16 And all the silver and gold that thou the sons of Ithamar; Daniel: of the sons of canst find in all the province of Babylon, with David; Hattush. the free-will-offering of the people, and of 3 Of the sons of Shechaniah, of the sons the priests, offering willingly for the house of of Pharosh; Zechariah: and with him were their God which is in Jerusalem; reckoned by genealogy of the males an 17 That thou mayest buy speedily with hundred and fifty. this money bullocks, rams, lambs, with their meat-offerings, and their drink-offerings, and offer them upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerusalem. 4 Of the sons of Pahath-moab; Elihoenai the son of Zeráhiah, and with him two hundred males. 5 Of the sons of Shechaniah; the son of Ja. haziel, and with him three hundred males. 6 Of the sons also of Adin; Ebed the son Jonathan, and with him fifty males. And of the sons of Elam; shaiah the of 19 The vessels also that are given thee for son of Athaliah, and with him seventy the service of the house of thy God, those deliver thou before the God of Jerusalem. 18 And whatsoever shall seem good to thee, and to thy brethren, to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, that do afterthe will of your God. males. 8 And of the sons of Shephatiah; Zebadiab the son of Michael, and with him fourscore males. 20 And whatsoever more shall be needful for the house of thy God, which thou shalt have occasion to bestow, bestow it out of the king's treasure-house. 9 Of the sons of Joab; Obadiah the son of Jehiel, and with him two hundred and eigh 21 And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, do teen males. make a decree to all the treasurers which are 10 And of the sons of Shelomith; the son beyond the river, that whatsoever Ezra the of Josiphiah, and with him an hundred and priest, the scribe of the law of the God of her-threescore males. ven, shall require of you, it be done speedily, 1 And of the sons of Bebai; Zechariah the 22 Unto an hundred talents of silver, and son of Bebai, and with him twenty and eight to an hundred measures of wheat, and to an males. hundred baths of wine, and to an hundred 12 And of the sons of Azgad; Johanan the baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how son of Hakkatan, and with him an hundred much. and ten males. 23 Whatsoever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be diligently done for the house of the God of heaven: for why should there be wrath against the realm of the king and his sons? 24 Also we certify you, that, touching any of the priests and Levites, singers, porters, Nethinims, or ministers of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose toll, tribute, or custom, upon them. 25 And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that is in thine hand, set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye them that know them not. 16 Then sent for Eliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib, and for Elnathan, and for Nathan, and for Zechariah, and for Meshullam, chief men ; also for Joiarib, and for Elnathan, men of understanding. 26 And whosoever will not do the law of 17 And I sent them with commandment thy God, and the law of the king, let judg-unto Iddo the chief, at the place Casiphia, ment be executed speedily upon him, whether and I told them what they should say unto it be unto death, or to banishment, or to con- Iddo, and to his brethren the Nethinims, at fiscation of goods, or to imprisonment. the place Casiphia, that they should bring unto us ministers for the house of our God. 27 Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers, which hath put such a thing as this in the king's heart, to beautify the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem; 18 And, by the good hand of our God upon us, they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son his brethren, eighteen; 28 And hath extended mercy unto me be-of Israel; and Sherebiah, with his sons and fore the king and his counsellors, and before all the king's mighty princes. And I was 19 And Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah strengthened as the hand of the LORD my of the sons of Merari, his brethren and theis God was upon me; and I gathered together sons, twenty; out of Israel chief men to go up with me. CHAP. VIII. THESE are now the chief of their fathers, genealogy of 13 And of the last sons of Adonikam, whose names are these, Eliphelet, Jeiel, and Shemaiah, and with them threescore males. 14 Of the sons also of Bigvai; Uthai, and Zabbud, and with them seventy males. 151 And I gathered them together to the river that runneth to Ahava; and there abode we in tents three days: and I viewed the people and the priests, and found there none of the sons of Levi. 20 Also of the Nethinims, whom David and the princes had appointed for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethi were name. 21 Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict our 2 Of the sons of Phinehas; Gershom: of selves before our God, to seek of him a right went up with me from Babylon, in the reign of Artaxerxes the king. NOW CHAP. IX. way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. TOW, when these things were done, the 22 For I was ashamed to require of the princes came to me, saying, The people king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help of Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, us against the enemy in the way: because we have not separated themselves from the peohad spoken unto the king, saying, The hand ple of the lands, doing according to their of our God is upon all them for good that abominations, even of the Canaanites, the seek him; but his power and his wrath is Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the against all them that forsake him. Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, 23 So we fasted, and besought our God for and the Amorites. this; and he was entreated of us. 2 For they have taken of their daughters 24 Then I separated twelve of the chief for themselves, and for their sons; so that of the priests, Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten the holy seed have mingled themselves with of their brethren with them. the people of those lands: yea, the hand of 25 And weighed unto them the silver, and the princes and rulers hath been chief in this the gold, and the vessels, even the offering of trespass. the house of our God, which the king, and 3 And when I heard this thing, I rent my his counsellors, and his lords, and all Israel garment and my mantle, and plucked off the there present, had offered; hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonied. 26 even weighed unto their hand six hundred and fifty talents of silver, and silver vessels an hundred talents, and of gold an hundred talents, 4 Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the transgression of those that 27 Also twenty basons of gold of a thou-had been carried away; and I sat astonied cand drams, and two vessels of fine copper, until the evening sacrifice. precious as gold. 28 And I said unto them, Ye are holy unto the LORD; the vessels are holy also; and the silver and the gold are a free-will-offering unto the LORD God of your fathers: 29 Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh them before the chief of the priests and the Levites, and chief of the fathers of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the chambers of the house of the LORD. 30 So took the priests and the Levites the weight of the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem, unto the house of our God. 31 Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem: and the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way. 32 And we came to Jerusalem, and abode there three days. 51 And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness; and, having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the LORD my God, 6 And said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens. 7 Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity,and to aspoil, and to confusion of face, as it is this day. S And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage. 9 For we were bond-men; yet our God 33 Now, on the fourth day was the silver, hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath and the gold, and the vessels, weighed in the extended mercy unto us in the sight of the house of our God by the hand of Meremoth kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set the son of Uriah the priest, and with him up the house of our God, and to repair the was Eleazar the son of Phinehas; and with desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in them was Jozabad the son of Jeshua, and Judah and in Jerusalem. Noadiah the son of Binnui, Levites; 10 And now, O our God, what shall we 34 By number and by weight of every one: say after this? for we have forsaken thy comand all the weight was written at that time.mandments, 35 Also the children of those that had been 11 Which thou hast commanded by thy sercarried away, which were come out of the captivity, offered burnt-offerings unto the God of Israel, twelve bullocks for all Israel, ninety and six rams,seventy and seven lambs, twelve he-goats for a sin-offering: all this was a burnt-offering unto the LORD. vants the prophets, saying, The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with theiruncleanness. 12 Now therefore give not your daughters 36 And they delivered the king's com- unto their sons, neither take their daughters missions unto the king's lieutenants, and to unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their the governors on this side the river; and wealth for ever; that ye may be strong, and they furthered the people, and the house of eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever. God. 13 And after all that is come upon us for sure; and separate yourselves from the peoour evil deeds, and for our great trespass, see-ple of the land, and from the strange wives. ing that thou our God hast punished us less 12 Then all the congregation answered and than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us said with a loud voice, As thou hast said, so such deliverance as this; must we do. 14 Should we again break thy command- 13 But the people are many, and it is a time ments, and join in affinity with the people of of much rain, and we are not able to stand these abominations? wouldest not thou be without, neither is this a work of one day or angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so two: for we are many that have transgressed that there should be no remnant nor escaping in this thing. 15 O LORD God of Israel, thou art righteous; 14 Let now our rulers of all the congregafor we remain yet escaped, as it is this day: be-tion stand, and let all them which have taken hold, we are before thee in our trespasses; for strange wives in our cities come at appointed we cannot stand before thee because of this. times, and with them the elders of every city, CHAP. X. and the judges thereof, until the fierce wrath NOW, when Ezra had prayed, and when of our God for this matter be turned from us. he had confessed, weeping casting 15% Only Jonathan the son of Asahel, and himself down before the house of God, there Jahaziah the son of Tikvah, were employed assembled unto him out of Israel a very great about this matter; and Meshullam and Shabcongregation of men, and women, and chil-bethai the Levite helped them. dren: for the people wept very sore. 16 And the children of the captivity did so. 2 And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of And Ezra the priest, with certain chief of the the sons of Elam, answered and said unto fathers, after the house of their fathers, and Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, all of them by their names, were separated, and have taken strange wives of the people and sat down in the first day of the tenth of the land; yet now there is hope in Israel month to examine the matter. concerning this thing. 17 And they made an end with all the men 3 Now therefore let us make a covenant that had taken strange wives by the first day with our God to put away all the wives, and of the first month. such as are born of them, according to the 18 And among the sons of the priests counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble there were found that had taken strange at the commandment of our God; and let it wives; namely, of the sons of Jeshua the son be done according to the law. Jof Jozadak, and his brethren; Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliai. 4 Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we also will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it. 5 Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word: and they sware. 19 And they gave their hands that they would put away their wives; and, being guil ty, they offered a ram of the flock for their trespass. 20 And of the sons of Immer; Hanani and Zebadiah. 21 And of the sons of Harim; Maaseiab,and Elijah,and Shemaiah, andJehiel,and Uzziah. 22 Andof the sonsof Pashur; Elioenai,Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethaneel, Jozabad, and Ela 61 Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water; for he mourned because of the trans-sah. gression of them that had been carried away. 23 Also of the Levites; Jozabad, and Shi. mei, and Kelaiah, (the same is Kelita,) Pe. thahiah, Judah, and Eliezer. 7 And they made proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem unto all the children of the captivity, that they should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem; 8 And that whosoever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all his substance should be forfeited, and himself separated from the congregation of those that had been carried away. 9 Then all the men of Judah and Benja-moth, and Eliah. min gathered themselves together unto Jeru- 27 And of the sons of Zattu; Elioenai, Elisalem within three days: it was the ninth ashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, month, and the twentieth day of the month; and Áziza. and all the people sat in the street of the house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain. 28 Of the sons also of Bebai; Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai. 29 And of the sons of Bani; Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, and Ramoth. 10And Ezra the priest stood up,and said unto them, Ye have transgressed, and have taken strange wives, to increase the trespass of Israel. 30 And of the sons of Pahath-moab; Adna and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah Bezaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh. 11 Now therefore make confession unto the LORD God of your fathers, and do his plea 24 of the singers also; Eliashib: and of the porters; Shallum, and Telem, and Uri. 25 Moreover, of Israel: of the sons of Parosh; Ramiah,and Jeziah, andMalchiah,and Miamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah. 26 And of the sons of Elam; Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jere 31 And of the sons of Harim; Eliezer, IshiJah, Malchiah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah. 33 Of the sons of Hashum; Mattenai, Mattathah, Zabad, Eliphelet,Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei. 34 Of the sons of Bani; Maadai, Amram, and Uel, 35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Chellub, CHAP. I. 38 And Bani, and Binnui, Shimei, 39 And Shelemiah,andNathan,andÁdarah, 40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41 Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph. 43 Of the sons of Nebo; Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jadau, and Joel, Benaiah. 44 All these had taken strange wives; and some of them had wives by whom they had Ichildren. The Book of NEHEMIAH. CHAP. II. THE words of Nehemiah the son of Ha- AND it came to pass in the month Nisan, in chaliah. And it came to pass in the the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I king, that wine was before him; and I took was in Shushan the palace, up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now 2 That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, I had not been beforetime sad in his prehe and certain men of Judah; and I asked sence. them concerning the Jews that had escaped, 2 Wherefore the king said unto me, Why which were left of the captivity, and concern-is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not ing Jerusalem. sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. 3 And they said unto me, The remnant that Then I was very sore afraid, are left of the captivity there in the province 3 And said unto the king, Let the king live are in great affliction and reproach: the wall for ever: why should not my countenance be of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' gates thereof are burned with fire. sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates there4¶ And it came to pass, when I heard these of are consumed with fire? words, that I sat down and wept, and mourn 4 Then the king said unto me, For what ed certain days, and fasted, and prayed be-dost thou make request? So I prayed to the fore the God of heaven, God of heaven. 5 And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him, and observe his commandments: 6 Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned. 7 We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor tre judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses. 8 Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations: 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 heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there. 10 Now these are thy servants, and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. 5 And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it. 6 And the king said unto me,(the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time. 7 Moreover, I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over, till I come into Judah; 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 which appertained to 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 my God upon me. 9 Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's letters. (Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me.) 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 chil 110 LORD, I beseech thee, let now thine ear dren of Israel. be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and 11 Sol came to Jerusalem, and was there to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear three days. thy name; and prosper, I pray thee,thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of few men with me; neither told I any man 12 ¶ And I arose in the night, I and some this man. For I was the king's cup-bearer. what my God had pot in my heart to do an 358 7 And next unto them repaired Melatiah Jerusalem: neither was there any beast with | the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, ine, save the beast that I rode upon. 13 And I went out by night by the gate of the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, unto the the valley, even before the dragon-well, and throne of the governor on this side the to the dung-port, and viewed the walls of Je- river. rusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire. 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. 15 Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall, and turned back, and entered by the gate of the valley, Jerusalem. and so returned. 16 And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; 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. 8 Next unto him repaired Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, of the goldsmiths. Next unto him also repaired Hananiah the son of one of the apothecaries, and they fortified Jerusalem unto the broad wall. 9 And next unto them repaired Rephaiah the son of Hur, the ruler of the half part of 10 And next unto them repaired Jedaiah the son of Harumaph, even over against his house. And next unto him repaired Hattush the son of Hashabniah. 11 Malchijah the son of Harim, and Hashub the son of Pahath-moab, repaired the other piece, and the tower of the furnaces. 12 And next unto him repaired Shallum the son of Halohesh, the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem, he and his daughters. 13 The valley-gate repaired Hanun, and the inhabitants of Zanoah; they built it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and a thousand cubits on the wall unto the dung-gate. 14 But the dung-gate repaired Malchiah the son of Rechab, the ruler of part of Beth-haccerem; he built it, and set up the doors there 19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Ge-of, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. shem 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? 15 But the gate of the fountain repaired Shallum the son of Col-hozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks there20 Then answered I them, and said unto of, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the them, The God of heaven, he will prosper pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unus; therefore we his servants will arise and to the stairs that go down from the city of build; but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem. David. 16 After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Bethzur, unto the place over against the sepulchres was 17 ¶ Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach. 18 Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work.! CHAP. III. HEN Eliashib the high priest rose up, builded 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. 2 And next unto him builded the men of Jericho. And next to them builded Zaccur the son of Imri. 3 But the fish-gate did the sons of Hassenaah build, who also laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. unto the house of the mighty. 17 After him repaired the Levites, Rehum the son of Bani. Next unto him repaired Hashabiah, the ruler of the half part of Keilah, in his part. 18 After him repaired their brethren, Bavai the son of Henadad, the ruler of the half part of Keilah. 19 And next to him repaired Ezer the son of Jeshua, the ruler of Mizpah, another piece over against the going up to the armoury, at 20 After him Baruch the son of Zabbai ear 4 And next unto them repaired Meremoth the turning of the wall. the son of Urijah, the son of Koz. And next unto them repaired Meshullam the son of Be-nestly repaired the other piece, from the turnrechiah, the son of Meshezabeel. And next ing of the wall unto the door of the house of unto them repaired Zadok the son of Baana. Eliashib the high priest. 5 And next unto them the Tekoites repaired: but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their LORD. 21 After him repaired Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of Koz, another piece, from the door of the house of Eliashib, even to the end of the house of Eliashib. 22 And after him repaired the priests, the men of the plain. 23 After him repaired Benjamin and Ha shub over against their house. After him 6 Moreover the old gate repaired Jehoiada the son of Paseah, and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah: they laid the beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, and the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. |