1And the next follower began to say, that said of the strength of a king,

2O men! whether men be not surpassingly strong, the which hold land and sea, and all things that be in them?

3The king forsooth surpasseth above all things, and he hath lordship of them, and they do all things, whatever he will say to them.

4And if he send them to fighters, they go, and destroy hills, and walls, and towers;

5they be slain and slay, and they pass not the word of the king; for if they overcome, they bring to the king all things, whatever things they have spoiled evermore, and all other things.

6And how many ever bear not knighthood, nor fight, but ear the land, again when they shall reap, they bring tributes to the king.

7And he is one alone; and if he bid to slay, they slay; and if he bid them to forgive, they forgive;

8and if he say them to smite [or if he say to smite], they smite; if he say to outlaw, they outlaw; if he bid them to build, they build;

9if he bid to throw down, they throw adown; if he bid to plant, they plant;

10and all folk and virtues obey to him; and over all these things he shall sit, and drink, and sleep.

11These forsooth keep him about [or in environ keep him], and may not go each one, and do their own works, but in his word men obey to him.

12What manner-wise surpasseth not the king before others, that thus is loosed? And he held his peace.

13The third, that had said of women, and of truth; this is said Zerubbabel; he began to speak,

14O men! the king is not most great, neither many other men, nor wine surpasseth before; who is it then that hath lordship of them?

15Whether not women, that have begotten kings, and all the people, the which kings have lordship both of sea and of land, and of women they be born?

16And they brought forth them that planted vines, of the which wine is made.

17And they make the stoles, or long clothes, of all men, and they do glory to men, and men may not be severed from women.

18If they gather together gold and silver, and all fair thing, and see a woman in goodly array, and in good fairness,

19they, forsaking all these things, take heed to her, and the mouth opened, they behold her, and they draw more to her than to gold and [or] silver, or any precious thing.

20A man shall forsake his father, that nourished him, and his own land, and to a woman he joineth him together,

21and with a woman he liveth his life, and neither remembereth father, nor mother, nor the land of his birth.

22And therefore it behooveth us to know, that women have lordship of us. Whether ye sorrow not?

23And also a man taketh his sword, and goeth in the way to do thefts, and manslaughters, and to sail over the sea, and over floods;

24and he seeth a lion, and he goeth in darknesses; and when he hath done his theft, and guiles, and ravens, he bringeth it to his lief.

25And again a man loveth his wife more than father or mother;

26and many men be made mad for their wives, and many be made thralls for them;

27and many perished, and were strangled, and many have sinned for women. [and many perished, and be strangled, and sinned, for women.]

28And now believeth me; forsooth a king is great, and his power, [or for great is the king in his power], for all regions, or kingdoms about, be afeared to touch him.

29I saw neverthelater Apame, the daughter of Bartacus, the wonderful man, the secondary wife of the king, sitting beside the king at the right side;

30and taking away the diadem from his head, and putting it on herself, and with the palm of her left hand she smote the king.

31And over these things, the mouth opened, he beheld her, and if she laugh to him, he laughed, and if she were wroth to him, he glosseth, or pleaseth, unto the time that he be reconciled [in] to grace.

32O men! why be not women strongest? Great is the earth, and heaven is high, that do these things.

33Then the king and the purpled men beheld either into other; and he began to speak of truth.

34O men! whether women be not strong? Great is the earth, and heaven is high, and the course of the sun is swift; it is turned in the compass of heaven, and again it runneth again into the same place in a day.

35Whether he is not a great doer, that maketh these things? and truth great, and stronger before all things?

36All earth calleth inwardly truth, also it blesseth heaven, and all works be moved and dread it; and there is no wicked thing with it.

37Wicked king, and wicked women, and all the sons of men be wicked, [or and wicked all the works of them], and there is not truth in them, and in their wickedness they shall perish;

38and truth dwelleth, and waxeth into without end, and it liveth, and wieldeth, into worlds of worlds.

39It is not with truth to out-take or accept persons, and differences; but it doeth those things that be rightful [or rightwise], to all unrightwise and evil men; and all men be made benign in his works.

40And there is not wickedness in his doom, but there is strength, and realm, and power, and majesty of all endurings above time. Blessed be the God of truth!

41And then he left off in speaking. And all the peoples cried, and said, Great is truth, and it surpasseth before all others.

42Then the king said to him, Ask, if thou wilt, anything moreover, than there be written, and I shall give to thee, after that thou art found wiser; and next to me thou shalt sit, and thou shalt be called my cousin.

43Then said he to the king, Be thou mindful of the vow, that thou vowedest, to build up Jerusalem, in the day in which thou took the realm;

44and to send again all the vessels, that be taken from Jerusalem, the which Cyrus parted or set apart, when he slew Babylon, and would send again those things thither.

45And thou wouldest build up the temple, that Idumeans burned, for Judea is put out of their terms, or marches, of the Chaldees.

46And now, lord, this it is that I ask, and that I bid; this is the majesty that I ask of thee, that thou do the vow that thou vowedest to the King of heaven, of thy mouth.

47Then Darius, the king, rising kissed him, and wrote epistles to all the dispensators, and prefects, and to men clothed in purple, that they should lead him forth, and them that were with him, all wending [or going] up to build Jerusalem.

48And to all the prefects that were in Syria and Phoenicia, and Lebanon, he wrote epistles, that they should draw cedar trees from the hill Lebanon into Jerusalem, that they build up the city with them.

49And he wrote to all the Jews, that went up from the realm in Judea, for freedom, that any man of power, or master judge, and prefect, should not come over to the gates of them,

50and each region, that they had hold [or wielded], to be free from them; and that Idumeans leave up [or let go] the castles of Jews, that they withheld,

51and to give year by year twenty talents, into making of the temple, unto the time that it be fully builded;

52and each day to offer hosts upon the place of sacred things, as they be commanded; to offer, by all years, another ten talents;

53and to all men, that go forth from Babylon, to make the city, as freedom were, both to them, and to the sons of them, and to [all] the priests that go before.

54Forsooth also he wrote the quantity; and he commanded the sacred stoles, or vestments, to be given, in which they should serve;

55and he wrote wages to be given to the deacons [or Levites], unto the day that the house should be fully ended, and Jerusalem made out;

56and he wrote to all men keeping the city, to give to the builders lots and wages.

57And he left them all the vessels, that Cyrus had parted or set apart from Babylon; and all things, whatever Cyrus said, he commanded it to be done, and to be sent to Jerusalem.

58And when that young man had gone forth, raising his face toward Jerusalem, he blessed the King of heaven,

59and said, Of thee, Lord, is victory, and of thee is wisdom, and clearness, and I am thy servant.

60Thou art blessed, for thou hast given to me wisdom, and I acknowledge to thee, Lord of our fathers.

61And he took the epistles, or letters, and went forth into Babylon; and he came, and told to all his brethren, that were in Babylon.

62And they blessed the God of their fathers, that gave to them forgiveness and refreshing,

63that they should go up, and build Jerusalem, and the temple, where his name is named in it; and they joyed [full out] with musics and with gladness seven days.