Nehemiæ 13
1 In die autem illo, lectum est in volumine Moysi, audiente populo: et inventum est scriptum in eo, quod non debeant introire Ammonites et Moabites in ecclesiam Dei usque in æternum:
One day when the Book of Moses was being read to the people, the section was found where it was written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be allowed into the assembly of God,
2 eo quod non occurrerint filiis Israël cum pane et aqua, et conduxerint adversum eos Balaam ad maledicendum eis: et convertit Deus noster maledictionem in benedictionem.
because they hadn't brought food and water when they met the Israelites, but instead they had hired Balaam to put a curse on them—though our God turned that curse into a blessing!
3 Factum est autem, cum audissent legem, separaverunt omnem alienigenam ab Israël.
When the people heard about this law, they separated out from Israel everyone who had foreign ancestry.
4 Et super hoc erat Eliasib sacerdos, qui fuerat præpositus in gazophylacio domus Dei nostri, et proximus Tobiæ.
Before all this, Eliashib the priest, who was related to Tobiah, had been put in charge of the storerooms of the Temple of our God.
5 Fecit ergo sibi gazophylacium grande, et ibi erant ante eum reponentes munera, et thus, et vasa, et decimam frumenti, vini, et olei, partes Levitarum, et cantorum, et janitorum, et primitias sacerdotales.
He had provided Tobiah with a large room which had previously been used to store the grain offerings, incense, and Temple items, as well as the tithes of grain, new wine, and olive oil allocated to the Levites, singers, and gatekeepers, in addition to the offerings for the priests.
6 In omnibus autem his non fui in Jerusalem, quia anno trigesimo secundo Artaxerxis regis Babylonis veni ad regem, et in fine dierum rogavi regem.
When all this happened I was not in Jerusalem because I had returned to King Artaxerxes of Babylon in the thirty-second year of his reign. Some time later I requested permission from the king to go back.
7 Et veni in Jerusalem, et intellexi malum quod fecerat Eliasib Tobiæ, ut faceret ei thesaurum in vestibulis domus Dei.
When I arrived back in Jerusalem I discovered the dreadful thing Eliashib had done in providing Tobiah a room in the courtyard of God's Temple.
8 Et malum mihi visum est valde. Et projeci vasa domus Tobiæ foras de gazophylacio:
I was extremely upset, and I went and threw out everything that was in Tobiah's room.
9 præcepique et emundaverunt gazophylacia: et retuli ibi vasa domus Dei, sacrificium, et thus.
I ordered the rooms purified, and put back the Temple items, the grain offerings, and the incense.
10 Et cognovi quod partes Levitarum non fuissent datæ, et fugisset unusquisque in regionem suam de Levitis, et cantoribus, et de his qui ministrabant:
I also found out that the food allowances for the Levites were not being provided, so the Levites had gone back to take care of their fields, along with the singers who led the worship services.
11 et egi causam adversus magistratus, et dixi: Quare dereliquimus domum Dei? et congregavi eos, et feci stare in stationibus suis.
I went and confronted the leaders, asking, “Why is God's Temple being neglected?” I called the Levites back and made sure they were carrying out their responsibilities.
12 Et omnis Juda apportabat decimam frumenti, vini, et olei, in horrea.
Everyone in Judah then brought the tithes of grain, new wine, and olive oil into the storerooms.
13 Et constituimus super horrea Selemiam sacerdotem, et Sadoc scribam, et Phadaiam de Levitis, et juxta eos Hanan filium Zachur, filium Mathaniæ: quoniam fideles comprobati sunt, et ipsis creditæ sunt partes fratrum suorum.
I put Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah, one of the Levites, in charge of the storerooms with Hanan, son of Zakkur, son of Mattaniah, to assist them, because they were considered honest people. Their responsibility was to distribute the allowances to their fellow Levites.
14 Memento mei, Deus meus, pro hoc, et ne deleas miserationes meas quas feci in domo Dei mei, et in cæremoniis ejus.
My God, please remember me over this. Please don't forget my good deeds I have done for the Temple of my God and its services.
15 In diebus illis vidi in Juda calcantes torcularia in sabbato, portantes acervos, et onerantes super asinos vinum, et uvas, et ficus, et omne onus, et inferentes in Jerusalem, die sabbati. Et contestatus sum ut in die qua vendere liceret, venderent.
Around that time I noticed people treading the winepress on Sabbath. I saw others collecting grain and loading it up on donkeys, along with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens, and bringing it all into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day.
16 Et Tyrii habitaverunt in ea, inferentes pisces, et omnia venalia: et vendebant in sabbatis filiis Juda in Jerusalem.
I told them off for selling their produce on that day.
17 Et objurgavi optimates Juda, et dixi eis: Quæ est hæc res mala quam vos facitis, et profanatis diem sabbati?
Some people from Tyre who lived in Jerusalem were bringing in fish and all kinds of things and they were selling them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah in Jerusalem.
18 numquid non hæc fecerunt patres nostri, et adduxit Deus noster super nos omne malum hoc, et super civitatem hanc? et vos additis iracundiam super Israël violando sabbatum.
I confronted the Jewish leaders, asking them, “Why are you are doing such an evil thing? You are violating the Sabbath day! Wasn't this what your forefathers did, bringing our God down on us, causing us and this city such disasters? Now you're bringing even more trouble on us by violating the Sabbath!”
19 Factum est autem, cum quievissent portæ Jerusalem in die sabbati, dixi: et clauserunt januas, et præcepi ut non aperirent eas usque post sabbatum: et de pueris meis constitui super portas, ut nullus inferret onus in die sabbati.
So I ordered Jerusalem's gates to be shut at sunset on the day before the Sabbath, and that were not to be opened until after the Sabbath had ended. I assigned some of my men to guard the gates to make sure no goods would be brought in on the Sabbath day.
20 Et manserunt negotiatores, et vendentes universa venalia, foris Jerusalem semel et bis.
A couple of times merchants and sellers of all kinds of goods spent the night outside of Jerusalem.
21 Et contestatus sum eos, et dixi eis: Quare manetis ex adverso muri? si secundo hoc feceritis, manum mittam in vos. Itaque ex tempore illo non venerunt in sabbato.
I warned them, saying, “Why are you spending the night by the wall? If you do that again I'll have you arrested!” After that they didn't come on the Sabbath.
22 Dixi quoque Levitis ut mundarentur, et venirent ad custodiendas portas, et sanctificandam diem sabbati: et pro hoc ergo memento mei, Deus meus, et parce mihi secundum multitudinem miserationum tuarum.
Then I told the Levites to purify themselves and to come and guard the gates to keep the Sabbath day holy. My God, please also remember me for doing this, and be merciful to me because of your trustworthy love.
23 Sed et in diebus illis vidi Judæos ducentes uxores Azotidas, Ammonitidas, et Moabitidas.
Around the same time I realized some Jews had married women from Ashdod, Moab, and Ammon.
24 Et filii eorum ex media parte loquebantur azotice, et nesciebant loqui judaice, et loquebantur juxta linguam populi et populi.
Half their children could only speak the language of Ashdod or that of another people, and didn't know how to speak the language of Judah.
25 Et objurgavi eos, et maledixi. Et cecidi ex eis viros, et decalvavi eos, et adjuravi in Deo ut non darent filias suas filiis eorum, et non acciperent de filiabus eorum filiis suis et sibimetipsis, dicens:
So I confronted them and told them they were cursed. I beat some of them and pulled out their hair. Then I made them take an oath before God, saying, “You must not allow your daughters to marry their sons, or allow your sons—or yourselves— to marry their daughters.
26 Numquid non in hujuscemodi re peccavit Salomon rex Israël? et certe in gentibus multis non erat rex similis ei, et dilectus Deo suo erat, et posuit eum Deus regem super omnem Israël: et ipsum ergo duxerunt ad peccatum mulieres alienigenæ.
Wasn't it marriages like these that made King Solomon of Israel sin? There wasn't a king in any nation like him. God loved him, and God made him king over all Israel, but even he was made to sin by foreign women.
27 Numquid et nos inobedientes faciemus omne malum grande hoc ut prævaricemur in Deo nostro, et ducamus uxores peregrinas?
So do we have to hear about you committing this dreadful sin, how you are being unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women?”
28 De filiis autem Jojada filii Eliasib sacerdotis magni, gener erat Sanaballat Horonites, quem fugavi a me.
Even one of the sons of Jehoiada, son of Eliashib the high priest, had become a son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite. So I expelled him.
29 Recordare, Domine Deus meus, adversum eos qui polluunt sacerdotium, jusque sacerdotale et Leviticum.
My God, remember them and what they did, violating the priesthood and the solemn agreement of the priests and Levites.
30 Igitur mundavi eos ab omnibus alienigenis, et constitui ordines sacerdotum et Levitarum, unumquemque in ministerio suo:
I purified them from everything foreign, and I made sure the priests and Levites were carrying out their assigned responsibilities.
31 et in oblatione lignorum in temporibus constitutis, et in primitivis: memento mei, Deus meus, in bonum. Amen.
I also arranged for wood to be supplied for the altar at the specified times, and for the first part of the produce to be donated. My God, remember me favorably.
