The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah. It happened in the month of Kislev, in the twentieth year, that I myself was in the citadel in Susa,

But if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, even though all of your outcasts are at the furthest parts of heaven, I will gather them and bring them to the place which I have chosen to make my name dwell.'

It happened in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, I carried the wine and gave it to the king. And I had never been sad before the king.

Then the king said to me, "What is your request?" So I prayed to the God of the heavens.

Then I said to the king, "If it pleases the king, and if your servant has [found] favor in your presence, [I ask] that you send me to Judah, to the city of my ancestors' burial sites, so that I may rebuild it."

With the queen sitting beside him, the king said to me, "How long will your journey be and when will you return?" So it pleased the king and he sent me, and I set for him an appointed time.

Then I said to the king, "If it is good for the king, let letters be given to me for the governors [in the province] Beyond the River, that they may let me pass until I come to Judah.

I got up during the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anybody what my God put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. No animal [was] with me except the animal that I was riding on.

I went out during the night at the gate of the valley by the Dragon spring and to the Dung Gate. And I examined the walls in Jerusalem and its gates that had been destroyed by the fire.

The prefects did not know where I had gone and what I was doing. I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the prefects, and the rest of the workers.

But Sanballat the Horonite, the Ammonite servant Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab heard it, and they mocked and despised us, saying, "What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?"

Then Eliashib the high priest and his brothers the priests arose and rebuilt the Sheep Gate. They consecrated it and erected its doors. They consecrated it up to the Tower of the Hundred and up to the Tower of Hananel.

Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired the Valley Gate. They rebuilt it and erected its doors, its bolts, and its bars, and a thousand cubits of the wall up to the Dung Gate.

Malkijah son of Recab, commander of the district of Beth-haccherem, repaired the Dung Gate. He rebuilt it and erected its doors, its bolts, and its bars.

Shallun son of Col-Hozeh, the commander of the district of Mizpah, repaired the Fountain Gate. He rebuilt it and covered it and erected its doors, its bolts, its bars, and [he built] the wall of the Pool of Shelah of the king's garden, right up to the steps going down from the city of David.

{next to him} Ezer son of Jeshua, commander of Mizpah, repaired a second section of a wall opposite of the ascent of the armory at the angle.

Palal son of Uzai [repaired] opposite the Angle at the tower that juts out from the upper house of the king, at the courtyard of the guard. After him Pedaiah son of Parosh

After him the Tekoites repaired a second section of a wall opposite the projecting tower that goes out as far as the wall of Ophel.

Now it happened when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, [he] became angry and greatly provoked, and he mocked the Jews.

Then he said before his brothers and the army of Samaria, "What are the feeble Jews doing? Will they restore [these things] for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish it in a day? Will they revive the stones from the piles of rubble--even those burned up?"

Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him and said, "Their wall of stone that they are building would break down if a fox went on it!"

Do not cover their guilt, and do not let their sin be blotted out from before you. They have {provoked the builders to anger}.

So we rebuilt the wall, and all of the wall was joined up to half [its height]. For the people had a heart to do [it].

So all of them plotted together to come fight against Jerusalem and to make trouble for it.

But Judah said, "The strength of the carriers is failing, and there is too much dirt, and we are not able to build at the wall."

It happened when our enemies heard that their plan was known to us, that God had frustrated [it], and we all returned to the wall--each to his work.

I said to the nobles, to the prefects, and to the rest of the people, "The work is great and widespread, and we are spread out over the wall far from each other.

So we labored at the work, and half of them were holding the spears from dawn until the stars came out.

At the time I also said to the people, "Let each man and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they will be a guard for us in the night and work in the day."

There were those who were saying, "Our sons and daughters, we are many. We must get grain so that we may eat and live."

So they said, "We will restore it and will not request [anything more]. So we will do as you say." Then I called the priests and made them take an oath to do this promise.

I also shook out my garment and said, "This is how God will shake out everyone from his house who will not keep this promise. So this is how his possessions will be shaken out and emptied." And all the assembly said, "Amen!" And they praised Yahweh, and the people kept this promise.

Moreover, from the appointed day I was made their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year until the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes--twelve years. My brothers and I did not eat the food [allowance] of the governor.

One hundred and fifty men, prefects and Jews, and those who came to us from the nations around us, [were] at my table.

Now what was prepared each day for me was one ox, six choice sheep, and birds. And every ten days all [kinds of] wine were made. But for this I did not demand the food [allowance] of the governor because the slavery was too heavy on this people.

Now when it was reported to Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and to the rest of our enemies that I had built the wall and that no gap was left in it--though up to that time I had not erected doors in the gates--

So I sent messengers to them, saying, "I am doing a great work and I am not able to come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you all?"

In it was written, "It has been reported among the nations, and Gashmu also is saying it, that you and the Jews are considering rebellion. Therefore, truly you are building the wall and you are becoming their king, according to these words.

You have also set up prophets to proclaim in Jerusalem concerning you, saying, '[There is] a king in Judah.' And now it will be proclaimed to the king according to these words. Now, come and we will plan together."

Now I went into the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was confined [at home], and he said, "Let us meet in the house of God, inside the temple, and let us close the doors of the temple; for they are coming to kill you--during the night they are coming to kill you."

They also were speaking of his good deeds in my presence, and they were sending my words out to him. Tobiah sent letters to intimidate me.

I said to them, "Do not open the gates of Jerusalem until the sun is hot. While they are standing guard let them shut and fasten the doors. And appoint guards from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, one at his post and another opposite his house."

The city [was] widespread and large, but the people in it were few and no houses were rebuilt.

Then my God put into my heart to assemble the nobles, the prefects, and the people to be enrolled. I found the book of the genealogy of those who first came back, and I found [this] written upon it:

The descendants of Pahath-Moab, of the descendants of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred and eighteen.

The descendants of Zattu, eight hundred and forty-five.

The descendants of Binnui, six hundred and forty-eight.

The descendants of Bebai, six hundred and twenty-eight.

The descendants of Ater, [namely] of Hezekiah, ninety-eight.

The descendants of Hashum, three hundred and twenty-eight.

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

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

The singers: the descendants of Asaph, one hundred and forty-eight.

The gatekeepers: the descendants of Shallum, the descendants of Ater, the descendants of Talmon, the descendants of Akkub, the descendants of Hatita, the descendants of Shobai, one hundred and thirty-eight.

These sought their record among those enrolled in the genealogy, but it was not found there, so they were excluded as unclean from the priesthood.

So the governor said to them that they could not eat the most holy food until a priest could come with Urim and Thummim.

And what the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand darics of gold, and two thousand silver minas, and sixty-seven priestly tunics.

He read from it facing the public square before the Water Gate from dawn until noon that day, opposite the men, women, and those with understanding. The ears of all the people [were attentive] to the book of the law.

Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, because he was above all of the people. When he opened it all the people stood up.

So they read the book from the law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that they could understand the reading.

Then he said to them, "Go, eat festive food and drink sweet drinks, and send a share to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our lord. Do not be grieved because the joy of Yahweh is your refuge."

All of the people went to eat, to drink, to send a share, and to have great joy because they understood the words that they had made known to them.

and that they should proclaim and give voice in all of their cities in Jerusalem, saying, "Go out to the hill and bring olive tree branches, olive oil wood branches, myrtle shrub branches, palm tree branches, and other leafy tree branches to make booths, as it is written."

So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, in their courtyards, in the courtyards of the house of God, in the public square of the Water Gate, and in the public square of the Gate of Ephraim.

And all of the assembly of those who returned from captivity made booths and lived in the booths because the {Israelites} had not done it from the days of Jeshua son of Nun until that day. And there was very great joy.

Then Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani stood on the platform of the Levites and cried out with a loud voice to Yahweh their God.

"You alone are Yahweh. You alone have made the heavens, the heavens of the heavens, and all of their army, the earth and all that is in it, the waters and all that is in them. You give life to all of them, and the army of the heavens worship you.

You found his heart faithful before you and made 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 you have kept your word because you are righteous.

"You saw the misery of our ancestors in Egypt, and you heard their shout at the Red Sea.

You gave signs and wonders against Pharaoh, all of his servants, and all of the people of his land because you knew that they acted arrogantly against them. You made a name for yourself, as it is this day.

You gave them bread from heaven for their starvation, and you caused water to go out from a rock for their thirst. You told them to go in order to take into possession the land that you have sworn by your hand to give to them.

Even when they made for themselves a molten idol of a calf and said, 'This is your God who brought you out from Egypt,' and committed great blasphemies.

Forty years you sustained them in the desert--they were not in need. Their clothing did not wear out and their feet did not swell.

And they captured fortified cities and a fertile land and took possession of houses filled with every good thing: hewn cisterns, vineyards, olive groves, and many [fruit] trees. They ate and became full, and they became fat and took delight in your great goodness.

Therefore you gave them into the hand of their enemy, and they brought trouble to them. Then in the time of their trouble they cried out to you, and you heard from the heavens, and according to your great compassions, you gave them saviors, and you saved them from the hand of their enemies.

But when they had rest they returned to doing evil before you, and you abandoned them in the hand of their enemies, and they ruled over them. Then they returned and cried out to you, and from the heavens you heard and many times rescued them according to your compassions.

You warned them so that they would return to your law. Yet they acted arrogantly and did not listen to your commandments but sinned against your judgments that a person must do so that they may live. They turned a stubborn shoulder and stiffened their neck and would not listen.

And in their kingdom and in the greatness you gave to them, and in the wide and fertile land that you gave before them, they did not serve you and did not turn from their evil deeds.

Behold, we are slaves to this day, and the land that you have given to our ancestors to eat its fruits and [enjoy] its goodness--behold, we are slaves in it!

Its rich yield goes to the kings whom you have given over us because of our sins, and [they are] ruling over our dead bodies and our livestock at their pleasure. We are in great trouble.

And the peoples of the land who bring merchandise and any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, we will not accept it from them on the Sabbath or on a holy day. We will forego [the crops of] the seventh year and [cancel] every debt.

And we have cast lots for the contributions of the wood offering of the priests, the Levites, and the people to bring [it] to the house of our God, by our fathers' houses, at designated times, year by year, to burn on the altar of Yahweh our God--as it is written in the law.

And the firstborn of our sons and beasts--as it is written in the law--and the firstborn of our cattle and sheep, to bring to the house of our God [and] to the priests serving in the house of our God.

Now the commanders of the people lived in Jerusalem, but the remainder of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in the holy city of Jerusalem, the [other] nine's place [was in] the [other] cities.

and Maaseiah son of Baruch, son of Col-Hozeh, son of Hazaiah, son of Adaiah, son of Jehoiarib, son of Zechariah, son of the Shilonite.

All of the descendants of Perez who were living in Jerusalem [were] four hundred and sixty-eight able-bodied men.

And [following] after him Gabbai, Sallai, nine hundred and twenty-eight.

and their brothers who did the work of the house, eight hundred and twenty-two. And Adaiah son of Jeroham, son of Pelaliah, son of Amzi, son of Zechariah, son of Pashhur, son of Malkijah,

and their brothers; mighty warriors of strength, one hundred and twenty-eight. The chief officer over them [was] Zabdiel son of Hagedolim.

And Pethahiah son of Meshezabel, from the descendants of Zerah the son of Judah, [was] at the hand of the king in all matters concerning the people.

Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,

of Adaia, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers standing guard at the storerooms of the gates.

At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites from all of their places in order to bring them to Jerusalem to do the dedication with joy, thanksgivings, song and cymbals, stringed instruments and lyres.

At the Fountain Gate opposite them they went up the steps of the city of David, at the assent to the wall, over the house of David, and up to the Water Gate to the east.

Then the second choir went the opposite [way]. I [followed] after them with half of the people on the wall, from over the Tower of the Ovens up to the Wide Wall

and over the Gate of Ephraim, at the Old Gate, at the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel and the Tower of the Hundred, and [to] the Sheep Gate. And they [stopped and] stood at the Gate of the Guard.

On that day the book of Moses was read in the hearing of the people and it was found written in it that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever come into the assembly of God

So it happened when they heard the law that they separated all of the foreign people from Israel.

During all of this, I was not in Jerusalem because in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I went to the king. At the end of [some] days I asked permission from the king [to leave].