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

³⁰ And ^(A)you shall put in the breastplate of judgment the ^[a]Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the Lord. So Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel over his heart before the Lord continually.

The People Who Sealed the Covenant

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

Nehemiah the ^[a]governor, ^(A)the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah,

⁶³ And the ^[a]governor said to them that they ^(A)should not eat of the most holy things till a priest could consult with the ^(B)Urim and Thummim.

⁸ And of ^(A)Levi he said:

^21 (A)He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire before the Lord for him ^(B)by the judgment of the Urim. ^(C)At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, he and all the children of Israel with him—all the congregation.”

²¹ No man of the descendants of Aaron the priest, who has a defect, shall come near to offer the offerings made by fire to the Lord. He has a defect; he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. ²² He may eat the bread of his God, both the most holy and the holy; ²³ only he shall not go near the ^(A)veil or approach the altar, because he has a defect, lest ^(B)he profane My sanctuaries; for I the Lord sanctify them.’ ”

^17 (A)“Why have you not eaten the sin offering in a holy place, since it is most holy, and God has given it to you to bear ^(B)the guilt of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the Lord? ¹⁸ See! ^(C)Its blood was not brought inside ^[a]the holy place; indeed you should have eaten it in a holy place, ^(D)as I commanded.”