Study it in the app“and they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the fathers’ houses and said to them, “Let us build with you, for like you we seek your Elohim, and to him we have been sacrificing since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us up here.””
and they approachedוַיִּגְּשׁוּZerubbabelאֶל זְרֻבָּבֶלand the headsוְאֶל רָאשֵׁיof the fathers’ housesהָאָבוֹתand saidוַיֹּאמְרוּto them,לָהֶם“Let us buildנִבְנֶהwith you,עִמָּכֶםforכִּיlike youכָכֶםwe seekנִדְרוֹשׁyour Elohim,לֵאלֹהֵיכֶםand to himוְלוֹweאֲנַחְנוּhave been sacrificingזֹבְחִיםsince the daysמִימֵיof Esarhaddonאֵסַר חַדֹּןkingמֶלֶךְof Assyria,אַשּׁוּרwhoהַbrought us upמַּעֲלֶה אֹתָנוּhere.”פֹּה
come near
To go until one is near someone or something.
Where else “yigshu” appearsZerubbabel
Zerubbabel: a descendant of David who led the return of the exiles from Babylon and the rebuilding of the house of YHWH (Ezra 3; Haggai 1-2).
Where else “zerubavel” appearschief
Literally "the head": the one who leads, or the best of something.
Where else “rashe” appearshead of family
The head of a family or clan.
Where else “avot” appearssay
To say with the mouth to someone what one thinks or wants, or to answer him.
Where else “yomru” appearsbuild
To raise a house, a city or an altar, setting stone on stone.
Where else “nivne” appearsconsult
To turn to YHWH to ask him, pray to him.
Where else “nidrosh” appearsElohim
The one true God, the Creator; the word is plural but means one.
Where else “lohe” appearssacrifice
To kill an animal as a gift to God or other gods.
Where else “zovchim” appearstime
Literally "the days": a period, an age, or the span of someone's life.
Where else “yme” appearsEsarhaddon
Esarhaddon. King of Assyria, son of Sennacherib, who reigned after his brothers killed their father (2 Kings 19:37; Ezra 4:2).
Where else “esar” appearsking
A king who rules a people.
Where else “melech” appearsAssyria, Asshur
See it on the mapWhere else “ashur” appearsbring up
To make someone go up: "I led you up from Egypt".
Where else “maale” appears“And to him we have been sacrificing” is what is read in the Hebrew; what is written says “and we do not sacrifice.” The two words sound the same.
Assyria
Today: northern Iraq (with parts of Syria, Turkey, Iran)
An empire of northern Mesopotamia along the Tigris River, in present-day Iraq.
Assyria took the northern kingdom of Israel captive (2 Kgs 17:6). God sent Jonah to preach in Nineveh, its capital (Jonah 3:3).
1And the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the sons of the exile were building a temple for YHWH, the Elohim of Israel,
2 · This verse (above)
3But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the fathers’ houses of Israel said to them, “It is not for you and for us to build a house for our Elohim; but we alone will build for YHWH, the Elohim of Israel, as King Cyrus king of Persia commanded us.”
