Nehemiah as Governor

¹⁴ Moreover, from the day that I was put in command to be their governor in the land of Judah, from ^(A)the twentieth year to the ^(B)thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes, for twelve years, neither I nor my ^[a]relatives have eaten the governor’s food allowance. ¹⁵ But the former governors who were before me ^[b]laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them bread and wine besides forty ^[c]shekels of silver; even their young men exerted their power over the people. But I did not do so ^(C)because of the fear of God. ¹⁶ I also took hold of the work on this wall; we did not buy any land, and all my young men were gathered there for the work. ¹⁷ Moreover, ^(D)there were at my table 150 Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. ¹⁸ Now ^(E)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 ^(F)I did not require the governor’s food allowance, because the slavery was heavy on this people. ^19 (G)Remember me, O my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.