12. May the God who chose Jerusalem as the place where he is to be worshipped overthrow any king or nation that defies this command and tries to destroy the Temple there. I, Darius, have given this order. It is to be fully obeyed.”
13. Then Tattenai the governor, Shethar Bozenai, and their fellow-officials did exactly as the emperor had commanded.
14. The Jewish leaders made good progress with the building of the Temple, encouraged by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. They completed the Temple as they had been commanded by the God of Israel and by Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, emperors of Persia.
15. They finished the Temple on the third day of the month Adar in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the emperor.
16. Then the people of Israel — the priests, the Levites, and all the others who had returned from exile — joyfully dedicated the Temple.
17. For the dedication they offered 100 bulls, 200 sheep, and 400 lambs as sacrifices, and twelve goats as offerings for sin, one for each tribe of Israel.
18. They also organized the priests and the Levites for the temple services in Jerusalem, according to the instructions contained in the book of Moses.
19. The people who had returned from exile celebrated Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month of the following year.