The Unmarried and the Widowed

²⁵ Now concerning^[a] the betrothed,^{[b] (A)}I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as ^(B)one who by the Lord's mercy is ^(C)trustworthy. ²⁶ I think that in view of the present^[c] distress ^(D)it is good for a person to remain as he is. ²⁷ Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife. ²⁸ But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman^[d] marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. ²⁹ This is what I mean, brothers: ^(E)the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, ³⁰ and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy ^(F)as though they had no goods, ³¹ and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For ^(G)the present form of this world is passing away.

³² I want you to be ^(H)free from anxieties. ^(I)The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. ³³ But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, ³⁴ and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. ³⁵ I say this for your own benefit, ^(J)not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.

³⁶ If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed,^[e] if his^[f] passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. ³⁷ But whoever is firmly established in his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed, he will do well. ³⁸ So then he who marries his betrothed ^(K)does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.

^39 (L)A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only ^(M)in the Lord. ⁴⁰ Yet ^(N)in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think ^(O)that I too have the Spirit of God.

¹⁵ And Shallum the son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah, repaired ^(A)the Fountain Gate. He rebuilt it and covered it and ^(B)set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. And he built the wall of ^(C)the Pool of Shelah of ^(D)the king's garden, as far as ^(E)the stairs that go down from the city of David. ¹⁶ After him Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, ruler of half the district of Beth-zur, repaired to a point opposite ^(F)the tombs of David, as far as ^(G)the artificial pool, and as far as the house of the mighty men. ¹⁷ After him the Levites repaired: Rehum the son of Bani. Next to him Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah, repaired for his district. ¹⁸ After him their brothers repaired: Bavvai the son of Henadad, ruler of half the district of Keilah. ¹⁹ Next to him Ezer the son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section opposite the ascent to the armory at ^(H)the buttress.^{[a] 20} After him Baruch the son of Zabbai repaired^[b] another section from the buttress to the door of the house of ^(I)Eliashib the high priest. ²¹ After him ^(J)Meremoth the son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz repaired another section from the door of the house of Eliashib to the end of the house of Eliashib. ²² After him the priests, the men of ^(K)the surrounding area, repaired. ²³ After them Benjamin and Hasshub repaired opposite their house. After them Azariah the son of Maaseiah, son of Ananiah repaired beside his own house. ²⁴ After him Binnui the son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to the buttress and to ^(L)the corner. ²⁵ Palal the son of Uzai repaired opposite the buttress and the tower projecting from the upper house of the king at ^(M)the court of the guard. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh ^26 (N)and the temple servants living on ^(O)Ophel repaired to a point opposite ^(P)the Water Gate on the east and the projecting tower. ²⁷ After him ^(Q)the Tekoites repaired another section opposite the great projecting tower as far as the wall of Ophel.

²⁸ Above ^(R)the Horse Gate the priests repaired, each one opposite his own house. ²⁹ After them Zadok the son of Immer repaired opposite his own house. After him Shemaiah the son of Shecaniah, the keeper of the East Gate, repaired. ³⁰ After him Hananiah the son of Shelemiah and Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph repaired another section. After him ^(S)Meshullam the son of Berechiah repaired opposite ^(T)his chamber. ³¹ After him Malchijah, one of the goldsmiths, repaired as far as the house of the temple servants and of the merchants, opposite the Muster Gate,^[c] and to the upper chamber of the corner. ³² And between the upper chamber of the corner and ^(U)the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and the merchants repaired.

Opposition to the Work

4 ^[d] Now when ^(V)Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. ² And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of ^(W)Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves?^[e] Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” ^3 (X)Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—^(Y)if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” ^4 (Z)Hear, O our God, for we are despised. ^(AA)Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. ^5 (AB)Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders.

⁶ So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

^7 [f] But when ^(AC)Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry. ^8 (AD)And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. ⁹ And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.

¹⁰ In Judah it was said,^[g] “The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to rebuild the wall.” ¹¹ And our enemies said, “They will not know or see till we come among them and kill them and stop the work.” ¹² At that time the Jews who lived near them came from all directions and said to us ten times, “You must return to us.”^{[h] 13} So in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. ¹⁴ And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, ^(AE)“Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, ^(AF)who is great and awesome, ^(AG)and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

The Work Resumes

¹⁵ When our enemies heard that it was known to us ^(AH)and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. ¹⁶ From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and ^(AI)coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah, ¹⁷ who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. ¹⁸ And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me. ¹⁹ And I said to ^(AJ)the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and widely spread, and we are separated on the wall, far from one another. ²⁰ In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. ^(AK)Our God will fight for us.”

²¹ So we labored at the work, and half of them held the spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out. ²² I also said to the people at that time, “Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day.” ²³ So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us took off our clothes; ^(AL)each kept his weapon at his right hand.^[i]

Nehemiah Stops Oppression of the Poor

5 Now there arose ^(AM)a great outcry of the people and of their wives ^(AN)against their Jewish brothers. ² For there were those who said, “With our sons and our daughters, we are many. So let us get grain, that we may eat and keep alive.” ³ There were also those who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine.” ⁴ And there were those who said, “We have borrowed money for ^(AO)the king's tax on our fields and our vineyards. ⁵ Now ^(AP)our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our children are as their children. Yet ^(AQ)we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards.”

⁶ I was very angry when I heard ^(AR)their outcry and these words. ⁷ I took counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them, ^(AS)“You are exacting interest, each from his brother.” And I held a great assembly against them ⁸ and said to them, “We, as far as we are able, ^(AT)have bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations, but you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us!” They were silent and could not find a word to say. ⁹ So I said, “The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk ^(AU)in the fear of our God ^(AV)to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies? ¹⁰ Moreover, I and my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. Let us abandon this exacting of interest. ¹¹ Return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards, and their houses, and the percentage of money, grain, wine, and oil that you have been exacting from them.” ¹² Then they said, “We will restore these and ^(AW)require nothing from them. We will do as you say.” And I called the priests and ^(AX)made them swear ^(AY)to do as they had promised. ^13 (AZ)I also shook out the fold^[j] of my garment and said, “So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied.” ^(BA)And all the assembly said “Amen” and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.

Blessed Are the Forgiven

A Maskil^[a] of David.