This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra the priest and scribe, a man with a thorough knowledge of the Lord’s commands and laws for Israel:
Here is a copy of the letter Governor Tattenai ⌞from the province⌟ west of the Euphrates River, Shethar Bozenai and his group (the Persians west of that river) sent to King Darius.
I, King Artaxerxes, order all the treasurers ⌞in the province⌟ west of the Euphrates River to do exactly what Ezra the priest, a scribe for the Teachings of the God of Heaven, asks you to do.
As a scribe, Ezra was an expert in Moses’ Teachings, which the Lord God of Israel had given. The king gave Ezra everything he requested because the Lord his God was guiding him.
“How horrible it will be for you, experts in Moses’ Teachings and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. You don’t enter it yourselves, and you don’t permit others to enter when they try.