4. Then the people around them tried to discourage the people of Judah by making them afraid to build.
5. Their enemies hired others to delay the building plans during the time Cyrus was king of Persia. And it continued to the time Darius was king of Persia.
6. When Xerxes first became king, those enemies wrote a letter against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
7. When Artaxerxes became king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and those with them wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. It was written in the Aramaic language and translated.
8. Rehum the governor and Shimshai the governor’s secretary wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king. It said: