The Three Guards (Shalosh Shomrim) Third Ezra Chapters 3 & 4 Only
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The Three Guards-Shalosh Shomrim [Third Ezra Chapters 3 and 4 Only]
3 Now when Darius reigned, he made a great feast unto all his subjects and unto all his household and unto all the princes of Media and Persia,
2 And to all the governors and captains and lieutenants that were under him, from India unto Ethiopia, from a hundred twenty and seven provinces.
3 And when they had eaten and drunken and being satisfied were gone home, then Darius the melech went into his bedroom and slept and soon after awoke.
4 Then three young men, that were of the guard that kept the melech's gooff, spoke one to another.
5 Let every one of us speak advice: he that shall overcomes and whose advice shall seem wiser than the others, unto him shall the melech Darius give great gifts and great things in tokens of victory:
6 As, to be clothed in purple, to drink in gold cups and to sleep upon gold and a chariot with bridles of gold and an head tire of fine linen and a chain around his neck:
7 And he shall sit next to Darius because of his chochmah and shall be called Darius his cousin.
8 And then everyone wrote his advice, sealed it and laid it under melech Darius’s pillow.
9 And said that, when the melech is risen, someone will give him the writings; and of whose side the melech and the three princes of Persia shall judge that his advice is the wisest, to him shall the victory be given, as was appointed.
10 The first wrote, Wine is the strongest.
11 The second wrote, The melech is the strongest.
12 The third wrote, Women are strongest: but above all things Emet bears the victory.
13 Now when the melech was risen, they took their writings and delivered them unto him and so he read them:
14 And sending forth he called all the princes of Persia and Media and the governors and the captains and the lieutenants and the chief officers.
15 And sat down in the royal seat of mishpat; and the writings were read before them.
16 And he said, Call the young men and they shall declare their own insights. So they were called and came in.
17 And he said unto them, Declare unto us your mind concerning the writings. Then began the first, who had spoken of the strength of wine.
18 And he said, O ye men, how exceeding strong is wine. It causes all men to err that drink it:
19 It makes the mind of the melech and of the fatherless child to be all one; of the bondman and of the freeman, of the poor man and of the rich:
20 It turns also every thought into silliness or simcha, so that a man remembers neither sorrow nor debt:
21 And it makes every lev rich, so that a man remembers neither melech nor governor; and it makes one to speak all things:
22 And when it is in their cups, they forget their love both to chaverim and brethren and a little after it draws out fighting:
23 But when they are drunk from wine, they remember not what they have done.
24 O you men, is not wine the strongest, that enforces to do this? And when he had spoken, he held his shalom.
4 Then the second, that had spoken of the strength of the melech, began to say,
2 O you men, do not men excel in strength that bear rule over sea and land and all things in them?
3 But yet the melech is more mighty: for he is master of all these things and has dominion over them; and whatsoever he commands them, they do.
4 If he tells them to make war the one against the other, they do it: if he sends them out against their enemies, they go and break down mountains walls and towers.
5 They slay and are slain and transgress not the melech's commandment: if they get the victory, they bring all to the melech, as well the spoil and everything else.
6 Likewise for those that are not soldiers and have nothing to do with wars, but use farming, when they have reaped again that which they had sown, they bring it to the melech and compel one another to pay tribute to the melech.
7 And yet he is but one man: if he commands to kill, they kill; if he commands to spare, they spare.
8 If he commands to smite, they smite; if he commands to make desolate, they make desolate; if he commands to build, they build.
9 If he commands to cut down, they cut down; if he commands to plant, they plant.
10 So all his people and his armies obey him: furthermore, he lies down, he eats and drinks and takes his rest:
11 And these keep watch around him, neither may any one depart and do his own business, neither disobey him in anything.
12 O you men, how should not the melech be mightiest, when in such a manner he is always obeyed? And he held his tongue.
13 Then the third, who had spoken of women and of The Emet, (this was Zerubbavel) began to speak.
14 O you men, it is not the great melech, nor the multitude of men, neither is it wine, that excels; who is it then that rules them, or has the oversight over them? The answer is women?
15 Women have birthed the melech and all the people that bear rule by sea and land.
16 Even from them they were born: and they nourished them up that planted the vineyards, from where the wine comes.
17 These also make garments for men; these bring beauty to men; and without women men cannot be.
18 Yes and if men have gathered gold and silver, or any other tov thing, do they not have ahava for a woman which is nice in favor and beauty?
19 And letting all those things go, do they not gaze and even with open mouth, fix their eyes fast on her; and have not all men more desire for her than for silver or gold, or any tov thing whatsoever?
20 A man leaves his own abba that brought him up and his own country and cleaves unto his isha.
21 He spends his chayim with his isha. and remembers neither abba, nor mother, nor country.
22 By this also you must know that women have dominion over you in many ways: do you not labor and toil and give and bring all to the woman?
23 Yes, a man takes his sword and goes his way to rob and to steal, to sail upon the sea and upon the rivers.
24 And looks upon a lion and goes in the darkness; and when he has stolen, spoiled and robbed, he brings it to his lover.
25 Wherefore a man has more ahava for his isha than abba or mother.
26 Yes, many there be that have run out of their wits for women and become avadim for their sakes.
27 Many also have perished, have erred and sinned, for women.
28 And now do you not believe me? Is not the melech great in his power? Do not all regions fear to touch him?
29 Yet did I see him and Apame the melech's concubine, the daughter of the admirable Bartacus, sitting at the right hand of the melech,
30 And taking the keter from the melech's head and setting it upon her own head; she also struck the melech with her left hand.
31 And yet for all this the melech groped her and gazed upon her with an open mouth: if she laughed at him, he laughed also: but if she took any displeasure with him, the melech was fast to flatter, that she might be reconciled to him again.
32 O you men, see how women are the strongest, seeing they do all this?
33 Then the melech and the princes looked at one another: so he began to speak of The Emet.
34 O you men; are not women strongest? Great is the earth, high is the shamayim, swift is the shemesh in its course, for it circles in the shamayim and seeks its own course, back again to its own place in one yom.
35 Is He not great that makes these things? Therefore, great is The Emet and stronger than all things.
36 All the earth cries to The Emet and the shamayim bless it: all works shake and tremble at it; and with it is no unrighteous thing.
37 Wine is wicked, the melech is wicked, women are wicked, all the children of men are wicked and such are all their wicked works; and there is no emet in them; in their unrighteousness also they shall perish.
38 As for The Emet, it endures and is always strong; it lives and conquers le olam va-ed.
39 With Emet there is no accepting of persons or rewards; but Emet does the things that are just and refrains from all unjust things and all wicked things; and all men do well when following Emet.
40 Neither in its mishpat is any unrighteousness; and Emet is the strength, malchut, power and majesty, of all ages. Blessed be the Ahlohem of Emet.
41 And with that he held his shalom. And all the people then shouted and said, Great is Emet and mighty above all things.
42 Then said the melech to him, Ask what you will more than is appointed in the writing and we will give it to you, because you are found wisest; and you shalt sit next me and shalt be called my cousin.
43 Then said he to the melech, Remember your vow, which you have vowed to rebuild Yahrushalayim, in the yom when you came to your malchut?
44 And to send back all the vessels that were taken away out of Yahrushalayim, which Cyrus set apart, when he vowed to destroy Bavel and to send them back?
45 You also have vowed to rebuild the Beit HaMikdash, which the Edomites burned when the House of Yahudah was made desolate by the Chaldeans.
46 And now, O master, the melech, this is that which I require and which I desire of you and the main desire even proceeding from yourself: I desire therefore that you make tov your vow, the performance of it with your own mouth, which you have vowed to the Melech of the shamayim.
47 Then Darius the melech stood up and kissed him and wrote letters for him unto all the treasurers and lieutenants and captains and governors, that they should safely help them on their way, both him and all those that go up with him to rebuild Yahrushalayim.
48 He wrote letters also unto the lieutenants that were in Celosyria and Phenice and to them in Levanon, that they should bring cedar wood from Levanon to Yahrushalayim and that they should build the city with him.
49 Moreover he wrote for all the Yahudim that went out of his realm up into Yahudah, concerning their freedom, that no officer, no ruler, no lieutenant, nor treasurer, should forcibly enter into their doors.
50 And that all the land which they hold should be free without tribute; and that the Edomites should return the villages of the Yahudim, which then they held:
51 Yes, that there should be yearly given twenty talents to the building of the Beit HaMikdash, until the time that it was rebuilt.
52 And ten more talents yearly, to maintain the burnt offerings upon the altar every yom, as they had a mitzvah.
53 And that all they that went from Bavel to rebuild the city should have freedom, as well as their posterity with all the kohanim that had been in exile.
54 He wrote also concerning. the duties and the kohanim's vestments in which they minister.
55 And likewise for the duties of the Lewites, to be given to them until the yom that the Beit HaMikdash was finished and Yahrushalayim rebuilt.
56 And he commanded to give to all that kept the city pensions and wages.
57 He returned also all the vessels from Bavel, that Cyrus had set apart; and all that Cyrus had given in his commandment, the same order he also gave to be done and sent unto Yahrushalayim.
58 Now when this young man Zerubbavel had gone out, he lifted his face to the shamayim, towards Yahrushalayim and praised The Melech of the shamayim,
59 And said, From You comes victory, from You comes chochmah and Yours is the tifereth and I am Your eved.
60 Blessed are You, who has given me chochmah: for to You I give hodu, O Ahlohem of our ahvot.
61 And so he took the letters and went out and came unto Bavel and told it all his brethren.
62 And they praised the Ahlohem of their ahvot, because He had given them freedom and liberty.
63 To go up and to rebuild Yahrushalayim and the Beit HaMikdash, which is called by His Name: and they feasted with instruments of music and simcha seven yamim. X
THE THREE GUARDS/EZRA 3 AND 4
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EZRA 4:35 Ultimately Messiah Himself The Truth, Way and Life John 14:6.
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EZRA 4:38 The ongoing ministry of Messiah YAHUSHA.
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EZRA 4:45 An interesting piece of insight as to who assisted the Babylonians.