Ezra 8:15-36

English Standard Version

Ezra Sends for Levites

¹⁵ I gathered them to the river that runs to ^(A)Ahava, and there we camped three days. As I reviewed the people and the priests, I found there ^(B)none of the sons of Levi. ¹⁶ Then I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and ^(C)Meshullam, leading men, and for Joiarib and Elnathan, who were men of insight, ¹⁷ and sent them to Iddo, the leading man at the place Casiphia, telling them what to say to Iddo and his brothers and^[a] the temple servants at the place Casiphia, namely, to send us ministers for the house of our God. ¹⁸ And ^(D)by the good hand of our God on us, they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of ^(E)Mahli the son of Levi, son of Israel, namely Sherebiah with his sons and kinsmen, 18; ¹⁹ also ^(F)Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of ^(G)the sons of Merari, with his kinsmen and their sons, 20; ^20 (H)besides 220 of the temple servants, whom David and his officials had set apart to attend the Levites. These were all ^(I)mentioned by name.

Fasting and Prayer for Protection

^21 (J)Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river ^(K)Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, ^(L)to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods. ²² For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, ^(M)“The hand of our God is for good on ^(N)all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.” ²³ So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty.

Priests to Guard Offerings

²⁴ Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests: ^(O)Sherebiah, ^(P)Hashabiah, and ten of their kinsmen with them. ²⁵ And I weighed out to them the ^(Q)silver and the gold and the vessels, the offering for the house of our God that the king and his ^(R)counselors and his lords and all Israel there present had offered. ^26 (S)I weighed out into their hand 650 talents^[b] of silver, and silver vessels worth 200 talents,^[c] and 100 talents of gold, ²⁷ 20 bowls of gold worth 1,000 darics,^[d] and two vessels of fine bright bronze as precious as gold. ²⁸ And I said to them, ^(T)“You are holy to the Lord, and ^(U)the vessels are holy, and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the Lord, the God of your fathers. ²⁹ Guard them and keep them until you weigh them before the chief priests and the Levites and the heads of fathers' houses in Israel at Jerusalem, ^(V)within the chambers of the house of the Lord.” ³⁰ So the priests and the Levites ^(W)took over the weight of the silver and the gold and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem, to the house of our God.

³¹ Then we departed from the river Ahava ^(X)on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. ^(Y)The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way. ^32 (Z)We came to Jerusalem, and there we remained three days. ³³ On the fourth day, within the house of our God, the silver and the gold and the vessels were ^(AA)weighed into the hands of ^(AB)Meremoth the priest, son of Uriah, and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas, and with them were the Levites, ^(AC)Jozabad the son of Jeshua and Noadiah the son of ^(AD)Binnui. ³⁴ The whole was counted and weighed, and the weight of everything was recorded.

³⁵ At that time ^(AE)those who had come from captivity, the returned exiles, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, ^(AF)twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and as a sin offering twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the Lord. ^36 (AG)They also delivered the king's commissions to the king's ^(AH)satraps^[e] and to the governors of the province Beyond the River, and they aided the people and the house of God.