Passage: Nehemiah 11, 12 (RSV)


Nehemiah 11


1Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem; and the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine tenths remained in the other towns.
2And the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem.
3These are the chiefs of the province who lived in Jerusalem; but in the towns of Judah every one lived on his property in their towns: Israel, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the descendants of Solomon's servants.
4And in Jerusalem lived certain of the sons of Judah and of the sons of Benjamin. Of the sons of Judah: Athai'ah the son of Uzzi'ah, son of Zechari'ah, son of Amari'ah, son of Shephati'ah, son of Mahal'alel, of the sons of Perez;
5and Ma-asei'ah the son of Baruch, son of Col-ho'zeh, son of Hazai'ah, son of Adai'ah, son of Joi'arib, son of Zechari'ah, son of the Shi'lonite.
6All the sons of Perez who lived in Jerusalem were four hundred and sixty-eight valiant men.
7And these are the sons of Benjamin: Sallu the son of Meshul'lam, son of Jo'ed, son of Pedai'ah, son of Kolai'ah, son of Ma-asei'ah, son of I'thi-el, son of Jeshai'ah.
8And after him Gabba'i, Salla'i, nine hundred and twenty-eight.
9Jo'el the son of Zichri was their overseer; and Judah the son of Hassen'u-ah was second over the city.
10Of the priests: Jedai'ah the son of Joi'arib, Jachin,
11Serai'ah the son of Hilki'ah, son of Meshul'lam, son of Zadok, son of Merai'oth, son of Ahi'tub, ruler of the house of God,
12and their brethren who did the work of the house, eight hundred and twenty-two; and Adai'ah the son of Jero'ham, son of Pelali'ah, son of Amzi, son of Zechari'ah, son of Pashhur, son of Malchi'jah,
13and his brethren, heads of fathers' houses, two hundred and forty-two; and Amash'sai, the son of Az'arel, son of Ah'zai, son of Meshil'lemoth, son of Immer,
14and their brethren, mighty men of valor, a hundred and twenty-eight; their overseer was Zab'diel the son of Haggedo'lim.
15And of the Levites: Shemai'ah the son of Hasshub, son of Azri'kam, son of Hashabi'ah, son of Bunni;
16and Shab'bethai and Jo'zabad, of the chiefs of the Levites, who were over the outside work of the house of God;
17and Mattani'ah the son of Mica, son of Zabdi, son of Asaph, who was the leader to begin the thanksgiving in prayer, and Bakbuki'ah, the second among his brethren; and Abda the son of Sham'mua, son of Galal, son of Jedu'thun.
18All the Levites in the holy city were two hundred and eighty-four.
19The gatekeepers, Akkub, Talmon and their brethren, who kept watch at the gates, were a hundred and seventy-two.
20And the rest of Israel, and of the priests and the Levites, were in all the towns of Judah, every one in his inheritance.
21But the temple servants lived on Ophel; and Ziha and Gishpa were over the temple servants.
22The overseer of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Bani, son of Hashabi'ah, son of Mattani'ah, son of Mica, of the sons of Asaph, the singers, over the work of the house of God.
23For there was a command from the king concerning them, and a settled provision for the singers, as every day required.
24And Pethahi'ah the son of Meshez'abel, of the sons of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people.
25And as for the villages, with their fields, some of the people of Judah lived in Kir'iath-ar'ba and its villages, and in Dibon and its villages, and in Jekab'zeel and its villages,
26and in Jeshua and in Mola'dah and Beth-pelet,
27in Ha'zar-shu'al, in Beer-sheba and its villages,
28in Ziklag, in Meco'nah and its villages,
29in En-rim'mon, in Zorah, in Jarmuth,
30Zano'ah, Adullam, and their villages, Lachish and its fields, and Aze'kah and its villages. So they encamped from Beer-sheba to the valley of Hinnom.
31The people of Benjamin also lived from Geba onward, at Michmash, Ai'ja, Bethel and its villages,
32An'athoth, Nob, Anani'ah,
33Hazor, Ramah, Git'taim,
34Hadid, Zebo'im, Nebal'lat,
35Lod, and Ono, the valley of craftsmen.
36And certain divisions of the Levites in Judah were joined to Benjamin.

Nehemiah 12


1These are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerub'babel the son of She-al'ti-el, and Jeshua: Serai'ah, Jeremiah, Ezra,
2Amari'ah, Malluch, Hattush,
3Shecani'ah, Rehum, Mer'emoth,
4Iddo, Gin'nethoi, Abi'jah,
5Mi'jamin, Ma-adi'ah, Bilgah,
6Shemai'ah, Joi'arib, Jedai'ah,
7Sallu, Amok, Hilki'ah, Jedai'ah. These were the chiefs of the priests and of their brethren in the days of Jeshua.
8And the Levites: Jeshua, Bin'nui, Kad'mi-el, Sherebi'ah, Judah, and Mattani'ah, who with his brethren was in charge of the songs of thanksgiving.
9And Bakbuki'ah and Unno their brethren stood opposite them in the service.
10And Jeshua was the father of Joi'akim, Joi'akim the father of Eli'ashib, Eli'ashib the father of Joi'ada,
11Joi'ada the father of Jonathan, and Jonathan the father of Jad'du-a.
12And in the days of Joi'akim were priests, heads of fathers' houses: of Serai'ah, Merai'ah; of Jeremiah, Hanani'ah;
13of Ezra, Meshul'lam; of Amari'ah, Jehoha'nan;
14of Mal'luchi, Jonathan; of Shebani'ah, Joseph;
15of Harim, Adna; of Merai'oth, Hel'kai;
16of Iddo, Zechari'ah; of Gin'nethon, Meshul'lam;
17of Abi'jah, Zichri; of Mini'amin, of Moadi'ah, Pil'tai;
18of Bilgah, Sham'mu-a; of Shemai'ah, Jehon'athan;
19of Joi'arib, Matte'nai; of Jedai'ah, Uzzi;
20of Sal'lai, Kal'lai; of Amok, Eber;
21of Hilki'ah, Hashabi'ah; of Jedai'ah, Nethan'el.
22As for the Levites, in the days of Eli'ashib, Joi'ada, Joha'nan, and Jad'du-a, there were recorded the heads of fathers' houses; also the priests until the reign of Darius the Persian.
23The sons of Levi, heads of fathers' houses, were written in the Book of the Chronicles until the days of Joha'nan the son of Eli'ashib.
24And the chiefs of the Levites: Hashabi'ah, Sherebi'ah, and Jeshua the son of Kad'mi-el, with their brethren over against them, to praise and to give thanks, according to the commandment of David the man of God, watch corresponding to watch.
25Mattani'ah, Bakbuki'ah, Obadi'ah, Meshul'lam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers standing guard at the storehouses of the gates.
26These were in the days of Joi'akim the son of Jeshua son of Jo'zadak, and in the days of Nehemi'ah the governor and of Ezra the priest the scribe.
27And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres.
28And the sons of the singers gathered together from the circuit round Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netoph'athites;
29also from Beth-gilgal and from the region of Geba and Az'maveth; for the singers had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem.
30And the priests and the Levites purified themselves; and they purified the people and the gates and the wall.
31Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed two great companies which gave thanks and went in procession. One went to the right upon the wall to the Dung Gate;
32and after them went Hoshai'ah and half of the princes of Judah,
33and Azari'ah, Ezra, Meshul'lam,
34Judah, Benjamin, Shemai'ah, and Jeremiah,
35and certain of the priests' sons with trumpets: Zechari'ah the son of Jonathan, son of Shemai'ah, son of Mattani'ah, son of Micai'ah, son of Zaccur, son of Asaph;
36and his kinsmen, Shemai'ah, Az'arel, Mil'alai, Gil'alai, Ma'ai, Nethan'el, Judah, and Hana'ni, with the musical instruments of David the man of God; and Ezra the scribe went before them.
37At the Fountain Gate they went up straight before them by the stairs of the city of David, at the ascent of the wall, above the house of David, to the Water Gate on the east.
38The other company of those who gave thanks went to the left, and I followed them with half of the people, upon the wall, above the Tower of the Ovens, to the Broad Wall,
39and above the Gate of E'phraim, and by the Old Gate, and by the Fish Gate and the Tower of Hanan'el and the Tower of the Hundred, to the Sheep Gate; and they came to a halt at the Gate of the Guard.
40So both companies of those who gave thanks stood in the house of God, and I and half of the officials with me;
41and the priests Eli'akim, Ma-asei'ah, Mini'amin, Micai'ah, Eli-o-e'nai, Zechari'ah, and Hanani'ah, with trumpets;
42and Ma-asei'ah, Shemai'ah, Elea'zar, Uzzi, Jehoha'nan, Malchi'jah, Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang with Jezrahi'ah as their leader.
43And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard afar off.
44On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields of the towns; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered.
45And they performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the command of David and his son Solomon.
46For in the days of David and Asaph of old there was a chief of the singers, and there were songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.
47And all Israel in the days of Zerub'babel and in the days of Nehemi'ah gave the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers; and they set apart that which was for the Levites; and the Levites set apart that which was for the sons of Aaron.



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