Jubilee2000 - Nehemiah

Chapter 1

1:1  The words of Nehemiah, the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan, the palace,

1:2  that Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and [certain] men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.

1:3  And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province [are] in great affliction and reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem [is] broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.

1:4  And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept and mourned [certain] days and fasted and prayed before the God of the heavens

1:5  and said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of the heavens, strong, great and terrible, who keeps covenant and mercy for those that love thee and observe thy commandments;

1:6  let thine ear now be attentive and thine eyes open, that thou may hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the sons of Israel, thy servants, and I confess the sins of the sons of Israel, with which we have sinned against thee; both I and my father's house have sinned.

1:7  We have dealt very corruptly against thee and have not kept the commandments nor the statutes nor the judgments, which thou didst command thy servant Moses.

1:8  Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou didst command thy servant Moses, saying, [If] ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the peoples;

1:9  but [if] ye turn unto me and keep my commandments and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heavens, [yet] will I gather them from there and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to cause my name to dwell there.

1:10  Now these [are] thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast ransomed with thy great power and with thy strong hand.

1:11  O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant and to the prayer of thy servants who desire to fear thy name; and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him grace before this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.:

Chapter 2

2:1  And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, the king, [that as] wine [was] before him, I took up the wine and gave [it] unto the king. And as I had not been sad before in his presence,

2:2  the king said unto me, Why [is] thy countenance sad, seeing thou [art] not sick? This [is] nothing [else] but brokenness of heart. Then I was very sore afraid

2:3  and said unto the king, Let the king live for ever; why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the house of my fathers' sepulchres, [lies] waste, and the its gates are consumed with fire?

2:4  Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of the heavens.

2:5  And I said unto the king, If it pleases the king, and if thy servant has found favour in thy sight, that thou would send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may rebuild it.

2:6  Then the king said unto me (the queen also sitting by him), For how long shall thy journey be, and when wilt thou return? So the matter pleased the king, and he sent me; and I set him a time.

2:7  Moreover, I said unto the king, If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the captains on the other side of the river, that they may convey me over until I come into Judah,

2:8  and a letter unto Asaph, the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace of the house and for the wall of the city and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of the LORD upon me.

2:9  Then I came to the captains of the other side of the river and gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent princes of the army and horsemen with me.

2:10  When Sanballat, the Horonite, and Tobiah, the servant, the Ammonite, heard [of it], it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel.

2:11  So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.

2:12  And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither did I tell [any] man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; neither [was there any] beast with me, except the beast that I rode upon.

2:13  And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the fountain of the dragon and to the dung port and considered the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the its gates were consumed with fire.

2:14  Then I went on to the gate of the fountain and to the king's pool, but [there was] no place for the beast [that was] under me to pass.

2:15  Then went I up in the night by the brook and considered the wall and turned back and entered by the gate of the valley and [so] returned.

2:16  And the rulers did not know where I had gone or what I had done; neither had I as yet told [it] to the Jews nor to the priests nor to the nobles nor to the rulers nor to the rest that did the work.

2:17  Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we [are] in, how Jerusalem [lies] waste and its gates are burned with fire; come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no longer in reproach.

2:18  Then I told them how the hand of my God was good upon me and likewise the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they comforted their hands for good.

2:19  But when Sanballat, the Horonite, and Tobiah, the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem, the Arabian, heard [it], they laughed us to scorn and despised us and said, What is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the king?

2:20  Then I gave them a reply and said unto them, The God of the heavens, he will prosper us; therefore, we, his servants, will arise and build; but ye have no portion nor righteousness, nor memorial in Jerusalem.:

Chapter 3

3:1  Then Eliashib, the high priest, rose up with his brethren, the priests, and they built the sheep gate; they sanctified it and set up the doors of it; even unto the tower of Meah they sanctified it, unto the tower of Hananeel.

3:2  And next unto him the men of Jericho built. And next to them built Zaccur, the son of Imri.

3:3  And the sons of Hassenaah built the fish gate; they laid its beams and set up its doors, its locks, and its bars.

3:4  And next to them Meremoth, the son of Urijah, the son of Koz restored. And next to them Meshullam, the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabeel restored. And next to them Zadok, the son of Baana, restored.

3:5  And next to them the Tekoites restored; but their nobles did not put their necks to the work of their Lord.

3:6  Moreover, the old gate [was] restored [by] Jehoiada, the son of Paseah, and Meshullam, the son of Besodeiah; they laid its beams and set up its doors, its locks, and its bars.

3:7  And next to them restored Melatiah, the Gibeonite, and Jadon, the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, on behalf of the captain [of the king over the land] on this side the river.

3:8  Next to them Uzziel, the son of Harhaiah, of the refiners restored. Next unto him Hananiah, the son of [one of] the apothecaries, also restored, and they fortified Jerusalem unto the broad wall.

3:9  And next unto them Rephaiah, the son of Hur, prince of the half part of Jerusalem, restored.

3:10  And next unto them, Jedaiah, the son of Harumaph restored, and over against his house. And next unto him Hattush, the son of Hashabniah, restored.

3:11  Malchijah, the son of Harim, and Hashub, the son of Pahathmoab, restored the other piece and the tower of the furnaces.

3:12  And next to them restored Shallum, the son of Halohesh, prince of the half part of Jerusalem, he and his daughters.

3:13  The valley gate [was] restored [by] Hanun with the inhabitants of Zanoah; they rebuilt it and set up its doors, its locks, and its bars, and a thousand cubits in the wall unto the dung gate.

3:14  And Malchiah, the son of Rechab, prince of the province of Bethhaccerem, restored the dung gate; he built it and set up its doors, its locks, and its bars.

3:15  Shallun, the son of Colhozeh, the prince of the region of Mizpah, restored the gate of the fountain; he built it, covered it, and set up its doors, its locks, and its bars, and the wall of the pool of Siloah of the king's garden, unto the stairs that go down from the city of David.

3:16  After him restored Nehemiah, the son of Azbuk, the prince of half the region of Bethzur, unto [the place] over against the sepulchres of David and to the pool that was made and unto the house of the mighty.

3:17  After him restored the Levites, Rehum, the son of Bani. Next unto him Hashabiah, prince of half the region of Keilah, restored in his part.

3:18  After him their brethren, Bavai, the son of Henadad, prince of the half the region of Keilah restored.

3:19  And next to him Ezer, the son of Jeshua, prince of Mizpah, restored another piece over against the going up to the armoury at the turning [of the wall].

3:20  After him Baruch, the son of Zabbai, earnestly restored the other piece, from the turning [of the wall] unto the door of the house of Eliashib, the high priest.

3:21  After him, Meremoth, the son of Urijah, the son of Koz, restored another piece, from the door of the house of Eliashib even to the end of the house of Eliashib.

3:22  And after him the priests, the men of the plain, restored.

3:23  After them Benjamin and Hashub restored over against their house. After them Azariah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, restored by his house.

3:24  After him, Binnui, the son of Henadad, restored another piece, from the house of Azariah unto the turning [of the wall], even unto the corner.

3:25  Palal, the son of Uzai, over against the turning [of the wall], and the tower which lies out from the king's high house, that [was] by the court of the prison. After him Pedaiah, the son of Parosh.

3:26  And the Nethinims were in Ophel, unto [the place] over against the water gate toward the east and the tower that lies out.

3:27  After them the Tekoites restored the another piece, over against the great tower that lies out, unto the wall of Ophel.

3:28  From the horse gate the priests restored, each one over against his house.

3:29  After them Zadok, the son of Immer, restored over against his house. After him, Shemaiah the son of Shechaniah, the keeper of the east gate restored.

3:30  After him, Hananiah, the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, restored another piece. After him Meshullam, the son of Berechiah restored over against his chamber.

3:31  After him, Malchiah, the son of the refiner, restored unto the place of the Nethinims and of the merchants, over against the gate of judgment and to the going up of the corner.

3:32  And between the going up of the corner unto the sheep gate, the refiners and the merchants restored.:

Chapter 4

4:1  But it came to pass that when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was wroth and took great indignation and mocked the Jews.

4:2  And he spoke before his brethren and the army of Samaria and said, What are these feeble Jews doing? Is this to be permitted them? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish on time? Will they resurrect the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which were burned?

4:3  Now Tobiah, the Ammonite, [was] by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox [were to] go up [it], he would break down their stone wall.

4:4  Hear, O our God; for we are despised; and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of their captivity.

4:5  And do not cover their iniquity, nor let their sin be blotted out from before thee, for they have become angry against the builders.

4:6  But we built the wall, and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof, for the people were motivated to work.

4:7  And it came to pass when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabians and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were sound [and] that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth

4:8  and conspired all of them together to come [and] to fight against Jerusalem and to hinder it.

4:9  Nevertheless, we made our prayer unto our God and set a watch over the [builders] day and night because of them.

4:10  And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and [there is] much rubbish so that we are not able to build the wall.

4:11  And our adversaries said, They shall not know or see until we come in the midst among them and slay them and cause the work to cease.

4:12  But it came to pass, that when the Jews who dwelt among them came, they advised us ten times of all the places from which they would come upon us.

4:13  Therefore, I set in the lower places behind the wall, [and] on the higher places, I set the people by families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.

4:14  Then I looked and rose up and said unto the nobles and to the rulers and to the rest of the people, Do not be afraid of them: remember the Lord, [who is] great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

4:15  And it came to pass when our enemies heard that we had understood it, God brought their counsel to nought, [and] we returned all of us to the wall, each one unto his work.

4:16  And it came to pass from that time forth [that] half of the young men wrought in the work, and the other half of them held spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail; and the princes [were] behind all the house of Judah.

4:17  Those that built on the wall and those that bore burdens and those that laded wrought with one hand in the work and with the other held a weapon.

4:18  For the builders, each one had his sword girded by his side, and so they built. And he that sounded the shofar [was] by me.

4:19  And I said unto the principals and to the rulers and to the rest of the people, The work [is] great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.

4:20  In whatever place that you hear the voice of the shofar, join us there; our God shall fight for us.

4:21  So we laboured in the work, and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning until the stars appeared.

4:22  Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let each one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that by night they may be a guard to us, and labour by day.

4:23  So neither I nor my brethren nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us put off our clothes, each one put them off [only] for washing.:

Chapter 5

5:1  Then there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren, the Jews.

5:2  For there were [some] that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, [are] many; therefore we have bought grain that we may eat and live.

5:3  There were also [some] that said, We have mortgaged our lands, vineyards, and houses, that we might buy grain because of the famine.

5:4  And there were [some] that said, We have borrowed money for the king's tribute, [and that] upon our lands and vineyards.

5:5  Yet now, [given] that the flesh of our brethren [is] as our flesh [and] their sons as our sons, behold, we subject our sons and our daughters to slavery, and there are [some] of our daughters in bondage [already]; neither [is it] in our power to redeem them; for other men have our lands and vineyards.

5:6  And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words.

5:7  Then I meditated unto myself, and I rebuked the principals and the rulers and said unto them, Does each one of you exact usury of his brother? And I set a great assembly against them.

5:8  And I said unto them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren, the Jews who had been sold unto the Gentiles; and will ye even sell your brethren? And shall they be sold unto us? Then they remained silent, for they had nothing to answer.

5:9  Also I said, What you do is not good, do you not walk in the fear of our God, that ye not be the reproach of our enemies the Gentiles?

5:10  I, likewise, [and] my brethren and my servants, have lent them money and grain; let us now release them from this burden.

5:11  Restore, I pray you, to them, today, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, and [even] the hundredth [part] of the money, and of the grain, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them.

5:12  Then they said, We will return [it] and will require nothing of them; so we will do as thou sayest. Then I called the priests and caused them to sware that they should do according to this promise.

5:13  Also I shook my lap and said, Thus will God shake out each man from his house and from his labour, that does not perform this promise, even thus shall he be shaken out and emptied. And all the congregation said, Amen and praised the LORD. And the people did according to this promise.

5:14  Moreover, from the day that I was appointed [by the king] to be their captain in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year even unto the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes, the king, [that is], twelve years, I and my brethren have not eaten the bread of the captain.

5:15  But the former captains that [had been] before me had charged the people and had taken of them for bread and wine, upon forty shekels of silver; and in addition to this their servants bore rule over the people; but I did not do so because of the fear of God.

5:16  In addition to this, I restored my part in the work of this wall, neither did we buy any inheritance; and all my servants [were] gathered together unto the work.

5:17  I also had at my table one hundred and fifty of the Jews and rulers, besides those that came unto us from among the Gentiles that [are] around us.

5:18  Now [that] which was prepared for each day [was] one ox [and] six choice sheep; also fowls were prepared for me, and every ten days wine in all abundance; yet with all this I did not require the bread of the captain because the bondage was heavy upon this people.

5:19  Remember me, my God, for good and all that I have done for this people.:

Chapter 6

6:1  Now it came to pass when Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem, the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had built the wall and [that] there was no breach left in it (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates),

6:2  that Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in [one of] the villages in the plain of Ono. But they had thought to do me evil.

6:3  And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I [am] doing a great work so that I cannot come down; why should the work cease, whilst I leave it and come down to you?

6:4  Yet they sent unto me four times after this sort, and I answered them after the same manner.

6:5  Then Sanballat sent his servant to say the same thing for the fifth time with an open letter in his hand,

6:6  in which [was] written, It is reported among the Gentiles, and Gashmu saith [it], [that] thou and the Jews think to rebel, for which cause thou dost build the wall, that thou may be their king, according to these words.

6:7  And thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, [There is] a king in Judah! And now these words shall be heard by the king. Come now, therefore, and let us take counsel together.

6:8  Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou dost feign them out of thine own heart.

6:9  For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it not be done. Now, therefore, [O God], strengthen my hands.

6:10  Afterward I came in secret unto the house of Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabeel, who [was] shut up; and he said, Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple; for they are coming to slay thee; yea, tonight they will come to slay thee.

6:11  Then I said, Should such a man as I flee? And who is there as I who could go into the temple and live? I will not go in.

6:12  And I perceived that God had not sent him, but that he pronounced this prophecy against me, for Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.

6:13  For he was bribed to make me be thus afraid and sin and [that] they might have [matter] for an evil report, that they might reproach me.

6:14  My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works and on the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets, that [did things to] put me in fear.

6:15  So the wall was finished the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.

6:16  And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard [of it], all the Gentiles that [were] about us feared, and they were much cast down in their own eyes, and they knew that this work was wrought of our God.

6:17  Likewise, in those days the principals of Judah sent many letters unto Tobiah, and [the letters] of Tobiah came unto them.

6:18  For [there were] many in Judah sworn unto him, because he [was] the son-in-law of Shechaniah, the son of Arah; and his son Johanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam, the son of Berechiah.

6:19  They also reported his good deeds before me and uttered my words to him. [And] Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear.:

Chapter 7

7:1  Now it came to pass, when the wall was built and I had set up the doors and the porters and the singers and the Levites were appointed,

7:2  that I commanded my brother Hanani, and Hananiah, the prince of the palace in Jerusalem (for he was as a man of truth and feared God above many);

7:3  and I said unto them, Do not let the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot and even [with] the [guards] present, let them shut the doors and bar [them]. And appoint guards of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, each one in his watch and each one [to be] in front of his house.

7:4  Now the city [was] large and great, but there were few people in it, and the houses [were] not rebuilt.

7:5  And my God put [it] into my heart to gather together the principals and the rulers and the people, that they might be reckoned by genealogy. And I found the register of the genealogy of those who had come up before and found written therein:

7:6  These [are] the sons of the province, that came up out of the captivity, of those that had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had carried away and returned to Jerusalem and to Judah, each one unto his city,

7:7  who came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, [and] Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:

7:8  The sons of Parosh, two thousand one hundred and seventy-two.

7:9  The sons of Shephatiah, three hundred and seventy-two.

7:10  The sons of Arah, six hundred and fifty-two.

7:11  The sons of Pahathmoab, of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred [and] eighteen.

7:12  The sons of Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four.

7:13  The sons of Zattu, eight hundred and forty-five.

7:14  The sons of Zaccai, seven hundred and sixty.

7:15  The sons of Binnui, six hundred and forty-eight.

7:16  The sons of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-eight.

7:17  The sons of Azgad, two thousand three hundred and twenty-two.

7:18  The sons of Adonikam, six hundred and seventy-seven.

7:19  The sons of Bigvai, two thousand sixty-seven.

7:20  The sons of Adin, six hundred and fifty-five.

7:21  The sons of Ater of Hezekiah, ninety-eight.

7:22  The sons of Hashum, three hundred and twenty-eight.

7:23  The sons of Bezai, three hundred and twenty-four.

7:24  The sons of Hariph, one hundred and twelve.

7:25  The sons of Gibeon, ninety-five.

7:26  The men of Bethlehem and Netophah, one hundred and eighty-eight.

7:27  The men of Anathoth, one hundred and twenty-eight.

7:28  The men of Bethazmaveth, forty-two.

7:29  The men of Kirjathjearim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred and forty-three.

7:30  The men of Ramah and of Geba, six hundred and twenty-one.

7:31  The men of Michmas, one hundred and twenty-two.

7:32  The men of Bethel and Ai, one hundred and twenty-three.

7:33  The men of the other Nebo, fifty-two.

7:34  The sons of the other Elam, one thousand two hundred and fifty-four.

7:35  The sons of Harim, three hundred and twenty.

7:36  The sons of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five.

7:37  The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-one.

7:38  The sons of Senaah, three thousand nine hundred and thirty.

7:39  The priests: the sons of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred and seventy-three.

7:40  The sons of Immer, one thousand fifty-two.

7:41  The sons of Pashur, one thousand two hundred and forty-seven.

7:42  The sons of Harim, one thousand and seventeen.

7:43  The Levites: the sons of Jeshua, of Kadmiel, [and] of the sons of Hodevah, seventy-four.

7:44  The singers: the sons of Asaph, one hundred and forty-eight.

7:45  The porters: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai, one hundred thirty-eight.

7:46  The Nethinims: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hashupha, the sons of Tabbaoth,

7:47  the sons of Keros, the sons of Sia, the sons of Padon,

7:48  the sons of Lebana, the sons of Hagaba, the sons of Shalmai,

7:49  the sons of Hanan, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar,

7:50  the sons of Reaiah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda,

7:51  the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza, the sons of Phaseah,

7:52  the sons of Besai, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nephishesim,

7:53  the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur,

7:54  the sons of Bazlith, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha,

7:55  the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Tamah,

7:56  the sons of Neziah, the sons of Hatipha.

7:57  The sons of Solomon's servants: the sons of Sotai, the sons of Sophereth, the sons of Perida,

7:58  the sons of Jaala, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel,

7:59  the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth of Zebaim, the sons of Amon.

7:60  All the Nethinims, and the sons of Solomon's servants, [were] three hundred and ninety-two.

7:61  And these [were] they which came up [also] from Telmelah, Telharesha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer; but they could not show their father's house, nor their seed, whether they [were] of Israel.

7:62  The sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, six hundred and forty-two.

7:63  And of the priests: the sons of Habaiah, the sons of Koz, the sons of Barzillai, who took [one] of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite to wife, and was called after their name.

7:64  These sought their register [among] those that were reckoned by genealogy, but it was not found; therefore, were they, as polluted, put from the priesthood.

7:65  And the Tirshatha said unto them that they should not eat of the most holy things until there stood [up] a priest with Urim and Thummim.

7:66  The whole congregation [united] as one [man] was forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty,

7:67  not counting their menservants and their maidservants, of whom [there were] seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred and forty-five men and women singers.

7:68  Their horses, seven hundred and thirty-six; their mules, two hundred and forty-five:

7:69  [Their] camels, four hundred and thirty-five; [their] asses, six thousand seven hundred and twenty.

7:70  And some of the princes of the families gave unto the work. The Tirshatha gave for the treasure one thousand drams of gold, fifty basins, and five hundred and thirty priests' garments.

7:71  And the princes of the families gave for the treasure of the work twenty thousand drams of gold and two thousand two hundred pounds of silver.

7:72  And [that] which the rest of the people gave [was] twenty thousand drams of gold and two thousand pounds of silver and sixty-seven priests' garments.

7:73  So the priests and the Levites and the porters and the singers and [those] of the people and the Nethinims and all Israel dwelt in their cities; and when the seventh month came, the sons of Israel [were] in their cities.:

Chapter 8

8:1  And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the plaza that [was] before the water gate, and they spoke unto Ezra, the scribe, to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.

8:2  And Ezra, the priest, brought the law before the congregation, both of men and women and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.

8:3  And he read in the [book] before the plaza that [was] before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people [were attentive] unto the book of the law.

8:4  And Ezra, the scribe, stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchiah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, [and] Meshullam.

8:5  And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people (for he was above all the people), and when he opened it, all the people stood up:

8:6  and Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, lifting up their hands; and they humbled themselves and worshipped the LORD with [their] faces to the ground.

8:7  And Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, [and] Pelaiah, Levites, caused the people to [be silent] that they might understand the law; and the people [were] in their place.

8:8  So they read in the book in the law of God clearly and paid attention, and understood the reading.

8:9  And Nehemiah, the Tirshatha, and Ezra, the priest and scribe, and the Levites that caused the people to be attentive, said unto all the people, This day [is] holy unto the LORD your God; do not mourn nor weep. For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.

8:10  Then he said unto them, Go, eat the fat, and drink sweet wine, and send portions unto those who have nothing prepared; for [this] day [is] holy unto our Lord, and not sad; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

8:11  So the Levites caused all the people to be silent, saying, Be silent, for the day [is] holy; neither be ye sad.

8:12  And all the people went to eat and to drink and to send portions and to rejoice with great joy because they had understood the words that were taught unto them.

8:13  And on the next day the princes of the families of all the people, the priests, and the Levites were gathered together unto Ezra, the scribe, to understand the words of the law.

8:14  And they found written in the law, which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the sons of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month

8:15  and that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount and bring olive branches and pine branches and myrtle branches and palm branches and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as [it is] written.

8:16  So the people went forth and brought [them] and made themselves booths, each one upon the roof of his house and in their courts and in the courts of the house of God and in the plaza of the water gate and in the plaza of the gate of Ephraim.

8:17  And all the congregation of those that returned out of the captivity made booths and dwelt in the booths, for since the days of Jeshua, the son of Nun, unto that day, the sons of Israel had not done so. And there was very great joy.

8:18  And Ezra read in the book of the law of God each day, from the first day unto the last day. And they kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day [was] a solemn assembly, according to the ordinance.:

Chapter 9

9:1  Now in the twenty-fourth day of this month, the sons of Israel were assembled with fasting and with sackcloth and earth upon them.

9:2  And the seed of Israel had separated themselves from all strangers and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.

9:3  And they stood up in their place and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God [one] fourth part of the day; and [another] fourth part they confessed and worshipped the LORD their God.

9:4  Then stood up upon the stairs of the Levites, Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, [and] Chenani and cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God.

9:5  Then the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, [and] Pethahiah said, Stand up [and] bless the LORD your God for ever and ever; and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.

9:6  Thou, O LORD, art alone; thou hast made the heavens and the heavens of the heavens, with all their host, the earth and all [things] that [are] therein, the seas and all that [is] therein, and thou givest life to them all; and the host of the heavens worship thee.

9:7  Thou art, O LORD, the God who didst choose Abram and didst bring him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees and didst give him the name of Abraham

9:8  and didst find his heart faithful before thee and didst make a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, to give [it], to his seed and hast performed thy word; for thou [art] righteous.

9:9  And thou didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt and didst hear their cry by the Red sea

9:10  and didst show signs and wonders upon Pharaoh and on all his servants and on all the people of his land; for thou didst know that they had dealt proudly against them. So didst thou make thee a name, as [it is] this day.

9:11  And thou didst divide the sea before them so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors thou didst throw into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters.

9:12  Moreover, thou didst lead them by day with a pillar of cloud and by night with a pillar of fire to give them light in the way by which they should go.

9:13  Thou didst come down upon Mount Sinai and didst speak with them from heaven and didst give them right judgments and true laws, good statutes and commandments,

9:14  and didst make known unto them the sabbath of thy holiness and didst prescribe for them commandments, statutes, and law by the hand of Moses, thy servant.

9:15  And thou didst give them bread from heaven in their hunger and didst bring forth water for them out of the rock in their thirst and didst promise them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.

9:16  But they and our fathers dealt proudly and hardened their necks and did not hearken unto thy commandments

9:17  and refused to hear; neither did they remember thy wonders that thou hadst done among them, but hardened their necks and in their rebellion [thought] to appoint a leader to return to their bondage; but thou [art] a God of pardons, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great mercy, and for thou didst not leave them.

9:18  Even when they had made themselves a molten calf and said, This [is] thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had committed great abominations;

9:19  yet thou in thy manifold mercies didst not forsake them in the wilderness; the pillar of the cloud did not depart from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither did the pillar of fire by night, to illuminate the way in which they should go.

9:20  Thou didst give thy good spirit to teach them and didst not withhold thy manna from their mouth and didst give them water for their thirst.

9:21  [Yea], forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness [so that] they lacked nothing; their clothes did not wax old, and their feet did not swell.

9:22  Thou didst give them kingdoms and peoples and didst divide them into corners; so they possessed the land of Sihon and the land of the king of Heshbon and the land of Og, king of Bashan.

9:23  Thou didst multiply their sons as the stars of heaven and didst introduce them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to inherit [it].

9:24  So the sons came in and possessed the land, and thou didst humble the inhabitants of the land before them, the Canaanites, and didst give them into their hand, with their kings and the peoples of the land, that they might do with them as they would.

9:25  And they took strong cities and fertile land and inherited houses full of all goods, hewn cisterns, vineyards and oliveyards and many trees of good fruit; so they ate and were filled and became fat and delighted themselves in thy great goodness.

9:26  Nevertheless, they were contentious and rebelled against thee and cast thy law behind their backs and slew thy prophets who testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great abominations.

9:27  Therefore, thou didst deliver them into the hand of their enemies, who afflicted them; and in the time of their tribulation, they cried unto thee, thou didst hear [them] from the heavens; and according to thy manifold mercies thou didst give them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.

9:28  But after they had rest, they did evil again before thee; therefore, thou didst leave them in the hand of their enemies so that they had the dominion over them; yet when they returned and cried unto thee, thou didst hear [them] from the heavens; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies

9:29  and didst protest unto them, that they return unto thy law; yet they dealt proudly and did not hearken unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments (which if a man shall do, in them he shall live) and withdrew the shoulder and hardened their neck and would not hear.

9:30  Yet many years didst thou forbear them and didst protest against them with thy spirit by the hand of thy prophets; yet they did not hear; therefore, thou didst give them into the hand of the peoples of the land.

9:31  Nevertheless, for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them nor forsake them; for thou [art] a gracious and merciful God.

9:32  Now, therefore, our God, the great, mighty, and terrible God, who keeps covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before thee, that has come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, on our priests, on our prophets, on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.

9:33  Howbeit thou [art] just in all that has come upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly;

9:34  neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, with which thou didst testify against them.

9:35  For they did not serve thee in their kingdom and in thy great goodness that thou didst give them and in the large and fat land which thou didst deliver before them; neither did they turn from their wicked works.

9:36  Behold, we [are] servants this day, behold us here, servants in the land which thou didst give unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof.

9:37  And it multiplies its fruit for the kings, whom thou hast set over us because of our sins, who have dominion over our bodies and over our cattle, according to their will, and we [are] in great distress.

9:38  And because of all this, we make a sure [covenant] and write [it]; and our princes, Levites, [and] priests seal [unto it].:

Chapter 10

10:1  Now those that sealed [were], Nehemiah, the Tirshatha, the son of Hachaliah, and Zidkijah,

10:2  Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,

10:3  Pashur, Amariah, Malchijah,

10:4  Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch,

10:5  Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,

10:6  Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,

10:7  Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,

10:8  Maaziah, Bilgai, [and] Shemaiah: these [were] priests.

10:9  And the Levites: both Jeshua, the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel;

10:10  and their brethren, Shebaniah, Hodijah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,

10:11  Micha, Rehob, Hashabiah,

10:12  Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,

10:13  Hodijah, Bani, Beninu.

10:14  The heads of the people; Parosh, Pahathmoab, Elam, Zatthu, Bani,

10:15  Bunni, Azgad, Bebai,

10:16  Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin,

10:17  Ater, Hizkijah, Azzur,

10:18  Hodijah, Hashum, Bezai,

10:19  Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai,

10:20  Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,

10:21  Meshezabeel, Zadok, Jaddua,

10:22  Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah,

10:23  Hosea, Hananiah, Hashub,

10:24  Hallohesh, Pileha, Shobek,

10:25  Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,

10:26  Ahijah, Hanan, Anan,

10:27  Malluch, Harim, Baanah.

10:28  And the rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the porters, the singers, the Nethinims, and all those that had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands unto the law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, every one having knowledge and having understanding;

10:29  Strengthened with their brethren, their nobles, they came forward in an oath with a curse that they would walk in God's law, which was given by the hand of Moses, the servant of God, and observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord, and his judgments and his statutes;

10:30  and that we would not give our daughters unto the peoples of the land nor take their daughters for our sons.

10:31  Likewise that if the peoples of the land bring merchandise or any food on the sabbath day to sell, [that] we would not take anything from them on the sabbath or on the holy day, and [that] we would leave the seventh year and remit every debt.

10:32  Also we made ordinances for us, to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God,

10:33  for the showbread and for the continual present and for the continual burnt offering, and of the sabbaths and of the new moons, for the appointed feasts and for the holy [things] and for the [atonement for] sin to reconcile Israel and [for] all the work of the house of our God.

10:34  And we cast the lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, regarding the wood offering, to bring [it] into the house of our God, according to the houses of our fathers, at times appointed year by year, to burn upon the altar of the LORD our God, as [it is] written in the law.

10:35  And that each year we would bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of all trees, unto the house of the LORD.

10:36  Likewise, the firstborn of our sons and of our beasts, as [it is] written in the law and that we would bring the firstlings of our cows and of our sheep to the house of our God, unto the priests that minister in the house of our God.

10:37  And [that] we would also bring the firstfruits of our dough and of our offerings and the fruit of every tree, of the wine and of the oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God, and the tithe of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tenths of our labours in all the cities.

10:38  And that the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites receive tithes; and the Levites shall offer the tithe of the tithes in the house of our God, to the chambers, in the treasure house.

10:39  For the sons of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the offering of the grain, of the new wine and the oil, unto the chambers where [are] the vessels of the sanctuary and the priests that minister and the porters and the singers; and we will not forsake the house of our God.:

Chapter 11

11:1  And the rulers of the people dwelt at Jerusalem; but the rest of the people cast lots, to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city and nine parts [to dwell] in the [other] cities.

11:2  And the people blessed all the men that willingly offered themselves to dwell at Jerusalem.

11:3  Now these [are] the heads of the province that dwelt in Jerusalem; but in the cities of Judah each one dwelt in his possession in their cities, of Israel, of the priests, the Levites, and the Nethinims, and of the sons of Solomon's servants.

11:4  And at Jerusalem dwelt [certain] of the sons of Judah and of the sons of Benjamin. Of the sons of Judah: Athaiah, the son of Uzziah, the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalaleel, of the sons of Perez;

11:5  and Maaseiah, the son of Baruch, the son of Colhozeh, the son of Hazaiah, the son of Adaiah, the son of Joiarib, the son of Zechariah, the son of Shiloni.

11:6  All the sons of Perez that dwelt at Jerusalem [were] four hundred and sixty-eight valiant men.

11:7  And these [are] the sons of Benjamin: Sallu, the son of Meshullam, the son of Joed, the son of Pedaiah, the son of Kolaiah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ithiel, the son of Jesaiah.

11:8  And after him Gabbai [and] Sallai, nine hundred and twenty-eight.

11:9  And Joel, the son of Zichri, [was] their overseer; and Judah, the son of Senuah, [was] second over the city.

11:10  Of the priests: Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, Jachin.

11:11  Seraiah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, prince of the house of God,

11:12  and their brethren that did the work of the house [were] eight hundred and twenty-two; and Adaiah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Pelaliah, the son of Amzi, the son of Zechariah, the son of Pashur, the son of Malchiah,

11:13  and his brethren, princes of families, two hundred and forty-two; and Amashai, the son of Azareel, the son of Ahasai, the son of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer,

11:14  and their brethren, mighty men of valour, one hundred and twenty-eight; and their captain [was] Zabdiel, the son of Gedolim.

11:15  And of the Levites: Shemaiah, the son of Hashub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Bunni;

11:16  and Shabbethai and Jozabad, of the principals of the Levites, overseers of the exterior work of the house of God.

11:17  And Mattaniah, the son of Micha, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, [was] the principal to begin the thanksgiving in prayer; and Bakbukiah, the second among his brethren, and Abda, the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun.

11:18  All the Levites in the holy city [were] two hundred and eighty-four.

11:19  Moreover, the porters, Akkub, Talmon, and their brethren, guards at the gates, [were] one hundred and seventy-two.

11:20  And the residue of Israel, of the priests [and] the Levites, [were] in all the cities of Judah, each one in his inheritance.

11:21  And the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel, and Ziha and Gispa [were] over the Nethinims.

11:22  The overseer of the Levites at Jerusalem [was] Uzzi, the son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micha of singers, the sons of Asaph, over the work of the house of God.

11:23  For [there was] a commandment of the king concerning them and a determination of the singers for each day.

11:24  And Pethahiah, the son of Meshezabeel, of the sons of Zerah, the son of Judah, [was] at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people.

11:25  And [regarding] the villages with their lands, [some] of the sons of Judah dwelt in Kirjatharba and [in] its villages and in Dibon and [in] its villages and in Jekabzeel and [in] its villages,

11:26  and in Jeshua and in Moladah and in Bethphelet

11:27  and in Hazarshual and in Beersheba and [in] its villages

11:28  and in Ziklag and in Mekonah and in its villages,

11:29  and in Enrimmon and in Zareah and in Jarmuth,

11:30  Zanoah, Adullam, and [in] their villages, in Lachish and its lands, in Azekah and [in] its villages. And they dwelt from Beersheba unto the valley of Hinnom.

11:31  The sons of Benjamin from Geba [dwelt] in Michmash and Aija and Bethel and [in] their villages

11:32  [and] in Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah,

11:33  Hazor, Ramah, Gittaim,

11:34  Hadid, Zeboim, Neballat,

11:35  Lod, and Ono, the valley of craftsmen.

11:36  And of the Levites [there were] divisions [in] Judah, [and] in Benjamin.:

Chapter 12

12:1  Now these [are] the priests and the Levites that came up with Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel and with Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

12:2  Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

12:3  Shechaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

12:4  Iddo, Ginnetho, Abijah,

12:5  Miamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,

12:6  Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah,

12:7  Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, [and] Jedaiah. These [were] the princes of the priests and of their brethren in the days of Jeshua.

12:8  And the Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, [and] Mattaniah, who with his brethren officiated in the songs of praise.

12:9  Also Bakbukiah and Unni, their brethren, [were] before them in the watches.

12:10  And Jeshua begat Joiakim, Joiakim begat Eliashib, and Eliashib begat Joiada,

12:11  Joiada begat Jonathan, and Jonathan begat Jaddua.

12:12  And in the days of Joiakim the priests, the heads of the families were of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

12:13  of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;

12:14  of Melicu, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;

12:15  of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai;

12:16  of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

12:17  of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai;

12:18  of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

12:19  of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

12:20  of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;

12:21  of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethaneel.

12:22  The Levites in the days of Eliashib, of Joiada and of Johanan and [of] Jaddua, [were] recorded as heads of families; also the priests, until the reign of Darius, the Persian.

12:23  The sons of Levi, heads of families, [were] written in the book of the Chronicles, until the days of Johanan the son of Eliashib.

12:24  The heads of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua, the son of Kadmiel, and their brethren before them, to praise [and] to give thanks, according to the statute of David, the man of God, keeping each one their ward.

12:25  Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, [and] Akkub [were] porters keeping the ward at the thresholds of the gates.

12:26  These [were] in the days of Joiakim, the son of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the captain, and of Ezra, the priest [and] scribe.

12:27  And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgiving and with singing, [with] cymbals, psalteries, and with harps.

12:28  And the sons of the singers were gathered together, both out of the plain country round about Jerusalem and from the villages of Netophathi;

12:29  also from the house of Gilgal and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built themselves villages round about Jerusalem.

12:30  And the priests and the Levites purified themselves and purified the people and the gates and the wall.

12:31  Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall and appointed two great choirs [which went] in procession, [one] went on the right hand upon the wall toward the dung gate.

12:32  And after them went Hoshaiah and half of the princes of Judah,

12:33  and Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,

12:34  Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah;

12:35  and [certain] of the priests' sons with trumpets: [namely], Zechariah, the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Michaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph;

12:36  and his brethren, Shemaiah, Azarael, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David, the man of God, and Ezra, the scribe, before them.

12:37  And at the fountain gate, which was over against them, they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, from the house of David unto the water gate eastward.

12:38  And the second choir went over against [them], and I after them with half of the people upon the wall, from the tower of the furnaces even unto the broad wall,

12:39  and from the gate of Ephraim, to the old gate, and to the fish gate, to the tower of Hananeel, and the tower of Meah, unto the sheep gate; and they stood still in the gate of the guards.

12:40  Then the two choirs stood in the house of God, and I and half of the rulers with me;

12:41  and the priests: Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Michaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, [and] Hananiah, with trumpets;

12:42  and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang loud, with Jezrahiah [their] overseer.

12:43  Also that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women also and the children rejoiced, so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.

12:44  And at that time men were appointed over the chambers of the treasures, of the offerings, of the firstfruits, and of the tithes, to gather into them out of the fields of the cities the legal portions for the priests and the Levites; for the joy of Judah was upon the priests and the Levites that served.

12:45  And they kept the ward of their God and the ward of the purification, and the singers and the porters, according to the statute of David [and] of Solomon, his son.

12:46  For from the time of David and Asaph of old [there were] princes of the singers, and songs and praise and thanksgiving unto God.

12:47  And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah, gave the portions of the singers and the porters, each thing in its day; and they sanctified [them] unto the Levites; and the Levites sanctified [them] unto the sons of Aaron.:

Chapter 13

13:1  On that day they read in the book of Moses in the audience of the people; and it was found written therein that the Ammonites and the Moabites should not come into the congregation of God forever

13:2  because they did not meet the sons of Israel with bread and with water, but hired Balaam against them, that he should curse them; howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessing.

13:3  Now it came to pass, when they had heard the law, that they separated from Israel all the mixed multitude.

13:4  And before this, Eliashib, the priest, had been the overseer of the chamber of the house of our God, [and was] related to Tobiah,

13:5  and he had prepared for him a great chamber, where before they had kept the present, the frankincense, the vessels, the tithe of the grain, of the new wine, and of the oil, which was commanded [to be given] to the Levites, to the singers and the porters and the offerings of the priests.

13:6  But in all this [time] I was not at Jerusalem; for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes, king of Babylon, I went unto the king, and after certain days I was sent by the king.

13:7  And I came to Jerusalem and understood the evil that Eliashib had done attending Tobiah, in preparing him a chamber in the courts of the house of God.

13:8  And it grieved me sore; therefore, I cast forth all the household vessels of Tobiah out of the chamber.

13:9  Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers; and I caused the vessels of the house of God to be brought there again, with the present and the frankincense.

13:10  And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given [to them] and that the Levites and the singers, that did the work, had fled each one to his inheritance.

13:11  Then I contended with the rulers and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together and set them in their place.

13:12  Then all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, of the new wine, and of the oil unto the store houses.

13:13  And I made treasurers over the store houses, Shelemiah, the priest, and Zadok, the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah; and next to them [was] Hanan, the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah; for they were counted faithful, and their office [was] to distribute unto their brethren.

13:14  Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my mercies that I have done for the house of my God and for its wards.

13:15  In those days I saw in Judah [some] treading wine presses on the sabbath and bringing in sheaves and lading asses with wine, grapes, figs, and all [manner of] burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day; and I protested [unto them] the day in which they sold the food.

13:16  There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, who brought fish and all manner of merchandise, and sold on the sabbath to the sons of Judah in Jerusalem.

13:17  Then I contended with the nobles of Judah and said unto them, What evil thing [is] this that ye do and profane thus the sabbath day?

13:18  Did not your fathers do this, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us and upon this city? Yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.

13:19  And it came to pass, that when shadow came to the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut and charged that they should not be opened until after the sabbath; and I set [some] of my servants at the gates, [that] no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.

13:20  So the merchants and sellers of all kinds of merchandise lodged outside Jerusalem once or twice.

13:21  Then I testified and protested against them and said unto them, Why do ye lodge about the wall? If ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth they came no [more] on the sabbath.

13:22  And I told the Levites that they should cleanse themselves and [that] they should come [and] guard the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. Remember me, O my God, [concerning] this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy.

13:23  In those days I also saw Jews [that] had married wives of Ashdod, of Ammon, [and] of Moab;

13:24  and their sons spoke half in the speech of Ashdod, and according to the language of each people; for they could not speak in the Jews' language.

13:25  And I contended with them and cursed them and smote certain of them and plucked off their hair and made them swear by God, [saying], Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves.

13:26  Did not Solomon, king of Israel, sin by these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel; nevertheless, strange women caused even him to offend.

13:27  Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying strange women?

13:28  And [one] of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib, the high priest, [was] son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite; therefore, I chased him from me.

13:29  Remember them, O my God because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and of the Levites.

13:30  Thus I cleansed them from all strangers and appointed the wards of the priests and the Levites, each one in his work,

13:31  and for the wood offering, at the appointed times, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good.: