Nehemiah 7-13
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 7
1 Now that the wall had been rebuilt, I had the doors set up, and the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites were put in charge of them. 2 Over Jerusalem I placed Hanani, my brother, and Hananiah, the commander of the citadel, who was more trustworthy and God-fearing than most. 3 I said to them: “The gates of Jerusalem are not to be opened until the sun is hot, and while the sun is still shining they shall shut and bar the doors. Appoint as sentinels the inhabitants of Jerusalem, some at their watch posts, and others in front of their own houses.”
Census of the Province. 4 Now, the city was quite wide and spacious, but its population was small, and none of the houses had been rebuilt. 5 When my God had inspired me to gather together the nobles, the magistrates, and the people, and to examine their family records, I came upon the family list of those who had returned in the earliest period. There I found the following written:
6 [a](A)These are the inhabitants of the province who returned from the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had carried away, and who came back to Jerusalem and Judah, to their own cities: 7 They returned with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah.
The census of the people of Israel: 8 descendants of Parosh, two thousand one hundred and seventy-two; 9 descendants of Shephatiah, three hundred and seventy-two; 10 descendants of Arah, six hundred and fifty-two; 11 descendants of Pahath-moab who were descendants of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and eighteen; 12 descendants of Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four; 13 descendants of Zattu, eight hundred and forty-five; 14 descendants of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty; 15 descendants of Binnui, six hundred and forty-eight; 16 descendants of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-eight; 17 descendants of Azgad, two thousand three hundred and twenty-two; 18 descendants of Adonikam, six hundred and sixty-seven; 19 descendants of Bigvai, two thousand and sixty-seven; 20 descendants of Adin, six hundred and fifty-five; 21 descendants of Ater who were descendants of Hezekiah, ninety-eight; 22 descendants of Hashum, three hundred and twenty-eight; 23 descendants of Bezai, three hundred and twenty-four; 24 descendants of Hariph, one hundred and twelve; 25 descendants of Gibeon, ninety-five; 26 people of Bethlehem and Netophah, one hundred and eighty-eight; 27 people of Anathoth, one hundred and twenty-eight; 28 people of Beth-azmaveth, forty-two; 29 people of Kiriath-jearim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty-three; 30 people of Ramah and Geba, six hundred and twenty-one; 31 people of Michmas, one hundred and twenty-two; 32 people of Bethel and Ai, one hundred and twenty-three; 33 people of Nebo, fifty-two; 34 descendants of the other Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four; 35 descendants of Harim, three hundred and twenty; 36 descendants of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five; 37 descendants of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-one; 38 descendants of Senaah, three thousand nine hundred and thirty.
39 The priests: descendants of Jedaiah of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred and seventy-three; 40 descendants of Immer, one thousand and fifty-two; 41 descendants of Pashhur, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven; 42 descendants of Harim, one thousand and seventeen.
43 The Levites: descendants of Jeshua, Kadmiel of the descendants of Hodeviah, seventy-four.
44 The singers: descendants of Asaph, one hundred and forty-eight.
45 The gatekeepers: descendants of Shallum, descendants of Ater, descendants of Talmon, descendants of Akkub, descendants of Hatita, descendants of Shobai, one hundred and thirty-eight.
46 The temple servants: descendants of Ziha, descendants of Hasupha, descendants of Tabbaoth, 47 descendants of Keros, descendants of Sia, descendants of Padon, 48 descendants of Lebana, descendants of Hagaba, descendants of Shalmai, 49 descendants of Hanan, descendants of Giddel, descendants of Gahar, 50 descendants of Reaiah, descendants of Rezin, descendants of Nekoda, 51 descendants of Gazzam, descendants of Uzza, descendants of Paseah, 52 descendants of Besai, descendants of the Meunites, descendants of the Nephusites, 53 descendants of Bakbuk, descendants of Hakupha, descendants of Harhur, 54 descendants of Bazlith, descendants of Mehida, descendants of Harsha, 55 descendants of Barkos, descendants of Sisera, descendants of Temah, 56 descendants of Neziah, descendants of Hatipha.
57 Descendants of Solomon’s servants: descendants of Sotai, descendants of Sophereth, descendants of Perida, 58 descendants of Jaala, descendants of Darkon, descendants of Giddel, 59 descendants of Shephatiah, descendants of Hattil, descendants of Pochereth-hazzebaim, descendants of Amon. 60 The total of the temple servants and the descendants of Solomon’s servants was three hundred and ninety-two.
61 The following who returned from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer were unable to prove that their ancestral houses and their descent were Israelite: 62 descendants of Delaiah, descendants of Tobiah, descendants of Nekoda, six hundred and forty-two. 63 Also, of the priests: descendants of Hobaiah, descendants of Hakkoz, descendants of Barzillai (he had married one of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite and was named after him). 64 These men searched their family records, but their names could not be found written there; hence they were disqualified from the priesthood, 65 and the governor[b] ordered them not to partake of the most holy foods until there should be a priest to consult the Urim and Thummim.
66 The entire assembly taken together came to forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty, 67 not counting their male and female servants, who were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven. They also had two hundred male and female singers. Their horses were seven hundred and thirty-six, their mules two hundred and forty-five, 68 their camels four hundred and thirty-five, their donkeys six thousand seven hundred and twenty.
69 Certain of the heads of ancestral houses contributed to the temple service. The governor put into the treasury one thousand drachmas of gold, fifty basins, thirty vestments for priests, and five hundred minas of silver. 70 Some of the heads of ancestral houses contributed to the treasury for the temple service: twenty thousand drachmas of gold and two thousand two hundred minas of silver. 71 The contributions of the rest of the people amounted to twenty thousand drachmas of gold, two thousand minas of silver, and sixty-seven vestments for priests.
72 The priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants, and all Israel took up residence in their cities.
II. Promulgation of the Law
Chapter 8
Ezra Reads the Law. 1 [c](B)Now when the seventh month came, the whole people gathered as one in the square in front of the Water Gate, and they called upon Ezra the scribe to bring forth the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had commanded for Israel. 2 (C)On the first day of the seventh month, therefore, Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, which consisted of men, women, and those children old enough to understand. 3 In the square in front of the Water Gate, Ezra read out of the book from daybreak till midday, in the presence of the men, the women, and those children old enough to understand; and all the people listened attentively to the book of the law. 4 Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that had been made for the occasion; at his right side stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, and on his left Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, Meshullam. 5 Ezra opened the scroll so that all the people might see it, for he was standing higher than any of the people. When he opened it, all the people stood. 6 Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people, their hands raised high, answered, “Amen, amen!” Then they knelt down and bowed before the Lord, their faces to the ground. 7 (D)The Levites Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah explained the law to the people, who remained in their places. 8 (E)Ezra read clearly from the book of the law of God, interpreting it so that all could understand what was read. 9 Then Nehemiah, that is, the governor, and Ezra the priest-scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to all the people: “Today is holy to the Lord your God. Do not lament, do not weep!”—for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law. 10 (F)He continued: “Go, eat rich foods and drink sweet drinks, and allot portions to those who had nothing prepared; for today is holy to our Lord. Do not be saddened this day, for rejoicing in the Lord is your strength!” 11 And the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Silence! Today is holy, do not be saddened.” 12 Then all the people began to eat and drink, to distribute portions, and to celebrate with great joy, for they understood the words that had been explained to them.
The Feast of Booths. 13 On the second day, the heads of ancestral houses of the whole people, and also the priests and the Levites, gathered around Ezra the scribe to study the words of the law. 14 (G)They found it written in the law commanded by the Lord through Moses that the Israelites should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month; 15 (H)and that they should have this proclamation made throughout their cities and in Jerusalem: “Go out into the hill country and bring in branches of olive, oleaster, myrtle, palm, and other trees in leaf, to make booths, as it is written.” 16 The people went out and brought in branches with which they made booths for themselves, on the roof of their houses, in their courtyards, in the courts of the house of God, and in the squares of the Water Gate and the Gate of Ephraim. 17 (I)So the entire assembly of the returned exiles made booths and dwelt in them. Now the Israelites had done nothing of this sort from the days of Jeshua, son of Nun, until this occasion; therefore there was very great joy. 18 Ezra read from the book of the law of God day after day, from the first day to the last. They kept the feast for seven days, and the solemn assembly on the eighth day, as was required.
Chapter 9
Public Confession of Sin. 1 [d](J)On the twenty-fourth day of this month, the Israelites gathered together while fasting and wearing sackcloth, their heads covered with dust. 2 (K)Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all who were of foreign extraction, then stood forward and confessed their sins and the guilty deeds of their ancestors. 3 When they had taken their places, they read from the book of the law of the Lord their God, for a fourth of the day, and during another fourth they made their confession and bowed down before the Lord their God. 4 Standing on the platform of the Levites were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, who cried out to the Lord their God, with a loud voice. 5 (L)The Levites Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah said,
“Arise, bless the Lord, your God,
from eternity to eternity!”
“And may they bless your glorious name,
which is exalted above all blessing and praise.”
6 [e]“You are the Lord, you alone;
You made the heavens,
the highest heavens and all their host,
The earth and all that is upon it,
the seas and all that is in them.
To all of them you give life,
the heavenly hosts bow down before you.
7 (M)You are the Lord God
who chose Abram,
Who brought him from Ur of the Chaldees,
who named him Abraham.
8 (N)You found his heart faithful in your sight,
you made the covenant with him
To give the land of the Canaanites,
Hittites, Amorites,
Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites
to him and his descendants.
You fulfilled your promises,
for you are just.
9 (O)You saw the affliction of our ancestors in Egypt,
you heard their cry by the Red Sea;
10 (P)You worked signs and wonders against Pharaoh,
against all his servants and the people of his land,
Because you knew of their insolence toward them;
thus you made for yourself a name even to this day.
11 (Q)The sea you divided before them,
on dry ground they passed through the midst of the sea;
Their pursuers you hurled into the depths,
like a stone into the mighty waters.
12 (R)With a column of cloud you led them by day,
and by night with a column of fire,
To light the way of their journey,
the way in which they must travel.
13 (S)On Mount Sinai you came down,
you spoke with them from heaven;
You gave them just ordinances, true laws,
good statutes and commandments;
14 (T)Your holy sabbath you made known to them,
commandments, statutes, and law you prescribed for them,
by the hand of Moses your servant.
15 (U)Food from heaven you gave them in their hunger,
water from a rock you sent them in their thirst.
You told them to enter and occupy the land
which you had sworn to give them.
16 But they, our ancestors, proved to be insolent;
they were obdurate[f] and did not obey your commandments.
17 (V)They refused to obey and no longer remembered
the wonders you had worked for them.
They were obdurate and appointed a leader
in order to return to their slavery in Egypt.
But you are a forgiving God, gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and rich in mercy;
you did not forsake them.
18 (W)Though they made for themselves a molten calf,
and proclaimed, ‘Here is your God who brought you up from Egypt,’
and were guilty of great insults,
19 Yet in your great mercy
you did not forsake them in the desert.
By day the column of cloud did not cease to lead them on their journey,
by night the column of fire did not cease to light the way they were to travel.
20 (X)Your good spirit you bestowed on them,
to give them understanding;
Your manna you did not withhold from their mouths,
and you gave them water in their thirst.
21 (Y)Forty years in the desert you sustained them:
they did not want;
Their garments did not become worn,
and their feet did not swell.
22 (Z)You gave them kingdoms and peoples,
which you divided among them as border lands.
They possessed the land of Sihon, king of Heshbon,
and the land of Og, king of Bashan.
23 (AA)You made their children as numerous as the stars of the heavens,
and you brought them into the land
which you had commanded their ancestors to enter and possess.
24 The children went in to possess the land;
you humbled before them the Canaanite inhabitants
and gave them into their power,
Their kings and the peoples of the land,
to do with them as they wished.
25 (AB)They captured fortified cities and fertile land;
they took possession of houses filled with all good things,
Cisterns already dug, vineyards, olive groves,
and fruit trees in abundance.
They ate and had their fill,
fattened and feasted on your great goodness.
26 (AC)But they were contemptuous and rebelled against you:
they cast your law behind their backs.
They murdered your prophets
who bore witness against them to bring them back to you:
they were guilty of great insults.
27 (AD)Therefore you gave them into the power of their enemies,
who oppressed them.
But in the time of their oppression they would cry out to you,
and you would hear them from heaven,
And according to your great mercy give them saviors
to deliver them from the power of their enemies.
28 As soon as they had relief,
they would go back to doing evil in your sight.
Again you abandoned them to the power of their enemies,
who crushed them.
Once again they cried out to you, and you heard them from heaven
and delivered them according to your mercy, many times over.
29 (AE)You bore witness against them,
to bring them back to your law.
But they were insolent
and would not obey your commandments;
They sinned against your ordinances,
which give life to those who keep them.
They turned stubborn backs, stiffened their necks,
and would not obey.
30 You were patient with them for many years,
bearing witness against them through your spirit, by means of your prophets;
Still they would not listen.
Therefore you delivered them into the power of the peoples of the lands.
31 Yet in your great mercy you did not completely destroy them
and did not forsake them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.
32 (AF)Now, our God, great, mighty, and awesome God,
who preserves the covenant of mercy,
do not discount all the hardship that has befallen us,
Our kings, our princes, our priests,
our prophets, our ancestors, and your entire people,
from the time of the kings of Assyria until this day!
33 (AG)In all that has come upon us you have been just,
for you kept faith while we have done evil.
34 Yes, our kings, our princes, our priests, and our ancestors
have not kept your law;
They paid no attention to your commandments
and the warnings which you gave them.
35 While they were still in their kingdom,
in the midst of the many good things that you had given them
And in the wide, fertile land
that you had spread out before them,
They did not serve you
nor turn away from their evil deeds.
36 Today we are slaves!
As for the land which you gave our ancestors
That they might eat its fruits and good things—
see, we have become slaves upon it!
37 Its rich produce goes to the kings
you set over us because of our sins,
Who rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please.
We are in great distress!”
Chapter 10
Signatories to the Pact. 1 [g]In view of all this, we are entering into a firm pact, which we are putting into writing. On the sealed document appear the names of our princes, our Levites, and our priests.
2 On the sealed document: the governor Nehemiah, son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah.
3 (AH)Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah, 4 Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah, 5 Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch, 6 Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah, 7 Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch, 8 Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin, 9 Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah: these are the priests.
10 The Levites: Jeshua, son of Azaniah; Binnui, of the descendants of Henadad; Kadmiel; 11 (AI)and their kinsmen Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan, 12 Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah, 13 Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah, 14 Hodiah, Bani, Beninu.
15 The leaders of the people: Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani, 16 Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, 17 Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin, 18 Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur, 19 Hodiah, Hashum, Bezai, 20 Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai, 21 Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir, 22 Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua, 23 Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah, 24 Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub, 25 Hallhohesh, Pilha, Shobek, 26 Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah, 27 Ahiah, Hanan, Anan, 28 Malluch, Harim, Baanah.
Provisions of the Pact. 29 The rest of the people, priests, Levites, gatekeepers, singers, temple servants, and all others who have separated themselves from the local inhabitants in favor of the law of God, with their wives, their sons, their daughters, all who are of the age of discretion, 30 (AJ)join their influential kindred, and with the sanction of a curse take this oath to follow the law of God given through Moses, the servant of God, and to observe carefully all the commandments of the Lord, our Lord, his ordinances and his statutes.
31 (AK)We will not marry our daughters to the local inhabitants, and we will not accept their daughters for our sons.
32 (AL)When the local inhabitants bring in merchandise or any kind of grain for sale on the sabbath day, we will not buy from them on the sabbath or on any other holy day. In the seventh year we will forgo the produce, and forgive every kind of debt.
33 (AM)We impose these commandments on ourselves: to give a third of a shekel each year for the service of the house of our God, 34 for the showbread, the daily grain offering, the daily burnt offering, for the sabbaths, new moons, and festivals, for the holy offerings and sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, for every service of the house of our God. 35 (AN)We, priests, Levites, and people, have determined by lot concerning the procurement of wood: it is to be brought to the house of our God by each of our ancestral houses at stated times each year, to be burnt on the altar of the Lord, our God, as the law prescribes. 36 (AO)We have agreed to bring each year to the house of the Lord the first fruits of our fields and of our fruit trees, of every kind; 37 also, as is prescribed in the law, to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who serve in the house of our God, the firstborn of our children and our animals, including the firstborn of our flocks and herds. 38 (AP)The first batch of our dough, and our offerings of the fruit of every tree, of wine and oil, we will bring to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God. The tithe of our fields we will bring to the Levites; they, the Levites, shall take the tithe in all the cities of our service. 39 An Aaronite priest shall be with the Levites when they take the tithe, and the Levites shall bring the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers of the treasury. 40 For to these chambers the Israelites and Levites bring the offerings of grain, wine, and oil; there also are housed the vessels of the sanctuary, and the ministering priests, the gatekeepers, and the singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.
III. Dedication of the Wall; Other Reforms
Chapter 11
Resettlement of Jerusalem. 1 [h](AQ)The administrators took up residence in Jerusalem, and the rest of the people cast lots to bring one man in ten to reside in Jerusalem, the holy city, while the other nine would remain in the other cities. 2 The people blessed all those who willingly agreed to take up residence in Jerusalem.
3 (AR)These are the heads of the province who took up residence in Jerusalem. In the cities of Judah dwelt Israelites, priests, Levites, temple servants, and the descendants of Solomon’s servants, each on the property they owned in their own cities.
4 In Jerusalem dwelt both Judahites and Benjaminites. Of the Judahites: Athaiah, son of Uzziah, son of Zechariah, son of Amariah, son of Shephatiah, son of Mehallalel, of the sons of Perez; 5 Maaseiah, son of Baruch, son of Colhozeh, son of Hazaiah, son of Adaiah, son of Joiarib, son of Zechariah, a son of the Shelanites. 6 The total of the descendants of Perez who dwelt in Jerusalem was four hundred and sixty-eight people of substance.
7 These were the Benjaminites: Sallu, son of Meshullam, son of Joed, son of Pedaiah, son of Kolaiah, son of Maaseiah, son of Ithiel, son of Jeshaiah, 8 and his kinsmen, warriors, nine hundred and twenty-eight in number. 9 Joel, son of Zichri, was their commander, and Judah, son of Hassenuah, was second in command of the city.
10 Among the priests were: Jedaiah; Joiarib; Jachin; 11 Seraiah, son of Hilkiah, son of Meshullam, son of Zadok, son of Meraioth, son of Ahitub, the ruler of the house of God, 12 and their kinsmen who carried out the temple service, eight hundred and twenty-two; Adaiah, son of Jeroham, son of Pelaliah, son of Amzi, son of Zechariah, son of Pashhur, son of Malchijah, 13 and his kinsmen, heads of ancestral houses, two hundred and forty-two; and Amasai, son of Azarel, son of Ahzai, son of Meshillemoth, son of Immer, 14 and his kinsmen, warriors, one hundred and twenty-eight. Their commander was Zabdiel, son of Haggadol.
15 Among the Levites were Shemaiah, son of Hasshub, son of Azrikam, son of Hashabiah, son of Bunni; 16 Shabbethai and Jozabad, levitical chiefs who were placed over the external affairs of the house of God; 17 Mattaniah, son of Micah, son of Zabdi, son of Asaph, director of the psalms, who led the thanksgiving at prayer; Bakbukiah, second in rank among his kinsmen; and Abda, son of Shammua, son of Galal, son of Jeduthun. 18 The total of the Levites in the holy city was two hundred and eighty-four.
19 The gatekeepers were Akkub, Talmon, and their kinsmen, who kept watch over the gates; one hundred and seventy-two in number.
20 The rest of Israel, including priests and Levites, were in all the other cities of Judah in their own inheritances.
21 The temple servants lived on Ophel. Ziha and Gishpa were in charge of the temple servants.
22 (AS)The prefect of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi, son of Bani, son of Hashabiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Micah; he was one of the descendants of Asaph, the singers appointed to the service of the house of God— 23 for they had been appointed by royal decree, and there was a fixed schedule for the singers assigning them their daily duties.
24 Pethahiah, son of Meshezabel, a descendant of Zerah, son of Judah, was royal deputy in all affairs that concerned the people.
Other Settlements. 25 As concerns their villages with their fields: Judahites lived in Kiriath-arba and its dependencies, in Dibon and its dependencies, in Jekabzeel and its villages, 26 in Jeshua, Moladah, Beth-pelet, 27 in Hazarshual, in Beer-sheba and its dependencies, 28 in Ziklag, in Meconah and its dependencies, 29 in En-rimmon, Zorah, Jarmuth, 30 Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages, Lachish and its fields, Azekah and its dependencies. They were settled from Beer-sheba to Ge-hinnom.
31 Benjaminites were in Geba, Michmash, Aija, Bethel and its dependencies, 32 Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah, 33 Hazor, Ramah, Gittaim, 34 Hadid, Zeboim, Neballat, 35 Lod, Ono, and the Valley of the Artisans.
36 Some divisions of the Levites from Judah were attached to Benjamin.
Chapter 12
Priests and Levites at the Time of Zerubbabel. 1 (AT)The following are the priests and Levites who returned with Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, 2 Amariah, Malluch, Hattush, 3 Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, 4 Iddo, Ginnethon, Abijah, 5 Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah, 6 Shemaiah, and Joiarib, Jedaiah, 7 Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah. These were the priestly heads and their kinsmen in the days of Jeshua.
8 The Levites were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, Mattaniah, who, together with his kinsmen, was in charge of the thanksgiving hymns, 9 while Bakbukiah and Unno and their kinsmen ministered opposite them by turns.
High Priests. 10 [i]Jeshua became the father of Joiakim, Joiakim the father of Eliashib, and Eliashib the father of Joiada; 11 Joiada the father of Johanan, and Johanan the father of Jaddua.
Priests and Levites Under Joiakim. 12 (AU)In the days of Joiakim these were the priestly family heads: for Seraiah, Meraiah; for Jeremiah, Hananiah; 13 for Ezra, Meshullam; for Amariah, Jehohanan; 14 for Malluchi, Jonathan; for Shebaniah, Joseph; 15 for Harim, Adna; for Meremoth, Helkai; 16 for Iddo, Zechariah; for Ginnethon, Meshullam; 17 for Abijah, Zichri; for Miamin,…; for Moadiah, Piltai; 18 for Bilgah, Shammua; for Shemaiah, Jehonathan; 19 and for Joiarib, Mattenai; for Jedaiah, Uzzi; 20 for Sallu, Kallai; for Amok, Eber; 21 for Hilkiah, Hashabiah; for Jedaiah, Nethanel.
22 In the time of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua, the heads of ancestral houses of the priests were written down in the Book of Chronicles, up until the reign of Darius the Persian. 23 The sons of Levi: the family heads were written down in the Book of Chronicles, up until the time of Johanan, the son of Eliashib.
24 (AV)The heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel. Their kinsmen who stood opposite them to sing praises and thanksgiving in fulfillment of the command of David, the man of God, one section opposite the other, 25 (AW)were Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah.
Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers. They guarded the storerooms at the gates.
26 All these lived in the time of Joiakim, son of Jeshua, son of Jozadak (and in the time of Nehemiah the governor and of Ezra the priest-scribe).
Dedication of the Wall. 27 [j]At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out wherever they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate a joyful dedication with thanksgiving hymns and the music of cymbals, harps, and lyres. 28 The levitical singers gathered together from the region about Jerusalem, from the villages of the Netophathites, 29 from Beth-gilgal, and from the plains of Geba and Azmaveth (for the singers had built themselves settlements about Jerusalem). 30 The priests and Levites first purified themselves, then they purified the people, the gates, and the wall.
31 I had the administrators of Judah go up on the wall, and I arranged two great choirs. The first of these proceeded to the right, along the top of the wall, in the direction of the Dung Gate, 32 followed by Hoshaiah and half the administrators of Judah, 33 along with Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, 34 Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah, 35 priests with the trumpets, and also Zechariah, son of Jonathan, son of Shemaiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Micaiah, son of Zaccur, son of Asaph, 36 and his kinsmen Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David, the man of God. Ezra the scribe was at their head. 37 At the Fountain Gate they went straight up by the steps of the City of David and continued along the top of the wall above the house of David until they came to the Water Gate on the east.
38 The second choir proceeded to the left, followed by myself and the other half of the administrators, along the top of the wall past the Oven Tower as far as the Broad Wall, 39 then past the Ephraim Gate to the Mishneh Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Hundred Tower, as far as the Sheep Gate. They came to a halt at the Prison Gate.
40 Both choirs took up a position in the house of God; I, too, and half the magistrates with me, 41 together with the priests Eliakim, Maaseiah, Minjamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, Hananiah, with the trumpets, 42 and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers were heard under the leadership of Jezrahiah. 43 Great sacrifices were offered on that day, and they rejoiced, for God had given them cause for great rejoicing. The women and the children joined in, and the rejoicing at Jerusalem could be heard from far off.
44 [k](AX)At that time men were appointed over the chambers set aside for stores, offerings, first fruits, and tithes; in them they were to collect from the fields of the various cities the portions legally assigned to the priests and Levites. For Judah rejoiced in its appointed priests and Levites 45 who carried out the ministry of their God and the ministry of purification (as did the singers and the gatekeepers) in accordance with the prescriptions of David and Solomon, his son. 46 (AY)For in the days of David and Asaph, long ago, there were leaders of singers for songs of praise and thanksgiving to God. 47 (AZ)All Israel, in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah, gave the singers and the gatekeepers their portions, according to their daily needs. They made their consecrated offering to the Levites, and the Levites made theirs to the descendants of Aaron.
Chapter 13
1 [l](BA)At that time, when the book of Moses was being read in the hearing of the people, it was found written there: “No Ammonite or Moabite may ever be admitted into the assembly of God; 2 (BB)for they did not meet the Israelites with food and water, but they hired Balaam to curse them, though our God turned the curse into a blessing.” 3 (BC)When they had heard the law, they separated all those of mixed descent from Israel.
Reform in the Temple. 4 [m]Before this, the priest Eliashib, who had been placed in charge of the chambers of the house of our God and who was an associate of Tobiah, 5 (BD)had set aside for the latter’s use a large chamber in which had previously been stored the grain offerings, incense and vessels, the tithes in grain, wine, and oil allotted to the Levites, singers, and gatekeepers, and the offerings due the priests. 6 During all this time I had not been in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes,[n] king of Babylon, I had gone back to the king. After a suitable period of time, however, I asked leave of the king 7 and returned to Jerusalem, where I discovered the evil thing that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, in setting aside for him a chamber in the courts of the house of God. 8 This displeased me very much, so I had all of Tobiah’s household goods thrown outside the chamber. 9 Then I gave orders to purify the chambers, and I brought back the vessels of the house of God, the grain offerings, and the incense.
10 I learned, too, that the portions due the Levites were no longer being given, so that the Levites and the singers who should have been carrying out the services had deserted to their own fields. 11 I reprimanded the magistrates, demanding, “Why is the house of God neglected?” Then I brought the Levites together and had them resume their stations. 12 (BE)All Judah once more brought in the tithes of grain, wine, and oil to the storerooms. 13 In charge of the storerooms I appointed Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah, one of the Levites, together with Hanan, son of Zaccur, son of Mattaniah, as their assistant; for they were considered trustworthy. It was their duty to make the distribution to their kinsmen. 14 Remember this to my credit, my God! Do not forget the good deeds I have done for the house of my God and its services!
Sabbath Observance. 15 (BF)In those days I perceived that people in Judah were treading the wine presses on the sabbath; that they were bringing in sheaves of grain, loading them on their donkeys, together with wine, grapes, figs, and every other kind of load, and bringing them to Jerusalem on the sabbath day. I warned them to sell none of these provisions. 16 In Jerusalem itself the Tyrians residing there were importing fish and every other kind of merchandise and selling it to the Judahites on the sabbath. 17 I reprimanded the nobles of Judah, demanding: “What is this evil thing you are doing, profaning the sabbath day? 18 Did not your ancestors act in this same way, with the result that our God has brought all this evil upon us and upon this city? Would you add to the wrath against Israel by once more profaning the sabbath?”
19 When the shadows were falling on the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I ordered the doors to be closed and prohibited their reopening until after the sabbath. I posted some of my own people at the gates so that no load might enter on the sabbath day. 20 The merchants and sellers of various kinds of merchandise spent the night once or twice outside Jerusalem, 21 but then I warned them: “Why do you spend the night alongside the wall? If you keep this up, I will beat you!” From that time on, they did not return on the sabbath. 22 Then I ordered the Levites to purify themselves and to watch the gates, so that the sabbath day might be kept holy. This, too, remember in my favor, my God, and have mercy on me in accordance with your great mercy!
Mixed Marriages. 23 (BG)Also in those days I saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, or Moab. 24 Of their children, half spoke the language of Ashdod,[o] or of one of the other peoples, and none of them knew how to speak the language of Judah. 25 So I reprimanded and cursed them; I beat some of their men and pulled out their hair; and I adjured them by God: “You shall not marry your daughters to their sons nor accept any of their daughters for your sons or for yourselves! 26 (BH)Did not Solomon, the king of Israel, sin because of them? Though among the many nations there was no king like him, and though he was beloved of his God and God had made him king over all Israel, yet even he was led into sin by foreign women. 27 Must it also be heard of you that you have done this same terrible evil, betraying our God by marrying foreign women?”
28 (BI)One of the sons of Joiada, son of Eliashib the high priest, was the son-in-law of Sanballat the Horonite! I drove him from my presence. 29 Remember against them, my God, how they defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites!
30 So I cleansed them of all foreign contamination. I established the various functions for the priests and Levites, so that each had an appointed task. 31 (BJ)I also provided for the procurement of wood at stated times and for the first fruits. Remember this in my favor, my God!
Footnotes
- 7:6–72 See note on Ezr 2:1–67.
- 7:65, 69 The governor: see note on Ezr 2:63.
- 8:1–18 Chronologically this belongs after Ezr 8:36. The gloss mentioning Nehemiah in Neh 8:9 was inserted in this Ezra section after the dislocation of several parts of Ezra-Nehemiah had occurred. There is no clear evidence of a simultaneous presence of Nehemiah and Ezra in Jerusalem; Neh 12:26, 36 are also scribal glosses.
- 9:1–5 The feast of Booths is followed by a penitential liturgy. Since it includes separation from foreigners, some read it as a sequel to Ezr 9–10.
- 9:6–37 The Septuagint attributes the prayer to Ezra; cf. Ezr 9:6–15.
- 9:16 They were obdurate: lit., “they stiffened their necks.”
- 10:1–39 This section belongs to the Nehemiah narrative rather than to that of Ezra. It is best read after Neh 13:31, since the stipulations of the pact seem to presuppose Nehemiah’s measures recorded in Neh 13. In view of all this: considering the situation described in Neh 13:4–31.
- 11:1–19 This list of the family heads who lived in Jerusalem at the time of Nehemiah is best read after Neh 7:72. It parallels at many points the list of early settlers in 1 Chr 9:2–17.
- 12:10–11 Jeshua was the high priest when Zerubbabel was governor, in the last decades of the sixth century B.C. (Hg 1:1, 12, 14; 2:2, 4). He was the grandfather of Eliashib, the high priest early in Nehemiah’s governorship (445–433 B.C.; Neh 3:1, 20, 21) and perhaps later. Eliashib, the grandfather of Johanan, was a grown man, if not yet a high priest, at the time of Ezra, ca. 400 B.C. (Ezr 10:6; and note). According to Josephus (Ant. 11:120–183), whose testimony here is doubtful, Jaddua, son of Johanan, died as an old man about the time that Alexander the Great died, 323 B.C. If, as seems probable, this list of the postexilic high priests, at least as far as Johanan, comes from the author himself (cf. Neh 12:23) and not from a later scribe, it is of prime importance for dating the author’s work in the first decades of the fourth century B.C.
- 12:27–43 The dedication of the wall of Jerusalem took place, no doubt, soon after the restoration of the wall and its gates had been completed. This section, therefore, is best read after Neh 6:15.
- 12:44–47 This account of the provisions made for the Temple services is a composition either of the author or of a later scribe. The gloss mentioning Nehemiah is not in the Septuagint.
- 13:1–3 These verses serve as an introduction to the reforms Nehemiah instituted during his second mission in Jerusalem (vv. 4–31). The part of the Book of Moses read to the people is freely quoted here from Dt 23:3–6.
- 13:4–31 This is part of the “Memoirs of Nehemiah”; it is continued in 10:1–40.
- 13:6 In the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes: Artaxerxes I, therefore 433 B.C. After…time: it is not known when Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem or how long his second period of activity there lasted.
- 13:24 Language of Ashdod: more likely an Aramaic rather than a Philistine dialect. The language of Judah: probably Hebrew.
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