5. Bukki was the son of Abishua. Abishua was the son of Phinehas. Phinehas was the son of Eleazar. And Eleazar was the son of the chief priest Aaron.
6. So Ezra came up from Babylonia. He was a teacher. He knew the Law of Moses very well. The Lord had given Israel that law. He is the God of Israel. The king had given Ezra everything he asked for. That's because the powerful hand of the Lord his God helped him.
7. Some of the people of Israel came up to Jerusalem too. They included priests, Levites and singers. They also included the temple servants and those who guarded the temple gates. It was in the seventh year that Artaxerxes was king.
8. Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king's rule.
9. Ezra had begun his journey from Babylonia on the first day of the first month. He arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month. That's because the gracious hand of his God helped him.
10. Ezra had committed himself to study and obey the Law of the Lord. He also wanted to teach the Lord's rules and laws in Israel.
11. Ezra was a priest and teacher. He was an educated man. He knew the Lord's commands and rules for Israel very well. Here is a copy of a letter King Artaxerxes had given to Ezra. It said,