And it happened that, in the month of Nisan, in year 20 of Artaxerxes the king, wine was before his face. And I lifted the wine, and I gave it to the king, and I was not unpleasant before his face.
I prayed like this for four months. Then one day in the month of Nisan, still in the twentieth year of the reign of Artaxerxes, something happened. {When it was time to serve} the wine, I took some and gave it to the king. I had never before looked sad in his presence.
And the king said to me, “Why is your face unpleasant? Now as for you, you are not sick. This is nothing except unpleasantness of heart.” And I was extremely much afraid.
{No one was supposed to look unhappy in the king’s presence. But the king noticed that I did look sad.} So he asked me, “Why are you sad? I can tell that you are not sick. You must be unhappy about something.” This made me very afraid.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I said to the king, “May the king live to eternity! Why should not my face be unpleasant, when the city, the house of the graves of my fathers, is desolate, and its gates have been consumed by fire.”
I replied to the king, “Your Majesty, I hope you will live {a very long time}! {I am sorry, but I cannot help being sad.} I am sad because the city of Jerusalem, the place where my ancestors are buried, lies in ruins. {Our enemies} have burned down its gates.”
And the king said to me, “For what is this you are seeking?” And I prayed to the God of heaven.
The king replied to me, “What do you want {me to do for you}?” {Before I answered him}, I prayed to the God who is in heaven.
And I said to the king, “If it is good to the king, and if your servant is good before your face, that you would send me to Judah, to the city of the graves of my fathers, and I will build it.”
Then I replied to the king, “If it seems like a good {idea} to you, and if you are pleased with me, then {please} allow me to go to Judah, to Jerusalem. {I would like} to {help my people} rebuild the city where my ancestors are buried.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And the king said to me, with the queen sitting beside him, “Until when will be your journey? And when will you return?” And it was good before the face of the king, and he sent me, and I gave to him a time.
{I was able to speak freely because this was a private meal,} with the queen sitting next to the king. The king asked me, “How long would you be away?” I told him how long I would be gone. That was acceptable to him, and he gave me permission to go. So I told him what day {I wanted to leave}.
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And I said to the king, “If it is good to the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of Beyond-the-River, that they will bring me across as far as where I enter into Judah;
I also said to the king, “If it seems like a good {idea} to you, {please} give me letters {that I can show} to the governors of {the province} Beyond the River. In these letters, {please tell them} to give me {safe} passage through their province to Judah.
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and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the forest that belongs to the king, that he will give to me timbers to lay the beams of the gates of the citadel, which is for the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house into which I will enter.”
And the king gave to me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.
{Please} also {write} a letter {for me} to Asaph, the man who takes care of your royal forest {in that area}. {Please tell} him to give me timber to make the beams to support the gates of the fortress that is near the temple. {Please} also {tell him to give me timber} for the city wall and for the house that I will live in.”
God was with me and helping me, and so the king agreed to {all of} my {requests}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I came to the governors of Beyond-the-River, and I gave to them the letters of the king. And the king sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.
{When I left to travel to Judah,} the king sent along some army officers and soldiers riding on horses {to protect me}. When I reached {the province} Beyond the River, I went {to see} its governors. I showed them the letters the king had given me, {and they gave me safe passage}.
And Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah, the servant, the Ammonite, heard. And it was evil to them, a great evil, that someone had come to seek good for the sons of Israel.
{One of the people I showed my letters to was} Sanballat the Horonite. {He was the governor of Samaria, the area right next to Judah.} He and his deputy, Tobiah the Ammonite, became very upset when they learned that someone had come to help the people of Israel. {They did not want to see Judah become strong again, because that would be a threat to Samaria.}
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I came to Jerusalem, and I was there three days.
But I made it {safely} to Jerusalem {despite their opposition}. I stayed there for three days,
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And I arose in the night, myself and a few men with me, and I did not tell anyone what my God had been giving to my heart to do for Jerusalem. Now there was no animal with me except the animal upon which I was riding.
I did not say {publicly} what God was leading me to do for Jerusalem. Instead, I got up {secretly} in the night {to inspect the city walls}. I brought {only} a few other men with me. {So that we could work quietly,} the only animal I brought with me was the one that I was riding.
And I went out at the gate of the valley at night, even to the face of the spring of the dragon, and to the gate of dung. And I was looking intently at the walls of Jerusalem, seeing that they were broken down, and its gates had been consumed by fire.
That night we went out through the Valley Gate and went past the Dragon Well to the Rubbish Gate. We made a careful inspection of the walls of Jerusalem. We {noted where our enemies} had broken down the walls, and {where} they had burned up the wooden gates.
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And I crossed to the gate of the spring and to the pool of the king, but there was no place for the animal under me to pass.
Then we came to the Fountain Gate and the Royal Pool. {The opening there was so narrow that} the animal I was riding could not get through.
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And I was going up by the wadi at night, and I was looking intently at the wall. And I turned back, and I came in at the gate of the valley, and I returned.
So we followed {the path of} the {Kidron} Brook, {even though} it was night. {From there} we were able to look {up} at the wall {and see its condition}. {This route} brought us back {to where we started}. We re-entered {the city} through the Valley Gate, and I went back {home without being seen}.
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Now the prefects did not know where I had gone or what I was doing. And until this time I had not yet told the Jews, or the priests, or the nobles, or the prefects, or the rest of the doers of the work.
The city officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing. To that point I had not said {anything about it} to the Jewish leaders, the priests, the leading citizens, or the city officials. {I had not approached} anyone {about} doing the work {of rebuilding the walls}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I said to them, “You see the evil that we are in, that Jerusalem is desolate and its gates have been burned by fire. Come, and let us build the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be a reproach.”
{But} now I said to them, “You see what a desperate situation we are in. You see that Jerusalem lies in ruins, and {our enemies} have burned down its gates. {We need to} do something {about this!} {I challenge all of you to} join me in rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem. Then we will not have to feel ashamed any more.”
And I declared to them the hand of my God, that it was good upon me, and also the words of the king that he had spoken to me.
And they said, “We will rise up and build.” And they strengthened their hands for good.
Then I told them how God had been with me and had been helping me. I also told them how the king had given me permission to come.
{When they heard this,} they said, “Let’s get going and start building!” They encouraged one another {and committed themselves} to the project.
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And Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah, the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian heard, and they mocked us, and they despised us. And they said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?”
Then Sanballat the Horonite, his deputy Tobiah the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian heard {that we had started to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem}. They ridiculed us mercilessly. They said, “What you are doing is not going to amount to anything! {But} you should not be rebelling against the king {like that}!”
And I returned them a word, and I said to them: “The God of heaven, he will cause us to succeed, and we ourselves, his servants, will rise up and build. But for you there is neither share nor right nor memorial in Jerusalem.”
But I answered them {firmly}. I said, “The God who is in heaven is the one who will enable us to complete this project. We are his chosen people. We are going to start rebuilding. But you have absolutely nothing to do with what happens in Jerusalem.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built the gate of sheep. They themselves consecrated it and erected its doors. And they consecrated it as far as the tower of the hundred and as far as the tower of Hananel.
{These are the names of the people who helped to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem.} Eliashib the Supreme Priest and his fellow priests began by rebuilding the Sheep Gate. They dedicated this gate {to God, as a symbolic way of dedicating the entire wall.} Then they set the doors of the Sheep Gate in place. They rebuilt the wall as far as the Tower of 100 Soldiers and {beyond that} to the Tower of Hananel. Then they dedicated that part of the wall {to God} as well.
And the men of Jericho built at his hand.
And Zaccur the son of Imri built at his hand.
Next to them, people from Jericho rebuilt {part of the wall}.
Next to them, Zaccur, the son of Imri, rebuilt {part of the wall}.
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And the sons of Hassenaah built the gate of fish. They themselves laid its beams and erected its doors, its bolts, and its bars.
The sons of Hassenaah rebuilt the Fish Gate. They framed it with {wooden} beams, they set its doors in place, and they installed bolts and bars {for locking the gate}.
And Meremoth, the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, strengthened at their hand.
And Meshullam, the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, strengthened at their hand.
And Zadok the son of Baana strengthened at their hand.
Next to them, Meremoth, the son of Uriah and grandson of Hakkoz, repaired {part of the wall}.
Next to him, Meshullam, the son of Berekiah and grandson of Meshezabel, repaired {part of the wall}.
Next to him, Zadok the son of Baana repaired {part of the wall}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And the Tekoites strengthened at their hand, but their nobles did not bring their necks to the service of their lords.
Next to him, some people from Tekoa repaired {part of the wall}. But the leading citizens of Tekoa were too proud to do the work that the leaders {of Judah had asked them to do}.
And Joiada the son of Paseah, and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah, strengthened the gate of old. They themselves laid its beams and erected its doors, its bolts, and its bars.
Joiada the son of Paseah, and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah, repaired the Old Gate. They framed it with {wooden} beams, they set its doors in place, and they installed bolts and bars {for locking the gate}.
And Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, men of Gibeon and the Mizpah, strengthened at their hand, to the seat of authority of the governor of Beyond-the-River.
Next to them, Melatiah from {the city of} Gibeon, Jadon from {the town of} Meronoth, and other men from Gibeon and from the {city of} Mizpah repaired {part of the wall}. They repaired it as far as the residence of the governor of {the province} Beyond the River.
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Uzziel, the son of Harhaiah, of the goldsmiths, strengthened at his hand.
And Hananiah, a son of the perfumers, strengthened at his hand. And they restored Jerusalem as far as the broad wall.
Next to them, Uzziel the son of Harhaiah repaired {part of the wall}. He was one of the goldsmiths, {the workers who made jewelry and other objects from gold}.
Next to him, Hananiah repaired {part of the wall}. He was one of the workers who made perfumes. They rebuilt the wall of Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall.
And Rephaiah, the son of Hur, the administrator for half of the district of Jerusalem, strengthened at their hand.
Next to them, Rephaiah the son of Hur repaired {part of the wall}. Rephaiah ruled half of the district of Jerusalem.
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And Jedaiah the son of Harumaph strengthened at their hand, even in front of his house.
And Hattush the son of Hashabneiah strengthened at his hand.
Next to him, Jedaiah the son of Harumaph repaired {the part of the wall} near his house.
Next to him, Hattush the son of Hashabneiah repaired {part of the wall}.
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Malkijah the son of Harim, and Hasshub the son of Pahath-Moab, strengthened a second section along with the tower of ovens.
Malkijah the son of Harim and Hashub the son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section {of the wall}, along with the Tower of the Ovens.
And Shallum, the son of Hallohesh, the administrator for half of the district of Jerusalem, strengthened at his hand, he and his daughters.
Next to them, Shallum the son of Hallohesh repaired {part of the wall}. Shallum ruled the {other} half of the district of Jerusalem. His daughers worked with him on the repairs.
Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah strengthened the gate of the valley. They themselves built it and erected its doors, its bolts, and its bars, and a thousand cubits of the wall as far as the gate of dung.
Hanun and some people from {the city of} Zanoah repaired the Valley Gate. They rebuilt the gate, they set its doors in place, and they installed bolts and bars {for locking the gate}. They also repaired 1500 feet of the wall, as far as the Rubbish Gate.
And Malkijah, the son of Recab, the administrator for the district of Beth-Hakkerem, strengthened the gate of dung. He himself was building it and erecting its doors, its bolts, and its bars.
Malkijah. The son of Rechab, repaired the Rubbish Gate. Malkijah ruled the district of Beth-Hakkerem. He rebuilt the gate, he set its doors in place, and he installed bolts and bars {for locking the gate}.
And Shallun, the son of Kol-Hozeh, the administrator for the district of the Mizpah, strengthened the gate of the spring. He himself was building it and covering it and erecting its doors, its bolts, and its bars, and the wall of the pool of Shelach at the garden of the king even as far as the stairs descending from the city of David.
Shallun the son of Kol-Hozeh repaired the Fountain Gate. Shallun ruled the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt the gate and put a roof over it, he set its doors in place, and he installed bolts and bars {for locking the gate}. Near the Pool of Siloam he also repaired the wall next to the royal garden, as far as the steps that went down from the City of David.
After him, Nehemiah, the son of Azbuk, the administrator for half of the district of Beth-Zur, strengthened as far as in front of the graves of David, and as far as the pool that was made, and as far as the house of the mighty men.
Next to him, Nehemiah the son of Azbuk repaired {the wall} as far as the place opposite the tombs in {the City of} David, to the reservoir that the people had made and the army barracks. Nehemiah ruled half of the district of Beth-Zur.
After him, the Levites strengthened: Rehum the son of Bani; at his hand, Hashabiah, the administrator for half of the district of Keilah, strengthened for his district;
Next to him, some Levites repaired {parts of the wall}. One of them was Rehum the son of Bani. Next to them, Hashabiah, who ruled half of the district of Keilah, repaired {a section of the wall} on behalf of the people of his district.
(There are no questions for this verse)
after him, their brothers strengthened, Binnui, the son of Henadad, the administrator for half of the district of Keilah.
{Some other Levites} repaired the next {section of the wall}. Next to them, Binnui the son of Henadad, who ruled the other half of the district of Keilah, repaired {more of the wall}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And at his hand, Ezer, the son of Jeshua, the administrator for the Mizpah, was strengthening a second section opposite the ascent to the armory at the angle.
Next to him, Ezer the son of Jeshua repaired another section {of the wall}. Ezer ruled the {city of} Mizpah. {He started} from a place in front of the steps that went up to the building for storing weapons, {and he finished} at the place where the wall bends slightly.
(There are no questions for this verse)
After him, Baruch the son of Zabbai burned, and strengthened a second section from the angle as far as the opening of the house of Eliashib the high priest.
Next to him, Baruch the son of Zabbai repaired another section with great enthusiasm, from the bend in the wall as far as the door of the house of Eliashib the Supreme Priest.
After him, Meremoth, the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, strengthened a second section, from the opening of the house of Eliashib even as far as the end of the house of Eliashib.
Next to him, Meremoth, the son of Uriah and grandson of Hakkoz, repaired another section, from the door of the house of Eliashib to the end of that house.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And after him, the priests, the men of the valley, strengthened.
Next to him, some priests from the area around {Jerusalem} repaired {a section of the wall}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
After him, Benjamin and Hasshub strengthened in front of their house.
After him, Azariah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, strengthened beside his house.
Next to them, Benjamin and Hasshub repaired {a section} opposite their house.
Azariah, the son of Maaseiah and grandson of Ananiah, repaired the next {section}, beside his house.
After him: Binnui the son of Henadad strengthened a second section from the house of Azariah as far as the angle and as far as the corner;
Next to him, Binnui the son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to the bend in the wall as far as the bulwark.
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Palal the son of Uzai, from opposite the angle and the tower projecting from the upper house of the king which is by the court of the guard; after him, Pedaiah the son of Parosh.
{Next to him,} Palal the son of Uzai {repaired a section}. He began at the place opposite the bend in the wall {where} the watchtower is taller than the upper palace that King {Solomon built}. That is near the courtyard where the guards live. Next to him, Pedaiah the son of Parosh {repaired a section}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And the Nethinim were dwelling in the Ophel, as far as in front of the gate of water to the east and the projecting tower.
The temple servants who lived on Ophel {Hill} {repaired the wall} as far as the eastern side of the Water Gate, {where there is} a tall tower.
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After him, the Tekoites strengthened a second section from in front of the high projecting tower even as far as the wall of the Ophel.
Next to them, the people from Tekoa repaired another section, from opposite the very tall watchtower as far as the wall at Ophel {Hill}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The priests strengthened from above the gate of horses, a man to the front of his house.
A group of priests repaired {the wall} starting at the Horse Gate. Each one repaired {the section} in front of his own house.
After him, Zadok the son of Immer strengthened in front of his house.
And after him, Shemaiah, the son of Shecaniah, the keeper of the gate of the east, strengthened.
Next to them, Zadok the son of Immer repaired {the section} in front of his house.
Then Shemaiah the son of Shecaniah, who was the gatekeeper at the East Gate, repaired the next {section}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
After him, Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, with Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph, strengthened a second section.
After him, Meshullam the son of Berechiah strengthened in front of his chamber.
Next to him, Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section.
Next to them, Meshullam the son of Berechiah repaired {the section} opposite the rooms {where} he {lived}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
After him, Malkijah, a son of the goldsmiths, strengthened as far as the house of the Nethinim and the merchants in front of the gate of mustering, even as far as the upper chamber of the corner.
Malkijah, who was {another} one of the goldsmiths, repaired the next {section}, as far as the building used by the temple servants and the merchants. That building was opposite the Appointment Gate. He {rebuilt the wall} as far as the upper apartments {of this building}, which were on the corner.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And the goldsmiths and the merchants strengthened between the upper chamber of the corner to the gate of sheep.
Some of the {other} goldsmiths, along with some merchants, repaired {the last section of the wall} from the corner apartments to the Sheep Gate.
And it happened that, when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, it burned him, and he was very angry. And he mocked at the Jews.
When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the {city} wall, he became furious, and he mocked the Jews.
And he spoke before the face of his brothers and the army of Samaria, and he said, “What are the feeble Jews doing? Will they restore for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish in a day? Will they bring to life the stones from piles of dust, when they have been burned?”
He spoke to the {other provincial} officials and army officers. He said, “These weak Jews will not be able to accomplish anything! They will never restore {the city! Their God} will not help them. They do not realize what a long time it would take to repair {that wall. The only way} they can get stones {is} by pulling them out of rubbish heaps. And {the Babylonians} burned {the city, so those} stones are probably weak {anyway}.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him. And he said, “Yes, if a fox goes up on what they are building, then he would break down their wall of stones!”
Tobiah the Ammonite was standing beside Sanballat. He made fun of the Jews by saying, “Right! The wall that they are building {is so weak} that if a fox walked across the top {of it}, it would fall down!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
Hear, our God, that we are a contempt, and cause their taunts to return on their heads! And give them for plunder in a land of captivity.
{When I heard about what they were saying, I prayed to God and said,} “O our God, listen {to the way} they are mocking us! Make {them fail in their attempts to stop us,} so that {other} people will mock them! Allow their enemies to capture them and force them to go to a foreign land!
And do not cover over their iniquity, and do not wipe out their sin from before your face, for they have provoked anger before the front of the builders.
{They are guilty, and they have sinned against you.} Do not take away their guilt, and do not ignore their sin! {I am asking this} because they are also causing others to be angry at the people who are rebuilding the wall!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
So we built the wall, and all the wall was joined together up to half of it. And the heart of the people was for working.
But we kept building the wall, {and after some time,} we finished the wall around the whole city to about half the necessary height. Everyone was determined to accomplish this.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it happened that, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the health of the walls of Jerusalem was going up and the breaks were beginning to be closed, it burned them extremely.
But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the men from {the land of} Arabia, the men from {the nation of} Ammon, and the men from {the city of} Ashdod heard that we were continuing to repair the wall of Jerusalem and to fill in the gaps, they became furious.
And all of them together conspired to come to fight against Jerusalem and to make confusion for it.
All of them together made a plan to come and fight against the people of Jerusalem. They wanted to make the people inside the city confused {and divided}.
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And we prayed to our God. And we set up a guard on account of them, by day and by night against their faces.
But we prayed to our God {to protect us}, and we stationed lookouts {on the walls} at all times to watch out for them.
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And Judah said, “The strength of the burden-bearers is failing, and there is much rubble. And as for us, we are not able to build the wall.”
Then the people of Judah started saying, “The people who are carrying {the stones} are getting worn out. There is too much rubbish. We are not going to be able to {finish} rebuilding the wall.”
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And our adversaries said, “They will not know, and they will not see until when we come into their midst and kill them. And we will cause the work to stop.”
Then our enemies {started} saying, “Before {the Jews} know we are coming, we will rush {down} on them and kill them and stop their work {on the wall}!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it happened that, when the Jews dwelling beside them came, they said to us ten times, “From all the places where you turn, they are on us!”
And when some of the Jews who lived near {our enemies} came {to Jerusalem}, they pleaded with us repeatedly, “Let {our men} return {home so} they {can defend} us!”
And I stationed from the lowest of places behind the wall, in the bare places; and I stationed the people by families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.
But I put {guards} behind the wall at the places where it was low or where there were gaps. I also had people from each family group stand {guard} with their swords, spears, and bows and arrows.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I looked, and I rose up, and I said to the nobles, and to the prefects, and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of their faces. Remember my great and fearsome Lord! And fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your houses.”
After I had inspected {everything}, I summoned the leading citizens and the city officials and many of the other people, and I said to them, “Do not be afraid of our enemies! The Lord is great and awesome, {so} think about {what he can do}. And fight to {protect} your families, your sons and daughters, your wives, and your homes!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it happened that, when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and God had frustrated their counsels, all of us returned to the wall, a man to his work.
When our enemies learned that we had found out about {their plan}, they realized that God had kept them {from launching a surprise attack}. {They decided not to attack us.} So we all went back to {working on} the wall. Each person continued doing {the same} work {as before}.
And it happened that, from that day, half of my young men were doing the work, and half of them were grasping, even the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the breastplates. And the officials were behind all the house of Judah.
But after that, {only} half of my servants worked {on the wall}. The other half of them {stood guard} armed with spears, shields, bows and arrows, and metal armor. Officers {stood} behind the workers and guards {to encourage everyone and to give orders in case there was an attack}.
Those who were building the wall, and those who were carrying burdens, the loaders, they were doing the work with one of his hands and one grasping weaponry.
Those who were building the wall and those who carried the heavy loads {always} had their weapons with them {so that they would be prepared to fight off an attack}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And the builders: a man girded his sword to his loins and built. And the one who blew the ram’s horn was beside me.
Each builder worked with his sword strapped to his side. {I stationed} someone next to me who would blow a ram’s horn {if we needed a signal}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I said to the nobles and to the prefects and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and vast, and we are separated on the wall, a man far from his brother.
Then I said to the leading citizens, the city officials, and many of the other people, “We are working over a very wide area, and we are far apart from each other along the wall.
At the place where you hear the sound of the ram’s horn, you shall gather to us there. Our God will fight for us.”
But wherever you hear {the man} sounding the ram’s horn, gather around us at that place. Our God will fight for us!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
So we were doing the work. And half of them were grasping spears from the rising of the dawn until the coming out of the stars.
So we continued to work {on rebuilding the wall}. Half of the men {served as guards} and kept their weapons ready at {all} times.
Also, at that time I said to the people, “Let a man and his young man lodge the night in the midst of Jerusalem, and they will be for us by night a guard and by day a worker.”
At that time, I also said to the people, “Each {worker} and his servant must spend the night inside Jerusalem {and not go home if they live outside the city}. {That way} the city will have plenty of defenders {even} at night, and they can {still} work {on the wall} during the daytime.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And neither I nor my brothers nor my young men nor the men of the guard who were behind me, none of us stripped off our clothes, or a man his weapon at the water.
{During that time} none of us took off our clothes. I did not, and my brothers, my servants, and my personal bodyguard did not. Each of us {always had} our weapons {with us}, {even when we were washing ourselves}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And there was a great outcry of the people and their wives against their brothers, the Jews.
{Around this same time,} many of the men and their wives complained bitterly about what their fellow Jews were doing to them.
And there were those who said, “Our sons and our daughters, we are many. And let us take grain, so we can eat, and we can live.”
Some of them began, “We have many children. We need to get {a lot of} food to feed them {all}.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And there were those who said, “We are mortgaging our fields and our vineyards and our houses so we can get grain during the famine.”
Others added, “We have had to promise to give someone our fields, vineyards, and houses if we do not pay back the money {he} has loaned us. We had {to borrow the money} to buy food during this time when food is scarce.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And there were those who said, “We have borrowed silver for the tribute of the king on our fields and our vineyards.
Still others said, “We have had to borrow money to {pay} the taxes that the king {commanded us to pay} on our fields and our vineyards.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And now, our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our sons are as their sons. And behold, we are putting our sons and our daughters into bondage as slaves. There are those even of our daughters who have been put into bondage, and there is nothing to God in our hand, for our fields and our vineyards belong to others.”
{This is how bad things have gotten.} We are selling our children into slavery. In fact, we have even sold some of our daughters. Our creditors took the fields and vineyards {we pledged as security for loans}, so there was nothing {else} we could do. But we are Jews, just like the people who are doing these things to us!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it burned me extremely when I heard their outcry and these words.
I got very angry when I heard these things that they were complaining about.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And my heart reigned over me, and I contended with the nobles and with the prefects. And I said to them, “You are lending interest, a man against his brother!” And I put forth a great assembly against them.
I thought hard about what to do. Then I brought charges against the leading citizens and the city officials. I called together a large group of people {to hear} the charges against them. I told these leaders, “You are charging interest {on loans} to your fellow Jews. {You know that is forbidden in the Law of Moses}.”
And I said to them, “We ourselves, according to our ability, have bought back our brothers, the Jews, the ones who were sold to the nations. But even you yourselves are selling your brothers, and they are being bought back by us!” Then they were silent, and they did not find a word.
I said to them, “Whenever our fellow Jews have had to sell themselves into slavery to people from {other} nations, to {the best of} our ability we have been buying them back. But you are actually selling your fellow Jews into slavery to get back the money they owe you. These are some of the very people we have been buying back!” They knew that these charges were true, so there was absolutely nothing they could say in response.
And I said, “This thing that you are doing is not good. Should you not walk in the fear of our God, because of the reproach of the nations, our enemies?
Then I said to them, “What you are doing is wrong! You certainly ought to obey God and do what is right! Otherwise, our enemies will mock us even more.
Also, even I, my brothers, and my young men are lending against them silver and grain. Please, let us forsake this interest!
I myself, my relatives, and my servants have been lending money and grain {to anyone in need without charging interest}. All of us should stop charging interest on loans.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Please, even today, return to them their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards, and their houses, and a hundred of the silver and the grain, the new wine, and the oil that you are lending against them.”
Give them back their fields, vineyards, olive orchards, and houses. Do it right away! And pay back the 12% annual {interest you have been collecting} on the money, grain, wine, and olive oil that you have lent them.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And they said, “We will return, and we will seek nothing from them. Thus we will do according to what you say.” And I called the priests, and I caused them to swear to do according to this word.
These leaders replied, “Yes, we will do what you say. We will give back {their fields, vineyards, olive orchards, and houses}. And we will stop {charging} them {interest}.”
Then I called the priests, and I made the leaders swear {to God in front of them} that they would do what they had promised.
Also, I shook out my bosom, and I said, “Thus may God shake out from his house and from his labor every man who does not cause this word to stand. And thus may he be shaken out and emptied.”
And all the assembly said, “Amen!” And they praised Yahweh, and the people did according to this word.
I also shook out the folds of my robe and said to them, “In this same way, may God fling anyone who does not keep this oath away from everything he owns. Yes, may that person lose everything!”
Then everyone who was there said, “We agree!” And they praised Yahweh. After that none of the Jews took houses or fields to guarantee loans, and none of them charged interest any more.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Also, from the day that he appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah, from year 20 even until year 32 of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, I myself did not eat the bread of the governor, nor did my brothers.
Here is something else I did to help the people. Artaxerxes, the king {of Persia}, had appointed me to be the governor of {the province of} Judah during the twentieth year {of his reign}. During the twelve years from the time that he appointed me until the thirty-second year of his reign, I did not accept the governor’s food allowance, and {I did not use it to feed} my relatives. {I knew that the people were poor and could not afford to pay for it.}
But the former governors who were before my face had been heavy on the people, and they took from them bread and wine, after forty silver shekels. Also, their young men had acted dominantly over the people. But I myself did not do thus, from the face of the fear of God.
The governors before me had made life very difficult for the people. They had demanded that the people supply them with bread and wine and forty silver shekels every day. Even their servants oppressed the people. But I respected and honored God, and so I did not oppress them.
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Yes, also I held fast to the work of this wall, and we did not buy a field. And all my young men were gathered there for the work.
I devoted myself to the work of {rebuilding} the wall. {My relatives and I} did not buy any property, {even though we could have gotten it cheaply because the poor were so desperate}. I also assigned all of my servants to work {on the wall}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Now the Jews and the prefects were 150 men at my table, with the ones coming to us from the nations that were around us.
{As governor,} I {was responsible for} feeding 150 Jewish leaders and city officials. I also entertained {Jewish} visitors who came from nearby countries.
And what was made for one day was one bull, six choice sheep, and birds were made for me, and between ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. So with this I did not seek the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy on this people.
Each day {I told my servants} to prepare {for us} one ox, six good sheep, and various kinds of poultry. I paid for these myself. Every ten days I also brought in an abundant supply of various kinds of wine. But {I knew that} the people were struggling to survive, and so {I paid for all of these things at my own expense}. I did not accept the governor’s food allowance.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Remember me, my God, for good, all that I have done for this people.
My God, think of me, and reward me for all the good that I have done for the people of Judah.
And it happened, when it was heard by Sanballat and Tobiah, and by Geshem the Arabian, and by the rest of our enemies, that I had built the wall and a break was not remaining in it (although until that time I had not set up the doors in the gates),
Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arabian, and our other enemies learned that we had finished rebuilding the wall, and that there were now no more gaps in it. (However, we had not yet put the doors in the gates.)
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that Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, “Come, and let us appoint a time to meet together among the villages in the valley of Ono.” And they were thinking to do evil to me.
So Sanballat and Geshem sent me {a message that} said, “We want to arrange to meet with you in one of the villages in the plain of Ono.” But {I knew that they were saying this because} they wanted to harm me.
And I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work, and I am not able to go down. Why should the work stop while I abandon it and go down to you?”
So I sent messengers to tell them, “The work I am doing {here} is very important. I am not able to travel {while it is going on}. There is no reason for me to stop the work and leave it so that I can meet with you.”
And they sent to me according to this word four times, and I turned them back according to this word.
They sent me the same message four times, and {each time} I refused them for this same reason.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Then Sanballat sent his young man to me a fifth time according to this word, and an opened letter was in his hand.
Then Sanballat sent one of his servants to me bringing the same request for a fifth time. This time the message was written, but it was not sealed. Sanballat {left the letter unsealed so that others would find out what it said, because he wanted to pressure me to meet with him}.
In it was written, “It is heard among the nations, and Gashmu is saying, that you and the Jews are thinking to rebel, therefore you are building the wall. And you are becoming a king over them, according to these words.
The letter said, “{The people in} the countries {around us} are saying, and Geshem confirms {that it is true}, that you and the Jewish people are planning to rebel {against King Artaxerxes}. That is why you are rebuilding the wall. {They are also} saying that you intend to become the king of the Jews yourself.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And also, you have set up prophets to call out concerning you in Jerusalem, saying, ‘A king is in Judah!’ And now, it will be heard by the king according to these words. So now, come, and let us consult together.”
{These people are} also {saying that} you have appointed prophets to make a proclamation about you in Jerusalem. They are saying, ‘The Jews {now} have a king {of their own}!’ King Artaxerxes will certainly hear these reports, {and when he does, he will be very angry with you}. So we really should meet together and talk {about this}.”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I sent to him, saying, “No such thing has been done according to these words that you are saying, but you are inventing them out of your own heart.”
I sent {a message} back to him saying, “None of these things that you are saying are true. You are just making them up yourself.”
For all of them were frightening us, saying, “Their hands will drop from the work, and it will not be done.” So now, strengthen my hands.
I knew that they were all {just trying to} frighten us. They thought, “{The Jews will become so afraid that} they will stop working {on the wall}, and they will never finish {rebuilding it}.” So {I prayed, “O God,} give me courage.{”}
(There are no questions for this verse)
Now as for me, I entered the house of Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, and he was confined. And he said, “Let us appoint a time to meet in the house of God, in the midst of the temple. And let us shut the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you. Yes, at night they are coming to kill you.”
{Around this time} I went to visit Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah and grandson of Mehetabel. {I went to see him in his home, because} he was not leaving {his house}. He was a priest, and he was trying to show that it was not safe for Jewish leaders to go out in public. He told me, “{We are not safe even here.} We need to go into the temple and lock the doors, because people are trying to kill you. One night they are going to come and kill you.”
And I said, “Should a man such as I run away? And who, such as I, is it that could go in to the temple and live? I will not go in!”
I responded, “I am not the kind of man who would run away! Besides, I am the governor, {and everyone knows me,} so I could not save my life by {trying to} hide in the temple. I refuse to do it!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I recognized, and behold, God had not sent him. But he spoke the prophecy against me, for Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.
All of a sudden I realized that God had not given Shemaiah a prophetic message for me. Instead, he was saying these things because Tobiah and Sanballat had paid him {to say them}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
For this purpose he was hired, so that I would be afraid, and I would do thus and sin. And it might become an evil name to them, so that they could reproach me.
{They} had paid him the money specifically to {say things that} would scare me. They were hoping they could make me sin {by abandoning my responsibilities and hiding in the temple}. {If I had done that,} they would have ruined my reputation and discredited me.
My God, remember Tobiah, and Sanballat according to these deeds of his, and also Noadiah the prophetess, and the rest of the prophets who are frightening me.
{So I prayed,} “My God, treat Tobiah and Sanballat the way they deserve for what they have done. Do the same for the female prophet Noadiah and all the other prophets who are {trying to} make me afraid.”
And the wall was finished on 25 of Elul, on day 52.
We finished {rebuilding} the wall on the twenty-fifth {day} of the month of Elul, after {working on it} for 52 days.
And it happened that, when all our enemies heard, all the nations that were around us were afraid, and they fell extremely in their eyes. And they knew that this work was done by our God.
When all of our enemies learned that we had completed the rebuilding in such a short time, they realized that our God must have helped {us}. This made the people in the countries around us lose all of their confidence.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Also, in those days, the nobles of Judah were multiplying their letters going to Tobiah, and those belonging to Tobiah were coming to them.
During this time, the leading citizens of Judah were writing many letters to Tobiah {to give him information about me}, and he was sending letters back to them {with instructions}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
For many in Judah were masters of oath to him, because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah. And Jehohanan his son had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah.
Tobiah was married to the daughter of {a powerful and influential member of the community,} Shecaniah the son of Arah. His son Jehohanan was married to the daughter of {another powerful and influential man,} Meshullam the son of Berechiah. And so, for those reasons, many people in Judah had sworn oaths to {be loyal to} Tobiah.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Also, they were saying his good deeds before my face, and they were taking out my words to him. Tobiah sent letters to frighten me.
{The people who were loyal to Tobiah} would also {come and} tell me what good things he was doing, and then they would report to him everything I said {in response}. Tobiah also sent me many letters to try to make me afraid.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it happened that, when the wall was built and I had set up the doors, the gatekeepers and the ones who sang and the Levites were appointed.
Once we had finished rebuilding the wall and we had put the doors in the gates, we assigned the gatekeepers and singers and Levites to their tasks.
And I gave Hanani, my brother, and Hananiah, the official for the citadel, charge over Jerusalem. For he was according to a faithful man, and he feared God more than many.
I appointed two men to {help me} govern Jerusalem, my brother Hanani and Hananiah, the commander of the fortress {in Jerusalem}. I appointed Hananiah because he was trustworthy, and because he showed God more reverence and respect than most people do.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I said to them, “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun becomes hot. And while they are still standing, let them shut the doors, and they must bar them. And set up watches for those who dwell in Jerusalem, a man in his watch, and a man in front of his house.”
I told them, “Do not open the gates of Jerusalem until broad daylight. {That way we will be able to see anything our enemies are doing.} Have the gatekeepers close {the gates} and put the bars across the doors while they are still guarding {the gates before they go home for the night}.” I also told them, “Have the men who live in Jerusalem take turns keeping watch in their own neighborhoods.”
Now the city was wide on two hands and great, and the people were few in the midst of it. And there were no built houses.
The city of Jerusalem covered a large area, but {at that time} not many people lived in the city, and they had not yet built houses {for themselves}.
And my God gave to my heart, and I gathered together the nobles and the prefects and the people to be enrolled by genealogy. And I found the book of the genealogy for the ones who came up at the first.
And I found written in it:
So {as a first step towards filling Jerusalem with people again}, God led me to gather together the leading citizens and the city officials and the other people {living in the city} to register them according to their family histories. I also found a book containing the records of the first group of people who had returned {to Jerusalem} from the exile. This is what those records said.
“These are the sons of the province, the ones who went up from the captivity of the exiles, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon exiled. And they returned to Jerusalem and to Judah, a man to his city,
“These are {the names of} the people from Judah who returned home from exile. Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had taken {their ancestors} away {to Babylon}. But they returned to Jerusalem and to {other places in} Judah. They returned to the {same} towns where their {ancestors had lived}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
the ones who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, Baanah.
The number of the men of the people of Israel:
The people who came back were following Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah. {This is a list of} the number of men from {each} Israelite {clan who returned}:
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Parosh were 2, 172.
2172 men from {the clan of} Parosh;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Shephatiah were 372.
372 men from {the clan of} Shephatiah;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Arah were 652.
652 men from {the clan of} Arah;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Pahath-Moab, of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, were 2, 818.
2818 men from {the clan of} Pahath-Moab, who are descendants of Jeshua and Joab;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Elam were 1, 254.
1254 men from {the clan of} Elam;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Zattu were 845.
845 men from {the clan of} Zattu;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Zakkai were 760.
760 men from {the clan of} Zakkai;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Binnui were 648.
648 men from {the clan of} Binnui;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Bebai were 628.
628 men from {the clan of} Bebai;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Azgad were 2, 322.
2322 men from {the clan of} Azgad;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Adonikam were 667.
667 men from {the clan of} Adonikam;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Bigvai were 2,067.
2067 men from {the clan of} Bigvai;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Adin were 655.
655 men from {the clan of} Adin;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Ater, of Hezekiah, were 98.
98 men from {the clan of} Ater who were descendants of Hezekiah;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Hashum were 328.
328 men from {the clan of} Hashum;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Bezai were 324.
324 men from {the clan of} Bezai;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Hariph were 112.
112 men from {the clan of} Hariph;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Gibeon were 95.
95 men from {the clan of} Gibeon.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Bethlehem and Netophah were 188.
{Some other} men {also returned, whose ancestors had lived in these towns}:
188 men from Bethlehem and Netophah;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Anathoth were 128.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Beth Azmaveth were 42.
42 men from Beth-Azmaveth;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Kiriath Jearim, Kephirah, and Beeroth were 743.
743 men from Kiriath-Jearim, Kephirah and Beeroth;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Ramah and Geba were 621.
621 men from Ramah and Geba;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Michmas were 122.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of Bethel and Ai were 123.
123 men from Bethel and Ai;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The men of the other Nebo were 52.
52 men from a {small town} called Nebo;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of the other Elam were 1, 254.
1254 men from a {small town} called Elam;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Harim were 320.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Jericho were 345.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono were 721.
721 men from Lod, Hadid, and Ono;
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Senaah were 3, 930.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The priests: the sons of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, were 973;
These priests also returned:
973 men from {the clan of} Jedaiah who are descendants of Jeshua;
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Immer were 1,052;
1052 men from {the clan of} Immer;
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Pashhur were 1, 247;
1247 men from {the clan of} Pashhur;
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Harim were 1,017.
1017 men from {the clan of} Harim.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The Levites: the sons of Jeshua, of Kadmiel, of the sons to Hodevah, were 74.
These Levites also returned:
74 men from the clan of Jeshua and {the clan of} Kadmiel, all of them descendants of Hodevah.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The ones who sang: the sons of Asaph were 148.
148 members of the {sacred} choir {also returned}. All of them were from the clan of Asaph.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai, were 138.
138 {temple} gatekeepers {also returned}. They were from the clan of Shallum, the clan of Ater, the clan of Talmon, the clan of Akkub, the clan of Hatita, and the clan of Shobai.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The Nethinim were: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth,
Some temple workers also returned. They were from the clan of Ziha, the clan of Hasupha, the clan of Tabbaoth,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Keros, the sons of Sia, the sons of Padon,
the clan of Keros, the clan of Sia, the clan of Padon,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Lebana, the sons of Hagaba, the sons of Shalmai,
the clan of Lebanah, the clan of Hagabah, the clan of Shalmai,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Hanan, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar,
the clan of Hanan, the clan of Giddel, the clan of Gahar,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Reaiah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda,
the clan of Reaiah, the clan of Rezin, the clan of Nekoda,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah,
the clan of Gazzam, the clan of Uzza, the clan of Paseah,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Besai, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nephushesim,
the clan of Besai, the clan of Meunim, the clan of Nephushesim,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur,
the clan of Bakbuk, the clan of Hakupha, the clan of Harhur,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha,
the clan of Bazlith, the clan of Mehida, the clan of Harsha,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah,
the clan of Barkos, the clan of Sisera, the clan of Temah,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Neziah, the sons of Hatipha.
the clan of Neziah, and the clan of Hatipha.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of the servants of Solomon were: the sons of Sotai, the sons of Sophereth, the sons of Perida,
Some descendants of the laborers that King Solomon {first conscripted also returned}.
These were from the clan of Sotai, the clan of Sophereth, the clan of Perida,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Jaala, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel,
the clan of Jaalah, the clan of Darkon, the clan of Giddel,
(There are no questions for this verse)
the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth Hazzebaim, the sons of Amon.
the clan of Shephatiah, the clan of Hattil, the clan of Pochereth-Hazzebaim, and the clan of Amon.
(There are no questions for this verse)
All the Nethinim and the sons of the servants of Solomon were 392.
Altogether, there were 392 descendants of the {temple} workers and {conscripted} laborers {who returned}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And these are the ones who went up from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Kerub, Addon, and Immer, but they were not able to tell the house of their fathers and their seed, whether they were from Israel.
Another group also returned {that came from the towns of} Tel-Melah, Tel-Harsha, Kerub, Addon, and Immer {in Babylonia}. But they could not prove that they were descendants of Israelites.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, were 642.
These 642 men were from the clan of Delaiah, the clan of Tobiah, and the clan of Nekoda.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And from the priests: the sons of Habaiah; the sons of Hakkoz; the sons of Barzillai, who took a wife from the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and he was called by their name.
Some priests {also returned who were} from the clan of Hobaiah, the clan of Hakkoz, and the clan of Barzillai. Barzillai had married a woman who was a descendant of a man named Barzillai from the region of Gilead. He had taken the family name of his wife.
(There are no questions for this verse)
These ones sought their record among the ones who were enrolled by genealogy, but it was not found. And they were desecrated from the priesthood.
These {priests} searched the records that contained the names of the Israelite ancestors, but they could not find the names of their families. {They did not qualify to be priests because they could not trace their family history,} so they were not allowed to have {the rights and duties of} priests.
And the Tirshatha said to them that they must not eat from the holiest holy food until the priest stood with Urim and Thummim.
The governor told them that they must not eat any of the share of food taken from the sacrifices and kept for the priests. They would have to wait until the priest {in charge of the temple} had begun his duties and could ask {God} what to do {about this situation}.
All the assembly, as one, was 42, 360:
Altogether, 42360 people {returned to Judea}.
apart from their male servants and their female servants, these were 7, 337; and for them, the men who sang and the women who sang were 245.
There were also 7337 male servants and female servants, and 245 male singers and female singers.
(There are no questions for this verse)
The horses were 736.
The mules were 245.
{The Israelites also brought back from Babylonia} 736 horses, 245 mules,
(There are no questions for this verse)
The camels were 435.
The donkeys were 6, 720.
435 camels, and 6720 donkeys.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And some from the extremity of the heads of the fathers gave to the work.
The Tirshatha gave to the treasury 1,000 gold darics, 50 basins, 530 tunics of priests.
Some of the leaders of the ancestral clans gave {gifts} for the work {of rebuilding the temple}.
The governor gave into the treasury more than 8 kilograms of gold, 50 bowls {to be used in the temple}, and 530 robes for the priests.
And some from the heads of the fathers gave to the treasury of the work 20,000 gold darics and 2, 200 silver minas.
Some of the leaders of the ancestral clans also gave into the {temple} treasury for the work {of rebuilding the temple a total of} 153 kilograms of gold, and 1460 kilograms of silver.
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And what the remnant of the people gave was 20,000 gold darics, and 2,000 silver minas, and 67 tunics of priests.”
And the remainder of the people gave {a total of} 153 kilograms of gold, 1330 kilograms of silver, and 67 robes for the priests.”
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And the priests, and the Levites, and the gatekeepers, and the ones who sang, and some from the people, and the Nethinim, and all Israel dwelt in their cities. And the seventh month came, and the sons of Israel were in their cities.
So the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the {temple} workers, and many ordinary people {started to} live in the {towns and} cities {of Judea where} their {ancestors had lived}. All these people were Israelites. By the seventh month {all of} the Israelites had gone to their cities and had started living in them.
And on day 24 of this month the sons of Israel were gathered in fasting and in sackcloth, and dust was upon them.
Two days later, the Israelite people gathered together again. {To show that they were sorry for their sins,} they went without food, they wore {clothes made from} rough cloth, and they put dirt on their {heads}.
And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all the sons of a foreigner. And they stood, and they confessed concerning their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.
The descendants of Israel separated themselves away from all the descendants of foreigners. They stood there and confessed their own sins and the wicked things their ancestors had done.
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And they rose up in their place, and they read aloud the book of the law of Yahweh their God a fourth of the day, and a fourth of the day were confessing and prostrating themselves to Yahweh their God.
They stood in place and {listened to someone} read from the scroll of the law of Yahweh their God for three hours. Then for another three hours they confessed their sins and bowed down and worshiped Yahweh their God.
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And Jeshua rose up on the stairs of the Levites, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, Kenani. And they cried out with a loud voice to Yahweh their God.
{Some of} the Levites stood up on the stairs, including Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, another {man} named Bani, and Kenani. And they cried out {sorrowfully} in a loud voice to Yahweh their God.
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And the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, Pethahiah, said:
“Rise up! Bless Yahweh your God from eternity to eternity! And may they bless your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
Then some Levites spoke. They were named Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah.
They said, “Stand up and praise Yahweh your God, who has always {lived} and will {live} forever! Yahweh, we praise your glorious name! Your name is more important than everything else that is good and wonderful!
You alone are he, Yahweh: you yourself made the heavens, the heavens of the heavens and all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you cause all of them to live; and the host of the heavens prostrates themselves to you.
You are Yahweh, and no one else. You made the heavens that are above everything, and all that lives in the heavens {above the earth}. You made the earth and everything that is on it, and you made the seas and everything that is in them. You are the one who causes all living things to be alive. Everything that {lives} in the heavens {above the earth} worships you.
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You are he, Yahweh, the God who chose Abram. Also, you brought him out from Ur of the Chaldees. Also, you made his name ‘Abraham.’
You are Yahweh! You are the God who chose Abram and brought him out of {the city of} Ur, where the Chaldean people {lived}. You changed his name to Abraham.
Also, you found his heart faithful before your face: and cut with him the covenant, to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give to his seed; and you have caused your words to stand, for you are righteous.
You saw that he was faithful to you in his inner being. You made a promise to him {pledged with blood}, promising that you would give a land {to him} and to his descendants. This was the land where the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites {lived}. And you did what you promised, because you {always} do what is right.
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And you saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and you heard their cry at the sea of reeds.
You saw how {the Egyptians} mistreated our ancestors in Egypt. You heard them cry out {to you for help} when they were beside the Red Sea.
And you gave signs and wonders to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all the people of his land, because you knew that they were acting presumptuously toward them. And you made for yourself a name, as it is this day.
You knew that {the leaders of Egypt} were treating {our ancestors} very arrogantly. So you performed miracles for Pharaoh and his officials and all the people of Egypt. {These proved you are the true God.} You made yourself famous, and you are still famous!
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And you split open the sea before their face, and they passed through the midst of the sea on the dry land. And you cast their pursuers into the depths, like a stone in mighty waters.
You divided the sea in front of {your people Israel}, and they {walked} through the middle of the sea on dry land. But you drowned {the soldiers of the Egyptian army} under the waters. They sank as a stone sinks in deep water!
And you led them with a pillar of cloud by day, and with a pillar of fire by night to shine for them on the way in which they should go.
During the day you led {your people} by a cloud {that looked like a huge} pillar. At night you led them by a fire {that looked like a huge} pillar. It shone on the path in front of them to show them where they should walk.
And you came down on the mountain of Sinai and spoke with them from heaven. And you gave to them just judgments and laws of truth, good statutes and commandments.
When {our ancestors} were at Sinai Mountain, you appeared to them and spoke to them from heaven. You gave them honest instructions and trustworthy laws. You gave them good rules and commands.
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And you made known to them your holy sabbath. And you charged them with commandments, and statutes, and a law, by the hand of Moses your servant.
You taught them about your Sabbath {day of rest}. It is set apart {from the other days of the week}. You gave commands and rules and laws for the people by your servant Moses.
And you gave to them bread from heaven for their hunger, and you brought out for them water from a rock for their thirst. And you said to them to go in to possess the land that you had raised your hand to give to them.
When they were hungry, you gave them bread from heaven. When they were thirsty, you gave them water from a rock. You told them to go and take the land {of Canaan}, which you had promised with a vow to give them.
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But they and our fathers, they acted presumptuously. And they stiffened their neck and did not listen to your commandments.
But our ancestors were proud and stubborn. They refused to obey what you commanded them {to do}.
And they refused to hear, and they did not remember your wonderful deeds that you performed with them. And they stiffened their neck and in their rebellion chose a head in order to return to their servitude. But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and compassionate, long of nostrils and abounding in covenant faithfulness, and you did not forsake them.
They refused to obey you. They did not consider all the miracles that you had performed for them. They became stubborn and rebelled against you. They appointed a leader to take {them} back {to Egypt}, where they would be slaves {again}! But you are a God who forgives us. You act kindly and mercifully {toward us}. You do not become angry quickly. Instead, you faithfully love {us} very much. So you did not leave {our ancestors} alone {in the desert}.
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Even when they made for themselves a calf image and said, ‘This is your God who brought you up from Egypt,’ and they performed great blasphemies,
Indeed {you did not leave them alone}, even though they made an idol for themselves {that resembled} a calf. They said {about the idol}, ‘This is our god, who brought us up out of Egypt.’ By doing that they insulted you greatly.
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still you, in your great mercies, did not forsake them in the wilderness. He did not take away the pillar of cloud from over them by day to lead them on the way, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine for them and on the way in which they should go.
But because you always act mercifully, you did not leave them alone in the desert. During the daytime, the cloud {that looked like a huge} pillar above them continued to lead them in the way {you wanted them to go}. And during the night, the fire {that looked like a huge} pillar shone on the path in front of them to show them where to walk.
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And you gave your good spirit to give them insight. And you did not withhold your manna from their mouth, and you gave them water for their thirst.
You gave them your good Spirit to instruct them. You continued to give them manna when they were hungry, and you gave them water when they were thirsty.
And you sustained them forty years in the wilderness; they did not lack. Their clothes did not wear out, and their feet did not swell.
For forty years you took care of them in the desert. During all that time, they had everything they needed. Their clothes did not wear out. Their feet did not swell up, {even though they were continually walking}.
And you gave to them kingdoms and peoples, and you allocated to them as far as the corners. And they took possession of the land of Sihon, even the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, the king of Bashan.
You helped {our ancestors} to defeat {the armies of great} kings {who ruled} many people. {By doing that,} you allowed {our ancestors} to settle in every part {of this land}. They took over the land that King Sihon ruled from {the city of} Heshbon and the land that King Og ruled in the Bashan {area}.
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And you multiplied their sons like the stars of the heavens. And you brought them to the land that you said to their fathers to enter in order to possess it.
You gave so many children to {our ancestors} that they were like the stars {in the sky}. You brought them into this land, which you had told their parents to enter and take for themselves {so that they could live there}.
And the sons went in and possessed the land, and before their face you subdued the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites. And you gave them into their hands, and their kings, and the peoples of the land, to do with them according to their will.
Their children went in and took the land. You enabled them to defeat the people who were living there. They were {the descendants of} Canaan. You enabled them to conquer their kings and all the people who {lived} there. They were able to do whatever they wanted to those people.
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And they captured fortified cities and fat ground. And they possessed houses full of all good things, hewn cisterns, vineyards, and olive orchards, and food trees in abundance. And they ate and were satisfied and grew fat and reveled in your great goodness.
{Our ancestors} captured cities that had walls around them. They took possession of fertile fields. They took possession of houses that were already full of all kinds of good things, and wells that someone had already dug. They took possession of many vineyards and groves of olive trees and fruit trees. They ate all that they wanted and became fat. They enjoyed {all} the many good things you did {for them}.
And they disobeyed and rebelled against you, and they cast your law behind their back. And they killed your prophets, who testified against them in order to bring them back to you. And they performed great blasphemies.
But they turned against you. They rejected your law. They killed the prophets who warned them that they should return to {obeying} you. They {said and} did very evil things {against you}.
And you gave them into the hand of their adversaries, and they harassed them. And in the time of their distress they cried out to you, and you yourself heard from heaven. And, according to your many mercies, you gave to them saviors, and they saved them from the hand of their adversaries.
So you allowed their enemies to defeat them. But when their enemies caused them to suffer, they called out to you. You heard them from heaven, and because you are very merciful, you sent them people to help them. Those {leaders} rescued them from their enemies.
And after rest belonged to them, they returned to doing evil before your face. And you left them to the hand of their enemies, and they oppressed them. And they returned and cried out to you, and you yourself heard from heaven and delivered them many times according to your mercies.
But when there was {a time of} peace {again}, {our ancestors} again did evil things that you {hated}. So you allowed their enemies to conquer {them} and rule over them. But {whenever} they returned to you and cried out to you again {to help them}, you heard them from heaven. You rescued them many times, because you {always} act mercifully.
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And you testified against them to bring them back to your law. But as for them, they acted presumptuously and did not listen to your commandments. And, concerning your judgments, they sinned against them, which, if a person does, then he will live by them. And they gave a stubborn shoulder, and stiffened their neck, and did not hear.
You warned them that they should return to {obeying} your laws {again}. But they became proud {and stubborn}. They would not listen to your commands. They sinned by disobeying your decrees, even though a person lives by obeying them. They purposely ignored what you commanded them to do. They became stubborn and refused to obey.
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And you continued with them many years, and you testified against them with your spirit by the hand of your prophets, but they did not give an ear. And you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.
You were patient with them for a long time. You warned them by {the messages} your Spirit gave to your prophets. But they did not listen {to those messages}. So again you allowed {the armies} of the nations nearby to defeat them.
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But, in your many mercies, you did not make a complete end of them, and you did not forsake them. For you are a gracious and merciful God.
But because you act very mercifully, you did not destroy them completely. You never left them alone. Yes, you are a very gracious and merciful God!
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So now, our God, the great, mighty, and fearsome God, who keeps the covenant and covenant faithfulness, do not let all the hardship be little before your face, that has found us, our kings, our leaders, and our priests, and our prophets, and our fathers, and all your people from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day.
Our God, you are great and mighty and awesome! You {always} fulfill {your} promises and {always} faithfully love {us}! So now {we are praying}: Do not ignore all our difficulties. Consider all the troubles that our kings, our leaders, our priests, our prophets, our ancestors, and all of your people have experienced. We have been experiencing these troubles since {the armies of} the kings of Assyria {conquered us} until now. We are still experiencing them today.
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And you are righteous concerning all that has come upon us. For you have acted faithfully; but as for us, we have acted wickedly.
{We know that} you have acted fairly in {letting} all these things happen to us. Yes, you have treated {us} as {we} deserve. But we have done evil things.
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And our kings, our leaders, our priests, and our fathers have not done your law. And they have not attended to your commandments or to your testimonies that you testified against them.
{In the past,} our kings, our leaders, our priests and our {other} ancestors did not obey your laws. They did not listen to your commands or the warnings that you gave them.
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And as for them, they did not serve you in their kingdom, and in your great goodness that you gave to them, and in the wide and fat land that you gave before their face. And they did not turn away from their evil deeds.
They had their own kings. They {enjoyed} the many good things that you provided in this large and fertile land that you gave them. But {even then,} they did not serve you. They would not stop doing evil things.
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Behold us today; we are servants. And the land that you gave to our fathers, to eat its fruit and its goodness; behold us, we are servants in it!
Consider our situation! Today we {live like} slaves here in this land that you gave to our ancestors. You gave them this land so that they could enjoy all the good things that grow here. But consider us now! We are {like} slaves on this land.
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And its great produce belongs to the kings whom you have given to be over us in our sins, and to be ruling over our bodies and over our livestock, according to their will. And we are in great distress.
The kings whom you have allowed to rule over us are enjoying {all} the good things that grow here. This is because we have sinned. They rule over our bodies and our cattle. They do whatever they please. We feel great distress.
And in all of this, we are cutting a faithful covenant, and writing even on a sealed document our leaders, our Levites, our priests.”
Because of all this, we {the Israelite people} are making a solemn agreement. We are writing it on a scroll. We will write down {the names of} our leaders, our Levites, and our priests. Then we will seal the scroll.”
And on the sealed documents were: Nehemiah, the Tirshatha, the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah,
These are {the names of} the people who signed the agreement:
Nehemiah the governor, the son of Hacaliah; Zedekiah the scribe.
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Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,
{The priests who signed the agreement included:}
Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,
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Pashhur, Amariah, Malkijah,
Pashhur, Amariah, Malkijah,
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Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluk,
Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluk,
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Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,
Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,
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Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,
Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,
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Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,
Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,
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Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah. These were the priests.
Maaziah, Bilgai, and Shemaiah. Those are {the names of} the priests {who signed the agreement}.
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And the Levites were: even Jeshua, the son of Azaniah; Binnui, from the sons of Henadad; Kadmiel;
The Levites {who signed the agreement} were:
Jeshua the son of Azaniah, Binnui from the clan of Henadad, Kadmiel,
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also their brothers, Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,
{Some of} their associates also {signed the agreement, including}: Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,
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Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,
Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,
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Hodiah, Bani, and Beninu.
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The heads of the people were: Parosh, Pahath-Moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,
The Israelite leaders {who signed the agreement} were:
Parosh, Pahath-Moab, Elam, Zattu, and Bani,
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(There are no questions for this verse)
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Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,
Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,
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Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua,
Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua,
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(There are no questions for this verse)
Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub,
Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub,
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Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek,
Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek,
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Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,
Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,
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Malluk, Harim, and Baanah.
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And the rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the ones who sing, the Nethinim, and all the ones who were separating themselves from the peoples of the lands to the law of God, their wives, their sons and their daughters, all who were knowing, being able to understand,
The rest of the people {joined in this solemn agreement. This included} the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, and the {temple} workers. {It also included} everyone who agreed only to worship and obey the God of Israel, along with their wives and their sons and daughters who were {old enough} to understand what they were {doing}.
were clinging to their brothers, their nobles, and were entering into a curse and into an oath: to walk in the law of God, which was given by the hand of Moses the servant of God; and to keep and to do all the commandments of Yahweh our Lord, and his judgments and his statutes;
They {all} joined with their leaders, who were important people, and together they all made a solemn agreement to obey {all} the laws that God had given by Moses his servant. They agreed that they would strictly obey everything that Yahweh our God had commanded, yes, {all of} his instructions.
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and that we would not give our daughters to the peoples of the land, and we would not take their daughters for our sons;
This is what {they promised to do}: “We will not give our daughters {in marriage} to people {who live} in this land {who do not worship Yahweh}. We will not allow our sons to marry their daughters.
and, on the sabbath or on a holy day, we would not take from the peoples of the land, the ones bringing goods and all kinds of grain to sell on the day of the sabbath; and we would leave alone the seventh year and interest of every hand.
People from other groups {who live} in this land might bring merchandise and all kinds of food to sell on Sabbath days. But we will not buy anything from them on a Sabbath {day} or any other sacred day. Every seventh year, we will let {the fields} rest {and not plant any crops. That same year} we will not make anyone pay back {anything they owe} to another person.
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Also, we caused to stand for us commandments to give over us a third of a shekel in a year for the service of the house of our God:
We each also agreed to a pledge that {every} year we would pay 4 grams of silver for the {supplies} needed for the temple.
for the bread in rows and the continual offering, and for the continual burnt offering, the sabbaths, the new moons, for the appointed times, and for the holy things, and for the sin offerings to cover over for Israel, and all the work of the house of our God.
{Here is a list of those supplies.} The {sacred} bread that is placed {before God}. The grain that is {burned on the altar} each day. {The animals that} are completely burned up {on the altar} each day. The sacred offerings for the Sabbath days and for celebrating each new moon and other {festivals} that {God} told {us to celebrate}. {Other} offerings that are dedicated {to God}. {The animals} to be sacrificed to atone for the sins of the Israelite people. Anything else {that is needed} for the work of {taking care of} the temple.
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And we cast lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people: concerning the offering of pieces of wood, to bring them to the house of our God, for the house of our fathers at the appointed times year by year, for burning on the altar of Yahweh our God as written in the law;
We have cast lots to determine when each clan of the priests, the Levites, and {the rest of} the people will bring an offering of wood to the temple. Each clan will do this at an appointed time every year. {The Levites will use} the wood to burn {the sacrifices} on the altar that belongs to Yahweh our God. He commanded this in the law {he gave through Moses}.
and to bring the firstfruits of our soil and the firstfruits of all the fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of Yahweh;
We will also bring {an offering} to the temple every year from the first {grain} that we {harvest} and from all the first fruit that {grows on} all our trees.
and the firstborns of our sons and our livestock, as written in the law, even the firstborns of our herds and our flocks, to bring them to the house of our God, to the priests, the ones who minister in the house of our God.
We will also do something else that God commanded. We will bring our firstborn sons to the temple {for dedication}, and our firstborn calves and lambs and goats {as sacrifices}, to the priests who minister in the temple.
And we will bring: the first of our dough and our offerings, and the fruit of every tree, wine, and oil, for the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and a tithe of our soil for the Levites. And they, the Levites, will be the ones receiving tithes in all the cities of our labor.
We will also bring supplies to the priests that {they} can store in the temple. These will include the first grain that we {harvest}, the first flour we {make}, the first fruit from all {our} trees, and the first wine and olive oil {that we produce}. We will also bring 10 percent of our harvest to the Levites. We will allow them to collect this 10 percent right in all the towns where we work.
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And a priest who is a son of Aaron will be with the Levites when the Levites receive tithes. And the Levites will bring a tithe of the tithe to the house of our God, to the chambers of the house of the treasury.
A priest, one of the descendants of Aaron, will be with the Levites {and supervise} them when they collect that 10 percent. Then the Levites must bring 10 percent of what they have received to the temple. {The priests will put it} in the storerooms and it will support {them}.
For the sons of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring to the chambers the offerings of grain, wine, and oil. And there shall be the vessels for the sanctuary, and the priests, the ones who are ministering, and the gatekeepers, and the ones who sing. And we shall not neglect the house of our God.
That is how it will work. The Israelites and the Levites will bring their offerings of grain, wine, and olive oil to those storerooms. That is where {the priests} will store the equipment for the temple. And that is where {they will keep the food supplies} for the priests, the gatekeepers, and the singers who are serving at that time.
We promise that we will keep taking care of the temple.”
And the leaders of the people dwelt in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city, and nine hands were in the cities.
So the {Israelite} leaders settled in Jerusalem {with their families}. The rest of the people cast lots to select one family out of ten to live in Jerusalem. That was the city set apart {for God}. The remaining nine families lived in the {other} towns.
And the people blessed all the men, the ones who freely offered to dwell in Jerusalem.
The people {asked God to} bless all those who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.
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And these are the heads of the province who dwelt in Jerusalem. And in the cities of Judah they dwelt, a man on his property, in their cities: Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the Nethinim, and the sons of the servants of Solomon.
These are {the names of} the provincial officials who settled in Jerusalem. But in the towns of Judah, everyone lived on his own family property in their towns. This included the Israelites, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the descendants of the servants of Solomon.
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And some from the sons of Judah and from the sons of Benjamin dwelt in Jerusalem. Those from the sons of Judah were: Athaiah, the son of Uzziah, the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalalel, from the sons of Perez;
But some of the people of Judah and some of the people of Benjamin stayed and lived in Jerusalem.
Here are {the names of} the leaders who lived in Jerusalem.
From the descendants of Judah, one of them was Athaiah the son of Uzziah, the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalalel, a descendant of Perez.
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and Maaseiah, the son of Baruch, the son of Kol-Hozeh, the son of Hazaiah, the son of Adaiah, the son of Joiarib, the son of Zechariah, a son of the Shilonite.
Another one was Maaseiah the son of Baruch, the son of Kol-Hozeh, the son of Hazaiah, the son of Adaiah, the son of Joiarib, the son of Zechariah, who was one of the descendants of Shelah.
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All the sons of Perez, the ones dwelling in Jerusalem, were 468 men of strength.
Altogether 468 men who were descendants of Perez lived in {the city of} Jerusalem. These men were {very} brave and skilled in combat.
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And these are the sons of Benjamin: Sallu, the son of Meshullam, the son of Joed, the son of Pedaiah, the son of Kolaiah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ithiel, the son of Jeshaiah;
These are the descendants of Benjamin {who decided to live in Jerusalem}.
One of them was Sallu the son of Meshullam, the son of Joed, the son of Pedaiah, the son of Kolaiah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ithiel, the son of Jeshaiah.
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and after him, Gabbai, Sallai, 928.
Two men who assisted him were Gabbai and Sallai. Altogether 928 people {from the tribe of Benjamin settled in Jerusalem}.
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And Joel the son of Zichri was the overseer for them. And Judah, the son of Hassenuah, was the second over the city.
Their leader was Joel the son of Zichri. Judah the son of Hassenuah was {the official who was} second in command in Jerusalem.
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From the priests: Jedaiah the son of Joiarib; Jakin;
The priests {who settled in Jerusalem} included Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, and Jachin.
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Seraiah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, the leader of the house of God;
Another priest was Seraiah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub. He was in charge of the temple.
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and their brothers, who were doing the work for the house, were 822; and Adaiah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Pelaliah, the son of Amzi, the son of Zechariah, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malkijah;
Another 822 of their associates {settled in Jerusalem and} performed work for the temple. Another priest {who settled in Jerusalem} was Adaiah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Pelaliah, the son of Amzi, the son of Zechariah, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malkijah.
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and his brothers, the heads of fathers, were 242; and Amashsai, the son of Azarel, the son of Ahzai, the son of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer;
Another 242 of his associates, including the leaders of their ancestral clans, {settled in Jerusalem}. {Another priest who settled there} was Amashsai the son of Azarel, the son of Ahzai, the son of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer.
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and their brothers, mighty men of strength, were 128. And Zabdiel the son of Haggedolim was overseer for them.
Another 128 of their associates who were strong men {settled in Jerusalem}. Their leader was Zabdiel the son of Haggedolim.
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And from the Levites: Shemaiah, the son of Hasshub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Bunni;
One of the Levites {who settled in Jerusalem} was Shemaiah the son of Hasshub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Bunni.
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and Shabbethai and Jozabad, from the heads of the Levites, were over the work outside of the house of God;
Two others were Shabbethai and Jozabad, who supervised the work outside the temple and were leaders of the Levites.
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and Mattaniah, the son of Mika, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, the head of the beginning who offered the thanksgiving prayer; and Bakbukiah, second from his brothers; and Abda, the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun.
Another Levite {who settled in Jerusalem} was Mattaniah, who directed the temple choir when they sang the prayers to thank God. He was the son of Mika, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph. His assistant choir director was Bakbukiah. Another Levite was Abda, the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun.
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All the Levites in the holy city were 284.
Altogether, 284 Levites settled in {Jerusalem}, the city set apart {for God}.
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And the gatekeepers, Akkub, Talmon, and their brothers, the ones who guarded at the gates, were 172.
The gatekeepers {who settled in Jerusalem} included Akkub, Talmon, and 172 of their associates who kept watch at the gates.
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And the rest of Israel, the priests, the Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, a man in his inheritance.
The rest of the Israelite people, including the priests and the Levites, all lived on their own property in all the other towns in Judea.
And the Nethinim were dwelling in the Ophel, and Ziha and Gishpa were over the Nethinim.
The {temple} workers lived on Ophel {Hill in Jerusalem}; and Ziha and Gishpa supervised them.
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And the overseer of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi, the son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Mika, from the sons of Asaph, the ones who sang, who were over the work of the house of God.
The man who supervised the Levites who lived in Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Mika. Uzzi was one of the descendants of Asaph. These were the singers responsible for the music in the temple {services}.
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For the commandment of the king was upon them, that support for the ones who sang was a daily matter in its day.
Now the king {of Persia} had said {that his kingdom would provide support} for the singers. The king had said to give them whatever they needed to maintain the singing in the temple services.
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And Pethahiah, the son of Meshezabel, from the sons of Zerah, the son of Judah, was at the hand of the king for every matter of the people.
Pethahiah was the {ambassador} to the king {of Persia} for any matter pertaining to the {Israelites}. He was the son of Meshezabel, who was one of the descendants of Zerah, the son of Judah.
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And for the villages in their fields, some from the sons of Judah dwelt: in Kiriath Arba and its daughters; and in Dibon and its daughters; and in Jekabzeel and its villages;
Some of the descendants of Judah did not settle in Jerusalem. They lived in {towns and} villages near their farms. These included {the city of} Kiriath-Arba and its neighboring villages, {the city of} Dibon and its neighboring villages, and {the town of} Jekabzeel and its neighboring villages.
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and in Jeshua; and in Moladah; and in Beth-Palet;
{Some descendants of Judah} also {lived} in {the town of} Jeshua, {the town of} Moladah, {the town of} Beth-Pelet,
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and in Hazar-Shual; and in Beersheba and its daughters;
{the town of} Hazar-Shual, and {the city of} Beersheba and its neighboring villages.
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and in Ziklag; and Mekonah and its daughters;
{Some} also {lived} in {the town of} Ziklag, {the town of} Mekonah and its neighboring villages,
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and in En-Rimmon; and in Zorah; and in Jarmuth;
{the town of} En-Rimmon, {the town of} Zora, {the town of} Jarmuth,
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Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages; Lachish and its fields; Azekah and its daughters. And they encamped from Beersheba as far as the valley of Hinnom:
{the towns of} Zanoah and Adullam and the nearby villages, {the city of} Lachish and the nearby farms, and {the town of} Azekah and the nearby villages.
{All of} those people settled {in the territory of Judah, in the area} between Beersheba {in the south} and the Valley of Hinnom {in the north}.
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and the sons of Benjamin from Geba, at Mikmash, and Aija, and Bethel and its daughters,
Some people who were descendants of Benjamin {settled in these cities and towns}: Geba, Michmas, Aija, Bethel and its neighboring villages,
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Lod, and Ono, the valley of the craftsmen;
Lod, and Ono the Valley of Craftsmen.
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and some from the Levites, who were divisions of Judah, in Benjamin.
Some Levites who had previously lived in {the territory of} Judah {went and settled} in {the land that had belonged to the old tribe of} Benjamin.
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And these are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,
These are {the names of} the priests and Levites who returned {from Babylonia} with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and with Joshua {the Supreme Priest}. The priests included Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,
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Amariah, Malluk, Hattush,
Amariah, Malluk, Hattush,
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Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,
Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,
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Mijamin, Moadiah, Bilgah,
Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,
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Shemaiah and Joiarib, Jedaiah,
Shemaiah, and Joiarib, Jedaiah,
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Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah. These were the heads of the priests and their brothers in the days of Jeshua.
Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. All those men were leaders of the priests, their associates, during the time when Joshua {was the Supreme Priest}.
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And the Levites were: Jeshua; Binnui; Kadmiel; Sherebiah; Judah; Mattaniah, he and his brothers were over the thanksgiving songs;
The Levites {who returned} included Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah. Mattaniah and his associates led {the people in singing songs} to thank {God}.
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and Bakbukiah and Unni, their brothers, were opposite them in the service watches.
Their associates Bakbukiah and Unni {stood} opposite them during the worship services {and led a choir that sang responses}.
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And Jeshua fathered Joiakim; and Joiakim fathered Eliashib; and Eliashib, Joiada;
Joshua {the Supreme Priest} was the father of Joiakim. Joiakim was the father of Eliashib. Eliashib was the father of Joiada.
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and Joiada fathered Jonathan; and Jonathan fathered Jaddua.
Joiada was the father of Jonathan. Jonathan was the father of Jaddua.
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And in the days of Joiakim priests were the heads of the fathers: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;
When Joiakim was {the Supreme Priest}, these priests were the leaders of their clans. Meraiah was the leader of the clan of Seraiah. Hananiah was the leader of the clan of Jeremiah.
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of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;
Meshullam was {the leader of the clan} of Ezra. Jehohanan was {the leader of the clan} of Amariah.
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of Malluk, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;
Jonathan was {the leader of the clan} of Malluchi. Joseph was {the leader of the clan} of Shecaniah.
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of Harim, Adna; of Meremoth, Helkai;
Adna was {the leader of the clan} of Harim. Helkai was {the leader of the clan} of Meraioth.
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of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;
Zechariah was {the leader of the clan} of Iddo. Meshullam was {the leader of the clan} of Ginnethon.
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of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai;
Zichri was {the leader of the clan} of Abijah. Piltai was {the leader of the clan} of Miniamin and {the clan} of Moadiah.
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of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;
Shammua was {the leader of the clan} of Bilgah. Jehonathan was {the leader of the clan} of Shemaiah.
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of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;
Mattenai was {the leader of the clan} of Joiarib. Uzzi was {the leader of the clan} of Jedaiah.
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of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;
Kallai was the {leader of the clan} of Sallai. Eber was {the leader of the clan} of Amok.
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of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethanel.
Hashabiah was {the leader of the clan} of Hilkiah. Nethanel was {the leader of the clan} of Jedaiah.
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In the days of Eliashib, the Levites Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua, were written as heads of fathers: also the priests, during the reign of Darius the Persian.
{Some scribes} wrote down {the names of} the clan leaders of the Levites during the time when Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua were {Supreme Priests}. They wrote down {the names of} the clan leaders of the priests when Darius was king of Persia.
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The sons of Levi, the heads of fathers, were written in the book of the events of days even until the days of Johanan, the son of Eliashib.
{Scribes} recorded {the names of} the clan leaders of the Levites in their record books up until the time when Johanan the descendant of Eliashib was {the Supreme Priest}.
And the heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua, the son of Kadmiel, with their brothers opposite them, service watch by service watch, to praise and give thanks by the commandment of David, the man of God.
Hashabiah, Serebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel were Levite leaders {who directed one choir}. Their associates {stood} opposite them {directing another choir}. The singers praised {God} and gave thanks {to him}, with one group facing the other. This was what King David, the man who served God faithfully, had instructed.
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Mattaniah, and Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, Akkub, were guardians, gatekeepers, a guard at the storehouses of the gates.
Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers. They {stood} guard at the storerooms near the gates.
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These were in the days of Joiakim, the son of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the governor and Ezra, the priest, the scribe.
They did that {work} during the time when Joiakim, the son of Jeshua and grandson of Jozadak, was {the Supreme Priest}. They did it {again} during the time when Nehemiah {served} as governor and Ezra {served} as priest and scribe.
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And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sought out the Levites from all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to perform the dedication with rejoicing, and with thanksgivings, and with song, cymbals, lyres, and harps.
When {we} dedicated the wall around Jerusalem, we summoned the Levites from all the places {where} they were {living}. We brought them to Jerusalem to assist in dedicating the wall by rejoicing and giving thanks and by singing {accompanied by} cymbals and harps and other stringed instruments.
And the sons of the ones who sang gathered themselves, both from the circle around Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophatites,
We summoned the Levites who {were used to} singing {together}. They came to Jerusalem from nearby areas where they had settled around the city. They also came from places around {the village of} Netophah {southeast of Jerusalem}.
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and from Beth-Gilgal and from the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the ones who sang had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem.
They also came from {three places northeast of} Jerusalem, Beth-Gilgal and the areas around Geba and Azmaveth. {We summoned} those singers because they had built villages to live in near Jerusalem.
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And the priests and the Levites purified themselves. And they purified the people, and the gates, and the wall.
The priests and Levites performed rituals to make themselves acceptable {to God}. Then they performed {similar} rituals to purify the other people, the gates, and the wall.
And I caused the officials of Judah to go up on top of the wall. And I caused to stand two great thanksgiving groups, and processions to the right hand on top of the wall toward the gate of dung.
Then I gathered the leaders of Judah together on top of the wall. I assigned them {to lead} two large groups that would march {around the city} on top of the wall, thanking {God}. {As they faced the city, one group} walked to the right toward the Rubbish Gate.
And after them went Hoshaiah with half of the officials of Judah,
Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah marched behind that group.
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and Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam,
{The people who marched with that group} included Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,
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Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah.
Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah.
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And some from the sons of the priests had trumpets: Zechariah, the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph;
Some descendants of the priests {also marched with that group} playing musical instruments. They included Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph.
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and his brothers, Shemaiah, and Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel and Judah, Hanani, with the instruments of song of David, the man of God. And Ezra the scribe was before their face.
Some associates {of Zechariah} also {marched and played musical instruments}. They included Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani. They all were playing {the same kinds of} musical instruments that King David, the man who served God faithfully, {had told the Levite musicians to play many years previously}. Ezra the scribe {marched} in front of this group.
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And by the gate of the spring and opposite them, they went up on the stairs of the city of David, at the ascent of the wall on top of the house of David and as far as the gate of water, east.
When the people in this group reached the Fountain Gate, they went up the steps that were in front of them to {the area known as} the City of David. Then they went along the top of the wall past the location of the {royal} palace of David, and then to the Water Gate, on the east {side of the temple}.
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And the second thanksgiving group, the one proceeding to the opposite direction, and I after it, with half of the people on top of the wall, on top of the tower of ovens even as far as the broad wall,
The other group of those who were {singing and} thanking {Yahweh} marched to the left on top of the wall. I followed them with half of the people. We marched past the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall.
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and on top of the gate of Ephraim, and above the gate of old, and above the gate of fish and the tower of Hananel and the tower of the hundred, even as far as the gate of sheep: and they stood in the gate of the guard.
From there {we marched} past the Ephraim Gate, the Jeshanah Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred Soldiers to the Sheep Gate. We finished marching near a gate that {leads into the temple area}.
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And the two thanksgiving groups stood at the house of God: also I, and half of the prefects with me;
Both of the groups {reached} the temple {as they were singing and} giving thanks. They stood {in their places there}. I was there with the half of the city officials who had come with me.
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and the priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, Hananiah, with trumpets;
{My group} included the priests Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah. All of them were blowing trumpets.
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and Maaseiah, and Shemaiah, and Eleazar, and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, and Malkijah, and Elam, and Ezer. And the ones who sang made themselves heard, with Jezrahiah the overseer.
{Others who were blowing trumpets} included Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers sang with Jezrahiah who was their leader.
And on that day they sacrificed great sacrifices, and they rejoiced, for God had made them glad with great rejoicing. Yes, even the women and the children rejoiced, so the rejoicing of Jerusalem was heard from far away.
The people offered many sacrifices that day. They {all} rejoiced because God had made them very happy. The women and the children rejoiced along with the men, so the sound of the celebration in Jerusalem was so loud that people far away could hear it.
And on that day men were appointed over the chambers for the storehouses, for the offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them from the fields of the cities the portions of the law for the priests and for the Levites. For Judah rejoiced over the priests and over the Levites, the ones who were standing.
On that day {we} appointed men to be in charge of the storerooms. That was where {the priests} kept the money and the food and the grain and the tithes. {The people} brought these things from the fields near the cities into the storerooms for the priests and the Levites, as Moses had commanded in the law. {The people of} Judah did all this because they were so happy about the priests and the Levites serving {in the temple}.
And they kept the service watch of their God and the service watch of purification, also the ones who sang and the gatekeepers, according to the commandment of David and Solomon his son.
The priests and the Levites served God by performing rituals to purify things. The singers and the gatekeepers also {did their work} as King David and his son Solomon had declared they should.
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For in the days of David and Asaph, from ancient time there was a head of the ones who sang, and songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.
{We did all this} because that was how it was in the days of old, when David was {king} and Asaph was {in charge of the temple musicians}. There was someone to lead the singers, and they sang songs to praise and thank God.
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And in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah, all Israel was giving the portions of the ones who sang and the gatekeepers, as a daily matter in its day. And they were consecrating for the Levites, and the Levites were consecrating for the sons of Aaron.
During the time when Zerubbabel was {the governor}, the people all contributed the food that the singers and temple gatekeepers needed each day. They did the same during the time when Nehemiah was {the governor}. They gave a tenth {of their crops} to the Levites, and the Levites gave a tenth {of that} to the priests, who were descendants of Aaron, {the first Supreme Priest}.
On that day it was read in the book of Moses, in the ears of the people, and it was found written in it, that no Ammonite or Moabite shall enter into the assembly of God until eternity.
Then someone read out loud to the people from a scroll {that contained the law that God gave to} Moses. They learned that the {law} said that no Ammonites or Moabites should ever join the {Israelite} people {when they gathered together to worship God}.
For they did not meet the sons of Israel with bread and with water. And he hired Balaam against them to curse them, but our God overturned the curse to a blessing.
{The law said this} because {the people of Ammon and the people of Moab} did not give any food or water to the Israelites {while they were traveling through their areas after leaving Egypt}. Instead, they paid Balaam to get him to curse the Israelites. But our God turned that attempt to curse Israel into a blessing.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it happened that, as soon as they heard the law, they separated all the mixed company from Israel.
So the people obeyed that law. They sent away all the people whose ancestors had come from other countries.
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Now, before the face of this, Eliashib the priest, nearly-related to Tobiah, was being put in the chamber of the house of our God.
When he became the {Supreme} Priest, Eliashib got control of the storerooms in the temple. Now he was related to Tobiah.
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And he made for him a great chamber, and there previously they were putting offerings: the frankincense; and the vessels; and the tithes of the grain, the wine, and the oil, the commandment for the Levites, and the ones who sang, and the gatekeepers; and the offerings of the priests.
He allowed {Tobiah} to have a large room in which the priests used to store supplies. These included the grain offerings and the incense, the equipment for the temple, and the tithes of grain and wine and olive oil. {God} had commanded {the people to bring} these to the Levites, the singers, and the gatekeepers. This room had also held the offerings for the priests.
And during all this I was not in Jerusalem. For I had gone to the king in year 32 of Artaxerxes, the king of Babylon. And at an end of days I requested leave from the king.
During that time I was not in Jerusalem, because in the thirty-second year that Artaxerxes was the king of Babylonia, I had gone back {to report to the king what I had been doing}. After I had been there a while, I asked the king to allow me to return {to Jerusalem}.
And I came to Jerusalem. And I noticed the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah by making for him a chamber in the courts of the house of God.
When I arrived in Jerusalem, I discovered the evil thing that Eliashib had done for Tobiah by allowing him to use this room in the temple area.
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And it was extremely evil to me, and I cast out all the things of the house of Tobiah from the storeroom to the outside.
That grieved me very much. I threw everything that belonged to Tobiah out of that room.
And I spoke, and they purified the chambers. And I returned to there the vessels of the house of God, with the offering and the incense.
Then I commanded {the priests to perform a ritual to cleanse} that room and make it pure again. I also {ordered} the equipment for the temple and the grain offerings and incense {to be} put back in that room {where they belonged}.
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And I knew that the portions of the Levites had not been given, and the Levites and the ones who sang, who did the work, had fled, a man to his field.
I also learned that the singers and the other Levites who were responsible for the {temple} services had left Jerusalem. They had returned to their own fields because the people had stopped giving them {10 percent of their} harvests, {since Tobiah had occupied the storeroom}.
And I contended with the prefects, and I said, “Why is the house of God forsaken?” And I gathered them and caused them to stand at their stations.
So I rebuked the city officials. I told them, “You have neglected {the work of} the temple!” Then I brought {the Levites and the singers} back to the temple and told them to do their work {again}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, and the wine, and the oil to the treasuries.
Then all {the people of} Judah started bringing their tithes of grain, wine, and olive oil to the {temple} storerooms {once again}.
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And I appointed treasurers over the treasuries: Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah from the Levites; and at their hand was Hanan, the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah. For they were considered faithful, and it was for them to apportion to their brothers.
I appointed some {men} to be in charge of the storerooms. They were Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah the Levite. I also appointed Hanan the son of Zaccur and grandson of Mattaniah to assist them. I appointed these {men} because {everyone} knew that they were trustworthy and would distribute {the offerings fairly} to their associates.
Remember me, my God, concerning this, and do not wipe out my faithful kindness that I have done for the house of my God and for its service watches.
“My God, please bless me for this. Yes, bless me for the good things that I have done for your temple and for the temple services!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
In those days I saw in Judah ones treading winepresses on the sabbath, and ones bringing in grain-heaps, and ones loading onto donkeys, yes, even wine, grapes, and figs, and all kinds of loads, and ones bringing to Jerusalem on the day of the sabbath. And I protested on the day of their selling provisions.
During that time, I saw {some people} in Judea {who were working} on the Sabbath day. Some were pressing grapes to make wine. Others were taking their grain and loading it on donkeys. Others were also loading {bags of} wine, baskets of grapes, figs, and many other things onto donkeys and bringing them into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. I warned them not to sell {food to the people of Judea} on {Sabbath} days.
And the Tyrians who dwelt in it were bringing in fish and all kinds of merchandise and were selling them on the sabbath to the sons of Judah, even in Jerusalem.
I also saw some people from {the city of} Tyre who were living there in {Jerusalem} bringing fish and other things into Jerusalem to sell to the people of Judah on the Sabbath day.
And I contended with the nobles of Judah. And I said to them, “What is this evil thing that you are doing, and profaning the day of the sabbath?
So I rebuked the Jewish leading citizens. I said to them, “This is a very evil thing that you are doing! You are making the Sabbath day into something {God never wanted} it to be.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Did not your fathers do thus, and our God brought all this evil on us and on this city? And you are increasing wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.”
You know that your ancestors did these same things, and God {punished} our nation {by} bringing great trouble to this city! But {now} you too are breaking {the laws} for the Sabbath day. You are going to cause {God} to be angry with {the nation of} Israel {again}. {He will punish us} even more!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And it happened that, when the gates of Jerusalem grew dark before the face of the sabbath, I spoke, and the doors were shut, and I said that they should not open them until after the sabbath. And I caused some from my young men to stand at the gates; a load could not enter on the day of the sabbath.
So I commanded {the gatekeepers} to shut the doors of the gates of the city when it started to get dark on Friday evening. I commanded them not to open the gates until Saturday evening. I also stationed some of my men at the gates {so they would make sure that} no one brought things to sell into {the city in between those times}, on the Sabbath day.
And the ones who traded and the ones who sold all kinds of goods to sell lodged outside of Jerusalem a time or two.
One or two times traders and merchants selling all kinds of things camped outside the city on the night {before the Sabbath day}. {They were hoping} to sell {something the next day}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I testified against them, and I said to them, “Why are you lodging in front of the wall? If you repeat, I will stretch out a hand on you!” From that time, they did not come on the sabbath.
I warned them. I said to them, “It is useless for you to camp here outside the walls on Friday night. If you do this again, I will arrest you by force!” After that, they did not come on Sabbath days.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And I said to the Levites that they should purify themselves and come keep the gates to consecrate the day of the sabbath.
Remember me concerning this also, my God, and have pity on me according to the greatness of your covenant faithfulness.
I also commanded the Levites to {perform a ritual to} purify themselves and then {take up stations} to guard the city gates. I wanted them to ensure that Sabbath days were kept holy {by not allowing merchants to enter the city on that holy day}. “My God, please bless me for doing this too! And be kind to me, because your kindness is so great.”
In those days I also saw Jews who had given a dwelling to Ashdodite, Ammonite, and Moabite women.
During that time, I also learned that many of the Jewish men had married women from {the city of} Ashdod, and from the Ammonites and Moabites.
(There are no questions for this verse)
And their sons, half were speaking Ashdodite, and none of them were knowing to speak Hebrew, but according to the tongue of people group by people group.
So half of their children spoke a foreign language, and they did not know how to speak Hebrew. They spoke whatever language {their} foreign {parent spoke}.
And I contended with them, and cursed them, and struck some of their men, and pulled out their hair. And I caused them to swear an oath by God: “If you give your daughters to their sons, or if you lift from their daughters for your sons, or for yourselves!
So I rebuked those men. I {asked God} to curse them. I struck some of them {with my fists}. I pulled out their hair. Then I forced them to make a solemn promise, knowing that God was listening. I made them promise that they would {never} again allow their daughters to marry foreign men. I also made them promise that they and their sons would not marry foreign women.
Did not Solomon, the king of Israel, sin concerning these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him: and he was beloved by his God, and God gave him as king over all Israel. The foreign women caused even him to sin.
{I said to them,} “You know that Solomon, the king of Israel, sinned as a result of {marrying foreign women who worshiped idols}! You know that he was greater than any of the kings of other nations. God loved him, and God set him as the king over all {the people of} Israel. But his foreign wives caused even him to sin!
(There are no questions for this verse)
Should we then listen to you, to do all this great evil, to act unfaithfully toward our God and give a dwelling to foreign women?”
{I am grieved} to hear this about you! You have married foreign wives {who worship idols}. You have commited a great sin against our God!”
(There are no questions for this verse)
And one from the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite. And I caused him to flee from beside me.
A man who was a son of Joiada and a grandson of Eliashib the Supreme Priest had married the daughter of {our enemy} Sanballat the Horonite. So I forced this man to leave {Jerusalem}.
(There are no questions for this verse)
Remember them, my God, on account of the defiling of the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.
“My God, these {men} have brought shame to the priesthood. {They have broken} the covenant of the priesthood and of the Levites. Punish them as they deserve!”
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And I purified them from everything foreign. And I caused the service watches to stand: for the priests and for the Levites, a man in his work;
I took away everything from {the priests} that came from other nations and religions. I also established regulations for the priests and for the Levites {so they would know} what work each of them was supposed to do.
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and for the offering of pieces of wood at the appointed times; and for the firstfruits.
Remember me, my God, for good.
{I} also {arranged} for the people to bring their offerings of wood at the set times {to burn on the altar}, and to bring the first part of what they harvested {of each crop during the year}. “My God, please consider that I {have done all these things}, and bless me {for doing them}.”