Nehemiah 7
7 After the wall had been rebuilt and I had set the doors in place, the gatekeepers,e the musiciansf and the Levitesg were appointed. 2 I put in charge of Jerusalem my brother Hanani,h along with Hananiahi the commander of the citadel,j because he was a man of integrity and fearedk God more than most people do. 3 I said to them, “The gates of Jerusalem are not to be opened until the sun is hot. While the gatekeepers are still on duty, have them shut the doors and bar them. Also appoint residents of Jerusalem as guards, some at their posts and some near their own houses.”
The List of the Exiles Who Returned
4 Now the city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it,l and the houses had not yet been rebuilt. 5 So my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials and the common people for registration by families. I found the genealogical record of those who had been the first to return. This is what I found written there:
6 These are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exilesm whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town, 7 in company with Zerubbabel,n Joshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum and Baanah):
The list of the men of Israel:
8 the descendants of Parosh 2,172
11 of Pahath-Moab (through the line of Jeshua and Joab) 2,818
20 of Adino 655
21 of Ater (through Hezekiah) 98
26 the men of Bethlehem and Netophahp 188
27 of Anathothq 128
29 of Kiriath Jearim, Kephirahr and Beeroths 743
32 of Bethel and Ait 123
36 of Jerichou 345
37 of Lod, Hadid and Onov 721
the descendants of Jedaiah (through the family of Jeshua) 973
the descendants of Jeshua (through Kadmiel through the line of Hodaviah) 74
44 The musicians:w
the descendants of Asaph 148
45 The gatekeepers:x
the descendants of
Shallum, Ater, Talmon, Akkub, Hatita and Shobai 138
46 The temple servants:y
the descendants of
Ziha, Hasupha, Tabbaoth,
57 The descendants of the servants of Solomon:
the descendants of
Sotai, Sophereth, Perida,
Pokereth-Hazzebaim and Amon
60 The temple servants and the descendants of the servants of Solomonz 392
61 The following came up from the towns of Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Kerub, Addon and Immer, but they could not show that their families were descended from Israel:
Delaiah, Tobiah and Nekoda 642
63 And from among the priests:
the descendants of
Hobaiah, Hakkoz and Barzillai (a man who had married a daughter
Nehemiah 13:1–31
13 On that day the Book of Moses was read aloud in the hearing of the people and there it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be admitted into the assembly of God,t 2 because they had not met the Israelites with food and water but had hired Balaamu to call a curse down on them.v (Our God, however, turned the curse into a blessing.)w 3 When the people heard this law, they excluded from Israel all who were of foreign descent.x
4 Before this, Eliashib the priest had been put in charge of the storeroomsy of the house of our God. He was closely associated with Tobiah,z 5 and he had provided him with a large room formerly used to store the grain offerings and incense and temple articles, and also the tithesa of grain, new wine and olive oil prescribed for the Levites, musicians and gatekeepers, as well as the contributions for the priests.
6 But while all this was going on, I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxesb king of Babylon I had returned to the king. Some time later I asked his permission 7 and came back to Jerusalem. Here I learned about the evil thing Eliashibc had done in providing Tobiahd a room in the courts of the house of God. 8 I was greatly displeased and threw all Tobiah’s household goods out of the room.e 9 I gave orders to purify the rooms,f and then I put back into them the equipment of the house of God, with the grain offerings and the incense.g
10 I also learned that the portions assigned to the Levites had not been given to them,h and that all the Levites and musicians responsible for the service had gone back to their own fields.i 11 So I rebuked the officials and asked them, “Why is the house of God neglected?”j Then I called them together and stationed them at their posts.
12 All Judah brought the tithesk of grain, new wine and olive oil into the storerooms.l 13 I put Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and a Levite named Pedaiah in charge of the storerooms and made Hanan son of Zakkur, the son of Mattaniah, their assistant, because they were considered trustworthy. They were made responsible for distributing the supplies to their fellow Levites.m
14 Remembern me for this, my God, and do not blot out what I have so faithfully done for the house of my God and its services.
15 In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath and bringing in grain and loading it on donkeys, together with wine, grapes, figs and all other kinds of loads. And they were bringing all this into Jerusalem on the Sabbath.o Therefore I warned them against selling food on that day. 16 People from Tyre who lived in Jerusalem were bringing in fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them in Jerusalem on the Sabbathp to the people of Judah. 17 I rebuked the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this wicked thing you are doing—desecrating the Sabbath day? 18 Didn’t your ancestors do the same things, so that our God brought all this calamity on us and on this city?q Now you are stirring up more wrath against Israel by desecrating the Sabbath.”r
19 When evening shadows fell on the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath,s I ordered the doors to be shut and not opened until the Sabbath was over. I stationed some of my own men at the gates so that no load could be brought in on the …
Nehemiah 3:1–32
3 Eliashibx the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilty the Sheep Gate.z They dedicated it and set its doors in place, building as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and as far as the Tower of Hananel.a 2 The men of Jerichob built the adjoining section, and Zakkur son of Imri built next to them.
3 The Fish Gatec was rebuilt by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid its beams and put its doors and bolts and bars in place. 4 Meremothd son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired the next section. Next to him Meshullam son of Berekiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs, and next to him Zadok son of Baana also made repairs. 5 The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa,e but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors.a
6 The Jeshanahb Gatef was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid its beams and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place. 7 Next to them, repairs were made by men from Gibeong and Mizpah—Melatiah of Gibeon and Jadon of Meronoth—places under the authority of the governor of Trans-Euphrates. 8 Uzziel son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, repaired the next section; and Hananiah, one of the perfume-makers, made repairs next to that. They restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall.h 9 Rephaiah son of Hur, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section. 10 Adjoining this, Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house, and Hattush son of Hashabneiah made repairs next to him. 11 Malkijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section and the Tower of the Ovens.i 12 Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section with the help of his daughters.
13 The Valley Gatej was repaired by Hanun and the residents of Zanoah.k They rebuilt it and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place. They also repaired a thousand cubitsc of the wall as far as the Dung Gate.l
14 The Dung Gate was repaired by Malkijah son of Rekab, ruler of the district of Beth Hakkerem.m He rebuilt it and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place.
15 The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallun son of Kol-Hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt it, roofing it over and putting its doors and bolts and bars in place. He also repaired the wall of the Pool of Siloam,d n by the King’s Garden, as far as the steps going down from the City of David. 16 Beyond him, Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of a half-district of Beth Zur,o made repairs up to a point opposite the tombse p of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the Heroes.
17 Next to him, the repairs were made by the Levites under Rehum son of Bani. Beside him, Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah,q carried out repairs for his district. 18 Next to him, the repairs were made by their fellow Levites under Binnuif son of Henadad, ruler of the other half-district of Keilah. 19 Next to him, Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section, from a point facing the ascent to the armory as far as the angle of the wall. 20 Next to him, Baruch son of Zabbai zealously repaired another section, from the angle to the entrance of the house of Eliashib the high priest. 21 Next to him, …