Rebuilding the Wall

3 Then ^(A)Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built ^(B)the Sheep Gate. They consecrated it and ^(C)set its doors. They consecrated it as far as the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the ^(D)Tower of Hananel. ² And next to him ^(E)the men of Jericho built. And next to them^[a] Zaccur the son of Imri built.

³ The sons of Hassenaah built ^(F)the Fish Gate. ^(G)They laid its beams and ^(H)set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. ⁴ And next to them ^(I)Meremoth the son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz repaired. And next to them ^(J)Meshullam the son of Berechiah, son of Meshezabel repaired. And next to them Zadok the son of Baana repaired. ⁵ And next to them ^(K)the Tekoites repaired, but their nobles would not stoop to serve their Lord.^[b]

⁶ Joiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah ^(L)repaired the Gate of Yeshanah.^{[c] (M)}They laid its beams and ^(N)set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. ⁷ And next to them repaired Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, the seat of ^(O)the governor of the province Beyond the River. ⁸ Next to them Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, goldsmiths, repaired. Next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, repaired, and they restored Jerusalem as far as ^(P)the Broad Wall. ⁹ Next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, ^(Q)ruler of half the district of^[d] Jerusalem, repaired. ¹⁰ Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph repaired opposite his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabneiah repaired. ¹¹ Malchijah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and ^(R)the Tower of the Ovens. ¹² Next to him Shallum the son of Hallohesh, ^(S)ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, repaired, he and his daughters.

¹³ Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired ^(T)the Valley Gate. They rebuilt it and ^(U)set its doors, its bolts, and its bars, and repaired a thousand cubits^[e] of the wall, as far as ^(V)the Dung Gate.

¹⁴ Malchijah the son of Rechab, ruler of the district of ^(W)Beth-haccherem, repaired ^(X)the Dung Gate. He rebuilt it and ^(Y)set its doors, its bolts, and its bars.

¹⁵ And Shallum the son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah, repaired ^(Z)the Fountain Gate. He rebuilt it and covered it and ^(AA)set its doors, its bolts, and its bars. And he built the wall of ^(AB)the Pool of Shelah of ^(AC)the king's garden, as far as ^(AD)the stairs that go down from the city of David. ¹⁶ After him Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, ruler of half the district of Beth-zur, repaired to a point opposite ^(AE)the tombs of David, as far as ^(AF)the artificial pool, and as far as the house of the mighty men. ¹⁷ After him the Levites repaired: Rehum the son of Bani. Next to him Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah, repaired for his district. ¹⁸ After him their brothers repaired: Bavvai the son of Henadad, ruler of half the district of Keilah. ¹⁹ Next to him Ezer the son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section opposite the ascent to the armory at ^(AG)the buttress.^{[f] 20} After him Baruch the son of Zabbai repaired^[g] another section from the buttress to the door of the house of ^(AH)Eliashib the high priest. ²¹ After him ^(AI)Meremoth the son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz repaired another section from the door of the house of Eliashib to the end of the house of Eliashib. ²² After him the priests, the men of ^(AJ)the surrounding area, repaired. ²³ After them Benjamin and Hasshub repaired opposite their house. After them Azariah the son of Maaseiah, son of Ananiah repaired beside his own house. ²⁴ After him Binnui the son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to the buttress and to ^(AK)the corner. ²⁵ Palal the son of Uzai repaired opposite the buttress and the tower projecting from the upper house of the king at ^(AL)the court of the guard. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh ^26 (AM)and the temple servants living on ^(AN)Ophel repaired to a point opposite ^(AO)the Water Gate on the east and the projecting tower. ²⁷ After him ^(AP)the Tekoites repaired another section opposite the great projecting tower as far as the wall of Ophel.

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

Opposition to the Work

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

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

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

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

The Work Resumes

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

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

Jesus Before Pilate

23 ^(A)Then the whole company of them arose and brought him before Pilate. ² And they began to accuse him, saying, “We found this man ^(B)misleading our nation and ^(C)forbidding us to give tribute to ^(D)Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, ^(E)a king.” ^3 (F)And Pilate asked him, ^(G)“Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, ^(H)“You have said so.” ⁴ Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, ^(I)“I find no guilt in this man.” ⁵ But they were urgent, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, ^(J)from Galilee even to this place.”

Jesus Before Herod

⁶ When Pilate heard this, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. ⁷ And when he learned that he belonged to ^(K)Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him over to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. ⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, ^(L)for he had long desired to see him, ^(M)because he had heard about him, and he was hoping ^(N)to see some sign done by him. ⁹ So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ And Herod with his soldiers ^(O)treated him with contempt and ^(P)mocked him. Then, ^(Q)arraying him in splendid clothing, he sent him back to Pilate. ¹² And ^(R)Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.

¹³ Pilate then called together the chief priests and ^(S)the rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, “You brought me this man ^(T)as one who was misleading the people. And ^(U)after examining him before you, behold, I ^(V)did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him. ¹⁵ Neither did Herod, for ^(W)he sent him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by him. ^16 (X)I will therefore punish and release him.”^[a]

Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified

^18 (Y)But they all cried out together, ^(Z)“Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”— ¹⁹ a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and ^(AA)for murder. ²⁰ Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release Jesus, ²¹ but they kept shouting, “Crucify, crucify him!” ²² A third time he said to them, “Why? ^(AB)What evil has he done? ^(AC)I have found in him no guilt deserving death. ^(AD)I will therefore punish and release him.” ²³ But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified. And their voices prevailed. ²⁴ So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. ²⁵ He released the man who had been thrown into prison ^(AE)for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, ^(AF)but he delivered Jesus over to their will.

The Crucifixion

^26 (AG)And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus. ²⁷ And there followed him a great multitude of the people and of women who were ^(AH)mourning and lamenting for him. ²⁸ But turning to them Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ For behold, ^(AI)the days are coming when they will say, ^(AJ)‘Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ ^30 (AK)Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ ³¹ For ^(AL)if they do these things when ^(AM)the wood is green, what will happen ^(AN)when it is dry?”

^32 (AO)Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. ^33 (AP)And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, ^(AQ)one on his right and one on his left. ³⁴ And Jesus said, “Father, ^(AR)forgive them, ^(AS)for they know not what they do.”^[b] And they cast lots ^(AT)to divide his garments. ³⁵ And ^(AU)the people stood by, watching, ^(AV)but ^(AW)the rulers ^(AX)scoffed at him, saying, ^(AY)“He saved others; ^(AZ)let him save himself, ^(BA)if he is ^(BB)the Christ of God, ^(BC)his Chosen One!” ³⁶ The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and ^(BD)offering him sour wine ³⁷ and saying, ^(BE)“If you are ^(BF)the King of the Jews, save yourself!” ^38 (BG)There was also an inscription over him,^[c] “This is ^(BH)the King of the Jews.”

^39 (BI)One of the criminals who were hanged ^(BJ)railed at him,^[d] saying, “Are you not ^(BK)the Christ? Save yourself and us!” ⁴⁰ But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? ⁴¹ And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴² And he said, “Jesus, remember me ^(BL)when you come into your kingdom.” ⁴³ And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in ^(BM)paradise.”

The Death of Jesus

^44 (BN)It was now about the sixth hour,^[e] and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour,^{[f] 45} while the sun's light failed. And ^(BO)the curtain of the temple was torn in two. ⁴⁶ Then Jesus, ^(BP)calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, ^(BQ)into your hands I ^(BR)commit my spirit!” And having said this ^(BS)he breathed his last. ⁴⁷ Now ^(BT)when the centurion saw what had taken place, ^(BU)he praised God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent!” ⁴⁸ And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home ^(BV)beating their breasts. ⁴⁹ And all ^(BW)his acquaintances and ^(BX)the women who had followed him from Galilee ^(BY)stood at a distance watching these things.

Jesus Is Buried

^50 (BZ)Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man, ⁵¹ who had not consented to their decision and action; and he ^(CA)was looking for the kingdom of God. ⁵² This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁵³ Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and ^(CB)laid him in a tomb cut in stone, ^(CC)where no one had ever yet been laid. ⁵⁴ It was the day of ^(CD)Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning.^{[g] 55 (CE)}The women ^(CF)who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. ⁵⁶ Then they returned and ^(CG)prepared spices and ointments.

On the Sabbath they rested ^(CH)according to the commandment.