house of their God which is in Jerufalem: 17 That thou mayeft buy fpeedily with this money, bullocks, rams, lambs, with their meat-offerings, and their drink-offerings, and offer them upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerufalem.

18 And whatiöever thall feem good to thee, and to thy brethren, to do with the rest of the filver and gold, that do atter the will of your God.

19 The veffels alfo that are given thee for the fervice of the house of thy God, thofe deliver thou before the God of Jerufalem.

20 And whatfoever more thall be needful for the houfe of thy God, which thou shalt have occasion to benow, beftow it out of the king's treatere house.

21 And 1, even 1 Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river, that whatfoever Ezra the priest, the fcribe of the law of the God of heaven, fhall require of you, it be done speedily, 22nto an hundred talents of filver, and to an hundred meatures of wheat, and to an hundred baths of wine, and to an hundred baths of oil, and falt without prefcribing how much.

23 Whatfoever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be diligently done for the houfe of the God of heaven: for why thould there be wrath againft the realm of the king and his fons?

24 Alfo we certify you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, fingers, porters, Nethinims, or minifters of this houfe of God, it thall not be lawful to impofe toll, tribute, or custom, upon them.

25 And thou Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God that is in thine hand, fet magiftrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all fuch as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye them that know them not.

26 And whofoever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, let judgment be executed speedily upon him, whether it be unto death, or to banishment, or to confifcation of goods, or to imprison

He keepeth a fan

the fon of Zerahiah, and with him two hun. dred males.

5 Of the fons of Shechaniah; the fon of Jahaziel, and with him three hundred males. 6 of the fons alfo of Adin; be the fon of Jonathan, and with him fifty males. 7 And of the fons of Flam; Jethaiah the fon of Athaliah, and with him feventy males. 8 And of the fons of Shephatiah; Zebadiah the fon of Michael, and with him tourfcore males.

9 Of the fons of Joab; Obadiah the fon of Jehiel, and with him two hundred and eighteen males.

10 And of the fons of Shelomith; the fon of Jofiphiah, and with him an hundred and threescore males.

11 And of the fons of Bebai; Zechariah the fon or Bebai, and with him twenty and eight males.

12 An of the fons of Azgad; Johanan the fon of Hakkatan, and with him an hundred and ten males.

13 And of the last fons of Adonikam, whofe names are there, Eliphelet, Jeiel, and Shemaiah, and with them threefcore males. 14 Of the fons alfo of Bigvai; Uthai, and Zabbud, and with them feventy males.

15 And I gathered them together to the river that runneth to Ahava; and there abode we in tents three days; and I viewed the peo pie and the priests, and found there none of the fons of Levi.

16 Then fent I for Fliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib, and for Elnathan, and for Nathan, and for Zechariah, and for Mefhullam, chief men; alfo tor Joiarib, and for Elnathan, men of understanding.

17 And I fent them with commandment unto Iddo the chief at the place Cafiphia, and I told them what they should fay unto Iddo, and to his brethren the Nethinims, at the place Cafiphia, that they fhould bring unto us minitters for the houfe of our God.

18 And by the good hand of our God upon us they brought us a man of understanding, of the fons of Mahli, the fon of Levi, the fon of Ifrael; and Sherebiah, with his fons and his orethren, eighteen;

19 And Hafhabiah, and with him Jehaiah of the fons of Merari, his brethren and their fons, twenty;

20 Alto of the Nechinims, whom David and the princes had appointed for the fervice of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethi nims: all of them were expreffed by name.

21 Then I proclaimed a fatt there, at the river Ahava, that we might afflict curfelves before our God, to feek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our fub. ttance.

22 For I was afhamed to require of the king a band of foldiers and horfemen to help us a gainst the enemy in the way: because we had poken unto the king, faying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that feek him; but his power and his wrath is against all them that torfake him.

23 So we failed, and befought our God for this: and he was entreated of us.

24 Then I fe, arated swelve of the chief of the pries, Sherehiali, Hathabiah, and ten of their brethren with them,

25 And weighed unto them the filver, and

the

Ezra mourneth for the affinity

the gold, and the veffels, even the offering of the house of our God, which the king, and his counsellors, and his lords, and all Ifrael there prefent had offered:

26 I even weighed unto their hand fix hundred and fitty talents of filver, and filver veffels an hundred talents, and of gold an hundred taleuts;

27 Alfo twenty bafons of gold, of a thousand drams; and two veffels of fine copper, precious as gold.

28 And I faid unto them, Ye are holy unto the LORD; the veffels are holy alfo; and the filver and the gold are a freewill-ortering unto the LORD God of your fathers.

29 Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh them before the chief of the priests and the Levites, and chief of the fathers of Ifrael, at Jerufalem, in the chambers of the house of the LORD.

30 So took the priests and the Levites, the weight of the filver, and the gold, and the veifels, to bring them to Jerufalem unto the

houte of our God.

31 Then we departed from the river Aliava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerufalem: and the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way.

32 And we came to Jerufalem, and abode there three days.

33 Now on the fourth day was the filver and the gold and the veffels weighed in the houfe of our God by the hand of Meremoth the fon of Urijah the prieit; and with him was Eleazar che fon of Phinehas; and with them was Jozabad the fon of Jeshua, and Noadiah the fon of Binnui, Levites;

34 By number and by weight of every one: and all the weight was written at that time.

35 Alfo the children of those that had been carried away, which were come out of the captivity, offered burnt-offerings unto the God of Ifrael, twelve bullocks for all Ifrael, ninety and fix rams, feventy and feven lambs, twelve he goats for a fin-offering: all this was a burntoffering unto the LORD.

36 And they delivered the king's commiifions unto the king's lieutenants, and to the governors on this fide the river: and they furthered the people, and the houfe of God. CHAP. IX.

1 Ezra mourneth for the affinity of the people with firangers, 5 and prayeth to God.

Now when there things were done, the

princes came to me, faying, Te people of Ifrael, and the priests, and the Levites, have not feparated themselves from the cople of the lands, doing according to their abominations, even of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebufites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amo

rites.

2 For they have taken of their daughters for themfelves, and for their fons: fo that the holy feed have mingled themselves with the people of thofe lands: yea, the hand of the princes and rulers hath been chief in this tref pafs.

3 And when I heard this thing, I rent my germent and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and fat down altonied.

4 Then were affembled unto me every one

of the people with frangers. that trembled at the words of the God of Ifrael, because of the tranfgreifion of those that had been carried away; and 1 fat aftonied until the evening facfinice.

5 And at the evening facrifice I arose up from my heavinefs: and, having rent my gar ment and my mantle, I fed upon my knees, and fpread out my hands unto the LORD my God,

6 And faid, O my God! I am afhamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trefpais is grown up unto the heavens.

7 Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trefpais unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the fword, to captivity, and to a fpoil, and to contufion of face, as it is this day. 8 And now for a little space grace hath been fewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to efcape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage.

9 For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the fight of the kings of Perfia, to give us a reviving, to let up the houfe of our God, and to repair the defolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerufalem.

10 And now, O our God, what fhall we fay after this? for we have forfaken thy command. ments,

II Which thou haft commanded by thy fervants the prophets, faying, The land, unto which we go to poffefs it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleannefs.

12 Now therefore give not your daughters unto their fons, neither take their daughters unto your fons, nor feek their peace or their wealth for ever: that ye may be ftrong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever.

13 And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hatt punished us less than our iniquities deferve, and haft given us fuch deliverance as this:

14 Should we again break thy commandments, and join in athinity with the people of thefe abominations? wouldeft not thou be angry with us till thou hadst confused us, fo that there should be no remnant nor escaping?

15 O LORD God of Ifrael, thou art righ teous; for we remain vet escaped, as it is this day behold, we are before thee in our trefpaffes: for we cannot ftand before thee be. caufe of this.

СНА Р. Х.

Shecaniah encourageth Ezra to reform the frange marriages. 6 Ezra, mourning, af Jembleth the people. 9 the people, at the exhortation of Ezra, repent, and promife amendment. 18 The names of them which bad married flrange wives. TOW when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confeffed, weeping and cafting kimieli

N

himself down before the houfe of God, there affembled unto him out of Ifrael a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very fore.

2 And shechaniah the fon of Jehiel, one of the fons of Elam, anfwered and faid unto Ezra, We have trefpaffed against our God, and have taken ftrange wives of the people of the land: yet now there is hope in Ifrael concerning this thing.

3 Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and fuch as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of thofe that tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.

4 Arife; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we alfo will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it.

5 Then arofe Ezra, and made the chief prients, the Levites, and all Ifrael, to fwear that they thould do according to this word. And they fware.

6 Then Ezra rofe up from before the houfe of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the fon of Eliathib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water: for he mourned becaufe of the tranfgreifion of them that had been carried away.

7 And they made proclamation through out Judah and Jerufalem unto all the children of the captivity, that they fhould gather themselves together unto Jerufalem;

8 And that whofoever would not come within three days, according to the counfel of the princes and the elders, all his fubitance should be forfeited, and himself feparated from the congregation of thofe that had been carried away.

Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves together unto Jeru falem within three days. It was the ninth month, and the twentieth day of the month; and all the people fat in the street of the houfe of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain.

10 And Ezra the prieft ftood up, and faid unto them, Ye have tranfgreffed, and have taken ftrange wives, to increafe the trefpafs of Ifrael.

11 Now therefore make confeifion unto the LORD God of your fathers, and do his pleasure: and feparate yourfeives from the people of the land, and from the strange wives.

12 Then all the congregation anfwered and faid with a loud voice, As thou hait faid, fo mutt we do.

13 But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to ftand without, neither is this a work of one day or two: for we are many that have tranfgreffed in this thing.

14 Let now our rulers of all the congregation ftand, and let all them which have taken strange wives in our cities come at appointed times, and with them the elders of every city, and the judges thereof, until the fierce wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us.

of firange marriages.

Jahaziah the fon of Tikvah were employed about this matter: and Mefhullam and shabbe thai the Levite helped them.

16 And the children of the captivity did fo. And Ezra the priest, with certain chict of the fathers, after the house of their fathers, and all of them by their names, were feparated, and fat down in the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter.

17 And they made an end with all the men that had taken ftrange wives by the first day of the firit month.

18 And among the fons of the priests there were found that had taken ttrange wives: namey, of the fons or Jeshua, the fon of Jozadak, and his brethren; Maateiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah.

19 And they gave their hands that they would put away their wives; and, being guilty, they offered a ram of the dock for their tref país.

20 And of the fons of Immer; Hanani, and Zebadiah.

21 And of the fons of Harim; Maaferah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and jehiel, and Uzziah. 22 And of the fons of Pathur; Elioenai, Maafciah, Ishmael, Nethaneel, Jozabad, and Elatah.

23 Alfo of the Levites; Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah, (the fame is Kelita,) Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.

24 Of the fingers alfo; Eliefhib: and of the porters; Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.

25 Moreover of Ifrael: of the fons of PaToth; Ramiah, and Jeziah, and Malchiah, and Miamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah.

20 And of the fons of Elam; Mattaniah, Że chariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Eliah,

27 And of the fons of Zattu; Elioenai, Elia fhib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and 7abad, and Aziza.

28 Of the fons alfo of Bebai; Jehohanan, Ha naniah, Zabbai, and Athlai.

29 And of the fons of Bani Mefhullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, au J Sheal, and Ra

moth.

The

The Book of CHAP. I.

1 Nehemiah, understanding by Hanani the miJery of Ferufalem, mournetb, fafteth, and prayeth: 5 his prayer.

NEHEMIAH.

for ever: why fhoul! not my countenance be fad, when the city, the place of my tathers' fe pulchres lieth wafte, and the gates thereof are confumed with fire?

Chifieu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shuthan the palace,

2 That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I arked them concerning the Jews that had efcaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerufalem.

3 An they laid unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall ef Terufalem alfo is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

4 And it came to pafs, when I heard thefe words, that I fat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,

5 And faid, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keep eth covenant and mercy for them that love him and obferve his commandments:

6 Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayeft hear the prayer of thy fervant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Ifrael thy fervants, and confefs the fins of the children of Ifrael, which we have finned against thee: both I and my father's house have finned.

7 We have dealt very corruptly againft thee, and have not kept the commandments, For the ftatutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedit thy fervant Mofes.

8 Remember, 1 befeech thee, the word that thou commandedft thy fervant Mofes, faying, If ye tranfgrefs, 1 will fcatter you abroad among the nations:

9 But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you caft out unto the uttermoft part of the heaven, yer will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to fet my name there.

10 Now thefe are thy fervants and thy people whom thou haft redeemed by thy great power, and by thy ftrong hand.

11 O LORD, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy fervant, and to the prayer of thy fervants, who defire to fear thy name; and profper, I pray thee, thy fervant this day, and grant him mercy in the fight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.

CHA P. II. Artaxerxes, underflanding the caufe of Nehemiab's fadness, fendeth him with two let ters and a commission to Ferufalem.

Α ND it came to pafs, in the month Nifan,

in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him and I took up the wire, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime fad in his pre

fence.

2 Wherefore the king faid unto me, Why is thy countenance fad, feeing thou art not fick? This is nothing elfe but forrow of heart. Then 1 was very fore afraid,

And fald unto the king, Let the king live

heaven.

5 And I faid unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy fervant have found favour in thy fight, that thou woul left fen i me unto Judah,unto the city of my fathers' fepulchres,that I may build it.

6 And the king faid unto me, (the queen #lfo fitting by him) For how long thall thy journey be? and when wilt thou retu? So it pleafed the king to fend me; and 1 fet him a time.

7 Moreover, I faid unto the king, If it pleafe the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over till I come into Judah;

8 And a letter unto Afaph the keeper of the king's foreft, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the boufe, and for the wall of the city, and for the houfe that I fhall enter into. And the king granted me, ac cording to the good hand of my God upon me.

9 Then came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king's letters. (Now the king hed fent captains of the army and horfemen with me,)

10 When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the fervant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to feek the welfare of the children of Ifrael.

11 So I came to Jerufalem, and was there three days.

12¶And I arofe in the night, I and fome few men with me: neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to du at Jerufalem: neither was there any beart with me, fave the beaft that I rode upon.

13 And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerufa. lem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were confumed with fire.

14 Then I went on to the gate of the fountain, and to the king's pool: but there was no place for the beast that was under me to país.

15 Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall, and turned back and entered by the gate of the valley, and fo

returned.

16 And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither had 1 asy et told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the reft th t did the work.

17 Then faid I unto them, Ye see the diftrefs that we are in, how Terutalem liet wafte, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jc. rufalem, that we be no more a reproach.

18 Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as alfo the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they faid, Let us rife up and build. So they strength. ened their hands for this good work. 19 But

P

The names and order of

19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the fervant, the Ammonite, and Gefhem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to fcorn, and defpifed us, and faid, What is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the king?

20 Then anfwered them, and faid unto them, The God of heaven he will prosper us; therefore we his fervants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerufalem. CHAP. III.

The names and order of them that builded the

wall.

THEN Fil the high priest of up, with his brethren the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they fanctified it, and fet up the doors of it; even unto the tower of Meah they fanétified it, unto the tower of Hananeel. 2 And next unto him builded the men of Jericho. And next to them builded Zaccur the fon of Imri 3 But the fi gate did the fons of Haffenaah build, who alf laid the beams thereof, and fet up the doors therof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof.

4 And next unto them repaired Meremoth the fon of Urijah, the fon of Koz. And next unto them repaired Mefhullam the fon of Berechiah, the fon of Methezabeel. And next unto them repaired Zadok the son of Baana.

And next unto them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put net their necks to the work of their Lord.

6 Moreover, the old gate repaired Jehoiada the fun or Pafeah, and Meshullam the fon of Befodeiah; they laid the beams thereof, and fet up the doors thereof, and the locks there. of, and the bars thereof.

7 And next unto them repaired Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the Meronothite, the men of Gibeon, and of Mizpah, unto the throne of the governor on this tide the river.

8 Next unto him repaired Uzziel the fon of Harhaiah, of the golfmiths. Next unto him alfo repaired Hananiah the fon of one of the apothecaries, and they fortified Jerufalem unco the broad wall.

9 And next unto them repaired Rephaiah the fon of Hur, the ruler of the half part of Jerufalem.

10 And next unto them repaired Jedaiah the fon of Harumaph, even over against his house. And next unto him repaired Hattush

the fon of Hathabniah.

11 Malchujah the fon of Harim, and Pafhub tee for of Pahath-moab, repaired the other piece, and the tower of the furnaces.

12 And next unto him repaired Shallum the fon of Halobeth, the ruler of the half part of Jerufalem, he and his daughters.

13 The valley gate repaired Hanun, and the inhabitants of Zanoah; they built it, and fet up the doors thereof, the locks thereot, and the bars thereof, and a thousand cubits on the wall unto the dung gate.

14 But the dung gate repaired Malchiah the fon of Reclab, the ruler of part of Beth-haccerem; he built it, and fet up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof.

15 But the gate of the fountain repaired Shalin the fon ci Col-hozeh, the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and fet up the doors thereof, the locks thereof,

them that built the wall. and the bars thereof, and the wall of the pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unto the ftairs that go down from the city of David.

16 After him repaired Nehemiah the fon of Azbuk, the ruler of the half part of Bethzur, unto the place over against the fepulchres of David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the houfe of the mighty.

17 After him repaired the Levites, Rehum the fon of Bani. Next unto him repaired Hahabiah, the ruler of the half part of Keilah, in his part.

18 After him repaired their brethren, Bavai

the fon of Henadad, the ruler of the half part

of Keilah.

19 And next to him repaired Fzer the son of Jethua, the ruler of Mizpah, another piece over against the going up to the armoury, at the turning of the wall.

20 After him Baruch the fon of Zabbai earneftly repaired the other piece, from the turning of the wall unto the door of the house of Flashib the high priest.

21 After him repaired Meremoth the fon of Urijah the son of Koz another piece, from the door of the house of Eliashib even to the end of the houfe of Eliafhib.

22 And after him repaired the priests, the men of the plain.

23 After him repaired Benjamin and Ha fhuh over against their house. After him re. paired Azariah, the fon of Maafeiah the son of Ananiah by his house.

24 After him repaired Binnui the fon of Henadad another piece, from the house of Azariah unto the turning of the wall, even unto the corner.

25 Palal the fon of Uzai, over against the turning of the wall, and the tower which lieth out from the king's high houfe, that was by the court of the prifon. After him Pedaiah the fon of Parofh.

26 Moreover, the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel, unto the place over against the water gate toward the caft, and the tower that lieth

out.

27 After them the Tekoites repaired another piece, over against the great tower that ficth out, even unto the wall of Ophel.

28 rom above the horfe gate repaired the priests, every one over againft his houfe.

29 After them repaired Zadok the son of Immer, over against his house. After him repaired alfo Shemaiah the fon of Shechaniah the keeper of the can gate.

30 After him repaired Hananiah the fon of Sheiamali, and Hanun the fixth son of Zalaph, another piece. After him repaired Mehullam the fon o Berechiah over against his chamber.

31 After him repaired Malchiah the goldfmith's fon unto the place of the Nethinims, and of the merchants, over against the gate Miphkad, and to the going up of the corner.

32 And between the going up of the corner unto the sheep gate repaired the goldimiths and the merchants.