Nehemiah 4:15-23
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Sword and Trowel
15 When our enemies heard that we knew their scheme and that God had frustrated it, every one of us returned to his own work on the wall. 16 From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor.(A) The officers supported all the people of Judah, 17 who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other. 18 Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the trumpeter was beside me. 19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people:(B) “The work is enormous and spread out, and we are separated far from one another along the wall.(C) 20 Wherever you hear the trumpet sound, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us!”(D) 21 So we continued the work, while half of the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came out. 22 At that time, I also said to the people, “Let everyone and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they can stand guard by night and work by day.” 23 And I, my brothers, my men, and the guards with me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.[a]
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- Nehemiah 4:23 Lit Each his weapon the water
Nehemiah 4:15-23
International Standard Version
15 Our opponents heard that we had learned about them, that God had brought their plans to failure, and that each and every one of us had come to work on the wall. 16 From that day on, half of my helpers engaged in the work while the other half kept spears, shields, bows, and armor ready. The senior officials backed all of the Judeans 17 who worked on the wall. Those who carried building materials worked with one hand, carrying a spear in the other. 18 Each builder worked with a sword strapped to his side, while a trumpeter remained beside me to sound an alarm.[a]
19 I told the officials, rulers, and the rest of the people, “The project is large and extensive, and we are separated from each other on the wall, 20 so wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, come over to us, and our God will fight for us!” 21 So we worked hard, half of us holding spears from dawn to dusk.
22 At the same time I told the people, “Let’s have everyone sleep at night inside Jerusalem with their servants, so they can guard us at night and work during the day. 23 No one—neither I, my allies, my servants, nor the bodyguards who accompanied me—changed clothes. Everyone carried a weapon even while going for water.
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- Nehemiah 4:18 The Heb. lacks to sound an alarm
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