עזרא, פרק ד׳, פסוק ז׳

The enemies of Judah orchestrate a political conspiracy to halt the construction of the Temple, utilizing the vast bureaucracy of the Persian Empire to deliver a slanderous letter to the central government. The correspondence is directed to Artaxerxes. The primary approach among commentators is that this is not a personal name, but rather a universal royal title used for all Persian kings, much like Pharaoh in Egypt or Abimelech among the Philistines [רש״י, מצודת דוד, שטיינזלץ]. There is, however, some debate regarding the specific monarch in power when the letter was sent. Some identify him as Cyrus himself [רש״י, מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם]. Others suggest it was Ahasuerus at the beginning of his reign, or perhaps a later Persian king who ascended after Darius [רלב״ג, שטיינזלץ]. Another possibility is that the letter was sent exactly during a transition of power, dispatched to one king but received by his successor [שטיינזלץ].

The conspiracy is spearheaded by a group whose methods and identities are subject to different interpretations. One approach suggests that the correspondence was cunningly drafted with diplomatic and peaceful language, masking their true intentions [רש״י, מצודת דוד, אבן עזרא], under the leadership of a man named Mithredath Tabeel [רש״י, מצודת דוד]. An alternative view proposes that three distinct individuals—Bishlam, Mithredath, and Tabeel—joined forces to orchestrate the plot [רלב״ג, שטיינזלץ, מלבי״ם]. Regardless of the specific leadership, they were fully supported by the rest of their faction and partners in the organization [רש״י, מצודת דוד, אבן עזרא, רלב״ג, רס״ג, מצודת ציון], who forwarded the document to the king [רש״י, אבן עזרא].

The document itself was a formal letter or explicit state record [רש״י, מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, רלב״ג, שטיינזלץ], with some suggesting this refers specifically to the distinct shape of the letters or the royal seal [אבן עזרא]. It was both written in the Aramaic script and formulated entirely in the Aramaic language [רש״י, מצודת דוד, רלב״ג, אבן עזרא, שטיינזלץ].

Behind this choice of language and script lies a deeply complex scheme [מלבי״ם]. According to Persian law, a king could not revoke an order he had previously authorized. Therefore, the enemies could not directly complain about the construction of the Temple, as Cyrus had already granted permission for it. To circumvent this legal hurdle, they bribed royal advisors and exploited the empire's communication protocols. Standard procedure dictated that correspondence be written in the local language—in this case, Aramaic—and handed over to designated officials tasked with translating and transcribing the contents into Persian for the king. The enemies submitted their precise Aramaic document to these officials, intending for them to relay a completely fabricated report. This false translation would claim that the Jews were not building a Temple at all, but were instead fortifying the city walls in preparation for a massive rebellion. Because these original quoted letters were drafted in Aramaic, the narrative of the biblical text itself transitions from this point onward, continuing the story in the Aramaic language [שטיינזלץ].