The Leaders in Jerusalem

11 Now the leaders of the people ^(A)lived in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people ^(B)cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem ^(C)the holy city, while nine out of ten^[a] remained in the other towns. ² And the people blessed all the men ^(D)who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.

^3 (E)These are the chiefs of the province who lived in Jerusalem; but in the towns of Judah ^(F)everyone lived on his property in their towns: Israel, the priests, the Levites, ^(G)the temple servants, ^(H)and the descendants of Solomon's servants. ⁴ And in Jerusalem lived certain of the sons of Judah and of the sons of Benjamin. Of the sons of Judah: Athaiah the son of Uzziah, son of Zechariah, son of Amariah, son of Shephatiah, son of Mahalalel, of the sons of ^(I)Perez; ⁵ and Maaseiah the son of Baruch, son of Col-hozeh, son of Hazaiah, son of Adaiah, son of Joiarib, son of Zechariah, son of the Shilonite. ⁶ All the sons of Perez who lived in Jerusalem were 468 valiant men.

⁷ And these are the sons of Benjamin: Sallu the son of Meshullam, son of Joed, son of Pedaiah, son of Kolaiah, son of Maaseiah, son of Ithiel, son of Jeshaiah, ⁸ and his brothers, men of valor, 928.^{[b] 9} Joel the son of Zichri was their overseer; and Judah the son of Hassenuah was second over the city.

¹⁰ Of the priests: Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, Jachin, ¹¹ Seraiah the son of Hilkiah, son of Meshullam, son of Zadok, son of Meraioth, son of Ahitub, ruler of the house of God, ¹² and their brothers who did the work of the house, 822; and Adaiah the son of Jeroham, son of Pelaliah, son of Amzi, son of Zechariah, son of Pashhur, son of Malchijah, ¹³ and his brothers, heads of fathers' houses, 242; and Amashsai, the son of Azarel, son of Ahzai, son of Meshillemoth, son of Immer, ¹⁴ and their brothers, mighty men of valor, 128; their overseer was Zabdiel the son of Haggedolim.

¹⁵ And of the Levites: Shemaiah the son of Hasshub, son of Azrikam, son of Hashabiah, son of Bunni; ¹⁶ and Shabbethai and ^(J)Jozabad, of the chiefs of the Levites, who were over ^(K)the outside work of the house of God; ¹⁷ and ^(L)Mattaniah the son of Mica, son of Zabdi, son of Asaph, who was the leader of the praise,^[c] who gave thanks, and Bakbukiah, the second among his brothers; and Abda the son of Shammua, son of Galal, son of Jeduthun. ¹⁸ All the Levites in ^(M)the holy city were 284.

¹⁹ The gatekeepers, Akkub, Talmon and their brothers, who kept watch at the gates, were 172. ²⁰ And the rest of Israel, and of the priests and the Levites, were in all the towns of Judah, ^(N)every one in his inheritance. ^21 (O)But the temple servants lived on Ophel; and Ziha and Gishpa were over the temple servants.

²² The overseer of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Bani, son of Hashabiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Mica, of the sons of Asaph, the singers, over the work of the house of God. ^23 (P)For there was a command from the king concerning them, and a fixed provision for the singers, ^(Q)as every day required. ²⁴ And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabel, of the sons of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king's side^[d] in all matters concerning the people.

Villages Outside Jerusalem

²⁵ And as for the villages, with their fields, some of the people of Judah lived in ^(R)Kiriath-arba and its villages, and in Dibon and its villages, and in Jekabzeel and its villages, ²⁶ and in Jeshua and in Moladah and Beth-pelet, ²⁷ in Hazar-shual, in Beersheba and its villages, ²⁸ in Ziklag, in Meconah and its villages, ²⁹ in En-rimmon, in Zorah, in Jarmuth, ³⁰ Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages, Lachish and its fields, and Azekah and its villages. So they encamped from Beersheba to ^(S)the Valley of Hinnom. ³¹ The people of Benjamin also lived from Geba onward, at Michmash, Aija, Bethel and its villages, ³² Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah, ³³ Hazor, Ramah, Gittaim, ³⁴ Hadid, Zeboim, Neballat, ³⁵ Lod, and ^(T)Ono, the valley of craftsmen. ³⁶ And certain divisions of the Levites in Judah were assigned to Benjamin.

Priests and Levites

12 These are ^(U)the priests and the Levites who came up with ^(V)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and ^(W)Jeshua: ^(X)Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, ² Amariah, Malluch, Hattush, ³ Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, ⁴ Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah, ⁵ Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah, ⁶ Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah, ⁷ Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah. These were the chiefs of the priests and of their brothers in the days of Jeshua.

⁸ And the Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, who with his brothers was ^(Y)in charge of the songs of thanksgiving. ⁹ And Bakbukiah and Unni and their brothers stood opposite them ^(Z)in the service. ¹⁰ And Jeshua was the father of Joiakim, Joiakim the father of Eliashib, Eliashib the father of Joiada, ¹¹ Joiada the father of Jonathan, and Jonathan the father of Jaddua.

^12 (AA)And in the days of Joiakim were priests, heads of fathers' houses: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah; ¹³ of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan; ¹⁴ of Malluchi, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph; ¹⁵ of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai; ¹⁶ of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam; ¹⁷ of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai; ¹⁸ of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan; ¹⁹ of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi; ²⁰ of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber; ²¹ of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethanel.

²² In the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua, the Levites were recorded as heads of fathers' houses; so too were the priests in the reign of Darius the Persian. ²³ As for the sons of Levi, their heads of fathers' houses ^(AB)were written in the Book of the Chronicles until the days of Johanan the son of Eliashib. ²⁴ And the chiefs of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and ^(AC)Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brothers who stood opposite them, ^(AD)to praise and to give thanks, ^(AE)according to the commandment of David ^(AF)the man of God, ^(AG)watch by watch. ²⁵ Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers standing guard at ^(AH)the storehouses of the gates. ²⁶ These were in the days of Joiakim the son of Jeshua son of Jozadak, and in the days of ^(AI)Nehemiah the governor and of ^(AJ)Ezra, the priest and scribe.

Dedication of the Wall

²⁷ And at ^(AK)the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgivings and with singing, ^(AL)with cymbals, harps, and lyres. ²⁸ And the sons of the singers gathered together from the district surrounding Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites; ²⁹ also from Beth-gilgal and from the region of Geba and Azmaveth, for the singers had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem. ³⁰ And the priests and the Levites ^(AM)purified themselves, and they purified the people and the gates and the wall.

³¹ Then I brought the leaders of Judah up onto the wall and appointed two great choirs that gave thanks. ^(AN)One went to the south on the wall to ^(AO)the Dung Gate. ³² And after them went Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah, ³³ and Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, ³⁴ Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah, ³⁵ and certain of the priests' sons ^(AP)with trumpets: Zechariah the son of Jonathan, son of Shemaiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Micaiah, son of Zaccur, son of Asaph; ³⁶ and his relatives, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, ^(AQ)with the musical instruments of David ^(AR)the man of God. And Ezra the scribe went before them. ³⁷ At ^(AS)the Fountain Gate they went up straight before them by ^(AT)the stairs of the city of David, at the ascent of the wall, above the house of David, to ^(AU)the Water Gate on the east.

^38 (AV)The other choir of those who gave thanks went to the north, and I followed them with half of the people, on the wall, above ^(AW)the Tower of the Ovens, to ^(AX)the Broad Wall, ³⁹ and above ^(AY)the Gate of Ephraim, and by ^(AZ)the Gate of Yeshanah,^[e] and by ^(BA)the Fish Gate and ^(BB)the Tower of Hananel and ^(BC)the Tower of the Hundred, to ^(BD)the Sheep Gate; and they came to a halt at ^(BE)the Gate of the Guard. ⁴⁰ So both choirs of those who gave thanks stood in the house of God, and I and half of the officials with me; ⁴¹ and the priests Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, ^(BF)with trumpets; ⁴² and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang with Jezrahiah as their leader. ⁴³ And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.

Service at the Temple

^44 (BG)On that day men were appointed over the storerooms, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields of the towns, for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered. ⁴⁵ And they performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, ^(BH)according to the command of David and his son Solomon. ⁴⁶ For long ago in the days of David and ^(BI)Asaph there were directors of the singers, and there were songs^[f] of praise and thanksgiving to God. ⁴⁷ And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah gave the ^(BJ)daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers; ^(BK)and they set apart that which was for the Levites; ^(BL)and the Levites set apart that which was for the sons of Aaron.

Book One

The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked

The Lame Beggar Healed

3 Now Peter and John were ^(A)going up to the temple at ^(B)the hour of prayer, ^(C)the ninth hour.^{[a] 2} And a man ^(D)lame from birth was being carried, ^(E)whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate ^(F)to ask alms of those entering the temple. ³ Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. ⁴ And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” ⁵ And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. ⁶ But Peter said, ^(G)“I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. ^(H)In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” ⁷ And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. ⁸ And ^(I)leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. ⁹ And ^(J)all the people saw him walking and praising God, ¹⁰ and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Peter Speaks in Solomon's Portico

^11 (K)While he clung to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astounded, ran together to them in ^(L)the portico called Solomon's. ¹² And when Peter saw it he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we have made him walk? ^13 (M)The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, ^(N)the God of our fathers, ^(O)glorified his servant^[b] Jesus, whom ^(P)you delivered over and ^(Q)denied in the presence of Pilate, ^(R)when he had decided to release him. ¹⁴ But you denied ^(S)the Holy and ^(T)Righteous One, and ^(U)asked for a murderer to be granted to you, ¹⁵ and you killed ^(V)the Author of life, ^(W)whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. ¹⁶ And ^(X)his name—by ^(Y)faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is ^(Z)through Jesus^[c] has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.

¹⁷ “And now, brothers, I know that ^(AA)you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. ¹⁸ But what God ^(AB)foretold ^(AC)by the mouth of all the prophets, that ^(AD)his Christ would ^(AE)suffer, he thus fulfilled. ^19 (AF)Repent therefore, and ^(AG)turn back, that ^(AH)your sins may be blotted out, ²⁰ that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ ^(AI)appointed for you, Jesus, ^21 (AJ)whom heaven must receive until the time for ^(AK)restoring all the things about which ^(AL)God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. ²² Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you ^(AM)a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen ^(AN)to him in whatever he tells you. ²³ And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet ^(AO)shall be destroyed from the people.’ ²⁴ And ^(AP)all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. ^25 (AQ)You are the sons of the prophets and of ^(AR)the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ^(AS)‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’ ^26 (AT)God, ^(AU)having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, ^(AV)to bless you ^(AW)by turning every one of you from your wickedness.”