Ezra 4:13

Ezr 4:13 Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls set up [again, then] will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom, and [so] thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings.

Ver. 13. Be it known now unto the king] q.d. This is no light business, but of greatest importance; and, therefore, fit to be noted and noticed.

Then will they not pay toll, tribute, &c.] This is an old device of the devil and his imps, to represent God’s people to the world as anti-magistratical, and disturbers of the public peace. Thus they dealt by the primitive Christians, who were the emperors’ best subjects, and yielded them greatest respect and profit. Thus Francis, king of France, pretended and professed to the princes of Germany, whose friendship he desired, that he pursued the Lutherans with fire and sword, for no other cause but for that they were levellers, and enemies to civil government. This drew from Calvin, who was then but twenty-five years of age, that golden book of his, Institutions of Christian Religion, to free the Reformed Churches of that slur and slander. The like was suggested by the Arminians in the Low Countries, and by the Episcopal party here. It was in Tacitus’s time, unum crimen eorum qui crimine vacabant, the only fault of such as were indeed without fault.

And so thou shalt endamage the revenue] Diminish the annual revenues of the crown, which are well called the king’s strength here, because if these fail little good can be done, either at home or abroad, Henry, king of Navarre (afterwards king of France), was wont to say, that he was a husband without a wife, a soldier without money, and a king without a kingdom. What would the king of Spain’s greatness soon come to were it not for his yearly incomes, his mines of America?

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ezr 4:13. Then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom — “By the first of these, Grotius understands that which every head paid to the king, and which we call poll-money; by the second, the excise, as we now speak, which was upon commodities and merchandise; and by the last, the land- tax.” — Dodd.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

4:13 A tribute was an annual fixed tax, customs were probably sales taxes, and tolls were probably charges for using roads. Previous rulers had collected considerable revenue from the region (4:20; cp. 1 Kgs 10:14-15).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Meaning, the gifts that are wont to be given to kings when they pass by any country.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

toll, tribute, and custom--The first was a poll tax; the second was a property tax; the third the excise dues on articles of trade and merchandise. Their letter, and the edict that followed, commanding an immediate cessation of the work at the city walls, form the exclusive subject of narrative at Ezra 4:7-23. And now from this digression [the historian] returns at Ezr 4:24 to resume the thread of his narrative concerning the building of the temple.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 13. Toll, tribute, and custom] The first term is supposed to imply the capitation tax; the second, an excise on commodities and merchandise; the third, a sort of land tax. Others suppose the first means a property tax; the second, a poll tax; and the third, what was paid on imports and exports. In a word, if you permit these people to rebuild and fortify their city, they will soon set you at naught, and pay you no kind of tribute.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(13) Toll, tribute, and custom.—Toll for the highways; custom, a provision in kind; tribute, the money tax.

The revenue.—Rather, at length; literally and at length damage will be done to the kings.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13. set up again] R.V. finished.

then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom] R.V. they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll. Cf. Ezr_4:20, Ezr_7:24. The R.V. gives the right order according to the Aramaic. The first word denotes the contribution of provinces, and the imperial taxation levied on districts; the second word probably the duties on merchandise or on the produce of the land for maintenance of provincial rule; the third, tolls levied upon travellers, for maintenance of roads and communication.

and so thou shalt endamage the revenue of the kings] R.V. and in the end it will endamage the kings. The A.V. is certainly wrong in translating by the second person singular. The verb refers to the city of ‘Jerusalem’, which would become the author of mischief.

The word rendered by the A.V. ‘the revenue of’ and by the R.V. ‘in the end’, has caused much perplexity. Neither 1Es_2:18 nor the versions LXX., Vulg. and Syr. have attempted to translate it.

In most Hebrew Bibles it is read ‘Aphtôm’. It has been conjectured to be a word of Persian origin (cf. old Persian ‘Apatama’, ‘most remote’: the Pehlevi ‘af-dom’ = ‘end’), and to be used here as an adverb ‘in the end’, ‘eventually’.

Some of the best Hebrew texts however now read ‘Aphtôs’ (? = ‘revenue’).

The rendering ‘revenue was a mere conjecture of the mediæval Hebrew commentators based upon the context, and by some scholars is still preferred.

This expression of loyal interest in the welfare of the king’s treasure was a somewhat transparent method of conciliating the royal favour to their side.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Now because we have maintenance from the king's palace,.... Have posts under the king, to which salaries were annexed, by which they were supported, and which they had from the king's exchequer; or "salt" (o), as in the original, some places of honour and trust formerly being paid in salt; hence, as Pliny (p) observes, such honours and rewards were called "salaries":

and it was not meet for us to see the king's dishonour; to see any thing done injurious to his crown and dignity, to his honour and revenues, when we are supported by him; this would be ungrateful as well as unjust:

therefore have we sent and certified the king; of the truth of what is before related; and, for the further confirmation of it, refer him to the ancient records of the kingdom, as follows.

(o) "salem vel sale", Montanus, Vatablus, Michaelis. (p) Nat. Hist. l. 31. c. 7.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Toll, tribute, and custom - Rather, “tribute, provision, and toll” (so Ezr 4:20). The “tribute” is the money-tax imposed on each province, and apportioned to the inhabitants by the local authorities; the “provision” is the payment in kind, which was an integral part of the Persian system; the “tolI” is probably a payment required from those who used the Persian highways.

The revenue - The word thus translated is not found elsewhere, and can only be conjecturally interpreted. Modern commentators regard it as an adverb, meaning “at last,” or “in the end,” and translate, “And so at last shall damage be done to the kings.”

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Revenues. Septuagint, &c., include all under the term of "tribute."

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

13. Toll, tribute, and custom — Comprising all kinds of revenue. It is difficult to decide the precise import of each term. Following the etymology of the original words used, we may say that toll (מנדה) denotes some tax or portion measured out, an assessment; probably a poll tax. Tribute (בלו) comes from a root which signifies to consume, to use up. Hence Furst defines it as a tax on articles consumed; excise. Custom (הלךְ) from the root which means to walk, or travel, may denote a sort of road tax or toll levied on travellers or caravans who passed over the public roads.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Then will they not pay toll, tribute, and custom. This was plausible reasoning. In Greece, if a subject city set to work to fortify itself, rebellion was immediately anticipated, not unfairly. But the circumstances of the Persian empire were different. In the remoter parts of that empire the central government was weak, and disorders frequently occurred. A city might need fortifications to protect it against its immediate neighbours, when it had not the slightest intention of asserting independence. Judging from the later history, which shows no revolt of the Jews against Persia, we may say that the accusation now alleged was unfounded, though perhaps it was not made in bad faith. Toll, tribute, and custom represent the chief heads of Persian taxation, which, however, did not include "custom" in our sense of the word. The three terms used by the Samaritans really represent, respectively, "tribute," or the money payment required from each province, "provision," or the payment in kind equally required (Herod., 1:192; 3:91), and "toll," or contributions from those who made use of the Persian highways. According to the Samaritans, none of these would be paid by the Jews if Jerusalem was once fortified. And so thou shalt endamage the revenue. The general meaning is given correctly enough by this rendering, but "revenue" is not expressly mentioned. Aphthom, the word so translated, means really "at length," "at last." Translate, "And so at last thou shalt endamage the kings."

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

if this city is built and the wall is completed

This can be translated in active form. AT: "if they build the city and complete the wall" (See: Active or Passive)

but they will harm the kings

The word "harm" refers to the Judeans no longer giving money to the kings.

translationWords

king

tax

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

Now let it be known Now let it be known to the king.

that if this city is built [as translated,] that if this city is built.

this [as translated,] this.

and the walls are founded [as translated,] and the walls are founded.

the king’s due, the head tax, or the meal tax They are types of taxes and the money for the head taxes.

they will not give They will no longer pay taxes.

and the tax of the kings will suffer [as translated,] and the tax of the kings will suffer, for they will no longer give tax to the kings.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.