33 People everywhere heard what had happened. Even the Persian king learned that an oily liquid had been discovered in the place where the priests had hidden the altar fire just before they were dragged away to Persia. The king was also told that Nehemiah and his followers had offered a sacrifice, using the liquid to start their fire.
34 After the king had carefully checked on this story, he surrounded the cistern with a high wall and built a shrine there.
35 Then the king exchanged gifts with the people he liked.
36 Nehemiah and his followers called the oil “nephthar,” which means “cleaning.” But everyone else calls it “naphtha.”