The Dedication of the Wall of Jerusalem

²⁷ Now for the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites had been invited from all their places, in order to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the joyful dedication with both thanksgiving hymns and with songs using cymbals, harps, and lyres. ²⁸ The singers had been gathered both from the district around Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites, ²⁹ from Beth Gilgal, and from the countryside of Geba and Azmaveth, because the singers had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. ³⁰ The priests and the Levites purified themselves, and they purified the people, the gates, and the wall.

³¹ I brought the officers of Judah up onto the wall and appointed two large thanksgiving choirs and two groups for the procession.

One group proceeded south on top of the west wall toward the Dung Gate. ³² Behind them went Hoshaiah and half of the officers of Judah, ³³ also Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam, ³⁴ Judah and Benjamin, and Shemaiah and Jeremiah, ³⁵ as well as some of the priests with trumpets, namely, Zechariah the 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 relatives Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Ma’ai, Nethanel, and Judah, and Hanani with the musical instruments of David the man of God. Ezra the scribe led them. ³⁷ From the Fountain Gate they went directly up the steps to the City of David, by the ascent to the wall which was above David’s house and over the Water Gate on the east.^[a]

³⁸ The second thanksgiving choir was assigned to go in the opposite direction. Both I and half of the people were behind it on top of the wall. They went over the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall, ³⁹ and over the Ephraim Gate (that is, over the Old Gate), and over the Fish Gate and the Tower of Hananel and the Tower of the Hundred, and up to the Sheep Gate, and they stood at the Guard’s Gate.

⁴⁰ The two thanksgiving choirs stood in the house of God, as did I and half of the officials with me, ⁴¹ as well as the priests: Eliakim, Ma’aseiah, Miniamin, Mikaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah with trumpets, ⁴² and Ma’aseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, and Malkijah, and Elam, and Ezer. Then the singers sang with Jezrahiah as their leader. ⁴³ That day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The joy of Jerusalem was heard a long way away.