Ezra 5

11–16 Included within the letter to Darius was the answer given by the Jews as to why they were building the temple. They referred to Cyrus as the king of Babylon (verse 13), since he was the Persian king who conquered Babylon.

The Jews also said that Sheshbazzar (Ezra 1:8) had been appointed governor by Cyrus and that he had laid the foundations for the temple (verses 14,16). This is why some scholars think that Sheshbazzar and Zerubbabel are the same person.¹⁹ More likely, however, it was Sheshbazzar who began the work, and then Zerubbabel took over from him.

17 The Jews’ point was that even though the temple construction had been interrupted, they were still covered by the original authorization granted by Cyrus. So Tattenai simply needed to confirm that such a decree or authorization had indeed been issued.