'Priests' in the Bible

The officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; nor had I yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the rest who did the work.

Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests and built the Sheep Gate. They consecrated it and set up its doors; and they consecrated the wall [westward] to the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Tower of Hananel.

After him the priests, the men of the [lower Jordan] valley, carried out repairs.

The temple servants were living in Ophel [the hill south of the temple], and they made repairs as far as the front of the Water Gate on the east and the projecting tower.

Above the Horse Gate the priests made repairs, each one in front of his own house.

Then they said, “We will give it back and not require anything from them. We will do exactly as you say.” Then I called the priests and took an oath from them that they would act in accordance with this promise.

But I said, “Should a man like me flee [in fear and hide]? Should someone like me enter the temple [for sanctuary] to save his life? I will not go.”

These are the priests: the sons of Jedaiah of the house of Jeshua, 973;

Of the priests: the sons of Hobaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, and the sons of Barzillai, who [was so named because he had] married one of the daughters of Barzillai, the [well-known] Gileadite, and was named after them.

Some from among the heads of fathers’ households gave to the work. The governor gave to the treasury 1,000 gold drachmas, 50 basins, 530 priests’ garments.

And what the rest of the people gave was 20,000 gold drachmas, 2,000 silver minas, and 67 priests’ garments.

So the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the temple servants, along with all Israel, lived in their cities.And when the seventh month came, the sons (descendants) of Israel (Jacob) were in their cities.

On the second day, all of the heads of fathers’ households of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, were gathered before Ezra the scribe to gain insight into the words of the Law (divine instruction).

“Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps the covenant and lovingkindness,Do not let all the hardship seem insignificant before You,Which has come upon us, our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers and on all Your people,Since the time of the kings of Assyria to this day.

Our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers have not kept Your lawOr paid attention to Your commandments and Your warnings which You have given them.

“Now because of all thisWe are making an agreement in writing;And on the sealed document are the names of our princes, our Levites, and our priests.”

Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah—these were the priests.

Now the rest of the people—the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants, and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Law of God, their wives, their sons, their daughters, all those who had knowledge and understanding—

We have also cast lots—the priests, the Levites, and the people—for [contributing] the supply of wood, to bring it to the house of our God, according to our fathers’ households, at set times annually, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God, as it is written in the Law;

as well as the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and flocks, to bring to the house of our God, for the priests who minister in the house of our God.

We will bring the first [and best] of our dough, our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the new wine and the [olive] oil to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God, and the tithe of our ground to the Levites, for the Levites are the ones who receive the tithes in all the rural towns.

For the Israelites and the sons of Levi shall bring the offering of the grain, the new wine, and the oil to the chambers; the utensils of the sanctuary, the priests who are ministering, the gatekeepers, and the singers are there. In this manner, we will not neglect the house of our God.

These are the heads of the provinces who lived in Jerusalem, but in the cities of Judah everyone lived on his property in their cities—the Israelites, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the descendants of Solomon’s servants.

Of the priests: Jedaiah the son of Joiarib, Jachin,

Now the rest of Israel, the priests and the Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, each on his own inheritance.

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

Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the heads of the priests and their kinsman in the days of Jeshua.

And in the days of Joiakim, the priests, the heads of fathers’ households were: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

As for the Levites in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua, the heads of fathers’ households were registered; so were the priests, during the reign of Darius the Persian.

The priests and the Levites purified themselves; they also purified the people, the gates, and the wall.

and some of the priests’ sons with trumpets, and Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph,

and the priests Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah and Hananiah, with trumpets;

On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them from the fields of the cities the portions required by the law for the priests and the Levites; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and Levites who served.

So in the days of Zerubbabel and [later of] Nehemiah, all Israel would give the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers; and they set apart the consecrated portion for the Levites, and the Levites set apart the consecrated portion for the sons of Aaron [the priests].

had prepared for Tobiah a large room (chamber) where previously they had put the grain offerings, the frankincense, the utensils, and the tithes of grain, new wine, and [olive] oil which were given by commandment for the Levites, the singers, and gatekeepers, and the contributions for the priests.

O my God, remember them, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.

Thus I cleansed and purified them from everything foreign (pagan), and I defined the duties of the priests and Levites, each one in his task;