Old/New Testament

Priests and Levites

12 These are the priests and Levites who returned with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and with Jeshua. There were Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, ² Amariah, Malluch, Hattush, ³ Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, ⁴ Iddo, Ginnethon, Abijah, ⁵ Mijamin, Moadiah, Bilgah, ⁶ Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah, ⁷ Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah and Jedaiah. They were the leaders of the priests and their relatives. This was in the days of Jeshua.

⁸ The Levites were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah and also Mattaniah. He and his relatives were in charge of the songs of thanksgiving. ⁹ Bakbukiah and Unni, their relatives, stood across from them in the services.

¹⁰ Jeshua was the father of Joiakim. Joiakim was the father of Eliashib. Eliashib was the father of Joiada. ¹¹ Joiada was the father of Jonathan. And Jonathan was the father of Jaddua.

¹² In the days of Joiakim, these priests were the leaders of the families of priests. Meraiah was over Seraiah’s family. Hananiah was over Jeremiah’s family. ¹³ Meshullam was over Ezra’s family. Jehohanan was over Amariah’s family. ¹⁴ Jonathan was over Malluch’s family. Joseph was over Shecaniah’s family. ¹⁵ Adna was over Harim’s family. Helkai was over Meremoth’s family. ¹⁶ Zechariah was over Iddo’s family. Meshullam was over Ginnethon’s family. ¹⁷ Zicri was over Abijah’s family. Piltai was over Miniamin’s and Moadiah’s families. ¹⁸ Shammua was over Bilgah’s family. Jehonathan was over Shemaiah’s family. ¹⁹ Mattenai was over Joiarib’s family. Uzzi was over Jedaiah’s family. ²⁰ Kallai was over Sallu’s family. Eber was over Amok’s family. ²¹ Hashabiah was over Hilkiah’s family. Nethanel was over Jedaiah’s family.

²² The leaders of the families of the Levites and the priests were written down. This was in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan and Jaddua. They were written down while Darius the Persian was king. ²³ The family leaders among the Levites were written down in the history book. These were only up to the time of Johanan son of Eliashib. ²⁴ The leaders of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua son of Kadmiel and their relatives. Their relatives stood across from them. They gave praise and thanksgiving to God. One group answered the other group. That is what David, the man of God, had commanded.

²⁵ These were the gatekeepers who guarded the storerooms next to the gates: Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon and Akkub. ²⁶ They served in the days of Joiakim son of Jeshua. (Jeshua was the son of Jozadak.) They also served in the days of Nehemiah the governor and Ezra the priest and teacher.

Giving of the Wall of Jerusalem

²⁷ The wall of Jerusalem was offered as a gift to God. The Levites were found in the places where they lived. And they were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate with joy the giving of the wall. They were to celebrate with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps and lyres. ²⁸ They also brought together singers. They came from all around Jerusalem and from the Netophathite villages. ²⁹ They came from Beth Gilgal and the areas of Geba and Azmaveth. The singers had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem. ³⁰ The priests and Levites made themselves pure. They also made the people, the gates and the wall of Jerusalem pure.

³¹ I had the leaders of Judah go up on top of the wall. I appointed two large choruses to give thanks. One chorus went to the right on top of the wall. This was toward the Trash Gate. ³² Behind them went Hoshaiah and half the leaders of Judah. ³³ Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, ³⁴ Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah and Jeremiah also went. ³⁵ Some priests with trumpets also went, along with Zechariah son of Jonathan. (Jonathan was the son of Shemaiah, who was the son of Mattaniah. Mattaniah was the son of Micaiah, who was the son of Zaccur. Zaccur was the son of Asaph.) ³⁶ Zechariah’s relatives also went. They were Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah and Hanani. These men played the musical instruments of David, the man of God. Ezra the teacher walked in front of them. ³⁷ They went from the Fountain Gate straight up the steps to the older part of the city. They went on to the slope of the wall. They went above the house of David to the Water Gate on the east.

³⁸ The second chorus went to the left. I followed them on top of the wall. Half the people were with me. We went from the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall. ³⁹ We went over the Gate of Ephraim to the Old Gate and the Fish Gate. We went to the Tower of Hananel and the Tower of the Hundred. We went as far as the Sheep Gate. We stopped at the Gate of the Guard.

⁴⁰ The two choruses took their places at the Temple. Half of the leaders and I did also. ⁴¹ These priests were there with their trumpets: Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah and Hananiah. ⁴² These people were also there: Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam and Ezer. The choruses sang, led by Jezrahiah. ⁴³ The people offered many sacrifices that day. They were happy because God made them very happy. The women and children were happy. The sound of happiness in Jerusalem could be heard far away.

⁴⁴ At that time the leaders appointed men to be in charge of the storerooms. These rooms were for the gifts, the first fruits and a tenth of what the people gained. The Teachings said they should bring a share for the priests and Levites. These were to come from the fields around the towns. The people of Judah were happy to do this for the priests and Levites who served. ⁴⁵ They performed the service of their God. They had the service of purifying things. The singers and gatekeepers also did their jobs as David had commanded his son Solomon. ⁴⁶ Earlier, in the time of David and Asaph, there was a leader of the singers. There were songs of praise and thanksgiving to God. ⁴⁷ So it was in the days of Zerubbabel and Nehemiah. All the people of Israel gave something to the singers and gatekeepers. They also set aside things for the Levites. The Levites set aside things for the descendants of Aaron.

Foreign People Are Sent Away

13 On that day they read the Book of Moses to the people. They found that it said no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be allowed in the meeting to worship. ² The Ammonites and Moabites had not welcomed the Israelites with food and water. Instead, they hired Balaam to put a curse on Israel. (But our God turned the curse into a blessing.) ³ The people heard this teaching. So they separated all foreigners from Israel.

Nehemiah Returns to Jerusalem

⁴ Before that happened, Eliashib the priest was in charge of the Temple storerooms. He was friendly with Tobiah. ⁵ Eliashib let Tobiah use one of the large storerooms. That storeroom had been used for grain offerings, incense and other things for the Temple. It was also used for the tenth offerings of grain, new wine and olive oil. These belonged to the Levites, singers and gatekeepers. It had also been used for gifts for the priests.

⁶ I was not in Jerusalem when this happened. I had gone back to Artaxerxes king of Babylon. I went back in the thirty-second year he was king. Finally I asked the king to let me leave. ⁷ I came to Jerusalem. Then I found out the evil thing Eliashib had done. He had let Tobiah have a room in the Temple courtyard. ⁸ I was very upset at this. I threw all of Tobiah’s goods out of the room. ⁹ I ordered the rooms to be purified. And I brought back the things for God’s Temple, the grain offerings and the incense.

¹⁰ Then I found out the people were not giving the Levites their shares. So the Levites and singers who served had gone to their own farms. ¹¹ So I argued with the officers. I said, “Why haven’t you taken care of the Temple?” Then I gathered the Levites and singers. I put them back at their places.

¹² Then all the people of Judah brought a tenth of what they had gained in grain, new wine and olive oil. And they brought it to the storerooms. ¹³ I put these men in charge of the storerooms: Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the teacher and Pedaiah a Levite. I made Hanan son of Zaccur their helper. (Zaccur was the son of Mattaniah.) Everyone knew they were honest men. They gave out the portions that went to their relatives.

¹⁴ Remember me, my God, for this. Do not ignore my love for the Temple and its service.

¹⁵ In those days I saw people in Judah working in the winepresses on the Sabbath day. People were bringing in grain and loading it on donkeys on the Sabbath day. People were bringing loads of wine, grapes and figs into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. I warned them about selling food on that day. ¹⁶ Men from the city of Tyre were living in Jerusalem. They brought in fish and other things. They sold them in Jerusalem on the Sabbath day to the people of Judah. ¹⁷ I argued with the important men of Judah. I said to them, “What is this evil thing you are doing? You are ruining the Sabbath day. ¹⁸ This is just what your ancestors did. So our God did terrible things to us and this city. Now you are making him even more angry at Israel. You are ruining the Sabbath day.”

¹⁹ So I ordered the doors shut at sunset before the Sabbath. The gates were not to be opened until the Sabbath was over. I put my servants at the gates. So no load could come in on the Sabbath. ²⁰ Once or twice traders and sellers of all kinds of goods spent the night outside Jerusalem. ²¹ So I warned them. I said, “Why are you spending the night by the wall? If you do it again, I will force you away.” After that, they did not come back on the Sabbath. ²² Then I ordered the Levites to purify themselves. I told them to go and guard the city gates. They were to make sure the Sabbath remained holy.

Remember me, my God, for this. Have mercy on me because of your great love.

²³ In those days I saw men of Judah who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab. ²⁴ Half their children were speaking the language of Ashdod or some other place. They couldn’t speak the language of Judah. ²⁵ I argued with those people. I put curses on them. I hit some of them and pulled out their hair. I forced them to make a promise to God. I said, “Do not let your daughters marry the sons of foreigners. Do not take the daughters of foreigners as wives for your sons or yourselves. ²⁶ Foreign women made King Solomon of Israel sin. There was never a king like him in any of the nations. God loved Solomon. God made him king over all Israel. But foreign women made Solomon sin. ²⁷ And now you are not obedient when you do this evil thing. You are unfaithful to our God when you marry foreign wives.”

²⁸ Joiada was the son of Eliashib the high priest. One of Joiada’s sons married a daughter of Sanballat the Horonite, who was not a Jew. So I forced Joiada’s son away from me.

²⁹ Remember them, my God. They made the priesthood unclean. They made the agreement of the priests and Levites unclean.

³⁰ So I purified them of everything that was foreign. I appointed duties for the priests and Levites. Each man had his own job. ³¹ I also made sure wood was brought for the altar at regular times. And I made sure the first fruits were brought.

Remember, my God, to be kind to me.

The Believers’ Prayer

²³ Peter and John left the meeting of Jewish leaders and went to their own group. They told them everything that the leading priests and the Jewish elders had said to them. ²⁴ When the believers heard this, they prayed to God with one purpose. They prayed, “Lord, you are the One who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and everything in the world. ²⁵ Our father David was your servant. With the help of the Holy Spirit he said:

²⁷ These things really happened when Herod, Pontius Pilate, the non-Jewish people, and the Jewish people all came together against Jesus here in Jerusalem. Jesus is your holy Servant. He is the One you made to be the Christ. ²⁸ These people made your plan happen; it happened because of your power and your will. ²⁹ And now, Lord, listen to what they are saying. They are trying to make us afraid! Lord, we are your servants. Help us to speak your word without fear. ³⁰ Help us to be brave by showing us your power; make sick people well, give proofs, and make miracles happen by the power of Jesus, your holy servant.”

³¹ After they had prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke God’s word without fear.

The Believers Share

³² The group of believers were joined in their hearts, and they had the same spirit. No person in the group said that the things he had were his own. Instead, they shared everything. ³³ With great power the apostles were telling people that the Lord Jesus was truly raised from death. And God blessed all the believers very much. ³⁴ They all received the things they needed. Everyone that owned fields or houses sold them. They brought the money ³⁵ and gave it to the apostles. Then each person was given the things he needed.

³⁶ One of the believers was named Joseph. The apostles called him Barnabas. (This name means “one who encourages.”) He was a Levite, born in Cyprus. ³⁷ Joseph owned a field. He sold it, brought the money, and gave it to the apostles.