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The NET Bible®
Nehemiah 4:16
From that day forward, half of my men were doing the work and half of them were taking up spears, shields, bows, and body armor. Now the officers were behind all the people of Judah
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Christian Standard Bible®
From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers supported all the people of Judah,
From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers supported all the people of Judah,
Hebrew Names Version
It happened from that time forth, that half of my servants worked in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Yehudah.
It happened from that time forth, that half of my servants worked in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Yehudah.
King James Version
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.
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.
English Standard Version
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah,
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah,
New Century Version
From that day on, half my people worked on the wall. The other half was ready with spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers stood in back of the people of Judah
From that day on, half my people worked on the wall. The other half was ready with spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers stood in back of the people of Judah
Amplified Bible
From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while the other half held the spears, shields, bows, and breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.
From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while the other half held the spears, shields, bows, and breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.
New American Standard Bible
And from that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them kept hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the coats of mail; and the captains were behind all the house of Judah.
And from that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them kept hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the coats of mail; and the captains were behind all the house of Judah.
World English Bible
It happened from that time forth, that half of my servants worked in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
It happened from that time forth, that half of my servants worked in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And from that day, halfe of the yong men did the labour, and the other halfe part of them helde the speares, and shieldes, and bowes, and habergins: and the rulers stoode behinde all the house of Iudah.
And from that day, halfe of the yong men did the labour, and the other halfe part of them helde the speares, and shieldes, and bowes, and habergins: and the rulers stoode behinde all the house of Iudah.
Legacy Standard Bible
And it happened that from that day on, half of my young men carried on the work while half of them took hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the breastplates; and the commanders were behind the whole house of Judah.
And it happened that from that day on, half of my young men carried on the work while half of them took hold of the spears, the shields, the bows, and the breastplates; and the commanders were behind the whole house of Judah.
Berean Standard Bible
And from that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers stationed themselves behind all the people of Judah
And from that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers stationed themselves behind all the people of Judah
Contemporary English Version
From then on, I let half of the young men work while the other half stood guard. They wore armor and had spears and shields, as well as bows and arrows. The leaders helped the workers
From then on, I let half of the young men work while the other half stood guard. They wore armor and had spears and shields, as well as bows and arrows. The leaders helped the workers
Complete Jewish Bible
Also at that time I told the people, "Let everyone with a servant stay the night within Yerushalayim, so that at night they can be a guard for us, even as they work during the day."
Also at that time I told the people, "Let everyone with a servant stay the night within Yerushalayim, so that at night they can be a guard for us, even as they work during the day."
Darby Translation
And from that time forth the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held the spears, and the shields, and the bows, and the corslets; and the captains were behind all the house of Judah.
And from that time forth the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held the spears, and the shields, and the bows, and the corslets; and the captains were behind all the house of Judah.
Easy-to-Read Version
From that day on, half of my men worked on the wall. The other half of my men were on guard, ready with spears, shields, bows, and armor. The army officers stood behind all the people of Judah who were building the wall.
From that day on, half of my men worked on the wall. The other half of my men were on guard, ready with spears, shields, bows, and armor. The army officers stood behind all the people of Judah who were building the wall.
George Lamsa Translation
And from that day forth, half of my servants and half of the people were engaged in the work, and the other half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows, and the coats of mail; and the ministers stood behind the Jews and were building the wall.
And from that day forth, half of my servants and half of the people were engaged in the work, and the other half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows, and the coats of mail; and the ministers stood behind the Jews and were building the wall.
Good News Translation
From then on half of my men worked and half stood guard, wearing coats of armor and armed with spears, shields, and bows. And our leaders gave their full support to the people
From then on half of my men worked and half stood guard, wearing coats of armor and armed with spears, shields, and bows. And our leaders gave their full support to the people
Lexham English Bible
From that day, half of my servants were working on craftsmanship, half were holding spears, small shields, bows, and breastplates. The commanders were behind the whole house of Judah.
From that day, half of my servants were working on craftsmanship, half were holding spears, small shields, bows, and breastplates. The commanders were behind the whole house of Judah.
Literal Translation
And it happened, from that time on, half of my servants worked in the work, and the other half of them were holding the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the scale-armor. And the rulers were behind all the house of Judah,
And it happened, from that time on, half of my servants worked in the work, and the other half of them were holding the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the scale-armor. And the rulers were behind all the house of Judah,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And from that time forth it came to passe, yt the halfe parte of the yonge men dyd the laboure, & the other halfe parte helde the speares, shyldes, bowes, and brestplates, and the rulers stode behynde all the house of Iuda,
And from that time forth it came to passe, yt the halfe parte of the yonge men dyd the laboure, & the other halfe parte helde the speares, shyldes, bowes, and brestplates, and the rulers stode behynde all the house of Iuda,
American Standard Version
And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my servants wrought in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my servants wrought in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
Bible in Basic English
And from that time, half of my servants were doing their part of the work, and half kept the spears and body-covers and the bows and the metal war-dresses; and the chiefs were at the back of the men of Judah.
And from that time, half of my servants were doing their part of the work, and half kept the spears and body-covers and the bows and the metal war-dresses; and the chiefs were at the back of the men of Judah.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And from that time foorth, the halfe part of the young men dyd the labour, and the other halfe part of them helde the speares, shieldes, bowes, and brestplates: and the rulers stoode behinde all the house of Iuda.
And from that time foorth, the halfe part of the young men dyd the labour, and the other halfe part of them helde the speares, shieldes, bowes, and brestplates: and the rulers stoode behinde all the house of Iuda.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
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 may labour in the day.'
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 may labour in the day.'
King James Version (1611)
And it came to passe from that time forth, that the halfe of my seruants wrought in the worke, and the other halfe of them held both the speares, the shields and the bowes, and the habergeons, and the rulers were behind all the house of Iudah.
And it came to passe from that time forth, that the halfe of my seruants wrought in the worke, and the other halfe of them held both the speares, the shields and the bowes, and the habergeons, and the rulers were behind all the house of Iudah.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And it came to pass from that day that half of them that had been driven forth, wrought the work, and half of them kept guard; and there were spears, and shields, and bows, and breast-plates, and rulers behind the whole house of Juda,
And it came to pass from that day that half of them that had been driven forth, wrought the work, and half of them kept guard; and there were spears, and shields, and bows, and breast-plates, and rulers behind the whole house of Juda,
English Revised Version
And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my servants wrought in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my servants wrought in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And it was doon fro that dai, the half part of yonge men made werk, and the half part was redi to batel; `and speris, and scheldis, and bouwis, and harburiouns, and princes aftir hem, in al the hows of men of Juda,
And it was doon fro that dai, the half part of yonge men made werk, and the half part was redi to batel; `and speris, and scheldis, and bouwis, and harburiouns, and princes aftir hem, in al the hows of men of Juda,
Update Bible Version
And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my attendants wrought in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
And it came to pass from that time forth, that half of my attendants wrought in the work, and half of them held the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
Webster's Bible Translation
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.
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.
New King James Version
So it was, from that time on, that half of my servants worked at construction, while the other half held the spears, the shields, the bows, and wore armor; and the leaders were behind all the house of Judah.
So it was, from that time on, that half of my servants worked at construction, while the other half held the spears, the shields, the bows, and wore armor; and the leaders were behind all the house of Judah.
New Living Translation
But from then on, only half my men worked while the other half stood guard with spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. The leaders stationed themselves behind the people of Judah
But from then on, only half my men worked while the other half stood guard with spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. The leaders stationed themselves behind the people of Judah
New Life Bible
From that day on, half of my servants did the work while half of them held the spears, battle-coverings, bows, and battle-clothes. And the captains stood behind the whole house of Judah.
From that day on, half of my servants did the work while half of them held the spears, battle-coverings, bows, and battle-clothes. And the captains stood behind the whole house of Judah.
New Revised Standard
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and body-armor; and the leaders posted themselves behind the whole house of Judah,
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and body-armor; and the leaders posted themselves behind the whole house of Judah,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
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 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.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And it came to pass from that day forward, that half of their young men did the work, and half were ready for to fight, with spears, and shields, and bows, and coats of mail, and the rulers were behind them in all the house of Juda.
And it came to pass from that day forward, that half of their young men did the work, and half were ready for to fight, with spears, and shields, and bows, and coats of mail, and the rulers were behind them in all the house of Juda.
Revised Standard Version
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail; and the leaders stood behind all the house of Judah,
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail; and the leaders stood behind all the house of Judah,
Young's Literal Translation
yea, it cometh to pass, from that day, half of my servants are working in the business, and half of them are keeping hold of both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the heads [are] behind all the house of Judah.
yea, it cometh to pass, from that day, half of my servants are working in the business, and half of them are keeping hold of both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the coats of mail; and the heads [are] behind all the house of Judah.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows and the breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.
From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows and the breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.
Contextual Overview
16 From that day forward, half of my men were doing the work and half of them were taking up spears, shields, bows, and body armor. Now the officers were behind all the people of Judah 17 who were rebuilding the wall. Those who were carrying loads did so by keeping one hand on the work and the other on their weapon. 18 The builders to a man had their swords strapped to their sides while they were building. But the trumpeter remained with me. 19 I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, "The work is demanding and extensive, and we are spread out on the wall, far removed from one another. 20 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, gather there with us. Our God will fight for us!" 21 So we worked on, with half holding spears, from dawn till dusk. 22 At that time I instructed the people, "Let every man and his coworker spend the night in Jerusalem and let them be guards for us by night and workers by day." 23 We did not change clothes—not I, nor my relatives, nor my workers, nor the watchmen who were with me. Each had his weapon, even when getting a drink of water.
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
my servants: Nehemiah 4:23, Nehemiah 5:15, Nehemiah 5:16, Psalms 101:6
and the other half: This is no unusual thing in Palestine, even at the present day; people sowing their seed are often attended by armed men, to prevent the Arabs from robbing them of it.
habergeons: Habergeon, from the Teutonic hals, the neck, and bergen, to cover, defend, may be considered as signifying a breast-plate, though the Franco-Gallic hautbergon signifies a coat of mail; the original shiryon, we have already seen, denotes a corslet.
Reciprocal: Exodus 28:32 - as it were Daniel 9:25 - wall John 11:53 - from 1 Corinthians 12:21 - General
Cross-References
Genesis 3:8
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God moving about in the orchard at the breezy time of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the orchard.
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God moving about in the orchard at the breezy time of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the orchard.
Genesis 4:14
Look! You are driving me off the land today, and I must hide from your presence. I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth; whoever finds me will kill me."
Look! You are driving me off the land today, and I must hide from your presence. I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth; whoever finds me will kill me."
Exodus 20:18
All the people were seeing the thundering and the lightning, and heard the sound of the horn, and saw the mountain smoking—and when the people saw it they trembled with fear and kept their distance.
All the people were seeing the thundering and the lightning, and heard the sound of the horn, and saw the mountain smoking—and when the people saw it they trembled with fear and kept their distance.
2 Kings 13:23
But the Lord had mercy on them and felt pity for them. He extended his favor to them because of the promise he had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has been unwilling to destroy them or remove them from his presence to this very day.
But the Lord had mercy on them and felt pity for them. He extended his favor to them because of the promise he had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has been unwilling to destroy them or remove them from his presence to this very day.
2 Kings 24:20
What follows is a record of what happened to Jerusalem and Judah because of the Lord 's anger; he finally threw them out of his presence. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
What follows is a record of what happened to Jerusalem and Judah because of the Lord 's anger; he finally threw them out of his presence. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
Job 1:12
So the Lord said to Satan, "All right then, everything he has is in your power. Only do not extend your hand against the man himself!" So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord .
So the Lord said to Satan, "All right then, everything he has is in your power. Only do not extend your hand against the man himself!" So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord .
Job 2:7
So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord , and he afflicted Job with a malignant ulcer from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord , and he afflicted Job with a malignant ulcer from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
Job 20:17
He will not look on the streams, the rivers, which are the torrents of honey and butter.
He will not look on the streams, the rivers, which are the torrents of honey and butter.
Psalms 5:11
But may all who take shelter in you be happy! May they continually shout for joy! Shelter them so that those who are loyal to you may rejoice!
But may all who take shelter in you be happy! May they continually shout for joy! Shelter them so that those who are loyal to you may rejoice!
Psalms 68:2
As smoke is driven away by the wind, so you drive them away. As wax melts before fire, so the wicked are destroyed before God.
As smoke is driven away by the wind, so you drive them away. As wax melts before fire, so the wicked are destroyed before God.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And it came to pass from that time forth,.... That they were thus alarmed of danger from their enemies:
that the half of my servants wrought in the work; of building the wall; his domestic servants, his guards, or mighty men, as Jarchi, men of war, the soldiers:
and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows; some offensive, others defensive weapons; some to fight with at a distance, others near at hand:
and the habergeons; coats of mail, which they took and clothed themselves with:
and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah; the Jews that were working at the wall, to animate and encourage them, protect and defend them.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Habergeons - Or, “coats of mail.” Coats of mail were common in Assyria from the ninth century B.C., and in Egypt even earlier. They were made of thin laminae of bronze or iron, sewn upon leather or linen, and overlapping one another.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse 16. Half-wrought in the work — This is no unusual thing, even in the present day, in Palestine: people sowing their seed are often attended by an armed man, to prevent the Arabs from robbing them of their seed, which they will not fail to do if not protected.
Habergeons — In the Franco-Gallic, hautbergon signifies a coat of mall; but as in Teutonic [Teutonic] signifies the neck, and [Teutonic], to cover or defend; it may be considered rather as signifying a breastplate, or armour for the breast.
