Nehemiah 6

1 And it comes to pass, when it has been heard by Sanballat, and Tobiah, and by Geshem the Arabian, and by the rest of our enemies, that I have built the wall, and there has not been left in it a breach (also, until that time I had not set up the doors in the gates),

Now it came to pass, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had built the wall, and that there was no breach left in it; ( though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates; )

2 that Sanballat sends, also Geshem, to me, saying, “Come and we meet together in the villages, in the Valley of Ono”; and they are thinking to do to me evil.

That Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief.

3 And I send to them messengers, saying, “A great work I am doing, and I am not able to come down; why does the work cease when I let it alone, and have come down to you?”

And I sent messengers to them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, while I leave it, and come down to you?

4 And they send to me, according to this word, four times, and I return them [word] according to this word.

Yet they sent to me four times in this way; and I answered them after the same manner.

5 And Sanballat sends to me, according to this word, a fifth time, his servant, and an open letter in his hand;

Then Sanballat sent his servant to me in like manner the fifth time with an open letter in his hand;

6 it is written in it, “Among the nations it has been heard, and Gashmu is saying: You and the Jews are thinking to rebel, therefore you are building the wall, and you have been to them for a king—according to these words!

In which was written, It is reported among the heathen, and Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel: for which cause thou buildest the wall, that thou mayest be their king, according to these words.

7 And also, you have appointed prophets to call for you in Jerusalem, saying, A king [is] in Judah, and now it is heard by the king according to these words; and now come, and we take counsel together.”

And thou hast also appointed prophets to proclaim concerning thee at Jerusalem, saying, There is a king in Judah: and now shall it be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together.

8 And I send to him, saying, “It has not been according to these words that you are saying, for from your own heart you are devising them”;

Then I sent to him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou maketh up them out of thy own heart.

9 for all of them are making us afraid, saying, “Their hands are too feeble for the work, and it is not done”; and now, strengthen my hands.

For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it may not be done. Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.

10 And I have entered the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabeel—and he is restrained—and he says, “Let us meet at the house of God, at the inside of the temple, and we shut the doors of the temple, for they are coming to slay you—indeed, by night they are coming to slay you.”

Afterward I came to the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabeel, who was shut up; and he said, Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple: for they will come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee.

11 And I say, “A man such as I—does he flee? And who as I, that goes into the temple, and lives? I do not go in.”

And I said, Should such a man as I flee? and who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in.

12 And I discern, and behold, God has not sent him, for in the prophecy he has spoken to me both Tobiah and Sanballat hired him,

And, lo, I perceived that God had not sent him; but that he pronounced this prophecy against me: for Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.

13 so that he [is] a hired worker, that I may fear and do so, and I had sinned, and it had been to them for an evil name that they may reproach me.

Therefore was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin, and that they might have matter for a bad report, that they might reproach me.

14 Be mindful, O my God, of Tobiah, and of Sanballat, according to these his works, and also, of Noadiah the prophetess, and of the rest of the prophets who have been making me afraid.

My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, that would have put me in fear.

15 And the wall is completed in the twenty-fifth of Elul, on the fifty-second day;

So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days.

16 and it comes to pass, when all our enemies have heard, and all the nations who are all around us see, that they fall greatly in their own eyes, and know that by our God has this work been done.

And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard of it, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought by our God.

17 Also, in those days the nobles of Judah are multiplying their letters going to Tobiah, and those of Tobiah are coming to them;

Moreover in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came to them.

18 for many in Judah are sworn to him, for he [is] son-in-law to Shechaniah son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan has taken the daughter of Meshullam son of Berechiah;

For there were many in Judah sworn to him, because he was the son in law of Shechaniah the son of Arah; and his son Johanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah.

19 also, they have been speaking of his good deeds before me, and they have been taking my words out to him; Tobiah has sent letters to make me afraid.

Also they reported his good deeds before me, and uttered my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear.