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¹When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious. He mocked the Jews

²before his colleagues and the powerful men of Samaria, and said, “What are these pathetic Jews doing? Can they restore it by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they ever finish it? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?”

³Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “Indeed, even if a fox climbed up what they are building, he would break down their stone wall!”

⁴Listen, our God, for we are despised. Make their insults return on their own heads and let them be taken as plunder to a land of captivity.

⁵Do not cover their guilt or let their sin be erased from your sight, because they have angered the builders.

⁶So we rebuilt the wall until the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had the will to keep working.

⁷When Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed, they became furious.

⁸They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw it into confusion.

⁹So we prayed to our God and stationed a guard because of them day and night.

¹⁰In Judah, it was said: The strength of the laborer fails, since there is so much rubble. We will never be able to rebuild the wall.

¹¹And our enemies said, “They won’t realize it until we’re among them and can kill them and stop the work.”

¹²When the Jews who lived nearby arrived, they said to us time and again, “Everywhere you turn, they attack us.”

¹³So I stationed people behind the lowest sections of the wall, at the vulnerable areas. I stationed them by families with their swords, spears, and bows.

¹⁴After I made an inspection, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the great and awe-inspiring Lord, and fight for your countrymen, your sons and daughters, your wives and homes.”

¹⁵When our enemies heard that we knew their scheme and that God had frustrated it, every one of us returned to his own work on the wall.

¹⁶From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers supported all the people of Judah,

¹⁷who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other.

¹⁸Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the trumpeter was beside me.

¹⁹Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “The work is enormous and spread out, and we are separated far from one another along the wall.

²⁰Wherever you hear the trumpet sound, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us!”

²¹So we continued the work, while half of the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came out.

²²At that time, I also said to the people, “Let everyone and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they can stand guard by night and work by day.”

²³And I, my brothers, my servants, and the men of the guard with me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.

¹There was a widespread outcry from the people and their wives against their Jewish countrymen.

²Some were saying, “We, our sons, and our daughters are numerous. Let us get grain so that we can eat and live.”

³Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, vineyards, and homes to get grain during the famine.”

⁴Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards.

⁵We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”

⁶I became extremely angry when I heard their outcry and these complaints.

⁷After seriously considering the matter, I accused the nobles and officials, saying to them, “Each of you is charging his countrymen interest.” So I called a large assembly against them

⁸and said, “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish countrymen who were sold to foreigners, but now you sell your own countrymen, and we have to buy them back.” They remained silent and could not say a word.

⁹Then I said, “What you are doing isn’t right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God and not invite the reproach of our foreign enemies?

¹⁰Even I, as well as my brothers and my servants, have been lending them money and grain. Please, let us stop charging this interest.

¹¹Return their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses to them immediately, along with the percentage of the money, grain, new wine, and fresh oil that you have been assessing them.”

¹²They responded: “We will return these things and require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.” So I summoned the priests and made everyone take an oath to do this.

¹³I also shook the folds of my robe and said, “May God likewise shake from his house and property everyone who doesn’t keep this promise. May he be shaken out and have nothing!” The whole assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised the LORD. Then the people did as they had promised.

¹⁴Furthermore, from the day King Artaxerxes appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah — from the twentieth year until his thirty-second year, twelve years  — I and my associates never ate from the food allotted to the governor.

¹⁵The governors who preceded me had heavily burdened the people, taking from them food and wine as well as a pound of silver. Their subordinates also oppressed the people, but because of the fear of God, I didn’t do this.

¹⁶Instead, I devoted myself to the construction of this wall, and all my subordinates were gathered there for the work. We didn’t buy any land.

¹⁷There were 150 Jews and officials, as well as guests from the surrounding nations at my table.

¹⁸Each day, one ox, six choice sheep, and some fowl were prepared for me. An abundance of all kinds of wine was provided every ten days. But I didn’t demand the food allotted to the governor, because the burden on the people was so heavy.

¹⁹Remember me favorably, my God, for all that I have done for this people.

¹When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and that no gap was left in it  — though at that time I had not installed the doors in the city gates  —

²Sanballat and Geshem sent me a message: “Come, let’s meet together in the villages of the Ono Valley.” They were planning to harm me.

³So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing important work and cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?”

⁴Four times they sent me the same proposal, and I gave them the same reply.

⁵Sanballat sent me this same message a fifth time by his aide, who had an open letter in his hand.

⁶In it was written: It is reported among the nations — and Geshem agrees — that you and the Jews plan to rebel. This is the reason you are building the wall. According to these reports, you are to become their king

⁷and have even set up the prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim on your behalf: “There is a king in Judah.” These rumors will be heard by the king. So come, let’s confer together.

⁸Then I replied to him, “There is nothing to these rumors you are spreading; you are inventing them in your own mind.”

⁹For they were all trying to intimidate us, saying, “They will drop their hands from the work, and it will never be finished.” But now, my God, strengthen my hands.

¹⁰I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, who was restricted to his house. He said: Let’s meet at the house of God, inside the temple. Let’s shut the temple doors because they’re coming to kill you. They’re coming to kill you tonight!

¹¹But I said, “Should a man like me run away? How can someone like me enter the temple and live? I will not go.”

¹²I realized that God had not sent him, because of the prophecy he spoke against me. Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.

¹³He was hired, so that I would be intimidated, do as he suggested, sin, and get a bad reputation, in order that they could discredit me.

¹⁴My God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat for what they have done, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the other prophets who wanted to intimidate me.

¹⁵The wall was completed in fifty-two days, on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul.

¹⁶When all our enemies heard this, all the surrounding nations were intimidated and lost their confidence, for they realized that this task had been accomplished by our God.

¹⁷During those days, the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them.

¹⁸For many in Judah were bound by oath to him, since he was a son-in-law of Shecaniah son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married the daughter of Meshullam son of Berechiah.

¹⁹These nobles kept mentioning Tobiah’s good deeds to me, and they reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to intimidate me.

¹When the wall had been rebuilt and I had the doors installed, the gatekeepers, singers, and Levites were appointed.

²Then I put my brother Hanani in charge of Jerusalem, along with Hananiah, commander of the fortress, because he was a faithful man who feared God 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.”

⁴The city was large and spacious, but there were few people in it, and no houses had been built yet.

⁵Then my God put it into my mind 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:

⁶These are the people of the province who went up among the captive exiles deported by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Each of them returned to Jerusalem and Judah, to his own town.

⁷They came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah. The number of the Israelite men included

⁸Parosh’s descendants — 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 — 667

¹⁹Bigvai’s descendants — 2,067

²⁰Adin’s descendants — 655

²¹Ater’s descendants: of Hezekiah — 98

²²Hashum’s descendants — 328

²³Bezai’s descendants — 324

²⁴Hariph’s descendants — 112

²⁵Gibeon’s descendants — 95

²⁶Bethlehem’s and Netophah’s men — 188

²⁷Anathoth’s 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 — 123

³³the other Nebo’s men — 52

³⁴the other Elam’s people — 1,254

³⁵Harim’s people — 320

³⁶Jericho’s people — 345

³⁷Lod’s, Hadid’s, and Ono’s people — 721

³⁸Senaah’s people — 3,930.

³⁹The priests included Jedaiah’s descendants of the house of Jeshua — 973

⁴⁰Immer’s descendants — 1,052

⁴¹Pashhur’s descendants — 1,247

⁴²Harim’s descendants — 1,017.

⁴³The Levites included Jeshua’s descendants: of Kadmiel Hodevah’s descendants — 74.

⁴⁴The singers included Asaph’s descendants — 148.

⁴⁵The gatekeepers included Shallum’s descendants, Ater’s descendants, Talmon’s descendants, Akkub’s descendants, Hatita’s descendants, Shobai’s descendants — 138.

⁴⁶The temple servants 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 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 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 — 392.

⁶¹The following are those who came from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer, but were unable to prove that their ancestral families and their lineage 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 who bore 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 ordered them not to eat the most holy things until there was a priest who could consult the Urim and Thummim.

⁶⁶The whole combined assembly numbered — 42,360

⁶⁷not including their 7,337 male and female servants, as well as their 245 male and female singers.

⁶⁸They had 736 horses, 245 mules,

⁶⁹435 camels, and 6,720 donkeys.

⁷⁰Some of the family heads contributed to the project. The governor gave 1,000 gold coins, 50 bowls, and 530 priestly garments to the treasury.

⁷¹Some of the family heads gave 20,000 gold coins and 2,200 silver minas to the treasury for the project.

⁷²The rest of the people gave 20,000 gold coins, 2,000 silver minas, and 67 priestly garments.

⁷³The priests, Levites, gatekeepers, temple singers, some of the people, temple servants, and all Israel settled in their towns. When the seventh month came and the Israelites had settled in their towns,