And in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, unto Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the writing of the letter was written in the Syrian tongue, and interpreted in the Syrian tongue.
In the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam ... The three officers named are supposed to have been deputy-governors appointed By the king of Persia over all the provinces subject to his empire west of the Euphrates.
The Syrian tongue - or Aramaean language, called sometimes in our version Chaldee. This was made use of by the Persians in their decrees and communications relative to the Jews (cf. 2 Kings 18:26; Isaiah 36:11). The object of their letter was to press upon the royal notice the inexpediency and danger of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. They laboured hard to prejudice the king's mind against that measure.