Nehemiah 12

1 Now, these, are the priests and the Levites, who came up with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua, —Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra;

[Many] priests and [other] descendants of Levi returned (from Babylonia/to Jerusalem) with Zerubbabel and Jeshua. They included Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

2 Amariah, Malluch, Hattush;

Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

3 Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth;

Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

4 Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah;

Iddo, Ginnethon, Abijah,

5 Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah;

Mijamin, Moadiah, Bilgah,

6 Shemaiah, and Joiarib, Jedaiah;

Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah,

7 Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah, —these, were the chiefs of the priests and their brethren, in the days of Jeshua.

Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. All those men were leaders of the priests during the time that Jeshua [was the Supreme Priest].

8 And, the Levites, Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, Mattaniah, —over the choirs, he and his brethren;

[Some of the other] descendants of Levi who returned were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah. They were in charge of singing songs to thank [God].

9 and Bakbukiah and Unno their brethren, were over against them, in wards.

Bakbukiah, Unni, and other descendants of Levi formed a choir that stood opposite the other group [and sang in reply to them].

10 And Jeshua, begat Joiakim, —and Joiakim, begat Eliashib, and, Eliashib, [begat] Joiada;

Jeshua [who was the Supreme Priest] was the father of Joiakim, who was the father of Eliashib, who was the father of Joiada,

11 and, Joiada, begat Jonathan, —and, Jonathan, begat Jaddua.

who was the father of Jonathan, who was the father of Jaddua.

12 And, in the days of Joiakim, were priests, ancestral chiefs, —of Seraiah, Meraiah, of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

When Joiakim was the Supreme Priest, these were the leaders of the clans of priests: Meraiah, from [the clan of] Seraiah; Hananiah, from [the clan of] Jeremiah;

13 of Ezra, Meshullam, —of Amariah, Jehohanan;

Meshullam, from [the clan of] Ezra; Jehohanan, from [the clan of] Amariah;

14 of Malluchi, Jonathan, —of Shebaniah, Joseph;

Jonathan, from [the clan of] Malluch; Joseph, from [the clan of] Shecaniah;

15 of Harim, Adna, —of Meraioth, Helkai;

Adna, from [the clan of] Harim; Helkai, from [the clan of] Meremoth/Maraioth;

16 of Iddo, Zechariah, —of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

Zechariah, from [the clan of] Iddo; Meshullam, from [the clan of] Ginnethon;

17 of Abijah, Zichri, —of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai;

Zicri, from [the clan of] Abijah. There was also a leader from [the clan of] Miniamin; Piltai, from [the clan of] Moadiah;

18 of Bilgah, Shammua, —of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

Shammua, from [the clan of] Bilgah; Jehonathan, from [the clan of] Shemaiah;

19 and, of Joiarib, Mattenai, —of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

Mattenai, from [the clan of] Joiarib; Uzzi, from [the clan of] Jedaiah;

20 of Sallai, Kallai, —of Amok, Eber;

Kallai, from [the clan of] Sallu/Sallai; Eber, from [the clan of] Amok;

21 of Hilkiah, Hashabiah, —of Jedaiah, Nethanel.

Hashabiah, from [the clan of] Hilkiah; and Nethanel, from [the clan of] Jedaiah.

22 The Levites—in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua, were recorded as ancestral chiefs, —also the priests, unto the reign of Darius the Persian.

During the years that Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua [were Supreme Priests], they (wrote/kept a list of) the names of the clans who were descendants of Levi. When Darius was the king of Persia, they stopped writing that list.

23 the sons of Levi, ancestral heads, were written in the book of Chronicles, —even until the days of Johanan, son of Eliashib.

They wrote the names of the leaders of the clans who were descendants of Levi in the Book of Events [in Israel], but they stopped writing those names when Eliashib’s grandson Johanan [was the Supreme Priest].

24 And, the chiefs of the Levites, Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua son of Kadmiel, with their brethren over against them, to praise—to give thanks, by the commandment of David the man of God, —ward joined to ward.

These are the leaders of the clans [who are] descendants of Levi: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel and others who were divided into two groups. The two groups faced each other, one group replying to the other, during the time that they praised and thanked God. They did that just as King David, the man who served God well, had instructed.

25 Mattaniah and Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, Akkub, were watchers, doorkeepers of the ward, in the storehouses of the gates.

These singers included Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, and Obadiah. The men who guarded the storerooms close to the gates [of the temple] were Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub.

26 These, were in the days of Joiakim, son of Jeshua, son of Jozadak, —and in the days of Nehemiah the pasha, and Ezra the priest the scribe.

They did that work during the time that Joiakim, who was the son of Jeshua and the grandson of Jehozadak, [was the Supreme Priest, ] and I was the governor, and Ezra was the priest who knew the Jewish laws very well.

27 And, at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sought the Levites, out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, —to keep the dedication and the rejoicing, both with thanksgiving and with music, cymbals, harps, and with lyres.

When we dedicated the wall around Jerusalem, we summoned the descendants of Levi [who help the priests] from the nearby places where they [were living]. We asked them to [join with us to] celebrate when we dedicated the wall. We wanted them to sing songs to thank [Yahweh] and make music by playing cymbals and harps and other stringed instruments.

28 So the sons of the singers gathered themselves together, —both out of the circuit round about Jerusalem, and out of the villages of the Netophathites;

We summoned the descendants of Levi who habitually sang together. They came to Jerusalem from nearby areas [where they had settled], and from places around Netophah [town southeast of Jerusalem],

29 also out of Beth-gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba, and Azmaveth, —for, villages, had the singers builded for themselves, round about Jerusalem.

and from three places [northeast of Jerusalem]—Beth Gilgal [city] and the areas around Geba and Azmaveth. Those singers had built villages to live in near Jerusalem.

30 And the priests and the Levites purified themselves, —and purified the people, and the gates, and the wall.

[When they came to Jerusalem], the priests and [other] descendants of Levi [who help the priests] performed rituals to cause themselves to be acceptable to God, and then they performed similar rituals to purify the [other] people, the gates, and the wall.

31 Then brought I up the rulers of Judah upon the wall, —and I appointed two large choirs, even to go in procession to the right, upon the wall, towards the dung-gate;

Then I gathered together the leaders of Judah on top of the wall, and I appointed them to lead two large groups to march around the city [on top of the wall], thanking God. [As they faced the city, ] one group walked to the right toward the Dung Gate.

32 and after them went Hoshaiah, and half the rulers of Judah;

Behind their leaders marched Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah.

33 then Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam;

Behind them marched a group of priests who were blowing trumpets. They were Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam, Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah. Next came Zechariah, the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, a descendant of Asaph.

34 Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah;

35 and, of the sons of the priests, with trumpets, Zechariah—son of Jonathan—son of Shemaiah—son of Mattaniah, son of Micaiah, son of Zaccur, son of Asaph;

36 and his brethren—Shemaiah and Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, and Judah, Hanani, with the instruments of music of David, the man of God, —with Ezra the scribe before them;

Behind them marched other members of Zechariah’s clan: Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani. They all were playing the same kinds of musical instruments that King David had played [many years previously]. Ezra, the man who knew the Jewish laws very well, marched in front of this group.

37 and, over they fountain gate and straight before them, they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, —above the house of David, even as far as the water-gate, eastward.

When they reached the Fountain Gate, they went up the steps to David’s City, past his palace, and then to the wall at the Water Gate, on the east side [of the city].

38 And, the second choir, was going over against them, I, following it, —with the half of the people upon the wall, above the tower of the ovens, even as far as the broad wall;

The other group of those who were thanking [Yahweh] marched to the left on top of the wall. I followed them with half of the people. [We marched] past the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall.

39 and above the gate of Ephraim, and upon the old gate, and upon the fish-gate, and the tower of Hananel, and the tower of Hammeah, even as far as the sheep-gate, —and they came to a stand, at the gate of the guard.

[From there we marched] past Ephraim Gate, Jeshanah Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, the Tower of the Hundred Soldiers, to the Sheep Gate. We finished marching near the gate into the temple.

40 So the two choirs, came to a stand, at the house of God, —and I, and half the deputies with me;

Both the groups reached the temple while they were thanking God. They stood in their places there. The leaders who were with me [also stood with me in our places].

41 and, the priests—Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets;

My group included these priests who were [all blowing] trumpets: Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, Hananiah,

42 and Maaseiah and Shemaiah and Eleazar and Uzzi and Jehohanan and Malchijah and Elam and Ezer, —and the musicians sounded, aloud with Jezrahiah who was over them.

[another] Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers, whose leader was Jezrahiah, sang loudly.

43 And they sacrificed, on that day, great sacrifices, and rejoiced, for, God, had caused them to rejoice with great joy, moreover also, the women and children, rejoiced, —so that the rejoicing of Jerusalem was heard afar off.

[After we went outside the temple, ] we offered many sacrifices. We men all rejoiced because God had caused us to be very happy. The women and the children also rejoiced. People far away could hear the noise that we made there in Jerusalem.

44 And there were set in charge, on that day, certain men, over the chambers for the treasures, for the heave-offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them, out of the fields of the cities, the portions appointed by the law, for the priests, and for the Levites, —for, the joy of Judah, was over the priests and over the Levites, who were remaining.

On that day, men were appointed {they appointed men} to be in charge of the storerooms where they kept the money that people contributed [for the temple]. They also kept there [the other things that the people contributed—] the tithes and the first part of the grain and fruit that was harvested each year. Those men collected those things from the fields/farms near the cities, and [took them to Jerusalem and] gave them to the priests and the [other] descendants of Levi, as [Moses had said in his] laws that they should do. All the Israeli people were happy about the work that the priests and the descendants of Levi did,

45 So they kept the charge of their God, and the charge of the purification, and [so did] the singers and the doorkeepers, —according to the commandment of David and of Solomon his son.

because they performed the rituals to purify things, and the other rituals that God had commanded. The musicians in the temple also did their work as King David and his son Solomon had declared that they should do.

46 For, in the days of David and Asaph, of old, there were chiefs of the singers, and songs of praise and thanksgiving, unto God.

Ever since the time that David had been the king and Asaph had been his chief musician, the musicians had led the people while they sang songs to praise and thank God.

47 Now, all Israel—in the days of Zerubbabel, and in the days of Nehemiah, used to give the portions of the singers and the doorkeepers, the need of a day upon its day, —and they hallowed them unto the Levites, and, the Levites, hallowed them unto the sons of Aaron.

During the years that Zerubbabel and I governed the Israeli people, they all contributed the food that the singers and temple gatekeepers needed each day. They gave (a tithe/10%) of their crops to the descendants of Levi [who helped the priests], and those descendants of Levi gave (a tithe/10%) of that to [the priests, who were] descendants of Aaron [the first Supreme Priest].