¶Incipit historia libri Esdre. ¶Anno mūdi .iiii.M.vi.C.lix. Et ante xp̄i natiuitatē .v.C.xl.
zOorobabell after the commaundemēt of god foūded the Temple and made it parfyte / but it was longe after (Vt pʐ Esdre .vi.) After the people of Ierusalem ca∣me fro Babylon / these two ruled Ihesus the hyghe prest as gouernour / and zorobabelas duke. And this maner of guydynge was kep∣te vnto Herodes tyme that the hyghe preestes sholde be prayncypall / and the dukes vnder theym. But the dukes were euer of ye trybe of Iuda / after the prophecye of Iacob. And vn∣der that good gydynge of preestes it is not redde the people to haue receded fro the very true fa¦yth / as they dyde afore in the tyme of Iewes / & of kynges. For then many tymes they ra••e to ydolatrye. ¶Esdras the preest of ye kynrede of Aron thys tyme exceded men in hoolynes / thorugh whose grete wysedome all the Iewes state was hopen. ¶Cambyses the sone of S••∣ri regned oon the kyngdome of Persarum / the whyche commaunded mygtely the Temple of Ierusalem shold not be buylded ayen. Hy•• faders commaunded it sholde be buylded. Thys Cābyses made a cursyd Iuge to be••ley¦ed or helte a lyue and made his sone to sytte on his faders skynne / that thrughe that drede he sholde drede falshede and Iuge ryghtwysely. Thys Cambyses hadde many names in holy scrypture in the boke of Esdre. Arthaxerse•• or Assures in history•• Iudith / that was done vn¦der hym he called Nabugodonoscor / or Oly∣fernes the prince of his chyualry subdued ma¦ny londes to his lorde. And at the last he came vnto Bethuleem / and there was slayne of Iu¦dith a woman / (vt pʐ Iudith .ii. et .xlii.) ¶E∣nereydes regned in Perses half a yere. ¶Dari¦us regned at the Persees / the whiche by ye mo¦cyon of zorobabel commaunded the werke of the Temple to be taken ayen. And commaun¦ded his prynces that on nowyse they shold let¦te it / but sholde helpe it in all that they coude. (Vide plura in Esore. vode. vo tempore ambi∣guū propter diuersitatē docto{rum})