¹⁰ For he had devoted himself to the study and observance of the law of the Lord so as to put that law into practice and to teach its statutes and ordinances in Israel.

¹¹ The Decree of Artaxerxes. This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest-scribe, a scholar in matters pertaining to the commandments and statutes of the Lord for Israel:^[a]