Ezra 4:12

12 notum sit regi quia Iudaei qui ascenderunt a te ad nos venerunt in Hierusalem civitatem rebellem et pessimam quam aedificant extruentes muros eius et parietes conponentes

Ezra 4:12 Meaning and Commentary

Ezra 4:12

Be it known unto the king
The intent of this letter was, that it might be known to the king what follows:

that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem;
this they observe partly out of contempt of the Jews, having been lately captive in Babylon, and partly to insinuate what ingratitude they were guilty of; that having got their liberty, and come to Jerusalem, they made use of it to the king's detriment:

building the rebellious and the bad city;
as they suggest it had been to kings, even his predecessors, in former times, ( Ezra 4:15 )

and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations;
which was a falsehood; for the most they had done was setting up the walls of their houses in Jerusalem, and laying the foundation of the temple; as for the walls of the city, they had not as yet done anything unto them.

Ezra 4:12 In-Context

10 et ceteri de gentibus quas transtulit Asennaphar magnus et gloriosus et habitare eas fecit in civitatibus Samariae et in reliquis regionibus trans Flumen in pace

11 hoc est exemplar epistulae quam miserunt ad eum Artarxersi regi servi tui viri qui sunt trans Fluvium salutem dicunt

12 notum sit regi quia Iudaei qui ascenderunt a te ad nos venerunt in Hierusalem civitatem rebellem et pessimam quam aedificant extruentes muros eius et parietes conponentes

13 nunc igitur notum sit regi quia si civitas illa aedificata fuerit et muri eius instaurati tributum et vectigal et annuos reditus non dabunt et usque ad reges haec noxa perveniet

14 nos ergo memores salis quod in palatio comedimus et quia laesiones regis videre nefas ducimus idcirco misimus et nuntiavimus regi