Nehemiah 12:1-47
12 * And these are the priests and Levites who came up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshuaʽ: Serajah, Jeremiah, ʽEzra,
2 Amariah, Malluc, Hattush,
3 Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,
4 ʽIddo, Ginnethon, Abijah,
5 Mijamin, Maʽadiah, Bilgah,
6 Shemaʽiah and Jojarib, Jedaʽiah,
7 Sallu, ʽAmok, Hilkijah, Jedaʽiah; these were the heads of the priests and their brothers in Jeshuaʽ’s time.
8 And the Levites: Jeshuaʽ, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Jehudah, Mattaniah (he and his brothers over thanksgivings),
9 and Bakbukiah and ʽUnni, their brothers opposite to them for charges.
10 And Jeshuaʽ had the son Jojakim, and Jojakim had the son Eljashib, and Eljashib the son Jojadaʽ,
11 and Jojadaʽ had the son Jonathan, and Jonathan had the son Jadduaʽ.
12 And in Jojakim’s time were priests, the heads of families, for Serajah, Merajah; for Jeremiah, Hananiah;
13 for ʽEzra, Meshullam; for Amariah, Jehohanan;
14 for Malluc, Jonathan; for Shecaniah, Joseph;
15 for Harim, Ghadna; for Merajoth, Helkai;
16 for ʽIddo, Zecariah; for Ginnethon, Meshullam;
17 for Abijah, Zicri; for Minjamin; for Moʽadiah, Piltai;
18 for Bilgah, Shammuaʽ; for Shemaʽiah, Jehonathan,
19 and for Jojarib, Mattenai; for Jedaʽiah, ʽUzzi;
20 for Sallai, Kallai; for ʽAmok, ʽEber;
21 for Hilkijah, Hashabiah; for Jedaʽiah, Nathanel.
22 * The Levites: in the times of Eljashib, Jojadaʽ and Johanan and Jadduaʽ, heads of families were written down, and the priests, to the reign of Darius the Persian.
23 The sons of Levi, the heads of the families, are written in the book of the chronicles down to the time of Johanan the son of Eljashib.
24 ** And the heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah and Jeshuaʽ and Bani and Kadmiel, and their brothers opposite them to praise, to give thanks, in accordance with the command David the man of God, watch against watch,
25 ** Mattaniah and Bakbukiah, ʽObadiah; Meshullam, Talmon, ʽAkkub, gatemen keeping watch at the gate storerooms.
26 These were at the time of Jojakim the son of Jeshuaʽ the son of Josadak and of Governor Nehemiah and Priest ʽEzra the scribe.
27 ** And at the inauguration of the wall of Jerusalem they looked up the Levites out of all their places to bring them to Jerusalem to conduct an inauguration and jubilation with thanksgivings and with music of cymbals, harps, and lyres;
28 * and the sons of the singers came together from the Pale, the environs of Jerusalem, and from the Netophathite villages
29 and from Beth-hag-Gilgal and from the countrysides of Gebaʽ and ʽAzmaveth, because the singers had built themselves villages in the environs of Jerusalem.
30 And the priests and the Levites purified themselves and the people and the gates and the wall.
31 * And I brought the chiefs of Judah up above the wall; and I arranged two great thanksgiving companies, and the one went to the right above the wall to the Dump Gate,
32 and behind them went Hoshaʽajah and half the princes of Judah,
33 and ʽAzariah, ʽEzra, and Meshullam,
34 * Judah and Benjamin and Shemaʽiah and Jeremiah,
35 * and some of the sons of the priests with trumpets; Zecariah the son of Jonathan the son of Shemaʽiah the son of Mattaniah the son of Micajah the son of Zaccur the son of Asaph,
36 and his brothers Shemaʽiah and Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maʽai, Nethanel and Judah, Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God, and ʽEzra the scribe before them.
37 And past the Spring Gate and straight ahead they went up over the stairs of David’s City, up the slope of the wall above David’s house, to the Water Gate on the east.
38 * And the second thanksgiving company went to the left, and I behind it, and half the people, above the wall, above the Baking-Crock Tower, to the Broad Wall,
39 * and above the Ephraim Gate and past the Old-Town Gate and past the Fish Gate and Hananel’s Tower and the Hundred Tower to the Sheep Gate, and halted at the Guardhouse Gate.
40 And both the thanksgiving companies halted at God’s house, and I and half the magnates with me,
41 and the priests Eljakim, Maʽasejah, Minjamin, Micajah, Eljoʽenai, Zecariah, Hananiah, with trumpets,
42 and Maʽasejah and Shemaʽiah and Eleazar and ʽUzzi and Jehohanan and Malkijah and ʽElam and ʽEzer; and the singers sounded their notes, and Izrahiah had the oversight.
43 And on that day they sacrificed great sacrifices and made merry, because God had gladdened them to a great merrymaking; and the women and children made merry too, and Jerusalem’s merrymaking was heard to a great distance.
44 * And on that day officers were appointed over the vestries for the stores, for the contributions, the first things, and the tithes, to collect in them by regions of cities the prescribed portions for the priests and the Levites, because Judah was happy over the priests and Levites in service,
45 and they kept their God’s charge and the charge of the purification, and the singers and the gatemen conformed to the orders of David and his son Solomon,
46 * for in the days of David and Asaph of old there were heads of the singers and song of praise and thanks to God;
47 * and in Zerubbabel’s days all Israel gave the portions of the singers and the gatemen punctually day by day and set apart consecrations for the Levites, and the Levites set apart consecrations for the sons of Aaron.
Footnotes
^ 12:1-25 Some of the names are uncertain
^ 12:22 Unc., susp.
^ 12:24 Var. Jeshuaʽ the son of Kadmiel
^ 12:24 Var. by command of David
^ 12:25 Var. on guard as gatemen, a watch at
^ 12:25 Or the gate thresholds
^ 12:27 Or with thanksgivings and with song, cymbals
^ 12:27 Lit. cymbals, harps, and with lyres
^ 12:28 Susp.
^ 12:31 Codd. two great thanksgivings and processions, to the right Conj. two great thanksgiving companies, and the one I had go to the right
^ 12:34 (Benjamin) Var. Mijamin
^ 12:35 Or and of the priests, with trumpets, Zecariah
^ 12:38 Codd. the second thanksgiving company, that went opposite, and I Conj. the second thanksgiving company I had go to the left, and myself
^ 12:39 Or Old-Wall Gate
^ 12:44 Lit. Judah’s happiness was over
^ 12:46 Susp.
^ 12:47 Var. in Zerubbabel’s days and in Nehemiah’s all Israel
