Study Desk

Then the king said to me, "For what do you make request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven.

and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house which I shall occupy." And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.

Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; and I told no one what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no beast with me but the beast on which I rode.

Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King's Pool; but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass.

And I told them of the hand of my God which had been upon me for good, and also of the words which the king had spoken to me. And they said, "Let us rise up and build." So they strengthened their hands for the good work.

After him the Levites repaired: Rehum the son of Bani; next to him Hashabi'ah, ruler of half the district of Kei'lah, repaired for his district.

Hear, O our God, for we are despised; turn back their taunt upon their own heads, and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives.

Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from thy sight; for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.

So we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together to half its height. For the people had a mind to work.

And I looked, and arose, and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, "Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes."

In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us."

I also said to the people at that time, "Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day."

For there were those who said, "With our sons and our daughters, we are many; let us get grain, that we may eat and keep alive."

And there were those who said, "We have borrowed money for the king's tax upon our fields and our vineyards.

Now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children are as their children; yet we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved; but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards."

I also held to the work on this wall, and acquired no land; and all my servants were gathered there for the work.

Now that which was prepared for one day was one ox and six choice sheep; fowls likewise were prepared for me, and every ten days skins of wine in abundance; yet with all this I did not demand the food allowance of the governor, because the servitude was heavy upon this people.

Remember for my good, O my God, all that I have done for this people.

In the same way Sanbal'lat for the fifth time sent his servant to me with an open letter in his hand.

Then I sent to him, saying, "No such things as you say have been done, for you are inventing them out of your own mind."