that Hanani one of my brethren came, he and certain men out of Judah, - so I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.

And they said unto me, The remnant who are left of the captivity, there in the province, are in great misfortune and reproach, the wall of Jerusalem, is broken down, and, the gates thereof, are burned with fire.

and said, I beseech thee, O Yahweh God of the heavens, the great and fearful GOD, - keeping the covenant and lovingkindness for them who love him and keep his commandments:

They, therefore, are thy servants, and thy people, - whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy firm hand.

I beseech thee O My Lord, let - I pray thee - thine ear be attentive unto the prayer of thy servant, and unto the prayer of thy servants who delight to revere thy Name, and oh prosper, I pray thee, thy servant to-day, and grant him compassion before this man. Now, I, was cup-bearer unto the king.

Now, the deputies, knew not whither I had gone, nor what I was doing, - not even to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the deputies, nor to the rest who were doing the work, had I as yet told it.

and, at their hand, repaired, Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, - who pertained to the throne of the pasha Beyond the River;

and do not cover their iniquity, and, their sin before thee, let it not be blotted out, - for they have caused vexation before them who are building.

They who were building at the wall and they who were carrying burdens, they who were lifting, each man , with his one hand, was working at the work, and, with the other, was grasping the weapon.

Even they who were building, every man, had his sword girded upon his loins, and so was building, - and, he that sounded the horn, was by my side.

And there were some who were saying, Our sons and our daughters, are we pledging, - that we may obtain corn, and eat, and keep ourselves alive.

And there were some who were saying, Our fields and our vineyards and our houses, are we pledging, - -that we may obtain corn in the dearth.

And there were others who were saying, We have borrowed silver, for the king's tribute, - upon our lands and our vineyards.

and I said unto them, We, have bought our brethren the Jews, who had sold themselves unto the nations, according to our ability, and will, ye, even sell your brethren, or shall they sell themselves unto us? And they were silent, and found no answer.

Also, my lap, shook I out, and said - Thus and thus, may God shake out every man who shall not confirm this promise, out of his house and out of his labour, yea, thus and thus, let him be shaken out and empty, - And all the convocation said, Amen! and praised Yahweh, and the people did according to this promise.

whereas, the former pashas, who were before me, suffered themselves to be a burden upon the people, and took from them in bread and wine, besides forty shekels of silver, even, their young men, bare rule over the people, - but, I, did not so, because of the fear of God.

And, Jews and deputies, a hundred and fifty men, and they who were coming in unto us from among the nations which were round about us, depended upon my table.

Then said I, Should, such a man as I, flee? Who then, being such as I, would enter the temple to save his life? I will not enter.

Then perceived I, that lo! it was, not God, who had sent him, - though, a prophecy, he had spoken concerning me, but, Tobiah and Sanballat, had hired him:

Have remembrance, O my God, of Tobiah and of Sanballat, according to these their doings, - moreover also, of Noadiah the prophetess, and of the rest of the prophets, who would have put me in fear.

So then my God put it into my heart, and I gathered together the nobles and the deputies and the people, to register their genealogy, - then found I a register roll, of them who came up at the first, and found written therein: -

These, are the sons of the province, who came up from among the Captives of the Exile, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did exile, - but they came back to Jerusalem and to Judah, every one to his own city;

who came in with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, Baanah, - the number of the men of the people of Israel.

And, these, are they who came up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer, - but they could not tell their ancestral house, nor their seed, whether, of Israel, they were:

And, of the priests, the sons of Hobaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, - the sons of Barzillai, who had taken of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite to wife, and was called after their name.

Then Nehemiah - he, was the governor - and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites who were causing the people to understand, said unto all the people, To-day, is, holy, unto Yahweh your God, do not mourn, nor weep, - for, weeping, were all the people, when they heard the words of the law.

So he said unto them - Go your way, eat the fat and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared, for holy is the day, unto our Lord, - and be not grieved, for, the joy of Yahweh, is your strength.

And all the convocation of them who had returned out of the captivity made booths, and dwelt in booths, for, since the days of Jeshua son of Nun, had not the sons of Israel done so, unto that day, - and there was very great rejoicing.

Thou, art Yahweh, God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, - and madest his name Abraham;

But they murmured and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their back, and, thy prophets, they slew, who testified against them that they might turn them back unto thee, - and they wrought great insults.

Therefore didst thou deliver them into the hand of their adversaries, who distressed them, - and, in the time of their distress, they made outcry unto thee, and, thou, out of the heavens, didst hear, and, according to thine abounding compassions, gavest them saviors, that they might save them out of the hand of their adversaries.

But, as soon as they had rest, they again wrought wickedness before thee, - and thou didst leave them in the hand of their enemies, who bare rule over them, yet, when they again made outcry unto thee, thou, from the heavens, didst hear and didst deliver them according to thy compassions, many times;

and, the increase thereof, aboundeth unto the kings whom thou hast set over us, for our sins, - and, over our bodies, are they bearing rule, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and, in great distress, we are.

And, the rest of the people - the priests, the Levites, the doorkeepers, the singers, the Nethinim, and all who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands unto the law of God, their wives, their sons and their daughters, - every one having knowledge and understanding,

also that, the firstborn of our sons, and of our cattle, as it is written in the law, - and the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks, we would bring in unto the house of our God, unto the priests who should be in attendance in the house of our God;

For, into the chambers, should the sons of Israel and the sons of Levi bring in the heave-offering of the corn, the new wine and the oil, since, there, are the utensils of the sanctuary, and the priests who are in attendance, and the doorkeepers, and the singers, - so would we not neglect the house of our God.

And the people bestowed a blessing on all the men, who willingly offered themselves to dwell in Jerusalem.

Now, these, are the chiefs of the province, who dwelt in Jerusalem, but, in the cities of Judah, dwelt every man in his possession throughout their cities, Israel, the priests, and the Levites and the Nethinim, and the Sons of the Servants of Solomon.

All the sons of Perez who were dwelling in Jerusalem, four hundred and sixty-eight, men of ability.

and their brethren who were doing 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 Malchijah;

and their brethren, strong men of ability, a hundred and twenty-eight, - and, he who was in charge of them, was Zabdiel, son of Haggedolim.

and Mattaniah son of Mica, son of Zabdi, son of Asaph, leader of the praise who giveth thanks, in prayer, and Bakbukiah the second among his brethren, - and Obadiah son of Shemaiah, son of Galal, son of Jeduthun.

And, the door-keepers - Akkub, Talmon, and their brethren who were keeping watch in the gates, were a hundred and seventy-two.

Now, these, are the priests and the Levites, who came up with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua, - Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra;

and Maaseiah and Shemaiah and Eleazar and Uzzi and Jehohanan and Malchijah and Elam and Ezer, - and the musicians sounded, aloud with Jezrahiah who was over them.

And there were sot in charge, on that day, certain men, over the chambers for the treasures, for the heave-offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them, out of the fields of the cities, the portions appointed by the law, for the priests, and for the Levites, - for, the joy of Judah, was over the priests and over the Levites, who were remaining.

Now, before this, Eliashib the priest, who was set over a chamber of the house of God, was allied unto Tobiah;

Then came I to know, that, the portions of the Levites, had not been given them , - so that the Levites and the singers, who had been doing the work, had fled every one to his field.

And, men of Tyre, dwelt therein, who were bringing in fish - and every kind of ware for sale, - and were selling, on the sabbath, to the sons of Judah, and in Jerusalem;

Moreover, in these days, saw I the Jews who had married women of Ashdod, of Ammon, of Moab;