6Then Tatnai, governor on the west side of the (Euphrates) river, Shethar-bozenai, and his cohorts, the Apharsachites, who were on this side of the (Euphrates) river, sent a letter to King Darius; 7That letter was written thus: “To Darius, the king, all peace. 8Be it known to the king, that we went into the province of Judea, to the house of the great God, which is built with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls, and this work proceeds rapidly, and prospers in their hands. 9Then we asked those elders, ‘Who decreed that you should build this house, and repair these walls?’ 10We also asked their names, that we might record the names of the men who were the head of them to inform you. 11And they answered us, saying, ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and build the house that was built these many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and set up. 12But after our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house, and carried the people away into Babylon. 13But in the first year of Cyrus, the king of Babylon, the same King Cyrus made a decree to build this house of God. 14And the vessels, also, of gold and silver of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem, and brought into the temple of Babylon, those did Cyrus, the king, remove from the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to one, whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor; 15And he said to him, “Take these vessels, go, carry them into the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be built in its place”. 16Then the same Sheshbazzar came, and laid the foundation of the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and since that time even until now has it been under construction, and it is not yet finished. 17Now, therefore, if it seems good to the king, let there be search made in the king's treasure house, which is there at Babylon, whether it is so, that a decree was made by King Cyrus, to build this house of God at Jerusalem; and let the king send his pleasure to us concerning this matter’.