And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall your journey be? and when will you return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.

And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants worked in the work, and the other half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the armor; and the rulers supported all the house of Judah.

Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labor during the day.

Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year even unto the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that is, twelve years, I and my brethren have not eaten the food allowance of the governor.

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 break left in it; (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates;)

Then sent Sanballat his servant unto me in the same way the fifth time with an open letter in his hand;

The children of Barkos, the children of Sisera, the children of Temah,

Therefore you delivered them into the hand of their enemies, who oppressed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto you, you heard them from heaven; and according to your manifold mercies you gave them saviors, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.

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

And at that time were some appointed over the chambers for the stores, for the offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them out of the fields of the cities the portions required by the law for the priests and Levites: for Judah rejoiced for the priests and for the Levites who ministered.

But in all this time I was not at Jerusalem: for in the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon came I unto the king, and after certain days obtained I leave of the king:

Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge you before the wall? if you do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath.