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Nehemiah 3-4
New American Standard Bible

Builders of the Walls

3 Then (A)Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built (B)the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and (C)installed its doors. They consecrated [a]the wall to (D)the Tower of the Hundred and (E)the Tower of Hananel. 2 And next to him (F)the men of Jericho built, and next to [b]them Zaccur the son of Imri built.

3 Now the sons of Hassenaah built (G)the Fish Gate; they laid its beams and installed its doors with its bolts and bars. 4 Next to them Meremoth the son of Uriah the son of Hakkoz made repairs. And next to [c]him Meshullam the son of Berechiah the son of Meshezabel made repairs. And next to [d]him Zadok the son of Baana also made repairs. 5 Moreover, next to [e]him the Tekoites made repairs, but their nobles did not [f]support the work of their masters.

6 Now Joiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired (H)the Ancient Gate; they laid its beams and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars. 7 Next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah, [g]also made repairs for the official seat of the (I)governor of the province beyond the Euphrates River. 8 Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah of the (J)goldsmiths made repairs. And next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, made repairs, and they restored Jerusalem as far as (K)the Broad Wall. 9 And next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, (L)the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs. 10 Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabneiah made repairs. 11 Malchijah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and (M)the Tower of Furnaces. 12 Next to him Shallum the son of Hallohesh, (N)the official of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs, he and his daughters.

13 Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired (O)the Valley Gate. They built it and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars, and a [h]thousand cubits of the wall to the Dung Gate.

14 And Malchijah the son of Rechab, the official of the district of (P)Beth-haccherem repaired the (Q)Dung Gate. He built it and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars.

15 Shallum the son of Col-hozeh, the official of the district of Mizpah, (R)repaired the Fountain Gate. He built it, made a roof for it, and installed its doors with its bolts and its bars, and the wall of the Pool of Shelah at (S)the king’s garden as far as (T)the steps that descend from the city of David. 16 After him Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, (U)official of half the district of Beth-zur, made repairs as far as a point opposite the tombs of David, and as far as (V)the [i]artificial pool and the house of the mighty men. 17 After him the Levites carried out repairs under Rehum the son of Bani. Next to him Hashabiah, the official of half the district of Keilah, carried out repairs for his district. 18 After him their brothers carried out repairs under Bavvai the son of Henadad, official of the other half of the district of Keilah. 19 And next to him Ezer the son of Jeshua, (W)the official of Mizpah, repaired [j]another section in front of the ascent of the armory (X)at the Angle. 20 After him Baruch the son of Zabbai zealously repaired another section, from the Angle to the doorway of the house of (Y)Eliashib the high priest. 21 After him Meremoth the son of Uriah the son of Hakkoz repaired another section, from the doorway of Eliashib’s house even as far as the end of [k]his house. 22 And after him the priests, (Z)the men of the [l]vicinity, carried out repairs. 23 After [m]them Benjamin and Hasshub carried out repairs in front of their house. After [n]them Azariah the son of Maaseiah, son of Ananiah, carried out repairs beside his house. 24 After him Binnui the son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah as far as (AA)the Angle and as far as the corner. 25 Palal the son of Uzai made repairs in front of the Angle and the tower projecting from the upper house of the king, which is by (AB)the courtyard of the guard. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh made repairs. 26 Now (AC)the temple servants living in (AD)Ophel made repairs as far as the front of (AE)the Water Gate toward the east and the projecting tower. 27 After [o]them (AF)the Tekoites repaired another section in front of the great projecting tower and as far as the wall of Ophel.

28 Above (AG)the Horse Gate the priests carried out repairs, each in front of his house. 29 After [p]them Zadok the son of Immer carried out repairs in front of his house. And after him Shemaiah the son of Shecaniah, the keeper of the East Gate, carried out repairs. 30 After him Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. After him Meshullam the son of Berechiah carried out repairs in front of his own quarters. 31 After him Malchijah, [q]one of (AH)the goldsmiths, carried out repairs as far as the house of the temple servants and of the merchants, in front of the [r]Inspection Gate and as far as the upper room of the corner. 32 And between the upper room of the corner and (AI)the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and the merchants carried out repairs.

Work Is Ridiculed

4 [s]Now it came about that when (AJ)Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry, and he mocked the Jews. 2 And he spoke in the presence of his brothers and (AK)the [t]wealthy people of Samaria and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to restore the temple for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they finish it in a day? Can they revive the stones from the (AL)heaps of rubble, even the burned ones?” 3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him, and he said, “Even what they are building—(AM)if a fox were to [u]jump on it, it would break their stone wall down!”

4 (AN)Hear, O our God, how we are an object of contempt! (AO)Return their taunting on their own heads, and turn them into plunder in a land of captivity. 5 Do not [v](AP)forgive their guilt and do not let their sin be wiped out before You, for they have [w]demoralized the builders.

6 So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a [x]mind to work.

7 [y]Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the [z]repair of the walls of Jerusalem went [aa]on, and that the breaches began to be closed, they were very angry. 8 So all of them (AQ)conspired together to come to fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it.

Discouragement Overcome

9 But we prayed to our God, and because of them we (AR)set up a guard against them day and night.

10 And so [ab]in Judah it was said:

“The strength of the burden bearers is failing,
Yet there is much rubble;
And we ourselves are unable
To rebuild the wall.”

11 And our enemies said, “They will not know or see until we come among them, kill them, and put a stop to the work.” 12 When the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times, “[ac]They will come up against us from every place where you may turn,” 13 then I stationed men in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, the exposed places, and I (AS)stationed the people in families with their swords, spears, and bows. 14 When I saw their fear, I stood and said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “(AT)Do not be afraid of them; remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and (AU)fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

15 Now when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that (AV)God had frustrated their plan, then all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work. 16 And from that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them kept hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the coats of mail; and the captains were behind all the house of Judah. 17 Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens carried with one hand doing the work, and the other keeping hold of a weapon. 18 As for the builders, each wore his sword strapped to his waist as he built, while [ad]the trumpeter stood near me. 19 And I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated on the wall far from one another. 20 At whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, assemble to us there. (AW)Our God will fight for us.”

21 So we carried on the work with half of them holding spears from [ae]dawn until the stars [af]appeared. 22 At that time I also said to the people, “Each man with his servant shall spend the night within Jerusalem, so that they may be a guard for us by night and a laborer by day.” 23 So neither I, my brothers, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me—none of us [ag]removed our clothes; each took his weapon even to the water.

Footnotes

  1. Nehemiah 3:1 Lit it
  2. Nehemiah 3:2 Lit him
  3. Nehemiah 3:4 Lit them
  4. Nehemiah 3:4 Lit them
  5. Nehemiah 3:5 Lit them
  6. Nehemiah 3:5 Lit bring their neck to
  7. Nehemiah 3:7 Or which was under the jurisdiction of the governor of the province beyond the River, also made repairs
  8. Nehemiah 3:13 About 1,500 ft. or 457 m
  9. Nehemiah 3:16 Lit constructed
  10. Nehemiah 3:19 Lit a second measure, and so in vv 20, 21, 24, 30
  11. Nehemiah 3:21 Lit Eliashib’s
  12. Nehemiah 3:22 I.e., the lower Jordan Valley
  13. Nehemiah 3:23 Lit him
  14. Nehemiah 3:23 Lit him
  15. Nehemiah 3:27 Lit him
  16. Nehemiah 3:29 Lit him
  17. Nehemiah 3:31 Lit son of
  18. Nehemiah 3:31 Or Numbering
  19. Nehemiah 4:1 Ch 3:33 in Heb
  20. Nehemiah 4:2 Or army
  21. Nehemiah 4:3 Lit go up
  22. Nehemiah 4:5 Lit cover
  23. Nehemiah 4:5 Lit offended against
  24. Nehemiah 4:6 Lit heart
  25. Nehemiah 4:7 Ch 4:1 in Heb
  26. Nehemiah 4:7 Lit healing
  27. Nehemiah 4:7 Lit up
  28. Nehemiah 4:10 Lit Judah said
  29. Nehemiah 4:12 As in LXX; MT omits they...up
  30. Nehemiah 4:18 Lit he who sounded the trumpet
  31. Nehemiah 4:21 Lit rising of the dawn
  32. Nehemiah 4:21 Lit came out
  33. Nehemiah 4:23 I.e., for washing or resting
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Nehemiah 3-4
New International Version

Builders of the Wall

3 Eliashib(A) the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilt(B) the Sheep Gate.(C) They dedicated it and set its doors in place, building as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and as far as the Tower of Hananel.(D) 2 The men of Jericho(E) built the adjoining section, and Zakkur son of Imri built next to them.

3 The Fish Gate(F) was rebuilt by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid its beams and put its doors and bolts and bars in place. 4 Meremoth(G) son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired the next section. Next to him Meshullam son of Berekiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs, and next to him Zadok son of Baana also made repairs. 5 The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa,(H) but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors.[a]

6 The Jeshanah[b] Gate(I) was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid its beams and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place. 7 Next to them, repairs were made by men from Gibeon(J) and Mizpah—Melatiah of Gibeon and Jadon of Meronoth—places under the authority of the governor of Trans-Euphrates. 8 Uzziel son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, repaired the next section; and Hananiah, one of the perfume-makers, made repairs next to that. They restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall.(K) 9 Rephaiah son of Hur, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section. 10 Adjoining this, Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house, and Hattush son of Hashabneiah made repairs next to him. 11 Malkijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section and the Tower of the Ovens.(L) 12 Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section with the help of his daughters.

13 The Valley Gate(M) was repaired by Hanun and the residents of Zanoah.(N) They rebuilt it and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place. They also repaired a thousand cubits[c] of the wall as far as the Dung Gate.(O)

14 The Dung Gate was repaired by Malkijah son of Rekab, ruler of the district of Beth Hakkerem.(P) He rebuilt it and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place.

15 The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallun son of Kol-Hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt it, roofing it over and putting its doors and bolts and bars in place. He also repaired the wall of the Pool of Siloam,[d](Q) by the King’s Garden, as far as the steps going down from the City of David. 16 Beyond him, Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of a half-district of Beth Zur,(R) made repairs up to a point opposite the tombs[e](S) of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the Heroes.

17 Next to him, the repairs were made by the Levites under Rehum son of Bani. Beside him, Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah,(T) carried out repairs for his district. 18 Next to him, the repairs were made by their fellow Levites under Binnui[f] son of Henadad, ruler of the other half-district of Keilah. 19 Next to him, Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section, from a point facing the ascent to the armory as far as the angle of the wall. 20 Next to him, Baruch son of Zabbai zealously repaired another section, from the angle to the entrance of the house of Eliashib the high priest. 21 Next to him, Meremoth(U) son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired another section, from the entrance of Eliashib’s house to the end of it.

22 The repairs next to him were made by the priests from the surrounding region. 23 Beyond them, Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs in front of their house; and next to them, Azariah son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, made repairs beside his house. 24 Next to him, Binnui(V) son of Henadad repaired another section, from Azariah’s house to the angle and the corner, 25 and Palal son of Uzai worked opposite the angle and the tower projecting from the upper palace near the court of the guard.(W) Next to him, Pedaiah son of Parosh(X) 26 and the temple servants(Y) living on the hill of Ophel(Z) made repairs up to a point opposite the Water Gate(AA) toward the east and the projecting tower. 27 Next to them, the men of Tekoa(AB) repaired another section, from the great projecting tower(AC) to the wall of Ophel.

28 Above the Horse Gate,(AD) the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house. 29 Next to them, Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite his house. Next to him, Shemaiah son of Shekaniah, the guard at the East Gate, made repairs. 30 Next to him, Hananiah son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. Next to them, Meshullam son of Berekiah made repairs opposite his living quarters. 31 Next to him, Malkijah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the temple servants and the merchants, opposite the Inspection Gate, and as far as the room above the corner; 32 and between the room above the corner and the Sheep Gate(AE) the goldsmiths and merchants made repairs.

Opposition to the Rebuilding

4 [g]When Sanballat(AF) heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, 2 and in the presence of his associates(AG) and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble(AH)—burned as they are?”

3 Tobiah(AI) the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are building—even a fox climbing up on it would break down their wall of stones!”(AJ)

4 Hear us, our God, for we are despised.(AK) Turn their insults back on their own heads. Give them over as plunder in a land of captivity. 5 Do not cover up their guilt(AL) or blot out their sins from your sight,(AM) for they have thrown insults in the face of[h] the builders.

6 So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.

7 But when Sanballat, Tobiah,(AN) the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. 8 They all plotted together(AO) to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. 9 But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.

10 Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, “The strength of the laborers(AP) is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall.”

11 Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.”

12 Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”

13 Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows. 14 After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid(AQ) of them. Remember(AR) the Lord, who is great and awesome,(AS) and fight(AT) for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”

15 When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and that God had frustrated it,(AU) we all returned to the wall, each to our own work.

16 From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers posted themselves behind all the people of Judah 17 who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon(AV) in the other, 18 and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. But the man who sounded the trumpet(AW) stayed with me.

19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet,(AX) join us there. Our God will fight(AY) for us!”

21 So we continued the work with half the men holding spears, from the first light of dawn till the stars came out. 22 At that time I also said to the people, “Have every man and his helper stay inside Jerusalem at night, so they can serve us as guards by night and as workers by day.” 23 Neither I nor my brothers nor my men nor the guards with me took off our clothes; each had his weapon, even when he went for water.[i]

Footnotes

  1. Nehemiah 3:5 Or their Lord or the governor
  2. Nehemiah 3:6 Or Old
  3. Nehemiah 3:13 That is, about 1,500 feet or about 450 meters
  4. Nehemiah 3:15 Hebrew Shelah, a variant of Shiloah, that is, Siloam
  5. Nehemiah 3:16 Hebrew; Septuagint, some Vulgate manuscripts and Syriac tomb
  6. Nehemiah 3:18 Two Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac (see also Septuagint and verse 24); most Hebrew manuscripts Bavvai
  7. Nehemiah 4:1 In Hebrew texts 4:1-6 is numbered 3:33-38, and 4:7-23 is numbered 4:1-17.
  8. Nehemiah 4:5 Or have aroused your anger before
  9. Nehemiah 4:23 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
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