Ezra 4:13-15

New Catholic Bible

¹³ Now we wish to inform the king that if the city is rebuilt and the walls are restored, they will refuse to pay tribute, taxes, or tolls, causing the royal revenues to be sharply reduced.

¹⁴ “Now, because we share the salt of the palace,^[a] we know that it is not right for us to witness the king’s dishonor. We therefore are sending this information to the king ¹⁵ in order that a search may be made in the archives of your ancestors. In those archives you will discover that this is a rebellious city greatly troublesome to kings and provinces, and that sedition has been stirred up within its walls from the earliest times. That is why this city was destroyed.