12TH CHAPTER

The Priest and Levites Who Returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel

1 These are the priests and Levites who came back with Zerubbabel (Shealtiel’s son) and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, 2 Amariah, Malluch, Hattush, 3 Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, 4 Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah, 5 Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah, 6 Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah, 7 Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the leaders of the priests and of their relatives at the time of Jeshua. 

8 The Levites were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, who with his relatives was in charge of the thanksgiving hymns. 9 Their relatives Bakbukiah and Unno stood across from them in worship. 

10 Jeshua was the father of Joiakim. Joiakim was the father of Eliashib. Eliashib was the father of Joiada. 11 Joiada was the father of Jonathan. Jonathan was the father of Jaddua. 

12 At the time of Joiakim, these were the priests who were the leaders of their families: From Seraiah, Meraiah; from Jeremiah, Hananiah; 13 from Ezra, Meshullam; from Amariah, Jehohanan; 14 from Malluchi, Jonathan; from Shebaniah, Joseph; 15 from Harim, Adna; from Meraioth, Helkai; 16 from Iddo, Zechariah; from Ginnethon, Meshullam; 17 from Abijah, Zichri; from Miniamin, from Moadiah, Piltai; 18 from Bilgah, Shammua; from Shemaiah, Jehonathan; 19 from Joiarib, Mattenai; from Jedaiah, Uzzi; 20 from Sallai, Kallai; from Amok, Eber; 21 from Hilkiah, Hashabiah; from Jedaiah, Nethanel. 

22 ⸤The names of⸥ the family heads of the Levites and the priests at the time of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua were recorded until the reign of Darius the Persian. 23 ⸤The names of⸥ the family heads of the Levites were recorded in the Book of Chronicles until the time of Johanan, grandson of Eliashib. 24 The heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua (son of Kadmiel). They and their relatives stood in groups across from one another to sing hymns of praise and thanksgiving antiphonally as David, the man of God, had ordered. 25 Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers standing guard at the storehouses by the gates. 26 They lived in the days of Joiakim, son of Jeshua, grandson of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the governor and of Ezra the priest and scribe. 

Jerusalem’s Walls Are Dedicated to God

27 When the wall of Jerusalem was going to be dedicated, they went to wherever the Levites lived and had them come to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication joyfully with hymns of thanksgiving, with songs and cymbals, and with harps and lyres. 28 So the groups of singers came together from the countryside around Jerusalem, from the villages of Netophah, 29 from Beth Gilgal, and from the region of Geba and Azmaveth. The singers had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. 30 The priests and the Levites cleansed themselves. Then they cleansed the people, the gates, and the wall. 

31 Then I had the leaders of Judah come up on the wall, and I arranged two large choirs to give thanks and march in procession. One choir went to the right on the wall to Dung Gate. 32 Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah followed them. 33 Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, 34 Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah also followed. 35 So did some priests with trumpets: Zechariah, who was the son of Jonathan, who was the son of Shemaiah, who was the son of Mattaniah, who was the son of Micaiah, who was the son of Zaccur, who was the son of Asaph. 36 Also, these relatives of Zechariah followed: Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani with the musical instruments of David, the man of God. Ezra the scribe led them. 37 At Fountain Gate they went straight up the stairs of the City of David. There the wall rises past David’s palace and reaches Water Gate on the east. 

38 The other choir went to the left. I followed them with the other half of the people. We walked on the wall, past the Tower of the Ovens, as far as Broad Wall, 39 then past Ephraim Gate, over Old Gate and Fish Gate, and by the Tower of Hananel and the Tower of the Hundred, as far as Sheep Gate. The choir stopped at Guard’s Gate. 40 So both choirs stood in God’s temple, as did I and the half of the leaders who were with me. 41 Likewise, these priests stood in God’s temple: Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah with trumpets, 42 and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchiah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers sang under the direction of Jezrahiah. 

43 That day they offered many sacrifices and rejoiced because God had given them reason to rejoice. The women and children rejoiced as well. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard from far away. 

44 On that day men were put in charge of the storerooms for the contributions, the first produce harvested, and a tenth of the people’s money. They stored in those rooms the gifts designated by Moses’ Teachings for the priests and Levites from the fields around the cities. The people of Judah were pleased with the ministry of the priests and Levites. 45 They were doing what their God required, what needed to be done for cleansing. The singers and the gatekeepers did what David and his son Solomon had ordered them to do. 46 Long ago in the time of David and Asaph, there had been directors for the singers to lead ⸤in singing⸥ the songs of praise and hymns of thanksgiving to God. 47 At the time of Zerubbabel and Nehemiah, all the Israelites were giving gifts for the daily support of the singers and the gatekeepers. They set aside holy gifts for ⸤the daily support of⸥ the Levites, and the Levites set aside holy gifts for support of Aaron’s descendants.