Nehemiah 7

Holman Christian Standard Bible

The Exiles Return

7 When the wall had been rebuilt and I had the doors installed,^(A) the gatekeepers,^(B) singers, and Levites were appointed. ²Then I put my brother Hanani^(C) in charge of Jerusalem,^(D) along with Hananiah,^(E) commander of the fortress,^(F) because he was a faithful man who feared God^(G) more than most. ³I said to them, “Do not open the gates of Jerusalem until the sun is hot, and let the doors be shut and securely fastened while the guards are on duty. Station the citizens of Jerusalem as guards, some at their posts and some at their homes.”^(H)

⁴The city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it, and no houses had been built yet.^(I) ⁵Then my God put it into my mind^(J) to assemble the nobles, the officials, and the people to be registered by genealogy. I found the genealogical record of those who came back first, and I found the following written in it:^(K)

⁶These are the people of the province who went up among the captive exiles deported by King Nebuchadnezzar^(L) of Babylon. Each of them returned to Jerusalem and Judah, to his own town.^(M) ⁷They came with Zerubbabel,^(N) Jeshua,^(O) Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah.

The number of the Israelite men included:

⁸Parosh’s descendants^(P)	2,172
⁹Shephatiah’s descendants	372
¹⁰Arah’s descendants	652
¹¹Pahath-moab’s descendants:
Jeshua’s and Joab’s descendants	2,818
¹²Elam’s descendants	1,254
¹³Zattu’s descendants	845
¹⁴Zaccai’s descendants	760
¹⁵Binnui’s descendants	648
¹⁶Bebai’s descendants	628
¹⁷Azgad’s descendants	2,322
¹⁸Adonikam’s descendants^(Q)	667
¹⁹Bigvai’s descendants	2,067
²⁰Adin’s descendants^(R)	655
²¹Ater’s descendants: of Hezekiah	98
²²Hashum’s descendants	328
²³Bezai’s descendants	324
²⁴Hariph’s descendants	112
²⁵Gibeon’s^[a] descendants	95
²⁶Bethlehem’s^(S) and Netophah’s^(T) men	188
²⁷Anathoth’s^(U) men	128
²⁸Beth-azmaveth’s men	42
²⁹Kiriath-jearim’s, Chephirah’s, and Beeroth’s men	743
³⁰Ramah’s and Geba’s men	621
³¹Michmas’s men	122
³²Bethel’s and Ai’s men^(V)	123
³³the other Nebo’s men	52
³⁴the other Elam’s people	1,254
³⁵Harim’s people	320
³⁶Jericho’s people^(W)	345
³⁷Lod’s,^(X) Hadid’s, and Ono’s people	721
³⁸Senaah’s people	3,930.

³⁹The priests included:

Jedaiah’s^(Y) descendants of the house of Jeshua	973
⁴⁰Immer’s descendants	1,052
⁴¹Pashhur’s descendants	1,247
⁴²Harim’s descendants	1,017.

⁴³The Levites^(Z) included:

Jeshua’s descendants: of Kadmiel
Hodevah’s descendants	74.

⁴⁴The singers^(AA) included:

Asaph’s descendants

148.

⁴⁵The gatekeepers^(AB) included:

Shallum’s descendants, Ater’s descendants,
Talmon’s descendants, Akkub’s descendants,
Hatita’s descendants, Shobai’s descendants	138.

⁴⁶The temple servants^(AC) included:

Ziha’s descendants, Hasupha’s descendants,
Tabbaoth’s descendants, ⁴⁷Keros’s descendants,
Sia’s descendants, Padon’s descendants,
⁴⁸Lebanah’s descendants, Hagabah’s descendants,
Shalmai’s descendants, ⁴⁹Hanan’s descendants,
Giddel’s descendants, Gahar’s descendants,
⁵⁰Reaiah’s descendants, Rezin’s descendants,
Nekoda’s descendants, ⁵¹Gazzam’s descendants,
Uzza’s descendants, Paseah’s descendants,
⁵²Besai’s descendants, Meunim’s descendants,
Nephishesim’s^[b] descendants, ⁵³Bakbuk’s descendants,
Hakupha’s descendants, Harhur’s descendants,
⁵⁴Bazlith’s descendants, Mehida’s descendants,
Harsha’s descendants, ⁵⁵Barkos’s descendants,
Sisera’s descendants, Temah’s descendants,
⁵⁶Neziah’s descendants, Hatipha’s descendants.

⁵⁷The descendants of Solomon’s servants^(AD) included:

Sotai’s descendants, Sophereth’s descendants,
Perida’s descendants, ⁵⁸Jaala’s descendants,
Darkon’s descendants, Giddel’s descendants,
⁵⁹Shephatiah’s descendants, Hattil’s descendants,
Pochereth-hazzebaim’s descendants, Amon’s descendants.

⁶⁰All the temple servants
and the descendants of Solomon’s servants^(AE)	392.

⁶¹The following^(AF) are those who came from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer, but were unable to prove that their families and ancestors were Israelite:

⁶²Delaiah’s descendants,
Tobiah’s descendants,
and Nekoda’s descendants	642

⁶³and from the priests: the descendants of Hobaiah, the descendants of Hakkoz, and the descendants of Barzillai—who had taken a wife from the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite and was called by their name. ⁶⁴These searched for their entries in the genealogical records, but they could not be found, so they were disqualified from the priesthood. ⁶⁵The governor^(AG) ordered them not to eat the most holy things until there was a priest who could consult the Urim and Thummim.^(AH)

⁶⁶The whole combined assembly numbered	42,360
⁶⁷not including their 7,337 male and female slaves,
as well as their 245 male and female singers.
⁶⁸They had 736 horses, 245 mules,^[c]
⁶⁹435 camels, and 6,720 donkeys.^(AI)

⁷⁰Some of the family leaders gave to the project. The governor gave 1,000 gold coins,^[d] 50 bowls, and 530 priestly garments to the treasury. ⁷¹Some of the family leaders gave 20,000 gold coins and 2,200 silver minas^[e] to the treasury for the project. ⁷²The rest of the people gave 20,000 gold coins, 2,000 silver minas, and 67 priestly garments. ⁷³So the priests, Levites, gatekeepers, temple singers, some of the people, temple servants, and all Israel settled in their towns.^[f]^(AJ)

Public Reading of the Law

When the seventh month^(AK) came and the Israelites had settled in their towns,

Footnotes

Nehemiah 7:25 = Gibbar’s in Ezr 2:20
Nehemiah 7:52 Alt Hb tradition reads Nephushesim’s
Nehemiah 7:68 Some Hb mss, LXX; Ezr 2:66; other Hb mss omit v. 68
Nehemiah 7:70 Or drachmas, or darics; also in vv. 71-72
Nehemiah 7:71 A Babylonian coin worth 50 shekels
Nehemiah 7:73 The second half of v. 73 is better understood when placed with 8:1.