that Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, Come, let us meet together in [one of] the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief.

And I sent messengers to them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it, and come down to you?

And they sent to me four times after this sort, and I answered them after the same manner.

Then Sanballat sent his servant to me in like manner the fifth time with an open letter in his hand

in which was written, It is reported among the nations, and Gashmu says it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel, for which cause thou are building the wall. And thou would be their king according to these words.

And thou have also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, There is a king in Judah. And now it shall be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together.

Then I sent to him, saying, There are no such things done as thou say, but thou imagine them out of thine own heart.

And I went to the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabel, who was shut up, and he said, Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple. For they will come to

And I said, Should such a man as I flee? And who is there, that, being such as I, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in.

For this cause he was hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin, and that they might have matter for an evil report, that they might reproach me.

Remember, O my God, Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and also the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, who would have put me in fear.

So the wall was finished in the twenty-fifth [day] of [the month] Elul, in fifty-two days.

And it came to pass, when all our enemies heard [of it], that all the nations that were around us feared, and were much cast down in their own eyes, for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God.

Moreover in those days the ranking men of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and [the letters] of Tobiah came to them.

For there were many in Judah sworn to him because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah to wife.

Also they spoke of his good deeds before me, and reported my words to him. [And] Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear.

Now it came to pass, when the wall was built, and I had set up the doors, and the porters and the singers and the Levites were appointed,

And I said to them, Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun be hot, and while they stand [on guard], let them shut the doors, and bar ye them. And appoint watchmen of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, everyone in his wat

And my God put into my heart to gather together the ranking men, and the rulers, and the people, that they might be reckoned by genealogy. And I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up at the first. And I found written

These are the sons of the province who went up out of the captivity of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away, and who returned to Jerusalem and to Judah, everyone to his city

the sons of Parosh, two thousand a hundred and seventy-two;

the sons of Shephatiah, three hundred seventy and two;

the sons of Arah, six hundred fifty-two;

the sons of Pahath-moab, of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand and eight hundred [and] eighteen;

the sons of Elam, a thousand two hundred fifty-four;

the sons of Azgad, two thousand three hundred twenty-two;

the sons of Bigvai, two thousand sixty-seven;

the men of Beth-azmaveth, forty-two;

the men of Michmas, a hundred and twenty-two;

the men of the other Nebo, fifty-two;

the sons of the other Elam, a thousand two hundred fifty-four;

the sons of Immer, a thousand fifty-two;

the sons of Pashhur, a thousand two hundred forty-seven;

All the Nethinim and the sons of Solomon's servants, were three hundred ninety-two.

The sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, six hundred forty-two.

And the governor said to them that they should not eat of the most holy things till there stood up a priest with Urim and Thummim.

The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty,

besides their men-servants and their maid-servants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty-seven. And they had two hundred forty-five singing men and singing women.

Their horses were seven hundred thirty-six, their mules, two hundred forty-five,

And some from among the heads of fathers gave to the work. The governor gave to the treasury a thousand darics of gold, fifty basins, five hundred and thirty priests' garments.

And some of the heads of fathers gave into the treasury of the work twenty thousand darics of gold, and two thousand and two hundred pounds of silver.

And that which the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand darics of gold, and two thousand pounds of silver, and sixty-seven priests' garments.

And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the broad place that was before the water gate. And they spoke to Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which LORD had commanded to Israel.

And Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, both men and women, and all who could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.

And he read in it before the broad place that was before the water gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women, and of those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were [attentive] t

And Ezra blessed LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with the lifting up of their hands. And they bowed their heads, and worshipped LORD with their faces to the ground.

Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law. And the people [stood] in their place.

And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites who taught the people, said to all the people, This day is holy to LORD your God; do not mourn nor weep. For all the people wept when they heard th

Then he said to them, Go your way, eat fat things, and drink sweet things, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared. For this day is holy to our LORD; neither be ye grieved, for the joy of LORD is your strength.

So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, Be silent, for the day is holy, neither be ye grieved.

And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.

And on the second day were gathered together the heads of fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, to Ezra the scribe, even to give attention to the words of the law.

and that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth to the mount, and fetch olive branches, and branches of wild olive, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick tre

And all the assembly of those who came again out of the captivity made booths, and dwelt in the booths, for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the sons of Israel had not done so. And there was very great gladness.

Also day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly according to the ordinance.

Now in the twenty-fourth day of this month the sons of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackcloth, and earth upon them.

And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of LORD their God a fourth part of the day, and [another] fourth part they confessed, and worshipped LORD their God.

Then Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, [and] Chenani, stood up upon the stairs of the Levites, and cried with a loud voice to LORD their God.

Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, [and] Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless LORD your God from everlasting to everlasting. And blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted abo

and found his heart faithful before thee, and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, to give it to his seed, and have performed

and showed signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land, for thou knew that they dealt proudly against them, and got thee a name, as it is this day.

Moreover in a pillar of cloud thou led them by day, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light in the way in which they should go.

and made known to them thy holy Sabbath, and commanded them commandments, and statutes, and a law, by Moses thy servant.

And thou gave them bread from heaven for their hunger, and brought forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and commanded them that they should go in to possess the land which thou had sworn to give them.

But they and our fathers dealt proudly and stiffened their neck, and did not hearken to thy commandments,

and refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou did among them, but stiffened their neck. And in their rebellion they appointed a captain to return to their bondage. But thou are a God ready to pardon, gracious a

yet thou in thy manifold mercies did not forsake them in the wilderness. The pillar of cloud did not depart from over them by day to lead them in the way, neither the pillar of fire by night to show them light, and the way in which

Thou also gave thy good Spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold thy manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst.

Their sons thou also multiplied as the stars of heaven, and brought them into the land concerning which thou said to their fathers that they should go in to possess it.

So the sons went in and possessed the land. And thou subdued the inhabitants of the land before them, the Canaanites, and gave them into their hands, with their kings, and the peoples of the land, that they might do with them as th

And they took fortified cities, and a fat land, and possessed houses full of all good things, cisterns hewn out, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance. So they ate, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted t

Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their back, and killed thy prophets who testified against them to turn them again to thee, and they wrought great provocations.

Therefore thou delivered them into the hand of their adversaries, who distressed them. And in the time of their trouble, when they cried to thee, thou heard from heaven, and according to thy manifold mercies thou gave them saviors

But after they had rest, they again did evil before thee. Therefore thou left them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them. Yet when they returned, and cried to thee, thou heard from heaven, and many t

and testified against them, that thou might bring them again to thy law. Yet they dealt proudly, and did not hearken to thy commandments, but sinned against thine ordinances (which if a man does, he shall live in them), and withdre

neither have our kings, our rulers, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened to thy commandments and thy testimonies with which thou testified against them.

Behold, we are servants this day, and as for the land that thou gave to our fathers to eat the fruit of it and the good of it, behold, we are servants in it.

And it yields much increase to the kings whom thou have set over us because of our sins. Also they have power over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress.

And yet for all this we make a sure covenant, and write it, and our rulers, our Levites, [and] our priests, seal to it.

And the rest of the people--the priests, the Levites, the porters, the singers, the Nethinim, and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters,

they clung to their brothers, their ranking men, and entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in God's law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of LORD our Lord, and his or

And that we would not give our daughters to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons.

And if the peoples of the land bring wares or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy from them on the Sabbath, or on a holy day. And that we would forego the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt.

Also we made ordinances for us, to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God,

for the showbread, and for the continual meal-offering, and for the continual burnt-offering, for the Sabbaths, for the new moons, for the set feasts, and for the holy things, and for the sin-offerings to make atonement for Israel,

And we cast lots, the priests, the Levites, and the people, for the wood-offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers' houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn upon the altar of LORD our God, a

and to bring the first-fruits of our ground, and the first-fruits of all fruit of all manner of trees, year by year, to the house of LORD,

also the first-born of our sons, and of our cattle, as it is written in the law, and the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks, to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God,

and that we should bring the first-fruits of our dough, and our heave-offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, the new wine and the oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God, and the tithes of our ground

And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites when the Levites take tithes. And the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure-house.

For the sons of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the heave-offering of the grain, of the new wine, and of the oil, to the chambers, where are the vessels of the sanctuary, and the priests that minister, and the porters, and

And the rulers of the people dwelt in Jerusalem. The rest of the people also cast lots to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city, and nine parts in the [other] cities.

And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered themselves to dwell in Jerusalem.

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

and his brothers, chiefs of fathers, two hundred forty-two; and Amashsai the son of Azarel, the son of Ahzai, the son of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer,

and Mattaniah the son of Mica, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, who was the chief to begin the thanksgiving in prayer, and Bakbukiah, the second among his brothers, and Abda the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jedut

All the Levites in the holy city were two hundred eighty-four.

Moreover the porters, Akkub, Talmon, and their brothers, who kept watch at the gates, were a hundred seventy-two.

For there was a commandment from the king concerning them, and a settled provision for the singers, as every day required.

Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages, Lachish and the fields of it, Azekah and the towns of it. So they encamped from Beersheba to the valley of Hinnom.