The up-and-down relationship between Persian kings and YHWH

In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, he issued a decree for the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem. Ezr 1:

3 Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem.

Click to expand...

Cyrus authorized the Jews to rebuild the temple.
Local gentiles wanted to join in the effort but the Jews rejected them.
Ezr 4:

4 Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build 5 and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Click to expand...

Work on the temple halted.
Later, temple work resumed (Ezra 5:2).
Tattenai, the governor, opposed and wrote to Darius (Ezra 5:3-17).
Darius wrote back in Ezr 6:

6 “Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province Beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and your associates the governors who are in the province Beyond the River, keep away. 7 Let the work on this house of God alone. Let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this house of God on its site. 8 Moreover, I make a decree regarding what you shall do for these elders of the Jews for the rebuilding of this house of God. The cost is to be paid to these men in full and without delay from the royal revenue, the tribute of the province from Beyond the River.”

Click to expand...

Darius supported the rebuilding of the temple even financially.

9 And whatever is needed—bulls, rams, or sheep for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, or oil, as the priests at Jerusalem require—let that be given to them day by day without fail, 10 that they may offer pleasing sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons.

Click to expand...

Darius wanted the Jewish priests to pray for his family.

11 Also I make a decree that if anyone alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of his house, and he shall be impaled on it, and his house shall be made a dunghill. 12 May the God who has caused his name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who shall put out a hand to alter this, or to destroy this house of God that is in Jerusalem. I Darius make a decree; let it be done with all diligence.”

Click to expand...

Darius issued a warning.
The book of Ezra wasn't in chronological order. The third opposition came in Ezr 4:

7 In the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam and Mithredath and Tabeel and the rest of their associates

Click to expand...

some local inhabitants

wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia. The letter was written in Aramaic and translated. 8 Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe

Click to expand...

some local officials

wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows: 9 Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their associates, the judges, the governors, the officials,

Click to expand...

more officials

the Persians, the men of Erech, the Babylonians, the men of Susa, that is, the Elamites,

Click to expand...

people from other provinces

10 and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnappar deported and settled in the cities of Samaria and in the rest of the province Beyond the River. 11 (This is a copy of the letter that they sent.) “To Artaxerxes the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River, send greeting.

Click to expand...

There was a broad group of Gentiles against the rebuilding.
Artaxerxes replied:

19 I made a decree, and search has been made, and it has been found that this city from of old has risen against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made in it. 20 And mighty kings have been over Jerusalem, who ruled over the whole province Beyond the River, to whom tribute, custom, and toll were paid. 21 Therefore make a decree that these men be made to cease, and that this city be not rebuilt, until a decree is made by me.

Click to expand...

Artaxerxes ordered the work to cease but was open to future adjustment.
In the 20th year of Artaxerxes, Nehemiah was a cupbearer to the king. Ne 20:

7 I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy.”

Click to expand...

Nehemiah wanted to finish the work of rebuilding the temple. Further, he wanted to rebuild the wall of the city of Jerusalem.

And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.

Click to expand...

Why did Artaxerses reverse his earlier decision?
When Artaxerses became king, his memory of his father facing the Egyptian revolt was still fresh. To play it safe, he stopped the Jerusalem temple rebuilding project. A decade later, the political wind changed. His empire was stable. He put more weight on his predecessor Darius' warning.
Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the temple, and Cyrus authorized its rebuilding. Then, the rebuilding work was suspended. Darius restarted the project, but it was suspended again, this time by Artaxerxes. Eventually, Artaxerxes allowed Nehemiah to finish the job. There was this up-and-down relationship between Persian kings and the Jewish God.