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Ezra 4:11

Old Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does Ezra 4:11 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto Artaxerxes the king: Thy servants the men beyond the River, and so forth.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto Artaxerxes the king: Thy servants the men beyond the River, and so forth.
Ezra 4:11 — American Standard Version

Context — Ezra 4

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
8Rehum the chancellor and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king in this sort:
9then [wrote] Rehum the chancellor, and Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions, the Dinaites, and the Apharsathchites, the Tarpelites, the Apharsites, the Archevites, the Babylonians, the Shushanchites, the Dehaites, the Elamites,
10and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnappar brought over, and set in the city of Samaria, and in the rest [of the country] beyond the River, and so forth.
11This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto Artaxerxes the king: Thy servants the men beyond the River, and so forth.
12Be it known unto the king, that the Jews that came up from thee are come to us unto Jerusalem; they are building the rebellious and the bad city, and have finished the walls, and repaired the foundations.
13Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and in the end it will be hurtful unto the kings.
14Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not meet for us to see the king`s dishonor, therefore have we sent and certified the king;
← Ezra 4:10Ezra 4:12 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“This is the copy of the letter they sent unto him, even unto Artaxerxes the king, etc.] Which Ezra brought with him from Babylon, and is contained in the five following verses: thy servants the men on this side the river, and at such a time; this was the inscription of the letter, or the beginning of it.”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“4:11-22 Ezra includes a copy in Aramaic of the letter sent to Artaxerxes and his reply.”
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Related study paths

Read Ezra 4 in contextBrowse Hebrew word studiesOpen this verse in the study reader

Sources and verification