^31 (A)And if the peoples of the land bring in goods or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or on a holy day. And we will forego the crops of the ^(B)seventh year and the ^(C)exaction of every debt.

¹⁵ In those days I saw in Judah people treading winepresses ^(A)on the Sabbath, and bringing in heaps of grain and loading them on donkeys, and also wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads, ^(B)which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. And ^(C)I warned them on the day when they sold food. ¹⁶ Tyrians also, who lived in the city, brought in fish and all kinds of goods and sold them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah, in Jerusalem itself! ^17 (D)Then I confronted the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this evil thing that you are doing, ^(E)profaning the Sabbath day? ^18 (F)Did not your fathers act in this way, and did not our God bring all this disaster^[a] on us and on this city? Now you are bringing more wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath.”

¹⁹ As soon as it ^(G)began to grow dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut and gave orders that they should not be opened until after the Sabbath. And I stationed some of my servants at the gates, that no load might be brought in on the Sabbath day. ²⁰ Then the merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares lodged outside Jerusalem once or twice. ^21 (H)But I warned them and said to them, “Why do you lodge outside the wall? If you do so again, I will lay hands on you.” From that time on they did not come on the Sabbath. ²² Then I commanded the Levites ^(I)that they should purify themselves and come and guard the gates, to keep the Sabbath day holy. ^(J)Remember this also in my favor, O my God, and spare me according to the greatness of your steadfast love.

The Sabbath

^3 (A)“Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwelling places.

Laws About the Sabbath and Festivals

^10 (A)“For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, ¹¹ but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard.

¹⁰ but the ^(A)seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the ^(B)sojourner who is within your gates.

²¹ Thus says the Lord: Take care for the sake of your lives, and ^(A)do not bear a burden on the Sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. ²² And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath ^(B)or do any work, but ^(C)keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers.

Nehemiah Stops Oppression of the Poor

5 Now there arose ^(A)a great outcry of the people and of their wives ^(B)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 ^(C)the king's tax on our fields and our vineyards. ⁵ Now ^(D)our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our children are as their children. Yet ^(E)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 ^(F)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, ^(G)“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, ^(H)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 ^(I)in the fear of our God ^(J)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 ^(K)require nothing from them. We will do as you say.” And I called the priests and ^(L)made them swear ^(M)to do as they had promised. ^13 (N)I also shook out the fold^[a] 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.” ^(O)And all the assembly said “Amen” and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.