Archaeological Find in Israel of Temple Walls

(Notice the finish of today's walls goes back that far)

Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto them. Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem: and with them were the prophets of God helping them. At the same time came to them Tatnai, governor on this side the river, and Shetharboznai, and their companions, and said thus unto them, Who hath commanded you to build this house, and to make up this wall? Then said we unto them after this manner, What are the names of the men that make this building?

But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, that they could not cause them to cease, till the matter came to Darius: and then they returned answer by letter concerning this matter. The copy of the letter that Tatnai, governor on this side the river, and Shetharboznai, and his companions the Apharsachites, which were on this side the river, sent unto Darius the king: They sent a letter unto him, wherein was written thus; Unto Darius the king, all peace. Be it known unto the king, that we went into the province of Judea, to the house of the great God, which is builded with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls, and this work goeth fast on, and prospereth in their hands.

Then asked we those elders, and said unto them thus, Who commanded you to build this house, and to make up these walls? We asked their names also, to certify thee, that we might write the names of the men that were the chief of them. And thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and build the house that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and set up. But after that our fathers had provoked the God of heaven unto 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.

But in the first year of Cyrus the king of Babylon the same king Cyrus made a decree to build this house of God. And 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 them into the temple of Babylon, those did Cyrus the king take out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered unto one, whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor; And said unto him, Take these vessels, go, carry them into the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be builded in his place.

Then came the same Sheshbazzar, and laid the foundation of the house of God which is in Jerusalem: and since that time even until now hath it been in building, and yet it is not finished. Now therefore, if it seem good to the king, let there be search made in the king's treasure house, which is there at Babylon, whether it be so, that a decree was made of Cyrus the king to build this house of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send his pleasure to us concerning this matter. (Ezra 5:1-17 kjv)

The Book of EZRA The books of Ezra and Nehemiah were originally one volume. The Vulgate (a Lat. translation of the Scripture) was the first edition of the Bible to separate them, but at that time they were designated as 1 and 2 Ezra (see introduction to Nehemiah).   Like the Book of Daniel, portions of Ezra were written in Aramaic, the language of Babylon (Ezra 4:8 -6: 18). The Book of Ezra recounts the efforts of the exiles who returned from Babylon to rebuild the temple. Under the leadership of Jeshua, the high priest, and Zerubbabel, the governor over the region, proper worship and the ceremonies associated with it were restored in Jerusalem.   Many years later, Ezra arrived in Jerusalem with another group of exiles. Ezra was a very knowledgeable and adept scribe and was commissioned by King Artaxerxes to teach the statutes of the Mosaic Law to the people in Israel. While there may have been many groups of exiles that returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, Scripture speaks of only three. The first group returned in 536 B.C. under the leadership of Zerubabble, the second in 457 B.C. under Ezra, and the third in 444 B.C. under Nehemiah. The Book of Ezra tells of the first two groups of exiles. Long periods of time are not covered, however, because only those facts that are relevant to the religious life of Israel are given. Despite the fact that all those who desired to return to Jerusalem were free to do so, a great number of Jews chose to remain in Babylon. As a result, Babylon became an important center for Jewish learning until the city's decline near the end of the fourth century B.C. The prophets Zechariah and Haggai were contemporary with Zerubbabel, and Esther lived not many years later. An excellent understanding of the life of the Jews after the Exile can be gained by collectively studying the books of these individuals along with Ezra and Nehemia.   [Source for Introduction of chapter: Hebrew Greek Key Study Bible KJV edited by Spiros Zodhiates, Th.D. AMG Publishers, Chattanooga, TN 37422]