5. Among the priests, descendants of Phinehas son of Aaron, was Joshua, son of Jozadak and grandson of Seraiah. He was accompanied by Zerubbabel, who was the son of Shealtiel of the family of David, of the line of Perez, of the tribe of Judah.
6. He was the one who had spoken the wise words before Darius, emperor of Persia. They left Babylon in the second year of his reign in Nisan, the first month.
7. These are the Jewish men who returned from exile. Their families had been living in Babylonia since King Nebuchadnezzar had taken them there as prisoners.
8. They returned to Jerusalem and the rest of Judah, each to his own home town. Their leaders were Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Resaiah, Eneneus, Mordecai, Beelsarus, Aspharasus, Reeliah, Rehum, and Baanah.
41-43. The total number of Israelites (twelve years old or older, not counting servants) — 42,360Male and female servants — 7,337Male and female musicians — 245Camels — 435Horses — 7,036Mules — 245Donkeys — 5,525
44. When the exiles arrived at the place of God's Temple in Jerusalem, some of the leaders of the clans took a vow to rebuild the Temple on its old site, to the best of their ability.
45. They promised to contribute for the rebuilding and the service of the Temple 500 kilogrammes of gold, 2.5 tonnes of silver, and 100 robes for priests.
46. The priests, the Levites, and some of the people settled in or near Jerusalem; the musicians and the Temple guards settled in nearby towns; and the rest of the Israelites settled in the towns where their ancestors had lived.
47. By the seventh month the people of Israel were all settled in their towns. Then they all assembled in the open square in front of the first gate on the east side of the Temple area.
48. Joshua son of Jehozadak, his fellow-priests, and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, together with his relatives, prepared the altar of the God of Israel,
49. so that they could burn sacrifices on it according to the instructions written in the Law of Moses, the man of God.
50. Some of the local people, even though they were stronger than the Jews and opposed to them, joined them in rebuilding the altar where it had stood before. Then the Jews began once again to burn the regular morning and evening sacrifices on the altar.
51. They celebrated the Festival of Shelters, according to the regulations, each day offering the sacrifices required for that day.
52. They also offered the normal daily sacrifices, as well as those required for the Sabbath, the New Moon Festival, and the other regular assemblies for worship.
53. Although the people had not yet rebuilt God's Temple, everyone who had made a vow to God began to offer sacrifices on the first day of the seventh month.
54. The people gave money to pay the stonemasons and the carpenters; they gave food, drink,
55. and carts to be sent to the cities of Tyre and Sidon in exchange for cedar logs from Lebanon, which were to be floated to the harbour at Joppa. All this was done according to the orders given by Cyrus, emperor of Persia.