⁹ and the priests and the Levites stood arrayed in their vestments, according to divisions, for the services of the Lord God of Israel in accordance with the book of Moses, and the gatekeepers were at each gate.^(A)

The King’s Mandate

⁸ The following is a copy of the written decree from King Artaxerxes that was delivered to Ezra the priest and reader of the law of the Lord:^(A)

⁶³ And those who had returned from exile offered sacrifices to the Lord, the God of Israel, twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-two lambs, and as a thank offering twelve male goats—all as a sacrifice to the Lord.^(A)