Nehemiah 4

1 But it came to pass, when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, it angered him, and he was greatly displeased, —and mocked the Jews;

But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.

2 and spake before his brethren, and the army of Samaria, and said, What are, these feeble Jews, doing? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they bring to life the stones out of the heaps of dust, when, they, have been burned up?

And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?

3 Now, Tobiah the Ammonite, was beside him, —so he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox should go up, he would break down their stone wall!

Now Tobiah the Ammonite [was] by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.

4 Hear, O our God, for we have become a contempt, and turn thou back their reproach upon their own head, —and give them up as a prey, in the land of captivity;

Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity:

5 and do not cover their iniquity, and, their sin before thee, let it not be blotted out, —for they have caused vexation before them who are building.

And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked [thee] to anger before the builders.

6 So we built the wall, and all the wall was finished unto the half thereof, —and the people had a mind to work.

So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work.

7 But it came to pass, when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabians and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repair of the walls of Jerusalem had gone up, that the breaches began to be stopped, that it angered them exceedingly;

But it came to pass, [that] when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, [and] that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth,

8 and they conspired, all of them together, to come, to fight against Jerusalem, —and to cause it harm;

And conspired all of them together to come [and] to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.

9 howbeit we prayed unto our God, —and set a watch against them, day and night, because of them.

Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

10 Then said Judah, The strength of the burden-bearer faileth, and, the rubbish, aboundeth, —and, we, are not able to build at the wall;

And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and [there is] much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.

11 and our adversaries have said, They shall not know, neither shall they see, until we come into their midst, and slay them, —so shall we cause the work to cease.

And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.

12 But it came to pass, when the Jews dwelling near them came in, then said they unto us, ten times, From all places whither ye shall turn, [they will be] upon us!

And it came to pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall return unto us [they will be upon you].

13 So I set—on the lower slopes of the place behind the wall in the waste grounds, —yea I set the people, by their families, with their swords, their spears and their bows.

Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, [and] on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.

14 Then I looked and rose up, and said—unto the nobles and unto the deputies and unto the rest of the people, Do not ye fear because of them, —the great and fearful Lord, remember ye, so shall ye fight for your brethren, your sons and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, [which is] great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

15 And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had overturned their counsel, then returned we, all of us, unto the wall, every man unto his work.

And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work.

16 And it came to pass, from that day, the half of my young men, were working in the work, and, the half of them, were grasping the spears, the bucklers, and the bows, and the coats of mail, —but, the rulers, were behind all the house of Judah.

And it came to pass from that time forth, [that] the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers [were] behind all the house of Judah.

17 They who were building at the wall and they who were carrying burdens, they who were lifting, [each man], with his one hand, was working at the work, and, with the other, was grasping the weapon.

They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, [every one] with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other [hand] held a weapon.

18 Even they who were building, every man, had his sword girded upon his loins, and so was building, —and, he that sounded the horn, was by my side.

For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and [so] builded. And he that sounded the trumpet [was] by me.

19 So I said unto the nobles and unto the deputies, and unto the rest of the people, The work, is great and large, —and, we, are separated upon the wall, far away, each man from his brother:

And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work [is] great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.

20 In what place soever ye shall hear the sound of the horn, thither, gather yourselves unto us, —our God, will fight for us.

In what place [therefore] ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us: our God shall fight for us.

21 So, we, were working at the work, —one half of them, grasping the spears, from the uprisings of the dawn, until the coming out of the stars.

So we laboured in the work: and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared.

22 Moreover, at that time, I said to the people, Let, every one with his young man, lodge for the night in the midst of Jerusalem, —so shall they serve us, in the night, as a watch, and, the day, for work.

Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labour on the day.

23 So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my young men, nor the men of the watch that followed me, none of us, put off our clothes, —every one [went] with his weapon to the water.

So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes, [saving that] every one put them off for washing.