Nehemiah 4:17

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible

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.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other.

Hebrew Names Version
They all built the wall and those who bore burdens loaded themselves; everyone with one of his hands worked in the work, and with the other held his weapon;

King James Version
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.

English Standard Version
who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other.

New Century Version
who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and carried a weapon with the other.

New English Translation
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.

Amplified Bible
Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens loaded themselves so that everyone worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other.

New American Standard Bible
Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens carried with one hand doing the work, and the other keeping hold of a weapon.

World English Bible
They all built the wall and those who bore burdens loaded themselves; everyone with one of his hands worked in the work, and with the other held his weapon;

Geneva Bible (1587)
They that buylded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, and they that laded, did the worke with one hand, and with the other helde the sworde.

Legacy Standard Bible
Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon.

Berean Standard Bible
who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried materials worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other.

Contemporary English Version
who were rebuilding the wall. Everyone who hauled building materials kept one hand free to carry a weapon.

Complete Jewish Bible
I, my kinsmen, my servants and my bodyguards never took off our clothes, and everyone who went to get water took his weapon.

Darby Translation
They that built on the wall, and they that bore burdens, with those that loaded, wrought in the work with one hand, and with the other they held a weapon.

Easy-to-Read Version
The builders and their helpers had their tools in one hand and a weapon in the other hand.

George Lamsa Translation
And those who bore burdens with those who were laden, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.

Good News Translation
who were rebuilding the wall. Even those who carried building materials worked with one hand and kept a weapon in the other,

Lexham English Bible
The ones who were building the wall and the ones who carried the materials were carrying in one hand while doing the task, and with the other hand were grasping a weapon.

Literal Translation
the ones who built on the wall, and the ones who carried a burden; bearing with one of his hands, a worker in the work, and one, a holder of the weapon.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
which buylded on the wall, & bare burthes, from those that laded the. With one hande dyd they ye worke, and with the other helde they the weapen.

American Standard Version
They that builded the wall and they that bare burdens laded themselves; every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other held his weapon;

Bible in Basic English
Those who were building the wall and those who were moving material did their part, everyone working with one hand, with his spear in the other;

Bishop's Bible (1568)
They which buylded on the wall and they that bare burthens, and those that laded them, with one hande did euery one his worke, and with the other helde his weapon.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard that followed me, none of us put off our clothes, every one that went to the water had his weapon.

King James Version (1611)
They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, euery one with one of his hands wrought in the worke, and with the other hand held a weapon.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
even of them that were building the wall:—and those who carried the burdens were under arms: each with one hand wrought his work, and with the other held his dart.

English Revised Version
They that builded the wall and they that bare burdens laded themselves, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other held his weapon;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
bildynge in the wal, and berynge birthuns, and puttynge on; with her oon hond thei maden werk, and with the tother thei helden swerd.

Update Bible Version
They all built the wall and those that bore burdens loaded themselves; every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other held his weapon;

Webster's Bible Translation
They who built on the wall, and they that bore burdens, with those that laded, [every one] with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other [hand] held a weapon.

New King James Version
Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon.

New Living Translation
who were building the wall. The laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon.

New Life Bible
Those who were building the wall and those who carried loads did their work with one hand, and held something to fight with in the other hand.

New Revised Standard
who were building the wall. The burden bearers carried their loads in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and with the other held a weapon.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Of them that built on the wall and that carried burdens, and that laded: with one of his hands he did the work, and with the other he held a sword.

Revised Standard Version
who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were laden in such a way that each with one hand labored on the work and with the other held his weapon.

Young's Literal Translation
The builders on the wall, and the bearers of the burden, those lading, [each] with one of his hands is working in the business, and one is laying hold of the missile.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon.

Contextual Overview

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

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

bare burdens: Nehemiah 4:10

every one: That is, he had his arms at hand; and was as fully prepared to fight as to work. The builders could not possibly have made any progress, if they had literally held a weapon in one of their hands; but the expression is evidently figurative, implying that every man was a much a soldier as a builder.

with one: Daniel 9:25, 1 Corinthians 9:12, 1 Corinthians 16:9, 1 Corinthians 16:13, 2 Corinthians 6:7, Ephesians 6:11-20, Philippians 1:28, 2 Timothy 2:3, 2 Timothy 4:7

Reciprocal: Nehemiah 4:13 - in the lower places Ecclesiastes 9:10 - thy hand Joel 2:8 - sword

Cross-References

Genesis 4:4
Abel, also, even, he, brought in of the firstlings of his sheep, and of their fat, and Yahweh approved of Abel and of his present;

Genesis 4:11
Now therefore, accursed, art thou, - from the ground which hath opened her mouth, to receive the shed-blood of thy brother at thy hand.

Genesis 5:18
And Jared lived, a hundred and sixty-two years, and begat Enoch;

Genesis 5:22
and Enoch walked with God, after he begat Methuselah, three hundred years, - and begat sons and daughters;

Genesis 11:4
And they said Come on! let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower with its head in the heavens, so let us make for ourselves a name, - lest we be scattered abroad over the face of all the earth.

2 Samuel 18:18
But, Absolom, had taken, and raised up for himself, in his lifetime, the pillar that is in the king's vale, for he said, I have no son, to keep in remembrance my name, so he called the pillar after his own name, and it is called Absolom's monument unto this day.

Psalms 49:11
Their, inward thought, is that their houses are for times age-biding, Their habitations, for generation after generation, - They give their own names unto lands!

Daniel 4:30
the king spake and said, Is not, this, Babylon the great, - which, I myself, have built as the home of the kingdom, by the might of my power, and for the dignity of my majesty?

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Ver. 17 They which builded on the wall,.... That laid the mortar and stones upon it, and timber where it was necessary:

and they that bore burdens; that carried the mortar, stones, and timber to the builders, and served them:

with those that laded; which prepared the above for them, and laid them on their shoulders:

everyone with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon; which is not to be understood strictly and literally, for without both hands they could not well perform either of the above works; but proverbially, signifying that they were intent on both working and fighting, and were ready and prepared to do the latter, as well as the former, having weapons lying by them, or girt about them, as is explained in the following verse.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 17. With one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon. — That is, he had his arms at hand, and was as fully prepared to fight as to work. So OVID, Epist. xi., Canace Macario, ver. 1: -

Si qua tamen caecis errabunt scripta lituris,

Oblitus a dominae caede libellus erit:

Dextra tenet calamum; strictum tenet altera ferrum:

Et jacet in gremio charta soluta meo.

If streaming blood my fatal letter stain,

Imagine, ere you read, the writer slain.

One hand the sword, and one the pen employs,

And in my lap the ready paper lies. DRYDEN.

By this mode of speech Canace does not intimate to her brother Macarius, that she actually held the sword in one hand while she held the pen in the other, but that she had it ready to slay herself as soon as she had written the epistle.