2 Chronicles 35 - Nehemiah 10

New King James Version

Josiah Keeps the Passover^(A)

35 Now ^(B)Josiah kept a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem, and they slaughtered the Passover lambs on the ^(C)fourteenth day of the first month. ² And he set the priests in their ^(D)duties and ^(E)encouraged them for the service of the house of the Lord. ³ Then he said to the Levites ^(F)who taught all Israel, who were holy to the Lord: ^(G)“Put the holy ark ^(H)in the house which Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built. ^(I)It shall no longer be a burden on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and His people Israel. ⁴ Prepare yourselves ^(J)according to your fathers’ ^[a]houses, according to your divisions, following the ^(K)written instruction of David king of Israel and the ^(L)written instruction of Solomon his son. ⁵ And ^(M)stand in the holy place according to the divisions of the fathers’ houses of your brethren the lay people, and according to the division of the father’s house of the Levites. ⁶ So slaughter the Passover offerings, ^(N)consecrate yourselves, and prepare them for your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.”

⁷ Then Josiah ^(O)gave the lay people lambs and young goats from the flock, all for Passover offerings for all who were present, to the number of thirty thousand, as well as three thousand cattle; these were from the king’s ^(P)possessions. ⁸ And his ^(Q)leaders gave willingly to the people, to the priests, and to the Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave to the priests for the Passover offerings two thousand six hundred from the flock, and three hundred cattle. ⁹ Also ^(R)Conaniah, his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave to the Levites for Passover offerings five thousand from the flock and five hundred cattle.

¹⁰ So the service was prepared, and the priests ^(S)stood in their places, and the ^(T)Levites in their divisions, according to the king’s command. ¹¹ And they slaughtered the Passover offerings; and the priests ^(U)sprinkled the blood with their hands, while the Levites ^(V)skinned the animals. ¹² Then they removed the burnt offerings that they might give them to the divisions of the fathers’ houses of the lay people, to offer to the Lord, as it is written ^(W)in the Book of Moses. And so they did with the cattle. ¹³ Also they ^(X)roasted the Passover offerings with fire according to the ordinance; but the other holy offerings they ^(Y)boiled in pots, in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them quickly among all the lay people. ¹⁴ Then afterward they prepared portions for themselves and for the priests, because the priests, the sons of Aaron, were busy in offering burnt offerings and fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared portions for themselves and for the priests, the sons of Aaron. ¹⁵ And the singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their places, according to the ^(Z)command of David, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun the king’s seer. Also the gatekeepers ^(AA)were at each gate; they did not have to leave their position, because their brethren the Levites prepared portions for them.

¹⁶ So all the service of the Lord was prepared the same day, to keep the Passover and to offer burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord, according to the command of King Josiah. ¹⁷ And the children of Israel who were present kept the Passover at that time, and the Feast of ^(AB)Unleavened Bread for seven days. ^18 (AC)There had been no Passover kept in Israel like that since the days of Samuel the prophet; and none of the kings of Israel had kept such a Passover as Josiah kept, with the priests and the Levites, all Judah and Israel who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁹ In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah this Passover was kept.

Josiah Dies in Battle^(AD)

^20 (AE)After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against ^(AF)Carchemish by the Euphrates; and Josiah went out against him. ²¹ But he sent messengers to him, saying, “What have I to do with you, king of Judah? I have not come against you this day, but against the house with which I have war; for God commanded me to make haste. Refrain from meddling with God, who is with me, lest He destroy you.” ²² Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but ^(AG)disguised himself so that he might fight with him, and did not heed the words of Necho from the mouth of God. So he came to fight in the Valley of Megiddo.

²³ And the archers shot King Josiah; and the king said to his servants, “Take me away, for I am severely wounded.” ^24 (AH)His servants therefore took him out of that chariot and put him in the second chariot that he had, and they brought him to Jerusalem. So he died, and was buried in one of the tombs of his fathers. And ^(AI)all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.

²⁵ Jeremiah also ^(AJ)lamented for ^(AK)Josiah. And to this day ^(AL)all the singing men and the singing women speak of Josiah in their lamentations. ^(AM)They made it a custom in Israel; and indeed they are written in the Laments.

²⁶ Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and his goodness, according to what was written in the Law of the Lord, ²⁷ and his deeds from first to last, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.

The Reign and Captivity of Jehoahaz^(AN)

36 Then ^(AO)the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and made him king in his father’s place in Jerusalem. ^2 [b]Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. ³ Now the king of Egypt deposed him at Jerusalem; and he imposed on the land a tribute of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. ⁴ Then the king of Egypt made ^[c]Jehoahaz’s brother Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. And Necho took ^[d]Jehoahaz his brother and carried him off to Egypt.

The Reign and Captivity of Jehoiakim^(AP)

^5 (AQ)Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And he did ^(AR)evil in the sight of the Lord his God. ^6 (AS)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against him, and bound him in ^[e]bronze fetters to ^(AT)carry him off to Babylon. ^7 (AU)Nebuchadnezzar also carried off some of the articles from the house of the Lord to Babylon, and put them in his temple at Babylon. ⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, the abominations which he did, and what was found against him, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. Then ^[f]Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place.

The Reign and Captivity of Jehoiachin^(AV)

^9 (AW)Jehoiachin was ^[g]eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months and ten days. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. ¹⁰ At the turn of the year ^(AX)King Nebuchadnezzar summoned him and took him to Babylon, ^(AY)with the costly articles from the house of the Lord, and made ^(AZ)Zedekiah,^{[h] [i]}Jehoiakim’s brother, king over Judah and Jerusalem.

Zedekiah Reigns in Judah^(BA)

^11 (BB)Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. ¹² He did evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and ^(BC)did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke from the mouth of the Lord. ¹³ And he also ^(BD)rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear an oath by God; but he ^(BE)stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord God of Israel. ¹⁴ Moreover all the leaders of the priests and the people transgressed more and more, according to all the abominations of the nations, and defiled the house of the Lord which He had consecrated in Jerusalem.

The Fall of Jerusalem^(BF)

^15 (BG)And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. ¹⁶ But ^(BH)they mocked the messengers of God, ^(BI)despised His words, and ^(BJ)scoffed at His prophets, until the ^(BK)wrath of the Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy.

^17 (BL)Therefore He brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, who ^(BM)killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak; He gave them all into his hand. ^18 (BN)And all the articles from the house of God, great and small, the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king and of his leaders, all these he took to Babylon. ^19 (BO)Then they burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious possessions. ²⁰ And ^(BP)those who escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, ^(BQ)where they became servants to him and his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, ²¹ to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of ^(BR)Jeremiah, until the land ^(BS)had enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate ^(BT)she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.

The Proclamation of Cyrus^(BU)

^22 (BV)Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of ^(BW)Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of ^(BX)Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,

End of the Babylonian Captivity^(BZ)

1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord ^(CA)by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, ^(CB)so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,

⁵ Then the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, with all whose spirits ^(CE)God ^[l]had moved, arose to go up and build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem. ⁶ And all those who were around them ^[m]encouraged them with articles of silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with precious things, besides all that was ^(CF)willingly offered.

^7 (CG)King Cyrus also brought out the articles of the house of the Lord, ^(CH)which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem and put in the ^[n]temple of his gods; ⁸ and Cyrus king of Persia brought them out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and counted them out to ^(CI)Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. ⁹ This is the number of them: thirty gold platters, one thousand silver platters, twenty-nine knives, ¹⁰ thirty gold basins, four hundred and ten silver basins of a similar kind, and one thousand other articles. ¹¹ All the articles of gold and silver were five thousand four hundred. All these Sheshbazzar took with the captives who were brought from Babylon to Jerusalem.

The Captives Who Returned to Jerusalem^(CJ)

2 Now ^(CK)these are the people of the province who came back from the captivity, of those who had been carried away, ^(CL)whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away to Babylon, and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, everyone to his own city.

² Those who came with Zerubbabel were Jeshua, Nehemiah, ^[o]Seraiah, ^[p]Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, ^[q]Mispar, Bigvai, ^[r]Rehum, and Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel: ³ the people of Parosh, two thousand one hundred and seventy-two; ⁴ the people of Shephatiah, three hundred and seventy-two; ⁵ the people of Arah, ^(CM)seven hundred and seventy-five; ⁶ the people of ^(CN)Pahath-Moab, of the people of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and twelve; ⁷ the people of Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four; ⁸ the people of Zattu, nine hundred and forty-five; ⁹ the people of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty; ¹⁰ the people of ^[s]Bani, six hundred and forty-two; ¹¹ the people of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-three; ¹² the people of Azgad, one thousand two hundred and twenty-two; ¹³ the people of Adonikam, six hundred and sixty-six; ¹⁴ the people of Bigvai, two thousand and fifty-six; ¹⁵ the people of Adin, four hundred and fifty-four; ¹⁶ the people of Ater of Hezekiah, ninety-eight; ¹⁷ the people of Bezai, three hundred and twenty-three; ¹⁸ the people of ^[t]Jorah, one hundred and twelve; ¹⁹ the people of Hashum, two hundred and twenty-three; ²⁰ the people of ^[u]Gibbar, ninety-five; ²¹ the people of Bethlehem, one hundred and twenty-three; ²² the men of Netophah, fifty-six; ²³ the men of Anathoth, one hundred and twenty-eight; ²⁴ the people of ^[v]Azmaveth, forty-two; ²⁵ the people of ^[w]Kirjath Arim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty-three; ²⁶ the people of Ramah and Geba, six hundred and twenty-one; ²⁷ the men of Michmas, one hundred and twenty-two; ²⁸ the men of Bethel and Ai, two hundred and twenty-three; ²⁹ the people of Nebo, fifty-two; ³⁰ the people of Magbish, one hundred and fifty-six; ³¹ the people of the other ^(CO)Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four; ³² the people of Harim, three hundred and twenty; ³³ the people of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-five; ³⁴ the people of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five; ³⁵ the people of Senaah, three thousand six hundred and thirty.

³⁶ The priests: the sons of ^(CP)Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred and seventy-three; ³⁷ the sons of ^(CQ)Immer, one thousand and fifty-two; ³⁸ the sons of ^(CR)Pashhur, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven; ³⁹ the sons of ^(CS)Harim, one thousand and seventeen.

⁴⁰ The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the sons of ^[x]Hodaviah, seventy-four.

⁴¹ The singers: the sons of Asaph, one hundred and twenty-eight.

⁴² The sons of the gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, and the sons of Shobai, one hundred and thirty-nine in all.

^43 (CT)The Nethinim: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth, ⁴⁴ the sons of Keros, the sons of ^[y]Siaha, the sons of Padon, ⁴⁵ the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of Akkub, ⁴⁶ the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shalmai, the sons of Hanan, ⁴⁷ the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, the sons of Reaiah, ⁴⁸ the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Gazzam, ⁴⁹ the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Besai, ⁵⁰ the sons of Asnah, the sons of Meunim, the sons of ^[z]Nephusim, ⁵¹ the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur, ⁵² the sons of ^[aa]Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha, ⁵³ the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Tamah, ⁵⁴ the sons of Neziah, and the sons of Hatipha.

⁵⁵ The sons of ^(CU)Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of ^(CV)Sophereth, the sons of ^[ab]Peruda, ⁵⁶ the sons of Jaala, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel, ⁵⁷ the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth of Zebaim, and the sons of ^[ac]Ami. ⁵⁸ All the ^(CW)Nethinim and the children of ^(CX)Solomon’s servants were three hundred and ninety-two.

⁵⁹ And these were the ones who came up from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Cherub, ^[ad]Addan, and Immer; but they could not ^[ae]identify their father’s house or their ^[af]genealogy, whether they were of Israel: ⁶⁰ the sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, and the sons of Nekoda, six hundred and fifty-two; ⁶¹ and of the sons of the priests: the sons of ^(CY)Habaiah, the sons of ^[ag]Koz, and the sons of ^(CZ)Barzillai, who took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called by their name. ⁶² These sought their listing among those who were registered by genealogy, but they were not found; ^(DA)therefore they were excluded from the priesthood as defiled. ⁶³ And the ^[ah]governor said to them that they ^(DB)should not eat of the most holy things till a priest could consult with the ^(DC)Urim and Thummim.

^64 (DD)The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty, ⁶⁵ besides their male and female servants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred men and women singers. ⁶⁶ Their horses were seven hundred and thirty-six, their mules two hundred and forty-five, ⁶⁷ their camels four hundred and thirty-five, and their donkeys six thousand seven hundred and twenty.

^68 (DE)Some of the heads of the fathers’ houses, when they came to the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem, offered freely for the house of God, to erect it in its place: ⁶⁹ According to their ability, they gave to the ^(DF)treasury for the work sixty-one thousand gold drachmas, five thousand minas of silver, and one hundred priestly garments.

^70 (DG)So the priests and the Levites, some of the people, the singers, the gatekeepers, and the Nethinim, dwelt in their cities, and all Israel in their cities.

Worship Restored at Jerusalem

3 And when the ^(DH)seventh month had come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered together as one man to Jerusalem. ² Then ^[ai]Jeshua the son of ^(DI)Jozadak^[aj] and his brethren the priests, ^(DJ)and Zerubbabel the son of ^(DK)Shealtiel and his brethren, arose and built the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings on it, as it is ^(DL)written in the Law of Moses the man of God. ³ Though fear had come upon them because of the people of those countries, they set the altar on its ^[ak]bases; and they offered ^(DM)burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening burnt offerings. ^4 (DN)They also kept the Feast of Tabernacles, ^(DO)as it is written, and ^(DP)offered the daily burnt offerings in the number required by ordinance for each day. ⁵ Afterwards they offered the ^(DQ)regular burnt offering, and those for New Moons and for all the appointed feasts of the Lord that were consecrated, and those of everyone who willingly offered a freewill offering to the Lord. ⁶ From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, although the foundation of the temple of the Lord had not been laid. ⁷ They also gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and ^(DR)food, drink, and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre to bring cedar logs from Lebanon to the sea, to ^(DS)Joppa, ^(DT)according to the permission which they had from Cyrus king of Persia.

Restoration of the Temple Begins

⁸ Now in the second month of the second year of their coming to the house of God at Jerusalem, ^(DU)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, Jeshua the son of ^[al]Jozadak, and the rest of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all those who had come out of the captivity to Jerusalem, began work ^(DV)and appointed the Levites from twenty years old and above to oversee the work of the house of the Lord. ⁹ Then Jeshua with his sons and brothers, Kadmiel with his sons, and the sons of ^[am]Judah, arose as one to oversee those working on the house of God: the sons of Henadad with their sons and their brethren the Levites.

¹⁰ When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, ^(DW)the^[an] priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the Lord, according to the ^(DX)ordinance^[ao] of David king of Israel. ^11 (DY)And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord:

Then all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid.

¹² But many of the priests and Levites and ^(EB)heads of the fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first temple, wept with a loud voice when the foundation of this temple was laid before their eyes. Yet many shouted aloud for joy, ¹³ so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people, for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the sound was heard afar off.

Resistance to Rebuilding the Temple

4 Now when ^(EC)the ^[ap]adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the descendants of the captivity were building the temple of the Lord God of Israel, ² they came to Zerubbabel and the heads of the fathers’ houses, and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we seek your God as you do; and we have sacrificed to Him ^(ED)since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.” ³ But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of the heads of the fathers’ houses of Israel said to them, ^(EE)“You may do nothing with us to build a ^[aq]house for our God; but we alone will build to the Lord God of Israel, as ^(EF)King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.” ⁴ Then ^(EG)the people of the land tried to discourage the people of Judah. They troubled them in building, ⁵ and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of ^(EH)Darius king of Persia.

Rebuilding of Jerusalem Opposed

⁶ In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.

⁷ In the days of ^(EI)Artaxerxes also, ^[ar]Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabel, and the rest of their companions wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the letter was written in ^(EJ)Aramaic script, and translated into the Aramaic language. ^8 [as]Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes in this fashion:

¹¹ (This is a copy of the letter that they sent him.)

¹⁷ The king sent an answer:

²³ Now when the copy of King Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem against the Jews, and by force of arms made them cease. ²⁴ Thus the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem ceased, and it was discontinued until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Restoration of the Temple Resumed^(ES)

5 Then the prophet ^(ET)Haggai and ^(EU)Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophets, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. ² So ^(EV)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of ^[bb]Jozadak rose up and began to build the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and ^(EW)the prophets of God were with them, helping them.

³ At the same time ^(EX)Tattenai the governor of the region beyond ^[bc]the River and Shethar-Boznai and their companions came to them and spoke thus to them: ^(EY)“Who has commanded you to build this ^[bd]temple and finish this wall?” ^4 (EZ)Then, accordingly, we told them the names of the men who were constructing this building. ⁵ But ^(FA)the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, so that they could not make them cease till a report could go to Darius. Then a ^(FB)written answer was returned concerning this matter. ⁶ This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai sent:

⁷ (They sent a letter to him, in which was written thus.)

The Decree of Darius

6 Then King Darius issued a decree, ^(FO)and a search was made in the ^[bi]archives, where the treasures were stored in Babylon. ² And at ^[bj]Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of ^(FP)Media, a scroll was found, and in it a record was written thus:

The Temple Completed and Dedicated

¹³ Then Tattenai, governor of the region beyond the River, Shethar-Boznai, and their companions diligently did according to what King Darius had sent. ^14 (FY)So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the ^[bm]command of ^(FZ)Cyrus, ^(GA)Darius, and ^(GB)Artaxerxes king of Persia. ¹⁵ Now the temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. ¹⁶ Then the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites and the rest of the descendants of the captivity, celebrated ^(GC)the dedication of this ^[bn]house of God with joy. ¹⁷ And they ^(GD)offered sacrifices at the dedication of this house of God, one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel twelve male goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. ¹⁸ They assigned the priests to their ^(GE)divisions and the Levites to their ^(GF)divisions, over the service of God in Jerusalem, ^(GG)as it is written in the Book of Moses.

The Passover Celebrated^(GH)

^19 [bo]And the descendants of the captivity kept the Passover ^(GI)on the fourteenth day of the first month. ²⁰ For the priests and the Levites had ^(GJ)purified themselves; all of them were ritually clean. And they ^(GK)slaughtered the Passover lambs for all the descendants of the captivity, for their brethren the priests, and for themselves. ²¹ Then the children of Israel who had returned from the captivity ate together with all who had separated themselves from the ^(GL)filth^[bp] of the nations of the land in order to seek the Lord God of Israel. ²² And they kept the ^(GM)Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy; for the Lord made them joyful, and ^(GN)turned the heart ^(GO)of the king of Assyria toward them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.

The Arrival of Ezra

7 Now after these things, in the reign of ^(GP)Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the ^(GQ)son of Seraiah, ^(GR)the son of Azariah, the son of ^(GS)Hilkiah, ² the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub, ³ the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, ⁴ the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki, ⁵ the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest— ⁶ this Ezra came up from Babylon; and he was ^(GT)a skilled scribe in the Law of Moses, which the Lord God of Israel had given. The king granted him all his request, ^(GU)according to the hand of the Lord his God upon him. ^7 (GV)Some of the children of Israel, the priests, ^(GW)the Levites, the singers, the gatekeepers, and ^(GX)the Nethinim came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. ⁸ And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. ⁹ On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, ^(GY)according to the good hand of his God upon him. ¹⁰ For Ezra had prepared his heart to ^(GZ)seek^[bq] the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to ^(HA)teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.

The Letter of Artaxerxes to Ezra

¹¹ This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra the priest, the scribe, expert in the words of the commandments of the Lord, and of His statutes to Israel:

^27 (HL)Blessed^[by] be the Lord God of our fathers, ^(HM)who has put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to beautify the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem, ²⁸ and ^(HN)has extended mercy to me before the king and his counselors, and before all the king’s mighty princes.

So I was encouraged, as ^(HO)the hand of the Lord my God was upon me; and I gathered leading men of Israel to go up with me.

Heads of Families Who Returned with Ezra

8 These are the heads of their fathers’ houses, and this is the genealogy of those who went up with me from Babylon, in the reign of King Artaxerxes: ² of the sons of Phinehas, Gershom; of the sons of Ithamar, Daniel; of the sons of David, ^(HP)Hattush; ³ of the sons of Shecaniah, of the sons of ^(HQ)Parosh, Zechariah; and registered with him were one hundred and fifty males; ⁴ of the sons of ^(HR)Pahath-Moab, Eliehoenai the son of Zerahiah, and with him two hundred males; ⁵ of ^[bz]the sons of Shechaniah, Ben-Jahaziel, and with him three hundred males; ⁶ of the sons of Adin, Ebed the son of Jonathan, and with him fifty males; ⁷ of the sons of Elam, Jeshaiah the son of Athaliah, and with him seventy males; ⁸ of the sons of Shephatiah, Zebadiah the son of Michael, and with him eighty males; ⁹ of the sons of Joab, Obadiah the son of Jehiel, and with him two hundred and eighteen males; ¹⁰ of ^[ca]the sons of Shelomith, Ben-Josiphiah, and with him one hundred and sixty males; ¹¹ of the sons of ^(HS)Bebai, Zechariah the son of Bebai, and with him twenty-eight males; ¹² of the sons of Azgad, Johanan ^[cb]the son of Hakkatan, and with him one hundred and ten males; ¹³ of the last sons of Adonikam, whose names are these—Eliphelet, Jeiel, and Shemaiah—and with them sixty males; ¹⁴ also of the sons of Bigvai, Uthai and ^[cc]Zabbud, and with them seventy males.

Servants for the Temple

¹⁵ Now I gathered them by the river that flows to Ahava, and we camped there three days. And I looked among the people and the priests, and found none of the ^(HT)sons of Levi there. ¹⁶ Then I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and ^(HU)Meshullam, leaders; also for Joiarib and Elnathan, men of understanding. ¹⁷ And I gave them a command for Iddo the chief man at the place Casiphia, and ^[cd]I told them what they should say to ^[ce]Iddo and his brethren the Nethinim at the place Casiphia—that they should bring us servants for the house of our God. ¹⁸ Then, by the good hand of our God upon us, they ^(HV)brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli the son of Levi, the son of Israel, namely Sherebiah, with his sons and brothers, eighteen men; ¹⁹ and ^(HW)Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari, his brothers and their sons, twenty men; ^20 (HX)also of the Nethinim, whom David and the leaders had appointed for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethinim. All of them were designated by name.

Fasting and Prayer for Protection

²¹ Then I ^(HY)proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might ^(HZ)humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the ^(IA)right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions. ²² For ^(IB)I was ashamed to request of the king an escort of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the road, because we had spoken to the king, saying, ^(IC)“The hand of our God is upon all those for ^(ID)good who seek Him, but His power and His wrath are ^(IE)against all those who ^(IF)forsake Him.” ²³ So we fasted and entreated our God for this, and He ^(IG)answered our prayer.

Gifts for the Temple

²⁴ And I separated twelve of the leaders of the priests—Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brethren with them— ²⁵ and weighed out to them ^(IH)the silver, the gold, and the articles, the offering for the house of our God which the king and his counselors and his princes, and all Israel who were present, had offered. ²⁶ I weighed into their hand six hundred and fifty talents of silver, silver articles weighing one hundred talents, one hundred talents of gold, ²⁷ twenty gold basins worth a thousand drachmas, and two vessels of fine polished bronze, precious as gold. ²⁸ And I said to them, “You are ^(II)holy^[cf] to the Lord; the articles are ^(IJ)holy also; and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the Lord God of your fathers. ²⁹ Watch and keep them until you weigh them before the leaders of the priests and the Levites and ^(IK)heads of the fathers’ houses of Israel in Jerusalem, in the chambers of the house of the Lord.” ³⁰ So the priests and the Levites received the silver and the gold and the articles by weight, to bring them to Jerusalem to the house of our God.

The Return to Jerusalem

³¹ Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. And ^(IL)the hand of our God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambush along the road. ³² So we ^(IM)came to Jerusalem, and stayed there three days.

³³ Now on the fourth day the silver and the gold and the articles were ^(IN)weighed in the house of our God by the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest, and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas; with them were the Levites, ^(IO)Jozabad the son of Jeshua and Noadiah the son of Binnui, ³⁴ with the number and weight of everything. All the weight was written down at that time.

³⁵ The children of those who had been ^(IP)carried away captive, who had come from the captivity, ^(IQ)offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and twelve male goats as a sin offering. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord.

³⁶ And they delivered the king’s ^(IR)orders to the king’s satraps and the governors in the region beyond ^[cg]the River. So they gave support to the people and the ^[ch]house of God.

Intermarriage with Pagans

9 When these things were done, the leaders came to me, saying, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not ^(IS)separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, ^(IT)with respect to the abominations of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. ² For they have ^(IU)taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the ^(IV)holy seed is ^(IW)mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this ^[ci]trespass.” ³ So when I heard this thing, ^(IX)I tore my garment and my robe, and plucked out some of the hair of my head and beard, and sat down ^(IY)astonished. ⁴ Then everyone who ^(IZ)trembled at the words of the God of Israel assembled to me, because of the transgression of those who had been carried away captive, and I sat astonished until the ^(JA)evening sacrifice.

⁵ At the evening sacrifice I arose from my fasting; and having torn my garment and my robe, I fell on my knees and ^(JB)spread out my hands to the Lord my God. ⁶ And I said: “O my God, I am too ^(JC)ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my God; for ^(JD)our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has ^(JE)grown up to the heavens. ⁷ Since the days of our fathers to this day ^(JF)we have been very guilty, and for our iniquities ^(JG)we, our kings, and our priests have been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the ^(JH)sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to ^(JI)humiliation,^[cj] as it is this day. ⁸ And now for a little while grace has been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may ^(JJ)enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage. ^9 (JK)For we were slaves. ^(JL)Yet our God did not forsake us in our bondage; but ^(JM)He extended mercy to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to revive us, to repair the house of our God, to rebuild its ruins, and to give us ^(JN)a wall in Judah and Jerusalem. ¹⁰ And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken Your commandments, ¹¹ which You commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land which you are entering to possess is an unclean land, with the ^(JO)uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations which have filled it from one end to another with their impurity. ¹² Now therefore, ^(JP)do not give your daughters as wives for their sons, nor take their daughters to your sons; and ^(JQ)never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land, and ^(JR)leave it as an inheritance to your children forever.’ ¹³ And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, since You our God ^(JS)have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and have given us such deliverance as this, ¹⁴ should we ^(JT)again break Your commandments, and ^(JU)join in marriage with the people committing these abominations? Would You not be ^(JV)angry with us until You had ^[ck]consumed us, so that there would be no remnant or survivor? ¹⁵ O Lord God of Israel, ^(JW)You are righteous, for we are left as a remnant, as it is this day. ^(JX)Here we are before You, ^(JY)in our guilt, though no one can stand before You because of this!”

Confession of Improper Marriages

10 Now ^(JZ)while Ezra was praying, and while he was confessing, weeping, and bowing down ^(KA)before the house of God, a very large assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept very ^(KB)bitterly. ² And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, spoke up and said to Ezra, “We have ^(KC)trespassed^[cl] against our God, and have taken pagan wives from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope in Israel in spite of this. ³ Now therefore, let us make ^(KD)a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and those who have been born to them, according to the advice of my master and of those who ^(KE)tremble at ^(KF)the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the ^(KG)law. ⁴ Arise, for this matter is your responsibility. We also are with you. ^(KH)Be of good courage, and do it.”

⁵ Then Ezra arose, and made the leaders of the priests, the Levites, and all Israel ^(KI)swear an oath that they would do according to this word. So they swore an oath. ⁶ Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib; and when he came there, he ^(KJ)ate no bread and drank no water, for he mourned because of the guilt of those from the captivity.

⁷ And they issued a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the descendants of the captivity, that they must gather at Jerusalem, ⁸ and that whoever would not come within three days, according to the instructions of the leaders and elders, all his property would be confiscated, and he himself would be separated from the assembly of those from the captivity.

⁹ So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth of the month; and ^(KK)all the people sat in the open square of the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of heavy rain. ¹⁰ Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have ^[cm]transgressed and ^[cn]have taken pagan wives, adding to the guilt of Israel. ¹¹ Now therefore, ^(KL)make confession to the Lord God of your fathers, and do His will; ^(KM)separate yourselves from the peoples of the land, and from the pagan wives.”

¹² Then all the assembly answered and said with a loud voice, “Yes! As you have said, so we must do. ¹³ But there are many people; it is the season for heavy rain, and we are not able to stand outside. Nor is this the work of one or two days, for there are many of us who have transgressed in this matter. ¹⁴ Please, let the leaders of our entire assembly stand; and let all those in our cities who have taken pagan wives come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of their cities, until ^(KN)the fierce wrath of our God is turned away from us in this matter.” ¹⁵ Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the son of Tikvah opposed this, and ^(KO)Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite gave them support.

¹⁶ Then the descendants of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain ^(KP)heads of the fathers’ households, were set apart by the fathers’ households, each of them by name; and they sat down on the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter. ¹⁷ By the first day of the first month they finished questioning all the men who had taken pagan wives.

Pagan Wives Put Away

¹⁸ And among the sons of the priests who had taken pagan wives the following were found of the sons of ^(KQ)Jeshua the son of ^[co]Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah. ¹⁹ And they ^(KR)gave their promise that they would put away their wives; and being ^(KS)guilty, they presented a ram of the flock as their ^(KT)trespass offering.

²⁰ Also of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Zebadiah; ²¹ of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah; ²² of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.

²³ Also of the Levites: Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (the same is Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.

²⁴ Also of the singers: Eliashib; and of the gatekeepers: Shallum, Telem, and Uri.

²⁵ And others of Israel: of the ^(KU)sons of Parosh: Ramiah, Jeziah, Malchiah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malchijah, and Benaiah; ²⁶ of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Eliah; ²⁷ of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza; ²⁸ of the ^(KV)sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai; ²⁹ of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and ^[cp]Ramoth; ³⁰ of the ^(KW)sons of Pahath-Moab: Adna, Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh; ³¹ of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Ishijah, Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, ³² Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah; ³³ of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei; ³⁴ of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, Uel, ³⁵ Benaiah, Bedeiah, ^[cq]Cheluh, ³⁶ Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, ³⁷ Mattaniah, Mattenai, ^[cr]Jaasai, ³⁸ Bani, Binnui, Shimei, ³⁹ Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah, ⁴⁰ Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, ⁴¹ Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah, ⁴² Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph; ⁴³ of the sons of Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, ^[cs]Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.

⁴⁴ All these had taken pagan wives, and some of them had wives by whom they had children.

Nehemiah Prays for His People

1 The words of ^(KX)Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah.

It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the ^(KY)twentieth year, as I was in ^(KZ)Shushan^[ct] the ^[cu]citadel, ² that ^(LA)Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. ³ And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the ^(LB)province are there in great distress and ^(LC)reproach. ^(LD)The wall of Jerusalem ^(LE)is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”

⁴ So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

⁵ And I said: “I pray, ^(LF)Lord God of heaven, O great and ^(LG)awesome God, ^(LH)You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love ^[cv]You and observe ^[cw]Your commandments, ⁶ please let Your ear be attentive and ^(LI)Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and ^(LJ)confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. ^7 (LK)We have acted very corruptly against You, and have ^(LL)not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. ⁸ Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ^(LM)‘If you ^[cx]are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; ^9 (LN)but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, ^(LO)though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.’ ^10 (LP)Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. ¹¹ O Lord, I pray, please ^(LQ)let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who ^(LR)desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.”

For I was the king’s ^(LS)cupbearer.

Nehemiah Sent to Judah

2 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of ^(LT)King ^[cy]Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that ^(LU)I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before. ² Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but ^(LV)sorrow of heart.”

So I became ^[cz]dreadfully afraid, ³ and said to the king, ^(LW)“May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when ^(LX)the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with ^(LY)fire?”

⁴ Then the king said to me, “What do you request?”

So I ^(LZ)prayed to the God of heaven. ⁵ And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.”

⁶ Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him ^(MA)a time.

⁷ Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the ^(MB)governors of the region beyond ^[da]the River, that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah, ⁸ and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the ^[db]citadel which pertains ^(MC)to the ^[dc]temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me ^(MD)according to the good hand of my God upon me.

⁹ Then I went to the governors in the region beyond the River, and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me. ¹⁰ When ^(ME)Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite ^[dd]official heard of it, they were deeply disturbed that a man had come to seek the well-being of the children of Israel.

Nehemiah Views the Wall of Jerusalem

¹¹ So I ^(MF)came to Jerusalem and was there three days. ¹² Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; nor was there any animal with me, except the one on which I rode. ¹³ And I went out by night ^(MG)through the Valley Gate to the Serpent Well and the ^[de]Refuse Gate, and ^[df]viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were ^(MH)broken down and its gates which were burned with fire. ¹⁴ Then I went on to the ^(MI)Fountain Gate and to the ^(MJ)King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal under me to pass. ¹⁵ So I went up in the night by the ^(MK)valley,^[dg] and ^[dh]viewed the wall; then I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned. ¹⁶ And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the others who did the work.

¹⁷ Then I said to them, “You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies ^[di]waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come and let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer be ^(ML)a reproach.” ¹⁸ And I told them of ^(MM)the hand of my God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me.

So they said, “Let us rise up and build.” Then they ^(MN)set^[dj] their hands to this good work.

¹⁹ But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? ^(MO)Will you rebel against the king?”

²⁰ So I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, ^(MP)but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.”

Rebuilding the Wall

3 Then ^(MQ)Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests ^(MR)and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. They built ^(MS)as far as the Tower of ^[dk]the Hundred, and consecrated it, then as far as the Tower of ^(MT)Hananel. ^2 [dl]Next to Eliashib ^(MU)the men of Jericho built. And next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built.

³ Also the sons of Hassenaah built ^(MV)the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and ^(MW)hung its doors with its bolts and bars. ⁴ And next to them ^(MX)Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of ^[dm]Koz, made repairs. Next to them ^(MY)Meshullam the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs. Next to them Zadok the son of Baana made repairs. ⁵ Next to them the Tekoites made repairs; but their nobles did not put their ^[dn]shoulders to ^(MZ)the work of their Lord.

⁶ Moreover Jehoiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired ^(NA)the Old Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors, with its bolts and bars. ⁷ And next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite, Jadon the Meronothite, the ^(NB)men of Gibeon and Mizpah, repaired the ^(NC)residence^[do] of the governor of the region ^[dp]beyond the River. ⁸ Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs. Also next to him Hananiah, ^[dq]one of the perfumers, made repairs; and they ^[dr]fortified Jerusalem as far as the ^(ND)Broad Wall. ⁹ And next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, leader of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. ¹⁰ Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph made repairs in front of his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabniah made repairs.

¹¹ Malchijah the son of Harim and Hashub the son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section, ^(NE)as well as the Tower of the Ovens. ¹² And next to him was Shallum the son of Hallohesh, leader of half the district of Jerusalem; he and his daughters made repairs.

¹³ Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired ^(NF)the Valley Gate. They built it, hung its doors with its bolts and bars, and repaired a thousand cubits of the wall as far as ^(NG)the Refuse Gate.

¹⁴ Malchijah the son of Rechab, leader of the district of ^(NH)Beth Haccerem, repaired the Refuse Gate; he built it and hung its doors with its bolts and bars.

¹⁵ Shallun the son of Col-Hozeh, leader of the district of Mizpah, repaired ^(NI)the Fountain Gate; he built it, covered it, hung its doors with its bolts and bars, and repaired the wall of the Pool of ^(NJ)Shelah^[ds] by the ^(NK)King’s Garden, as far as the stairs that go down from the City of David. ¹⁶ After him Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, leader of half the district of Beth Zur, made repairs as far as the place in front of the ^[dt]tombs of David, to the ^(NL)man-made pool, and as far as the House of the Mighty.

¹⁷ After him the Levites, under Rehum the son of Bani, made repairs. Next to him Hashabiah, leader of half the district of Keilah, made repairs for his district. ¹⁸ After him their brethren, under ^[du]Bavai the son of Henadad, leader of the other half of the district of Keilah, made repairs. ¹⁹ And next to him Ezer the son of Jeshua, the leader of Mizpah, repaired another section in front of the Ascent to the Armory at the ^(NM)buttress.^{[dv] 20} After him Baruch the son of ^[dw]Zabbai carefully repaired the other section, from the ^[dx]buttress to the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest. ²¹ After him Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of ^[dy]Koz, repaired another section, from the door of the house of Eliashib to the end of the house of Eliashib.

²² And after him the priests, the men of the plain, made repairs. ²³ After him Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs opposite their house. After them Azariah the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, made repairs by his house. ²⁴ After him ^(NN)Binnui the son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to ^(NO)the ^[dz]buttress, even as far as the corner. ²⁵ Palal the son of Uzai made repairs opposite the ^[ea]buttress, and on the tower which projects from the king’s upper house that was by the ^(NP)court of the prison. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh made repairs.

²⁶ Moreover ^(NQ)the Nethinim who dwelt in ^(NR)Ophel made repairs as far as the place in front of ^(NS)the Water Gate toward the east, and on the projecting tower. ²⁷ After them the Tekoites repaired another section, next to the great projecting tower, and as far as the wall of Ophel.

²⁸ Beyond the ^(NT)Horse Gate the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house. ²⁹ After them Zadok the son of Immer made repairs in front of his own house. After him Shemaiah the son of Shechaniah, the keeper of the East Gate, made repairs. ³⁰ After him Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. After him Meshullam the son of Berechiah made repairs in front of his ^[eb]dwelling. ³¹ After him Malchijah, ^[ec]one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the Nethinim and of the merchants, in front of the ^[ed]Miphkad Gate, and as far as the upper room at the corner. ³² And between the upper room at the corner, as far as the ^(NU)Sheep Gate, the goldsmiths and the merchants made repairs.

The Wall Defended Against Enemies

4 But it so happened, ^(NV)when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, that he was furious and very indignant, and mocked the Jews. ² And he spoke before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they fortify themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Will they revive the stones from the heaps of rubbish—stones that are burned?”

³ Now ^(NW)Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall.”

^4 (NX)Hear, O our God, for we are despised; ^(NY)turn their reproach on their own heads, and give them as plunder to a land of captivity! ^5 (NZ)Do not cover their iniquity, and do not let their sin be blotted out from before You; for they have provoked You to anger before the builders.

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

⁷ Now it happened, ^(OA)when Sanballat, Tobiah, ^(OB)the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the ^[ee]gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry, ⁸ and all of them ^(OC)conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion. ⁹ Nevertheless ^(OD)we made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.

¹⁰ Then Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is failing, and there is so much rubbish that we are not able to build the wall.”

¹¹ And our adversaries said, “They will neither know nor see anything, till we come into their midst and kill them and cause the work to cease.”

¹² So it was, when the Jews who dwelt near them came, that they told us ten times, “From whatever place you turn, they will be upon us.”

¹³ Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall, at the openings; and I set the people according to their families, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. ¹⁴ And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, ^(OE)“Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, ^(OF)great and awesome, and ^(OG)fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

¹⁵ And it happened, when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and ^(OH)that God had brought their plot to nothing, that all of us returned to the wall, everyone to his work. ¹⁶ So it was, from that time on, that half of my servants worked at construction, while the other half held the spears, the shields, the bows, and wore armor; and the leaders ^[ef]were behind all the house of Judah. ¹⁷ Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon. ¹⁸ Every one of the builders had his sword girded at his side as he built. And the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me.

¹⁹ Then I said to the nobles, the rulers, and the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated far from one another on the wall. ²⁰ Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. ^(OI)Our God will fight for us.”

²¹ So we labored in the work, and half of ^[eg]the men held the spears from daybreak until the stars appeared. ²² At the same time I also said to the people, “Let each man and his servant stay at night in Jerusalem, that they may be our guard by night and a working party by day.” ²³ So neither I, my brethren, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me took off our clothes, except that everyone took them off for washing.

Nehemiah Deals with Oppression

5 And there was a great ^(OJ)outcry of the people and their wives against their ^(OK)Jewish brethren. ² For there were those who said, “We, our sons, and our daughters are many; therefore let us get grain, that we may eat and live.”

³ There were also some who said, “We have mortgaged our lands and vineyards and houses, that we might buy grain because of the famine.”

⁴ There were also those who said, “We have borrowed money for the king’s tax on our lands and vineyards. ⁵ Yet now ^(OL)our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children; and indeed we ^(OM)are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have been brought into slavery. It is not in our power to redeem them, for other men have our lands and vineyards.”

⁶ And I became very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. ⁷ After serious thought, I rebuked the nobles and rulers, and said to them, ^(ON)“Each of you is ^[eh]exacting usury from his brother.” So I ^[ei]called a great assembly against them. ⁸ And I said to them, “According to our ability we have ^(OO)redeemed our Jewish brethren who were sold to the nations. Now indeed, will you even sell your brethren? Or should they be sold to us?”

Then they were silenced and found nothing to say. ⁹ Then I said, “What you are doing is not good. Should you not walk ^(OP)in the fear of our God ^(OQ)because of the reproach of the nations, our enemies? ¹⁰ I also, with my brethren and my servants, am lending them money and grain. Please, let us stop this ^[ej]usury! ¹¹ Restore now to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their olive groves, and their houses, also a hundredth of the money and the grain, the new wine and the oil, that you have charged them.”

¹² So they said, “We will restore it, and will require nothing from them; we will do as you say.”

Then I called the priests, ^(OR)and required an oath from them that they would do according to this promise. ¹³ Then ^(OS)I shook out ^[ek]the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out each man from his house, and from his property, who does not perform this promise. Even thus may he be shaken out and emptied.”

And all the assembly said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord. ^(OT)Then the people did according to this promise.

The Generosity of Nehemiah

¹⁴ Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year ^(OU)until the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ^(OV)ate the governor’s provisions. ¹⁵ But the former governors who were before me laid burdens on the people, and took from them bread and wine, besides forty shekels of silver. Yes, even their servants bore rule over the people, but ^(OW)I did not do so, because of the ^(OX)fear of God. ¹⁶ Indeed, I also continued the ^(OY)work on this wall, and ^[el]we did not buy any land. All my servants were gathered there for the work.

¹⁷ And ^(OZ)at my table were one hundred and fifty Jews and rulers, besides those who came to us from the nations around us. ¹⁸ Now that ^(PA)which was prepared daily was one ox and six choice sheep. Also fowl were prepared for me, and once every ten days an abundance of all kinds of wine. Yet in spite of this ^(PB)I did not demand the governor’s provisions, because the bondage was heavy on this people.

^19 (PC)Remember me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.

Conspiracy Against Nehemiah

6 Now it happened ^(PD)when Sanballat, Tobiah, ^[em]Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall, and that there were no breaks left in it ^(PE)(though at that time I had not hung the doors in the gates), ² that Sanballat and ^[en]Geshem ^(PF)sent to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together ^[eo]among the villages in the plain of ^(PG)Ono.” But they ^(PH)thought to do me harm.

³ So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?”

⁴ But they sent me this message four times, and I answered them in the same manner.

⁵ Then Sanballat sent his servant to me as before, the fifth time, with an open letter in his hand. ⁶ In it was written:

⁸ Then I sent to him, saying, “No such things as you say are being done, but you invent them in your own heart.”

⁹ For they all were trying to make us afraid, saying, “Their hands will be weakened in the work, and it will not be done.”

Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.

¹⁰ Afterward I came to the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was a secret informer; and he said, “Let us meet together in the house of God, within the ^[eq]temple, and let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you; indeed, at night they will come to kill you.”

¹¹ And I said, “Should such a man as I flee? And who is there such as I who would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in!” ¹² Then I perceived that God had not sent him at all, but that ^(PJ)he pronounced this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. ¹³ For this reason he was hired, that I should be afraid and act that way and sin, so that they might have cause for an evil report, that they might reproach me.

^14 (PK)My God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat, according to these their works, and the ^(PL)prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who would have made me afraid.

The Wall Completed

¹⁵ So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days. ¹⁶ And it happened, ^(PM)when all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations around us saw these things, that they were very disheartened in their own eyes; for ^(PN)they perceived that this work was done by our God.

¹⁷ Also in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came to them. ¹⁸ For many in Judah were pledged to him, because he was the ^(PO)son-in-law of Shechaniah the son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of ^(PP)Meshullam the son of Berechiah. ¹⁹ Also they reported his good deeds before me, and reported my ^[er]words to him. Tobiah sent letters to frighten me.

List of Returning Exiles

7 Then it was, when the wall was built and I had ^(PQ)hung the doors, when the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed, ² that I gave the charge of Jerusalem to my brother ^(PR)Hanani, and Hananiah the leader ^(PS)of the ^[es]citadel, for he was a faithful man and ^(PT)feared God more than many.

³ And I said to them, “Do not let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot; and while they stand guard, let them shut and bar the doors; and appoint guards from among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, one at his watch station and another in front of his own house.”

The Captives Who Returned to Jerusalem^(PU)

⁴ Now the city was large and spacious, but the people in it were ^(PV)few, and the houses were not rebuilt. ⁵ Then my God put it into my heart to gather the nobles, the rulers, and the people, that they might be registered by genealogy. And I found a register of the genealogy of those who had come up in the first return, and found written in it:

⁷³ So the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the Nethinim, and all Israel dwelt in their cities.

Ezra Reads the Law

^(QF)When the seventh month came, the children of Israel were in their cities.

Ezra Reads and Explains the Law

8 Now all ^(QG)the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was ^(QH)in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the ^(QI)scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel. ² So Ezra the priest brought ^(QJ)the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding ^(QK)on the first day of the seventh month. ³ Then he ^(QL)read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate ^[fn]from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.

⁴ So Ezra the scribe stood on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose; and beside him, at his right hand, stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah; and at his left hand Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. ⁵ And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people ^(QM)stood up. ⁶ And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God.

Then all the people ^(QN)answered, “Amen, Amen!” while ^(QO)lifting up their hands. And they ^(QP)bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

⁷ Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, ^(QQ)helped the people to understand the Law; and the people ^(QR)stood in their place. ⁸ So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.

^9 (QS)And Nehemiah, who was the ^[fo]governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ^(QT)“This day is holy to the Lord your God; ^(QU)do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.

¹⁰ Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, ^(QV)and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

¹¹ So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.” ¹² And all the people went their way to eat and drink, to ^(QW)send portions and rejoice greatly, because they ^(QX)understood the words that were declared to them.

The Feast of Tabernacles^(QY)

¹³ Now on the second day the heads of the fathers’ houses of all the people, with the priests and Levites, were gathered to Ezra the scribe, in order to understand the words of the Law. ¹⁴ And they found written in the Law, which the Lord had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in ^(QZ)booths^[fp] during the feast of the seventh month, ¹⁵ and ^(RA)that they should announce and proclaim in all their cities and ^(RB)in Jerusalem, saying, “Go out to the mountain, and ^(RC)bring olive branches, branches of oil trees, myrtle branches, palm branches, and branches of leafy trees, to make booths, as it is written.”

¹⁶ Then the people went out and brought them and made themselves booths, each one on the ^(RD)roof of his house, or in their courtyards or the courts of the house of God, and in the open square of the ^(RE)Water Gate ^(RF)and in the open square of the Gate of Ephraim. ¹⁷ So the whole assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made ^[fq]booths and sat under the booths; for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun until that day the children of Israel had not done so. And there was very ^(RG)great gladness. ¹⁸ Also ^(RH)day by day, from the first day until the last day, he read from the Book of the Law of God. And they kept the feast ^(RI)seven days; and on the ^(RJ)eighth day there was a sacred assembly, according to the prescribed manner.

The People Confess Their Sins

9 Now on the twenty-fourth day of ^(RK)this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, ^(RL)and with ^[fr]dust on their heads. ² Then ^(RM)those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and ^(RN)confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. ³ And they stood up in their place and ^(RO)read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for one-fourth of the day; and for another fourth they confessed and worshiped the Lord their God.

⁴ Then Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani stood on the ^[fs]stairs of the Levites and cried out with a loud voice to the Lord their God. ⁵ And the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said:

The People Who Sealed the Covenant

10 Now those who placed their seal on the document were:

Nehemiah the ^[gi]governor, ^(UG)the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah, ^2 (UH)Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah, ³ Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah, ⁴ Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch, ⁵ Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah, ⁶ Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch, ⁷ Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin, ⁸ Maaziah, Bilgai, and Shemaiah. These were the priests.

⁹ The Levites: Jeshua the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, and Kadmiel.

¹⁰ Their brethren: Shebaniah, Hodijah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan, ¹¹ Micha, Rehob, Hashabiah, ¹² Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah, ¹³ Hodijah, Bani, and Beninu.

¹⁴ The leaders of the people: ^(UI)Parosh, Pahath-Moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani, ¹⁵ Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, ¹⁶ Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin, ¹⁷ Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur, ¹⁸ Hodijah, Hashum, Bezai, ¹⁹ Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai, ²⁰ Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir, ²¹ Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua, ²² Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah, ²³ Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub, ²⁴ Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek, ²⁵ Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah, ²⁶ Ahijah, Hanan, Anan, ²⁷ Malluch, Harim, and Baanah.

The Covenant That Was Sealed

^28 (UJ)Now the rest of the people—the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the Nethinim, ^(UK)and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, everyone who had knowledge and understanding— ²⁹ these joined with their brethren, their nobles, ^(UL)and entered into a curse and an oath ^(UM)to walk in God’s Law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes: ³⁰ We would not give ^(UN)our daughters as wives to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons; ^31 (UO)if the peoples of the land brought ^[gj]wares or any grain to sell on the Sabbath day, we would not buy it from them on the Sabbath, or on a holy day; and we would forego the ^(UP)seventh year’s produce and the ^(UQ)exacting^[gk] of every debt.

³² Also we made ordinances for ourselves, to exact from ourselves yearly ^(UR)one-third of a shekel for the service of the house of our God: ³³ for ^(US)the showbread, for the regular grain offering, for the ^(UT)regular burnt offering of the Sabbaths, the New Moons, and the set feasts; for the holy things, for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and all the work of the house of our God. ³⁴ We cast lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, ^(UU)for bringing the wood offering into the house of our God, according to our fathers’ houses, at the appointed times year by year, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God ^(UV)as it is written in the Law.

³⁵ And we made ordinances ^(UW)to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, year by year, to the house of the Lord; ³⁶ to bring the ^(UX)firstborn of our sons and our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and our flocks, to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God; ^37 (UY)to bring the firstfruits of our dough, our offerings, the fruit from all kinds of trees, the new wine and oil, to the priests, to the storerooms of the ^[gl]house of our God; and to bring ^(UZ)the tithes of our land to the Levites, for the Levites should receive the tithes in all our farming communities. ³⁸ And the priest, the descendant of Aaron, shall be with the Levites ^(VA)when the Levites receive tithes; and the Levites shall bring up a tenth of the tithes to the house of our God, to ^(VB)the rooms of the storehouse.

³⁹ For the children of Israel and the children of Levi ^(VC)shall bring the offering of the grain, of the new wine and the oil, to the storerooms where the articles of the sanctuary are, where the priests who minister and the gatekeepers ^(VD)and the singers are; and we will not ^(VE)neglect the house of our God.