71 Now when the wall had been built and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed, 2 I gave my brother Hana'ni and Hanani'ah the governor of the castle charge over Jerusalem, for he was a more faithful and God-fearing man than many. 3 And I said to them, "Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot; and while they are still standing guard let them shut and bar the doors. Appoint guards from among the inhabitants of Jerusalem, each to his station and each opposite his own house." 4 The city was wide and large, but the people within it were few and no houses had been built.
5 Then God put it into my mind to assemble the nobles and the officials and the people to be enrolled by genealogy. And I found the book of the genealogy of those who came up at the first, and I found written in it: 6 These were the people of the province who came up out of the captivity of those exiles whom Nebuchadnez'zar the king of Babylon had carried into exile; they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his town. 7 They came with Zerub'babel, Jeshua, Nehemi'ah, Azari'ah, Raami'ah, Naham'ani, Mor'decai, Bilshan, Mis'pereth, Bigva'i, Nehum, Ba'anah. The number of the men of the people of Israel: 8 the sons of Parosh, two thousand a hundred and seventy-two. 9 The sons of Shephati'ah, three hundred and seventy-two. 10 The sons of Arah, six hundred and fifty-two. 11 The sons of Pa'hath-mo'ab, namely the sons of Jeshua and Jo'ab, two thousand eight hundred and eighteen. 12 The sons of Elam, a thousand two hundred and fifty-four. 13 The sons of Zattu, eight hundred and forty-five. 14 The sons of Zac'cai, seven hundred and sixty. 15 The sons of Bin'nui, six hundred and forty-eight. 16 The sons of Be'bai, six hundred and twenty-eight. 17 The sons of Azgad, two thousand three hundred and twenty-two. 18 The sons of Adoni'kam, six hundred and sixty-seven. 19 The sons of Bigva'i, two thousand and sixty-seven. 20 The sons of Adin, six hundred and fifty-five. 21 The sons of Ater, namely of Hezeki'ah, ninety-eight. 22 The sons of Hashum, three hundred and twenty-eight. 23 The sons of Be'zai, three hundred and twenty-four. 24 The sons of Hariph, a hundred and twelve. 25 The sons of Gibeon, ninety-five. 26 The men of Bethlehem and Neto'phah, a hundred and eighty-eight. 27 The men of An'athoth, a hundred and twenty-eight. 28 The men of Beth-az'maveth, forty-two. 29 The men of Kir'iath-je'arim, Chephi'rah, and Be-er'oth, seven hundred and forty-three. 30 The men of Ramah and Geba, six hundred and twenty-one. 31 The men of Michmas, a hundred and twenty-two. 32 The men of Bethel and Ai, a hundred and twenty-three. 33 The men of the other Nebo, fifty-two. 34 The sons of the other Elam, a thousand two hundred and fifty-four. 35 The sons of Harim, three hundred and twenty. 36 The sons of Jericho, three hundred and forty-five. 37 The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred and twenty-one. 38 The sons of Sena'ah, three thousand nine hundred and thirty. 39 The priests: the sons of Jedai'ah, namely the house of Jeshua, nine hundred and seventy-three. 40 The sons of Immer, a thousand and fifty-two. 41 The sons of Pashhur, a thousand two hundred and forty-seven. 42 The sons of Harim, a thousand and seventeen. 43 The Levites: the sons of Jeshua, namely of Kad'mi-el of the sons of Ho'devah, seventy-four. 44 The singers: the sons of Asaph, a hundred and forty-eight. 45 The gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hati'ta, the sons of Sho'bai, a hundred and thirty-eight. 46 The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasu'pha, the sons of Tabba'oth, 47 the sons of Keros, the sons of Si'a, the sons of Padon, 48 the sons of Leba'na, the sons of Hag'aba, the sons of Shalmai, 49 the sons of Hanan, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, 50 the sons of Re-ai'ah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Neko'da, 51 the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza, the sons of Pase'ah, 52 the sons of Besai, the sons of Me-u'nim, the sons of Nephush'esim, 53 the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Haku'pha, the sons of Harhur, 54 the sons of Bazlith, the sons of Mehi'da, the sons of Harsha, 55 the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sis'era, the sons of Temah, 56 the sons of Nezi'ah, the sons of Hati'pha. 57 The sons of Solomon's servants: the sons of So'tai, the sons of So'phereth, the sons of Peri'da, 58 the sons of Ja'ala, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel, 59 the sons of Shephati'ah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Po'chereth-hazzeba'im, the sons of Amon. 60 All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon's servants were three hundred and ninety-two. 61 The following were those who came up from Tel-me'lah, Tel-har'sha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer, but they could not prove their fathers' houses nor their descent, whether they belonged to Israel: 62 the sons of Delai'ah, the sons of Tobi'ah, the sons of Neko'da, six hundred and forty-two. 63 Also, of the priests: the sons of Hobai'ah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of Barzil'lai (who had taken a wife of the daughters of Barzil'lai the Gileadite and was called by their name). 64 These sought their registration among those enrolled in the genealogies, but it was not found there, so they were excluded from the priesthood as unclean; 65 the governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy food, until a priest with Urim and Thummim should arise. 66 The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred and sixty, 67 besides their menservants and maidservants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred and thirty-seven; and they had two hundred and forty-five singers, male and female. 68 Their horses were seven hundred and thirty-six, their mules two hundred and forty-five, 69 their camels four hundred and thirty-five, and their asses six thousand seven hundred and twenty. 70 Now some of the heads of fathers' houses gave to the work. The governor gave to the treasury a thousand darics of gold, fifty basins, five hundred and thirty priests' garments. 71 And some of the heads of fathers' houses gave into the treasury of the work twenty thousand darics of gold and two thousand two hundred minas of silver. 72 And what the rest of the people gave was twenty thousand darics of gold, two thousand minas of silver, and sixty-seven priests' garments. 73 So the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, some of the people, the temple servants, and all Israel, lived in their towns. And when the seventh month had come, the children of Israel were in their towns.
81 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had given to Israel. 2 And Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could hear with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden pulpit which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithi'ah, Shema, Anai'ah, Uri'ah, Hilki'ah, and Ma-asei'ah on his right hand; and Pedai'ah, Mish'a-el, Malchi'jah, Hashum, Hash-bad'danah, Zechari'ah, and Meshul'lam on his left hand. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people; and when he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God; and all the people answered, "Amen, Amen," lifting up their hands; and they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jesh'ua, Bani, Sherebi'ah, Jamin, Akkub, Shab'bethai, Hodi'ah, Ma-asei'ah, Keli'ta, Azari'ah, Jo'zabad, Hanan, Pelai'ah, the Levites, helped the people to understand the law, while the people remained in their places. 8 And they read from the book, from the law of God, clearly; and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.
9 And Nehemi'ah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, "This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep." For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law. 10 Then he said to them, "Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." 11 So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, "Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved." 12 And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.
13 On the second day the heads of fathers' houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the law. 14 And they found it written in the law that the Lord had commanded by Moses that the people of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month, 15 and that they should publish and proclaim in all their towns and in Jerusalem, "Go out to the hills and bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees to make booths, as it is written." 16 So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, and in their courts and in the courts of the house of God, and in the square at the Water Gate and in the square at the Gate of E'phraim. 17 And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and dwelt in the booths; for from the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing. 18 And day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read from the book of the law of God. They kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly, according to the ordinance.
