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10 (9:38) “‘In view of all this, we are making a binding covenant, putting it in writing and having it sealed by our leaders, our L’vi’im and our cohanim.’”

(1) On the sealed document were the names of: Nechemyah the Tirshata the son of Hakhalyah, Tzedekyah, (2) S’rayah, ‘Azaryah, Yirmeyah, (3) Pash’chur, Amaryah, Malkiyah, (4) Hatush, Sh’vanyah, Malukh, (5) Harim, M’remot, ‘Ovadyah, (6) Dani’el, Ginton, Barukh, (7) Meshulam, Aviyah, Miyamin, (8) Ma‘azyah, Bilgai and Sh’ma‘yah. These were the cohanim.

10 (9) The L’vi’im were: Yeshua the son of Azanyah, Binui a descendant of Henadad, Kadmi’el, 11 (10) and their kinsmen Sh’vanyah, Hodiyah, K’lita, P’layah, Hanan, 12 (11) Mikha, Rechov, Hashavyah, 13 (12) Zakur, Sherevyah, Sh’vanyah, 14 (13) Hodiyah, Bani and B’ninu.

15 (14) The leaders of the people: Par‘osh, Pachat-Mo’av, ‘Eilam, Zatu, Bani, 16 (15) Buni, ‘Azgad, B’vai, 17 (16) Adoniyah, Bigvai, ‘Adin, 18 (17) Ater, Hizkiyah, ‘Azur, 19 (18) Hodiyah, Hashum, Betzai, 20 (19) Harif, ‘Anatot, Neivai, 21 (20) Magpi‘ash, Meshulam, Hezir, 22 (21) Mesheizav’el, Tzadok, Yadua, 23 (22) P’latyah, Hanan, ‘Anayah, 24 (23) Hoshea, Hananyah, Hashuv, 25 (24) HaLochesh, Pilcha, Shovek, 26 (25) Rechum, Hashavnah, Ma‘aseiyah, 27 (26) Achiyah, Hanan, ‘Anan, 28 (27) Malukh, Harim and Ba‘anah.

29 (28) The rest of the people, the cohanim, the L’vi’im, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants and all who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the Torah of God, along with their wives, sons and daughters, everyone capable of knowing and understanding, 30 (29) joined their kinsmen and their leaders in swearing an oath, accompanied by a curse [in case of noncompliance], as follows:

“We will live by God’s Torah, given by Moshe the servant of God, and will perform and obey all the mitzvot, rulings and laws of Adonai our Lord.

31 (30) “We will not give our daughters as wives to the peoples of the land or take their daughters as wives for our sons.

32 (31) “If the peoples of the lands bring merchandise or food to sell on Shabbat, we will not buy from them on Shabbat or on a holy day.

“We will forego [planting and harvesting our fields] during the seventh year and collecting debts then.

33 (32) “We will impose on ourselves a yearly tax of one-third of a shekel [one-seventh of an ounce of silver] for the service of the house of our God, 34 (33) for the showbread, for the regular grain offering, for the regular burnt offering, for [the offerings] on Shabbat, on Rosh-Hodesh, at the designated times and at other holy times, for the sin offerings to make atonement for Isra’el, and for all the work connected with the house of our God.

35 (34) “We, the cohanim, the L’vi’im and the people, will cast lots in connection with the wood offering, so that it will be brought to the house of our God according to our fathers’ clans, at specified times, year by year, and then be burned on the altar of Adonai our God, as prescribed in the Torah.

36 (35) “Every year we will bring the firstfruits of our land and the firstfruits of all fruit from every kind of tree to the house of Adonai. 37 (36) “We will also bring the firstborn of our sons and of our livestock, as prescribed in the Torah, and the firstborn of our herds and flocks, to the house of our God, to the cohanim ministering in the house of our God.

38 (37) “We will bring the first of our dough, our contributions, the fruit of every kind of tree, wine and olive oil to the cohanim in the storerooms of the house of our God, along with the tenths from our land for the L’vi’im; since they, the L’vi’im, take the tenths in all the cities where we farm. 39 (38) The cohen the descendant of Aharon is to be with the L’vi’im when the L’vi’im take tenths. The L’vi’im will bring the tenth of the tenth to the house of our God, to the storerooms for supplies. 40 (39) For the people of Isra’el and the descendants of Levi are to bring the contribution of grain, wine and olive oil to the rooms where the equipment for the sanctuary, the ministering cohanim, the gatekeepers and the singers are. We will not abandon the house of our God.”

11 The leaders of the people took up residence in Yerushalayim; while the rest of the people cast lots to bring one-tenth of them to live in Yerushalayim the holy city, with the other nine-tenths in the other cities. The people blessed all those who volunteered to live in Yerushalayim.

In the cities of Y’hudah, everyone lived on his own property — the people of Isra’el, the cohanim, the L’vi’im, the temple servants and the descendants of Shlomo’s servants. But the leaders of the province lived in Yerushalayim. Some of those living in Yerushalayim were from people of Y’hudah, and others were from people of Binyamin. Those from the people of Y’hudah were: ‘Atayah the son of ‘Uziyah, the son of Z’kharyah, the son of Amaryah, the son of Sh’fatyah, the son of Mahalal’el, from the descendants of Peretz; and Ma‘aseiyah the son of Barukh, the son of Kol-Hozeh, the son of Hazayah, the son of ‘Adayah, the son of Yoyariv, the son of Z’kharyah, who belonged to the family of Shelah. The total number of descendants of Peretz living in Yerushalayim was 468 courageous men.

These are the people of Binyamin: Salu the son of Meshulam, the son of Yo‘ed, the son of P’dayah, the son of Kolayah, the son of Ma‘aseiyah, the son of Iti’el, the son of Yesha‘yah. After him: Gabai, Salai; 928 in all. Yo’el the son of Zikhri was their overseer, and Y’hudah the son of Hasnu’ah was second in charge of the city.

10 From the cohanim: Y’da‘yah the son of Yoyariv, Yakhin, 11 S’rayah the son of Hilkiyah, the son of Meshulam, the son of Tzadok, the son of M’rayot, the son of Achituv, the supervisor of the house of God, 12 and their kinsmen who did the work for the house; in all 822; and ‘Adayah the son of Yerocham, the son of P’lalyah, the son of Amtzi, the son of Z’kharyah, the son of Pash’chur, the son of Malkiyah; 13 with his kinsmen, heads of fathers’ clans, 242; and ‘Amash’sai the son of ‘Azar’el, the son of Achzai, the son of Meshillemot, the son of Immer; 14 with his kinsmen, courageous men, 128; their overseer was Zavdi’el the son of HaG’dolim.

15 From the L’vi’im: Sh’ma‘yah the son of Hashuv, the son of ‘Azrikam, the son of Hashavyah, the son of Buni, 16 and Shabtai and Yozavad, from the leaders of the L’vi’im, who were in charge of external affairs for the house of God; 17 and Matanyah the son of Mikha, the son of Zavdi, the son of Asaf, the leader who began the thanksgiving prayer; and Bakbukyah, the second among his kinsmen; and ‘Avda the son of Shamua, the son of Galal, the son of Y’dutun. 18 All the L’vi’im in the holy city numbered 284.

19 The gatekeepers: ‘Akuv, Talmon and their kinsmen, who kept watch at the gates, numbered 172.

20 The rest of Isra’el, [the rest of] the cohanim and [the rest of] the L’vi’im were in all the cities of Y’hudah, each on his own property.

21 The temple servants lived in the ‘Ofel; Tzicha and Gishpa were in charge of the temple servants.

22 The overseer of the L’vi’im in Yerushalayim was ‘Uzi the son of Bani, the son of Hashavyah, the son of Matanyah, the son of Mikha, from the descendants of Asaf the singers; [he was] in charge of the work of the house of God. 23 For they were subject to the king’s orders; and there was a fixed schedule for the singers, assigning them their daily duties. 24 P’tachyah the son of Mesheizav’el, from the descendants of Zerach the son of Y’hudah, was the king’s deputy in all affairs concerning the people.

25 As for the villages and their surrounding fields: some of the people of Y’hudah lived in Kiryat-Arba and its villages, in Divon and its villages, in Y’kabze’el and its villages, 26 in Yeshua, in Moladah, in Beit-Pelet, 27 in Hatzar-Shu‘al and its villages, in Be’er-Sheva and its villages, 28 in Ziklag, in M’khonah and its villages, 29 in ‘Ein-Rimmon, in Tzor‘ah, in Yarmut, 30 Zanoach, Adulam and their villages, in Lakhish and its surrounding fields, and in ‘Azekah and its villages. Thus they occupied the territory from Be’er-Sheva as far as the Hinnom Valley.

31 The people of Binyamin lived from Geva onward, in Mikhmas and ‘Ayah, in Beit-El and its villages, 32 and in ‘Anatot, Nov, ‘Ananyah, 33 Hatzor, Ramah, Gittayim, 34 Hadid, Tzvo‘im, N’valat, 35 Lud, Ono and Gei-Harashim.

36 Of the L’vi’im, some divisions from Y’hudah settled in Binyamin.

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