and come in doth Hanani, one of my brethren, he and men of Judah, and I ask them concerning the Jews, the escaped part that have been left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem;

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.

Then in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought to me, I took the wine and gave it to the king. Previously I had not been depressed in the king's presence.

And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire.

And I went over unto the well port, and to the king's conduit; and there was no room for my beast, that it could go under me.

Then went I on in the night by the brook side, and considered the wall, and turned back and came home again to the valley port.

Then answering them I said, The God of heaven, he will be our help; so we his servants will go on with our building: but you have no part or right or any name in Jerusalem.

and by his hand have the Tekoites strengthened, and their honourable ones have not brought in their neck to the service of their Lord.

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.

And next unto them repaired Rephaiah the son of Hur, the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem.

Malchijah, the son of Harim, and Hasshub, the son of Pahath-moab, were working on another part, and the tower of the ovens.

And next unto him repaired Shallum the son of Halohesh, the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem, he and his daughters.

The valley gate builded Hanun, and the citizens of Zanoah. They builded it, and set on the doors, locks and bars thereof, and a thousand cubits on the wall, unto the Dung port.

But the dung gate repaired Malchiah the son of Rechab, the ruler of part of Bethhaccerem; he built it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof.

But the gate of the fountain repaired Shallun the son of Colhozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and the wall of the pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unto the stairs that go down from the city of David.

After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Bethzur, unto the place over against the sepulchres of David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the house of the mighty.

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.

After him repaired their brethren, Bavai the son of Henadad, the ruler of the half part of Keilah.

And by his side was working Ezer, the son of Jeshua, the ruler of Mizpah, making good another part opposite the way up to the store of arms at the turning of the wall.

After him Baruch, the son of Zabbai, was hard at work on another part, from the turning of the wall to the door of the house of Eliashib, the chief priest.

After him Meremoth, the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, was working on another part, from the door of the house of Eliashib as far as the end of his house.

After him Binnui, the son of Henadad, was working on another part, from the house of Azariah as far as the turning of the wall and the angle.

Palal, the son of Uzai, made good the wall opposite the angle and the tower which comes out from the higher part of the king's house, by the open space of the watch. After him was Pedaiah, the son of Parosh.

After him the Tekoites were making good another part, opposite the great tower which comes out, and up to the wall of the Ophel.

After him Hananiah, the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, were making good another part. After him Meshullam, the son of Berechiah, made good the wall opposite his room.

and said before his brethren and the soldiers of Samaria, "What do these impotent Jews? Shall they be thus suffered? Shall they offer? Shall they perform it in one day? Shall they make the stones whole again that are brought to dust, and burnt?"

I stationed the people behind the deepest part of the wall in the open places according to their families, with their swords, spears, and bows.

And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work.

And from that time, half of my servants were doing their part of the work, and half kept the spears and body-covers and the bows and the metal war-dresses; and the chiefs were at the back of the men of Judah.

Those who were building the wall and those who were moving material did their part, everyone working with one hand, with his spear in the other;

And saying to the nobles and to the prefects and to the rest of the people, The work much and broad, and we being scattered upon the wall, far off a man from his brother.

and we will be laboring in the work." And the half part of them held the spears from the morning spring, till the stars came forth.

Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children: and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought unto bondage already: neither is it in our power to redeem them; for other men have our lands and vineyards.

and I advised so in my mind, that I rebuked the councilors and the rulers, and said unto them, "Will ye require usury one of another?" And I brought a great congregation against them,

Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them.

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 bread of the governor.

But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God.

Now that which was prepared for me daily was one ox and six choice sheep; also fowls were prepared for me, and once in ten days store of all sorts of wine: yet for all this required not I the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy upon this people.

Also his good things were said before me, and my words were brought forth to him. Tobiah sent letters to cause me to fear.

And the city is broad on both sides, and great, and the people are few in its midst, and there are no houses builded;

"These are the sons of the land that went up from the captivity of the carrying away, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had brought away, and came again to Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city;

The men of the house of bread and Netophah, a hundred eighty and eight

The children of Solomon's servants: the children of Sotai, the children of Sophereth, the children of Perida,

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

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

And he read therein 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 that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.

Therefore said he unto them, "Go your way, and eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send part unto them also that have not prepared themselves: for this day is holy unto our LORD. Be not ye sorry therefore: for the joy of the LORD is your strength."

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

So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.

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

“You are the Lord God,
Who chose Abram
And brought him out of Ur of the Chaldees,
And gave him the name Abraham.

And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should go in to possess the land which thou hadst sworn to give them.

But they and our fathers, in their pride, made their necks stiff, and gave no attention to your orders,

Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations;

And you gave them kingdoms and peoples, making distribution to them in every part of the land: so they took for their heritage the land of Sihon, even the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, king of Bashan.

“You made their children as numerous as the stars of heaven,
And You brought them into the land
Which You told their fathers to enter and possess.

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.

and testified unto them, that they should turn again unto thy law. Notwithstanding, they were proud, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned in thy laws, which a man should do and live in them, and turned the shoulder away, and were stiff-necked, and would not hear.

Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly:

But, they, in their kingdom, and in thine abundant goodness which thou gavest them, and in the broad and fat land which thou didst set before them, did not serve thee, neither turned they from their wicked doings.

and that if the peoples of the land brought wares or any grain on the sabbath day to sell, we would not take it of them on the sabbath, or on any holy day; and that we would leave the land uncultivated 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 bread to be set in rows, and for the continual oblation, and for the continual burnt-offering, for that of the sabbaths and of the new moons, for the set feasts and for the holy things, and for the sin-offerings to make an atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house of our God.

And we cast the lot among the priests, Levites and the people, for offering of the wood to be brought unto the house of our God from year to year, after the houses of our fathers that it might be burnt at times appointed, upon the altar of the LORD our God, as it is written in the law:

and, the first part of our meal and our heave-offerings and the fruit of all trees, new wine and oil, would we bring in unto the priests, into the chambers of the house of our God, and the tithe of our ground unto the Levites, - the Levites themselves, taking the tithes in all our cities of agriculture.

And the rulers of the people dwelt at Jerusalem. But the other people cast lots therefore, so that among ten one part went to Jerusalem into the holy city to dwell, and nine parts in the cities.

And Joel the son of Zichri had the oversight of them: and Judah the son of Senuah over the second part of the city.

At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sent for the Levites wherever they lived and brought them to Jerusalem to celebrate the joyous dedication with thanksgiving and singing accompanied by cymbals, harps, and lyres.

Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed two great companies of them that gave thanks, whereof one went on the right hand upon the wall toward the dung gate:

And the other company of them that gave thanks went over against them, and I after them, and the half of the people upon the wall, from beyond the tower of the furnaces even unto the broad wall;

and to the port of Ephraim, and to the Oldgate, and to the Fishgate, and to the tower of Hananel, and to the tower of Meah, until the Sheepgate. And in the prison gate they stood still,

They offered on that day great sacrifices and rejoiced because God brought great joy to them. And the women and children also rejoiced. The joy of Jerusalem was heard from afar.

Because they met not the children of Israel with bread and with water, but hired Balaam against them, that he should curse them: howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessing.

Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers: and thither brought I again the vessels of the house of God, with the meat offering and the frankincense.

Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries.

In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals.

There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.

Did not your ancestors do this also, and our God brought on us all of this disaster and on this city [too]? Now you are adding fierce wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath!"

And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.