The New Residents of Jerusalem^(A)

11 Now the leaders of the people settled in Jerusalem. The rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of every ten of them to live in Jerusalem,^(B) the holy city,^(C) while the remaining nine were to stay in their own towns.^{(D) 2} The people commended all who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.

³ These are the provincial leaders who settled in Jerusalem (now some Israelites, priests, Levites, temple servants and descendants of Solomon’s servants lived in the towns of Judah, each on their own property in the various towns,^{(E) 4} while other people from both Judah and Benjamin^(F) lived in Jerusalem):^(G)

From the descendants of Judah:

⁷ From the descendants of Benjamin:

¹⁰ From the priests:

¹⁵ From the Levites:

²² Altogether, those chosen to be gatekeepers^(F) at the thresholds numbered 212. They were registered by genealogy in their villages. The gatekeepers had been assigned to their positions of trust by David and Samuel the seer.^{(G) 23} They and their descendants were in charge of guarding the gates of the house of the Lord—the house called the tent of meeting. ²⁴ The gatekeepers were on the four sides: east, west, north and south. ²⁵ Their fellow Levites in their villages had to come from time to time and share their duties for seven-day^(H) periods. ²⁶ But the four principal gatekeepers, who were Levites, were entrusted with the responsibility for the rooms and treasuries^(I) in the house of God. ²⁷ They would spend the night stationed around the house of God,^(J) because they had to guard it; and they had charge of the key^(K) for opening it each morning.

²⁸ Some of them were in charge of the articles used in the temple service; they counted them when they were brought in and when they were taken out. ²⁹ Others were assigned to take care of the furnishings and all the other articles of the sanctuary,^(L) as well as the special flour and wine, and the olive oil, incense and spices. ³⁰ But some^(M) of the priests took care of mixing the spices. ³¹ A Levite named Mattithiah, the firstborn son of Shallum the Korahite, was entrusted with the responsibility for baking the offering bread. ³² Some of the Kohathites, their fellow Levites, were in charge of preparing for every Sabbath the bread set out on the table.^(N)

³³ Those who were musicians,^(O) heads of Levite families, stayed in the rooms of the temple and were exempt from other duties because they were responsible for the work day and night.^(P)

³⁴ All these were heads of Levite families, chiefs as listed in their genealogy, and they lived in Jerusalem.

²⁰ The rest of the Israelites, with the priests and Levites, were in all the towns of Judah, each on their ancestral property.

²¹ The temple servants^(A) lived on the hill of Ophel, and Ziha and Gishpa were in charge of them.

²² The chief officer of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah,^(B) the son of Mika. Uzzi was one of Asaph’s descendants, who were the musicians responsible for the service of the house of God. ²³ The musicians^(C) were under the king’s orders, which regulated their daily activity.

²⁴ Pethahiah son of Meshezabel, one of the descendants of Zerah^(D) son of Judah, was the king’s agent in all affairs relating to the people.

²⁵ As for the villages with their fields, some of the people of Judah lived in Kiriath Arba^(E) and its surrounding settlements, in Dibon^(F) and its settlements, in Jekabzeel and its villages, ²⁶ in Jeshua, in Moladah,^(G) in Beth Pelet,^{(H) 27} in Hazar Shual,^(I) in Beersheba^(J) and its settlements, ²⁸ in Ziklag,^(K) in Mekonah and its settlements, ²⁹ in En Rimmon, in Zorah,^(L) in Jarmuth,^{(M) 30} Zanoah,^(N) Adullam^(O) and their villages, in Lachish^(P) and its fields, and in Azekah^(Q) and its settlements. So they were living all the way from Beersheba^(R) to the Valley of Hinnom.

³¹ The descendants of the Benjamites from Geba^(S) lived in Mikmash,^(T) Aija, Bethel^(U) and its settlements, ³² in Anathoth,^(V) Nob^(W) and Ananiah, ³³ in Hazor,^(X) Ramah^(Y) and Gittaim,^{(Z) 34} in Hadid, Zeboim^(AA) and Neballat, ³⁵ in Lod and Ono,^(AB) and in Ge Harashim.

³⁶ Some of the divisions of the Levites of Judah settled in Benjamin.

Priests and Levites

12 These were the priests^(A) and Levites^(B) who returned with Zerubbabel^(C) son of Shealtiel^(D) and with Joshua:^(E)

These were the leaders of the priests and their associates in the days of Joshua.

⁸ The Levites were Jeshua,^(J) Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and also Mattaniah,^(K) who, together with his associates, was in charge of the songs of thanksgiving. ⁹ Bakbukiah and Unni, their associates, stood opposite them in the services.

¹⁰ Joshua was the father of Joiakim, Joiakim the father of Eliashib,^(L) Eliashib the father of Joiada, ¹¹ Joiada the father of Jonathan, and Jonathan the father of Jaddua.

¹² In the days of Joiakim, these were the heads of the priestly families:

²² The family heads of the Levites in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan and Jaddua, as well as those of the priests, were recorded in the reign of Darius the Persian. ²³ The family heads among the descendants of Levi up to the time of Johanan son of Eliashib were recorded in the book of the annals. ²⁴ And the leaders of the Levites^(O) were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua son of Kadmiel, and their associates, who stood opposite them to give praise and thanksgiving, one section responding to the other, as prescribed by David the man of God.^(P)

²⁵ Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon and Akkub were gatekeepers who guarded the storerooms at the gates. ²⁶ They served in the days of Joiakim son of Joshua, the son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the governor and of Ezra the priest, the teacher of the Law.

Dedication of the Wall of Jerusalem

²⁷ At the dedication^(Q) of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals,^(R) harps and lyres.^{(S) 28} The musicians also were brought together from the region around Jerusalem—from the villages of the Netophathites,^{(T) 29} from Beth Gilgal, and from the area of Geba and Azmaveth, for the musicians had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. ³⁰ When the priests and Levites had purified themselves ceremonially, they purified the people,^(U) the gates and the wall.

³¹ I had the leaders of Judah go up on top of^[e] the wall. I also assigned two large choirs to give thanks. One was to proceed on top of^[f] the wall to the right, toward the Dung Gate.^{(V) 32} Hoshaiah and half the leaders of Judah followed them, ³³ along with Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, ³⁴ Judah, Benjamin,^(W) Shemaiah, Jeremiah, ³⁵ as well as some priests with trumpets,^(X) and also Zechariah son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zakkur, the son of Asaph, ³⁶ and his associates—Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah and Hanani—with musical instruments^(Y) prescribed by David the man of God.^(Z) Ezra^(AA) the teacher of the Law led the procession. ³⁷ At the Fountain Gate^(AB) they continued directly up the steps of the City of David on the ascent to the wall and passed above the site of David’s palace to the Water Gate^(AC) on the east.

³⁸ The second choir proceeded in the opposite direction. I followed them on top of^[g] the wall, together with half the people—past the Tower of the Ovens^(AD) to the Broad Wall,^{(AE) 39} over the Gate of Ephraim,^(AF) the Jeshanah^[h] Gate,^(AG) the Fish Gate,^(AH) the Tower of Hananel^(AI) and the Tower of the Hundred,^(AJ) as far as the Sheep Gate.^(AK) At the Gate of the Guard they stopped.

⁴⁰ The two choirs that gave thanks then took their places in the house of God; so did I, together with half the officials, ⁴¹ as well as the priests—Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah and Hananiah with their trumpets— ⁴² and also Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam and Ezer. The choirs sang under the direction of Jezrahiah. ⁴³ And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.

⁴⁴ At that time men were appointed to be in charge of the storerooms^(AL) for the contributions, firstfruits and tithes.^(AM) From the fields around the towns they were to bring into the storerooms the portions required by the Law for the priests and the Levites, for Judah was pleased with the ministering priests and Levites.^{(AN) 45} They performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did also the musicians and gatekeepers, according to the commands of David^(AO) and his son Solomon.^{(AP) 46} For long ago, in the days of David and Asaph,^(AQ) there had been directors for the musicians and for the songs of praise^(AR) and thanksgiving to God. ⁴⁷ So in the days of Zerubbabel and of Nehemiah, all Israel contributed the daily portions for the musicians and the gatekeepers. They also set aside the portion for the other Levites, and the Levites set aside the portion for the descendants of Aaron.^(AS)

⁶ But while all this was going on, I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes^(A) king of Babylon I had returned to the king. Some time later I asked his permission