Ezra 4:7-16 – Dealing with poison pen

As established, Ezra 4 was recorded to show the opposition faced by the people who returned from exile. And that the people who returned from exile did n0t have easy. Hence the account was not chronological. Ezra 4:6 briefly talks about the accusations made to Ahasuerus. Continuing in troubling the Jews, Ezra 4:7-16 discusses a letter that was written to King Artaxerxes I. Verse 13 seems to indicate that this letter of complaint had to do with the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem This would have happened during the time of Nehemiah who Artaxerxes cupbearer.

Verse 7 said that in the days of Artaxerxes, three key persons, namely Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and their colleagues wrote a letter of complaint concerning the Jews. Since Aramaic was the language of the Persians, the letter was written in Aramaic. The last part of the verse hinted that the letter was translated into Hebrew from Aramaic. The content of the letter was collaborated by a group of others listed in verses 8-9. They were a mixture of people who were deported to Samaria by Osnapper. This had been identified as Ashurbanipal, the Assyrian king who succeeded Esarhaddon mentioned in Ezra 4:2.

The content of the letter of complaint was both subtle and manipulative. The letter began by alerting the king to what the Jews were doing. It says in verse 12, “let it be known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us at Jerusalem; they are rebuilding the rebellious and evil city and are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations.” The people who wrote this letter of complaint were manipulating the king. They wanted him to think they were loyal to him and had his interest at heart. So, they insinuated that should the Jews be allowed to finish their rebuilding projects they would stop paying their taxes. This would then result in a loss of revenue for the king and damage his reputation simultaneously.

Furthermore, the rebels might set an example for people in the other parts of his empire to rebel. Connivingly, they suggested that Artaxerxes should do a search on those returnees, whom they said had a history of being rebellious. They went so far as to malign that Jerusalem was “a rebellious city and damaging to kings and provinces and that they have incited revolt within it in past days; therefore that city was laid waste.”

Why did the Samaritans do what they did? They felt snubbed when the Jews refused to let them participate in their rebuilding program. So they sought to damage their work. But what they did was despicable. The letter they wrote to the king while full of kind words, like honey drippings for the king, was subtly assassinating the character of the Jews. What we see here is plainly a poison pen. What the Jews had experienced was not peculiar to them only. Be aware that as Christians we are not immune to such mischief, but we must remain strong in the Lord. We live as best as we know how. Be wise and careful in our dealings with people. But never feel intimidated to the extent that we are willing to compromise. Have the attitude of 1 Corinthians 15:28: be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.