxes, king of kings, To Ezra the priest, a scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Perfect peace, and so forth.
- NASB “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, perfect peace. And now
- NLT “From Artaxerxes, the king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the teacher of the law of the God of heaven. Greetings.
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
Artaxerxes addresses Ezra as priest and scribe of the law of the God of heaven. The decree begins with the king acknowledging the supremacy of Israel's God.
Overview
Calling himself 'king of kings' yet addressing Ezra as scribe of 'the perfect God of heaven,' Artaxerxes implicitly bows to a higher authority. This section of Ezra is written in Aramaic, the imperial language, reflecting its official character. The decree shows God turning the resources and authority of the world's greatest empire to serve the restoration of His worship.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Dan 2:37You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given sovereignty, power, strength, and glory.
- Ezek 26:7For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with cavalry and a great company of troops.
- Ezra 4:17Then the king sent this reply: To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of your associates living in Samaria and elsewhere in the region west of the Euphrates: Greetings.
- Isa 10:8“Are not all my commanders kings?” he says.
- Dan 2:47The king said to Daniel, “Your God is truly the God of gods and Lord of kings, the Revealer of Mysteries, since you were able to reveal this mystery.”
- 1 Tim 6:15which the blessed and only Sovereign One—the King of kings and Lord of lords—will bring about in His own time.
- Rev 17:14They will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and He will be accompanied by His called and chosen and faithful ones.”
- 1 Kgs 4:24For Solomon had dominion over everything west of the Euphrates—over all the kingdoms from Tiphsah to Gaza—and he had peace on all sides.
- Rev 19:16And He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
- 1 Kgs 20:1Now Ben-hadad king of Aram assembled his entire army. Accompanied by thirty-two kings with their horses and chariots, he marched up, besieged Samaria, and waged war against it.
- Ezra 4:10–11and the rest of the peoples whom the great and honorable Ashurbanipal deported and settled in the cities of Samaria and elsewhere west of the Euphrates.
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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 7:12 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
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