Usury Abolished

5 Now ^(A)there was a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their ^(B)Jewish brothers. ² For there were those who said, “We, our sons and our daughters are many; therefore let us ^(C)get grain that we may eat and live.” ³ There were others who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards and our houses that we might get grain because of the famine.” ⁴ Also there were those who said, “We have borrowed money ^(D)for the king’s tax on our fields and our vineyards. ⁵ Now ^(E)our flesh is like the flesh of our brothers, our children like their children. Yet behold, ^(F)we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters are forced into bondage already, and ^[a]we are helpless because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”

⁶ Then I was very ^(G)angry when I had heard their outcry and these words. ⁷ I consulted with myself and contended with the nobles and the rulers and said to them, “^(H)You are exacting usury, each from his brother!” Therefore, I held a great assembly against them. ⁸ I said to them, “We according to our ability ^(I)have ^[b]redeemed our Jewish brothers who were sold to the nations; now would you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us?” Then they were silent and could not find a word to say. ⁹ Again I said, “The thing which you are doing is not good; should you not walk in the fear of our God because of ^(J)the reproach of the nations, our enemies? ¹⁰ And likewise I, my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. Please, let us leave off this usury. ¹¹ Please, give back to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money and of the grain, the new wine and the oil that you are exacting from them.” ¹² Then they said, “We ^(K)will give it back and ^(L)will require nothing from them; we will do exactly as you say.” So I called the priests and ^(M)took an oath from them that they would do according to this ^[c]promise. ¹³ I ^(N)also shook out the ^[d]front of my garment and said, “Thus may God shake out every man from his house and from his possessions who does not fulfill this ^[e]promise; even thus may he be shaken out and emptied.” And ^(O)all the assembly said, “Amen!” And they praised the Lord. Then the people did according to this ^[f]promise.

Nehemiah’s Example

¹⁴ Moreover, from the day that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from ^(P)the twentieth year to the ^(Q)thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes, for twelve years, neither I nor my ^[g]kinsmen have eaten the governor’s food allowance. ¹⁵ But the former governors who were before me ^[h]laid burdens on the people and took from them bread and wine besides forty shekels of silver; even their servants domineered the people. But I did not do so ^(R)because of the fear of God. ¹⁶ I also ^[i]applied myself to the work on this wall; we did not buy any land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work. ¹⁷ Moreover, ^(S)there were at my table one hundred and fifty Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. ¹⁸ Now ^(T)that which was prepared for each day was one ox and six choice sheep, also birds were prepared for me; and once in ten days all sorts of wine were furnished in abundance. Yet for all this ^(U)I did not demand the governor’s food allowance, because the servitude was heavy on this people. ^19 (V)Remember me, O my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.

The Enemy’s Plot

6 Now when it was reported to Sanballat, Tobiah, to Geshem the Arab and to the rest of our enemies that I had rebuilt the wall, and that no breach remained in it, ^(W)although at that time I had not set up the doors in the gates, ² then Sanballat and Geshem sent a message to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together at ^[j]Chephirim in the plain of ^(X)Ono.” But they were planning to ^[k]harm me. ³ So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” ⁴ They sent messages to me four times in this manner, and I answered them in the same way. ⁵ Then Sanballat sent his servant to me in the same manner a fifth time with an open letter in his hand. ⁶ In it was written, “It is reported among the nations, and ^[l]Gashmu says, that ^(Y)you and the Jews are planning to rebel; therefore you are rebuilding the wall. And you are to be their king, according to these reports. ⁷ You have also appointed prophets to proclaim in Jerusalem concerning ^[m]you, ‘A king is in Judah!’ And now it will be reported to the king according to these reports. So come now, let us take counsel together.” ⁸ Then I sent a message to him saying, “Such things as you are saying have not been done, but you are ^(Z)inventing them ^[n]in your own mind.” ⁹ For all of them were trying to frighten us, ^[o]thinking, “^[p]They will become discouraged with the work and it will not be done.” But now, ^(AA)O God, strengthen my hands.

¹⁰ When I entered the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, ^(AB)who was ^[q]confined at home, he said, “Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us close the doors of the temple, for they are coming to kill you, and they are coming to kill you at night.” ¹¹ But I said, “^(AC)Should a man like me flee? And could one such as I go into the temple ^[r]to save his life? I will not go in.” ¹² Then I perceived ^[s]that surely God had not sent him, but he uttered his prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. ¹³ He was hired for this reason, ^(AD)that I might become frightened and act accordingly and sin, so that they might have an evil report in order that they could reproach me. ^14 (AE)Remember, O my God, Tobiah and Sanballat according to these works of theirs, and also Noadiah ^(AF)the prophetess and the rest of the prophets who were trying to frighten me.

The Wall Is Finished

¹⁵ So ^(AG)the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. ^16 (AH)When all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations surrounding us saw it, they ^[t]lost their confidence; for ^(AI)they recognized that this work had been accomplished ^[u]with the help of our God. ¹⁷ Also in those days many letters went from the nobles of Judah to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them. ¹⁸ For many in Judah were bound by oath to him because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah. ¹⁹ Moreover, they were speaking about his good deeds in my presence and reported my words to him. Then Tobiah sent letters to frighten me.

Census of First Returned Exiles

7 Now when ^(AJ)the wall was rebuilt and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers and the singers and the Levites were appointed, ² then I put ^(AK)Hanani my brother, and ^(AL)Hananiah the commander of ^(AM)the fortress, in charge of Jerusalem, for he was ^(AN)a faithful man and feared God more than many. ³ Then I said to them, “Do not let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot, and while they are standing guard, let them shut and bolt the doors. Also appoint guards from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, each at his post, and each in front of his own house.” ⁴ Now the city was large and spacious, but the people in it were few and the houses were not built.

^5 (AO)Then my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials and the people to be enrolled by genealogies. Then I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up first ^[v]in which I found the following record:

^6 (AP)These are the ^[w]people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away, and who returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his city, ⁷ who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, ^[x]Azariah, ^[y]Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, ^[z]Mispereth, Bigvai, ^[aa]Nehum, Baanah.

The number of men of the people of Israel: ⁸ the sons of Parosh, 2,172; ⁹ the sons of Shephatiah, 372; ¹⁰ the sons of Arah, 652; ¹¹ the sons of Pahath-moab of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, 2,818; ¹² the sons of Elam, 1,254; ¹³ the sons of Zattu, 845; ¹⁴ the sons of Zaccai, 760; ¹⁵ the sons of ^[ab]Binnui, 648; ¹⁶ the sons of Bebai, 628; ¹⁷ the sons of Azgad, 2,322; ¹⁸ the sons of Adonikam, 667; ¹⁹ the sons of Bigvai, 2,067; ²⁰ the sons of Adin, 655; ²¹ the sons of Ater, of Hezekiah, 98; ²² the sons of Hashum, 328; ²³ the sons of Bezai, 324; ²⁴ the sons of ^[ac]Hariph, 112; ²⁵ the sons of ^[ad]Gibeon, 95; ²⁶ the men of Bethlehem and Netophah, 188; ²⁷ the men of Anathoth, 128; ²⁸ the men of ^[ae]Beth-azmaveth, 42; ²⁹ the men of ^[af]Kiriath-jearim, Chephirah and Beeroth, 743; ³⁰ the men of Ramah and Geba, 621; ³¹ the men of Michmas, 122; ³² the men of Bethel and Ai, 123; ³³ the men of the other Nebo, 52; ³⁴ the sons of the other Elam, 1,254; ³⁵ the sons of Harim, 320; ³⁶ the ^[ag]men of Jericho, 345; ³⁷ the sons of Lod, Hadid and Ono, 721; ³⁸ the sons of Senaah, 3,930.

³⁹ The priests: the sons of Jedaiah of the house of Jeshua, 973; ⁴⁰ the sons of Immer, 1,052; ⁴¹ the sons of Pashhur, 1,247; ⁴² the sons of Harim, 1,017.

⁴³ The Levites: the sons of Jeshua, of Kadmiel, of the sons of ^[ah]Hodevah, 74. ⁴⁴ The singers: the sons of Asaph, 148. ⁴⁵ The gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai, 138.

⁴⁶ The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth, ⁴⁷ the sons of Keros, the sons of ^[ai]Sia, the sons of Padon, ⁴⁸ the sons of Lebana, the sons of Hagaba, the sons of Shalmai, ⁴⁹ the sons of Hanan, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, ⁵⁰ the sons of Reaiah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, ⁵¹ the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, ⁵² the sons of Besai, the sons of Meunim, the sons of ^[aj]Nephushesim, ⁵³ the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur, ⁵⁴ the sons of ^[ak]Bazlith, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha, ⁵⁵ the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah, ⁵⁶ the sons of Neziah, the sons of Hatipha.

⁵⁷ The sons of Solomon’s servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of ^[al]Sophereth, the sons of ^[am]Perida, ⁵⁸ the sons of Jaala, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel, ⁵⁹ the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth-hazzebaim, the sons of ^[an]Amon.

⁶⁰ All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon’s servants were 392.

⁶¹ These were they who came up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, ^[ao]Addon and Immer; but they could not show their fathers’ houses or their ^[ap]descendants, whether they were of Israel: ⁶² the sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, 642. ⁶³ Of the priests: the sons of ^[aq]Hobaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of Barzillai, who took a wife of the daughters of Barzillai, the Gileadite, and was named after them. ⁶⁴ These searched among their ancestral registration, but it could not be located; therefore they were considered unclean and excluded from the priesthood. ^65 (AQ)The ^[ar]governor said to them that they should not eat from the most holy things until a priest arose with ^(AR)Urim and Thummim.

Total of People and Gifts

⁶⁶ The whole assembly together was 42,360, ⁶⁷ besides their male and their female servants, ^[as]of whom there were 7,337; and they had 245 male and female singers. ^68 [at](AS)Their horses were 736; their mules, 245; ⁶⁹ their camels, 435; their donkeys, 6,720.

⁷⁰ Some from among the heads of fathers’ households gave to the work. The ^[au](AT)governor gave to the treasury 1,000 gold drachmas, 50 basins, 530 priests’ garments. ⁷¹ Some of the heads of fathers’ households gave into the treasury of the work 20,000 gold drachmas and 2,200 silver minas. ⁷² That which the rest of the people gave was 20,000 gold drachmas and 2,000 silver minas and 67 priests’ garments.

⁷³ Now ^(AU)the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the temple servants and all Israel, lived in their cities.

^(AV)And when the seventh month came, the sons of Israel were in their cities.

Teaching on Marriage

7 Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is ^(A)good for a man not to touch a woman. ² But because of immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband. ³ The husband must ^[a]fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband. ⁴ The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. ^5 (B)Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and ^[b]come together again so that ^(C)Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. ⁶ But this I say by way of concession, ^(D)not of command. ^7 [c]Yet I wish that all men were ^(E)even as I myself am. However, ^(F)each man has his own gift from God, one in this manner, and another in that.

⁸ But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is ^(G)good for them if they remain ^(H)even as I. ⁹ But if they do not have self-control, ^(I)let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

¹⁰ But to the married I give instructions, ^(J)not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not ^[d]leave her husband ¹¹ (but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not ^[e]divorce his wife.

¹² But to the rest ^(K)I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he must not ^[f]divorce her. ¹³ And a woman who has an unbelieving husband, and he consents to live with her, she must not ^[g]send her husband away. ¹⁴ For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through ^[h]her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are ^(L)holy. ¹⁵ Yet if the unbelieving one leaves, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called ^[i]us ^[j](M)to peace. ¹⁶ For how do you know, O wife, whether you will ^(N)save your husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife?

¹⁷ Only, ^(O)as the Lord has assigned to each one, as God has called each, in this manner let him walk. And ^(P)so I direct in ^(Q)all the churches. ¹⁸ Was any man called when he was already circumcised? He is not to become uncircumcised. Has anyone been called in uncircumcision? ^(R)He is not to be circumcised. ^19 (S)Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but what matters is ^(T)the keeping of the commandments of God. ^20 (U)Each man must remain in that ^[k]condition in which he was called.

²¹ Were you called while a slave? ^[l]Do not worry about it; but if you are able also to become free, rather ^[m]do that. ²² For he who was called in the Lord while a slave, is ^(V)the Lord’s freedman; likewise he who was called while free, is ^(W)Christ’s slave. ^23 (X)You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of men. ²⁴ Brethren, ^(Y)each one is to remain with God in that condition in which he was called.

²⁵ Now concerning virgins I have ^(Z)no command of the Lord, but I give an opinion as one who ^[n](AA)by the mercy of the Lord is trustworthy. ²⁶ I think then that this is good in view of the ^[o]present ^(AB)distress, that ^(AC)it is good for a man ^[p]to remain as he is. ²⁷ Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you released from a wife? Do not seek a wife. ²⁸ But if you marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Yet such will have ^[q]trouble in this life, and I am trying to spare you. ²⁹ But this I say, brethren, ^(AD)the time has been shortened, so that from now on those who have wives should be as though they had none; ³⁰ and those who weep, as though they did not weep; and those who rejoice, as though they did not rejoice; and those who buy, as though they did not possess; ³¹ and those who use the world, as though they did not ^(AE)make full use of it; for ^(AF)the form of this world is passing away.

³² But I want you to be free from concern. One who is ^(AG)unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord; ³³ but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, ³⁴ and his interests are divided. The woman who is unmarried, and the virgin, is concerned about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and spirit; but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how she may please her husband. ³⁵ This I say for your own benefit; not to put a restraint upon you, but ^[r]to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.

³⁶ But if any man thinks that he is acting unbecomingly toward his virgin daughter, if she is past her youth, and if it must be so, let him do what he wishes, he does not sin; let ^[s]her marry. ³⁷ But he who stands firm in his heart, ^[t]being under no constraint, but has authority ^[u]over his own will, and has decided this in his own heart, to keep his own virgin daughter, he will do well. ³⁸ So then both he who gives his own virgin daughter in marriage does well, and he who does not give her in marriage will do better.

^39 (AH)A wife is bound as long as her husband lives; but if her husband ^[v]is dead, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only ^(AI)in the Lord. ⁴⁰ But ^(AJ)in my opinion she is happier if she remains as she is; and I think that I also have the Spirit of God.