Nehemiah:1-5
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The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah .
And it came to pass in the month Chisleu ,
in the twentieth year ,
as I was in Shushan the palace ,
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That Hanani ,
one of my brethren ,
came ,
he and certain men of Judah ;
and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped ,
which were left of the captivity ,
and concerning Jerusalem .
*
And they said unto me ,
The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach :
the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down ,
and the gates thereof are burned with fire .
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And it came to pass ,
when I heard these words ,
that I sat down and wept ,
and mourned certain days ,
and fasted ,
and prayed before the God of heaven ,
*
And said ,
I beseech thee ,
O LORD God of heaven ,
the great and terrible God ,
that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments :
*
Let thine ear now be attentive ,
and thine eyes open ,
that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant ,
which I pray before thee now ,
day and night ,
for the children of Israel thy servants ,
and confess the sins of the children of Israel Yisra #
el #,
which we have sinned against thee :
both I and my fathers house have sinned .
*
We have dealt very corruptly against thee ,
and have not kept the commandments ,
nor the statutes ,
nor the judgments ,
which thou commandedst thy servant Moses .
*
Remember ,
I beseech thee ,
the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses ,
saying ,
If ye transgress ,
I will scatter you abroad among the nations :
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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 .
*
Now these are thy servants and thy people ,
whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power ,
and by thy strong hand .
*
O Lord ,
I beseech thee ,
let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant ,
and to the prayer of thy servants ,
who desire to fear thy name :
and prosper ,
I pray thee ,
thy servant this day ,
and grant him mercy in the sight of this man .
For I was the kings cupbearer .
*
And it came to pass in the month Nisan ,
in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king ,
that wine was before him :
and I took up the wine ,
and gave it unto the king .
Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence .
*
Wherefore the king said unto me ,
Why is thy countenance sad ,
seeing thou art not sick ?
this is nothing else but sorrow of heart .
Then I was very sore afraid ,
*
And said unto the king ,
Let the king live for ever :
why should not my countenance be sad ,
when the city ,
the place of my fathers sepulchres ,
lieth waste ,
and the gates thereof are consumed with fire ?
*
Then the king said unto me ,
For what dost thou make request ?
So I prayed to the God of heaven .
*
And I said unto the king ,
If it please the king ,
and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight ,
that thou wouldest send me unto Judah ,
unto the city of my fathers sepulchres ,
that I may build it .
*
And the king said unto me , (
the queen also sitting by him , )
For how long shall thy journey be ?
and when wilt thou return ?
So it pleased the king to send me ;
and I set him a time .
*
Moreover I said unto the king ,
If it please the king ,
let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river ,
that they may convey me over till I come into Judah ;
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And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the kings forest ,
that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house ,
and for the wall of the city ,
and for the house that I shall enter into .
And the king granted me ,
according to the good hand of my God upon me .
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Then I came to the governors beyond the river ,
and gave them the kings letters .
Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me .
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When Sanballat the Horonite ,
and Tobiah the servant ,
the Ammonite ,
heard of it ,
it grieved them exceedingly ra #
that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel Yisra #
el #.
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So I came to Jerusalem ,
and was there three days .
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And I arose in the night ,
I and some few men with me ;
neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem :
neither was there any beast with me ,
save the beast that I rode upon .
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And I went out by night by the gate of the valley ,
even before the dragon well # #
Eyn ,
and to the dung port sha #
ar #,
and viewed (
8675 )
the walls of Jerusalem ,
which were broken down ,
and the gates thereof were consumed with fire .
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Then I went on to the gate of the fountain ,
and to the kings pool :
but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass .
*
Then went I up in the night by the brook ,
and viewed (
8675 )
the wall ,
and turned back ,
and entered by the gate of the valley ,
and so returned .
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And the rulers knew not whither I went ,
or what I did ;
neither had I as yet told it to the Jews ,
nor to the priests ,
nor to the nobles ,
nor to the rulers ,
nor to the rest that did the work m @
la #
kah #.
*
Then said I unto them ,
Ye see the distress that we are in ,
how Jerusalem lieth waste ,
and the gates thereof are burned with fire :
come ,
and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem ,
that we be no more a reproach .
*
Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me ;
as also the kings words that he had spoken unto me .
And they said ,
Let us rise up and build .
So they strengthened their hands for this good work .
*
But when Sanballat the Horonite ,
and Tobiah the servant ,
the Ammonite ,
and Geshem the Arabian ,
heard it ,
they laughed us to scorn ,
and despised us ,
and said ,
What is this thing that ye do ?
will ye rebel against the king ?
*
Then answered I them ,
and said unto them ,
The God of heaven ,
he will prosper us ;
therefore we his servants will arise and build :
but ye have no portion ,
nor right ,
nor memorial ,
in Jerusalem .
*
Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests ,
and they builded the sheep gate sha #
ar #;
they sanctified it ,
and set up the doors of it ;
even unto the tower of Meah they sanctified it ,
unto the tower of Hananeel Chanan #
el #.
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And next unto him builded the men of Jericho .
And next to them builded Zaccur the son of Imri .
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But the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build ,
who also laid the beams thereof ,
and set up the doors thereof ,
the locks thereof ,
and the bars thereof .
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And next unto them repaired Meremoth the son of Urijah ,
the son of Koz .
And next unto them repaired Meshullam the son of Berechiah ,
the son of Meshezabeel M @
sheyzab #
el #.
And next unto them repaired Zadok the son of Baana .
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And next unto them the Tekoites repaired ;
but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord .
*
Moreover the old gate repaired Jehoiada the son of Paseah ,
and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah ;
they laid the beams thereof ,
and set up the doors thereof ,
and the locks thereof ,
and the bars thereof .
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And next unto them repaired Melatiah the Gibeonite Gib #
oniy #,
and Jadon the Meronothite ,
the men of Gibeon Gib #
own #,
and of Mizpah ,
unto the throne of the governor on this side the river .
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Next unto him repaired Uzziel #
Uzziy #
el #
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 .
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And next unto them repaired Rephaiah the son of Hur ,
the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem .
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And next unto them repaired Jedaiah the son of Harumaph ,
even over against his house .
And next unto him repaired Hattush the son of Hashabniah .
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Malchijah the son of Harim ,
and Hashub the son of Pahathmoab Pachath Mow #
ab #,
repaired the other piece ,
and the tower of the furnaces .
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And next unto him repaired Shallum the son of Halohesh ,
the ruler of the half part of Jerusalem ,
he and his daughters .
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The valley gate repaired Hanun ,
and the inhabitants of Zanoah ;
they built it ,
and set up the doors thereof ,
the locks thereof ,
and the bars thereof ,
and a thousnd cubits on the wall unto the dung gate sha #
ar #.
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But the dung gate repaired Malchiah the son of Rechab ,
the ruler of part of Bethhaccerem Beyth hak-Kerem #;
he built it ,
and set up the doors thereof ,
the locks thereof ,
and the bars thereof .
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But the gate of the fountain repaired Shallun the son of Colhozeh Kol-Chozeh #,
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 kings garden ,
and unto the stairs that go down from the city of David .
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After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk ,
the ruler of the half part of Bethzur Beyth ,
unto the place over against the sepulchres of David ,
and to the pool that was made ,
and unto the house of the mighty .
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After him repaired the Levites ,
Rehum the son of Bani .
Next unto him repaired Hashabiah ,
the ruler of the half part of Keilah Q @#
iylah #,
in his part .
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After him repaired their brethren ,
Bavai the son of Henadad ,
the ruler of the half part of Keilah Q @#
iylah #.
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And next to him repaired Ezer the son of Jeshua ,
the ruler of Mizpah ,
another piece over against the going up to the armoury at the turning of the wall .
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After him Baruch the son of Zabbai earnestly repaired the other piece ,
from the turning of the wall unto the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest .
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After him repaired Meremoth the son of Urijah the son of Koz another piece ,
from the door of the house of Eliashib even to the end of the house of Eliashib .
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And after him repaired the priests ,
the men of the plain .
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After him repaired Benjamin and Hashub over against their house .
After him repaired Azariah the son of Maaseiah the son of Ananiah by his house .
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After him repaired Binnui the son of Henadad another piece ,
from the house of Azariah unto the turning of the wall ,
even unto the corner .
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Palal the son of Uzai ,
over against the turning of the wall ,
and the tower which lieth out from the kings high house ,
that was by the court of the prison .
After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh Par #
osh #.
*
Moreover the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel ,
unto the place over against the water gate toward the east ,
and the tower that lieth out .
*
After them the Tekoites repaired another piece ,
over against the great tower that lieth out ,
even unto the wall of Ophel .
*
From above the horse gate repaired the priests ,
every one over against his house .
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After them repaired Zadok the son of Immer over against his house .
After him repaired also Shemaiah the son of Shechaniah ,
the keeper of the east gate sha #
ar #.
*
After him repaired Hananiah the son of Shelemiah ,
and Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph ,
another piece .
After him repaired Meshullam the son of Berechiah over against his chamber .
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After him repaired Malchiah the goldsmiths son unto the place of the Nethinims ,
and of the merchants ,
over against the gate Miphkad ,
and to the going up of the corner .
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And between the going up of the corner unto the sheep gate repaired the goldsmiths and the merchants .
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But it came to pass ,
that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall ,
he was wroth ,
and took great indignation ,
and mocked the Jews .
*
And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria ,
and said ,
What do these feeble Jews ?
will they fortify themselves ?
will they sacrifice ?
will they make an end in a day ?
will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned ?
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Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him ,
and he said ,
Even that which they build ,
if a fox go up ,
he shall even break down their stone wall .
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Hear ,
O our God ;
for we are despised :
and turn their reproach upon their own head ro #
sh #,
and give them for a prey in the land of captivity :
*
And cover not their iniquity ,
and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee :
for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders .
*
So built we the wall ;
and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof :
for the people had a mind to work .
*
But it came to pass ,
that when Sanballat ,
and Tobiah ,
and the Arabians ,
and the Ammonites ,
and the Ashdodites ,
heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up #
H5927 ,
and that the breaches began to be stopped ,
then they were very wroth ,
*
And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem ,
and to hinder #
it .
*
Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God ,
and set a watch against them day and night ,
because of them .
*
And Judah said ,
The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed ,
and there is much rubbish ;
so that we are not able to build the wall .
*
And our adversaries said ,
They shall not know ,
neither see ,
till we come in the midst among them ,
and slay them ,
and cause the work to cease .
*
And it came to pass ,
that when the Jews which dwelt by them came ,
they said unto us ten times pa #
am #,
From all places whence ye shall return unto us they will be upon you .
*
Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall ,
and on the higher places ts @,
I even set the people after their families with their swords ,
their spears ,
and their bows .
*
And I looked ,
and rose up ,
and said unto the nobles ,
and to the rulers ,
and to the rest of the people ,
Be not ye afraid of them :
remember the Lord ,
which is great and terrible ,
and fight for your brethren ,
your sons ,
and your daughters ,
your wives ,
and your houses .
*
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 m @
la #
kah #.
*
And it came to pass from that time forth ,
that the half of my servants wrought in the work m @
la #
kah #,
and the other half of them held both the spears ,
the shields ,
and the bows ,
and the habergeons ;
and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah .
*
They which builded on the wall ,
and they that bare burdens ,
with those that laded ,
every one with one of his hands wrought in the work m @
la #
kah #,
and with the other hand held a weapon .
*
For the builders ,
every one had his sword girded by his side ,
and so builded .
And he that sounded the trumpet was by me .
*
And I said unto the nobles ,
and to the rulers ,
and to the rest of the people ,
The work is great and large ,
and we are separated upon the wall ,
one far from another .
*
In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet ,
resort ye thither unto us :
our God shall fight for us .
*
So we laboured in the work m @
la #
kah #:
and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared .
*
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 labour on the day .
*
So neither I ,
nor my brethren ,
nor my servants na #
ar #,
nor the men of the guard which followed me ,
none of us put off our clothes ,
saving that every one put them off for washing .
*
And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews .
*
For there were that said ,
We ,
our sons ,
and our daughters ,
are many :
therefore we take up corn for them ,
that we may eat ,
and live .
*
Some also there were that said ,
We have mortgaged our lands ,
vineyards ,
and houses ,
that we might buy corn ,
because of the dearth ra #
ab #.
*
There were also that said ,
We have borrowed money for the kings tribute ,
and that upon our lands and vineyards .
*
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 #
H3027to redeem them ;
for other men have our lands and vineyards .
*
And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words .
*
Then I consulted with myself ,
and I rebuked the nobles ,
and the rulers ,
and said unto them ,
Ye exact (
8678 ) (
8675 )
usury ,
every one of his brother .
And I set a great assembly against them .
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And I said unto them ,
We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews ,
which were sold unto the heathen ;
and will ye even sell your brethren ?
or shall they be sold unto us ?
Then held they their peace ,
and found nothing to answer .
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Also I said ,
It is not good that ye do :
ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies ?
*
I likewise ,
and my brethren ,
and my servants na #
ar #,
might exact of them money and corn :
I pray you ,
let us leave off this usury .
*
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 .
*
Then said they ,
We will restore them ,
and will require nothing of them ;
so will we do as thou sayest .
Then I called the priests ,
and took an oath of them ,
that they should do according to this promise .
*
Also I shook my lap ,
and said ,
So God shake out every man from his house ,
and from his labour ,
that performeth not this promise ,
even thus be he shaken out ,
and emptied .
And all the congregation said ,
Amen ,
and praised the LORD .
And the people did according to this promise .
*
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 sh @
nayim #
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 #
arba #
iym #
shekels of silver ;
yea ,
even their servants bare rule over the people :
but so did not I ,
because of the fear of God .
*
Yea ,
also I continued in the work of this wall ,
neither bought we any land :
and all my servants were gathered thither unto the work m @
la #
kah #.
*
Moreover there were at my table an hundred and fifty chamishshiym #
of the Jews and rulers ,
beside those that came unto us from among the heathen that are about us .
*
Now that which was prepared for me daily was one ox and six choice sheep tso #
n #;
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 .
*
Think upon me ,
my God ,
for good ,
according to all that I have done for this people .
*
Now it came to pass ,
when Sanballat ,
and Tobiah ,
and Geshem the Arabian ,
and the rest of our enemies ,
heard that I had builded the wall ,
and that there was no breach left therein ; (
though gam #
at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates sha #
ar #; )
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