Study Desk

These are the people of the province who went up out of the captivity, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away and who returned to Jerusalem and to Judah, every one to his city;

And Ezra the scribe stood upon a wooden platform which they had made that he might speak upon it; and beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Hananiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maasiah on his right hand; and on his left hand stood Periah, Mishael, Malchiah, Hashum, Hashabiah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.

Also Jeshua and his sons and Serebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maasiah, Kelatiah, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Penaiah, and the Levites ministered to the people, explaining the law; and the people stood in their place.

So the people went forth and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house and in their courts and in the court of the house of the LORD and in the street of the water gate and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.

Thou art the LORD, the God who didst choose Abram and brought him forth out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and didst change his name to Abraham;

And didst find his heart pure before thee, and didst make a covenant with him to give him the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it to his descendants, and thou hast performed thy words with him, for thou art righteous;

And didst show signs and wonders upon Pharaoh and upon all his servants and on all the people of his land; for thou knewest that they dealt wrongly with thy people. So didst thou get thee a name, as it is this day.

Strengthened their brethren, their neighbors, taking oaths and making a covenant to walk in the LORDS law which he gave by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our LORD and his judgments and his statutes;

And if the people of the land should bring wares or provisions on the sabbath day to sell, we would not buy it of them, and whosoever should engage his animal in service on the sabbath day, he would not receive hire, nor should he carry a burden on the sabbath day because it is holy; and in the seventh year we would forego all debts due to us.

Now these are the chiefs of the province who dwelt in Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah (they dwelt every one in his own possession in their towns in Israel). along with the priests, the Levites, and some of the people, and also the descendants of Solomons servants who dwelt in Jerusalem,

And his brethren who did the work inside of the house were eight hundred and twenty-two; and Azariah the son of Jeroham, the son of Pelahiah, the son of Amzar, the son of Zechariah, the son of Pashur, the son of Malchiah,

And of the chiefs of the Levites: Mattaniah, the son of Micha, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, the principal among the Jews to begin the thanksgiving in prayer: and Bakbukah the second among his brethren, and Aira the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jethron.

And the rest of Israel, of the priests and the Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, every one in his inheritance.

And their servants settled down every one in charge of his work and his plough.

Moreover the Levites: Joshua and his sons, Kadmiah, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, who were in charge to begin the thanksgiving, he and his brethren.

And his brethren, Shemaiah, Azrael, Melal, Gelal, Ater, Nathanael, Hanani, and Judah, with the musical instruments of David the prophet and servant of the LORD and Ezra the scribe went before them, above the fountain gate.

And those who had charge of the ceremonial of purification, and the singers and the porters, served according to the commandment of David and of Solomon his son.

And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah gave gifts to the singers and to the porters, every day his portion; and they set aside holy things to the Levites; and the Levites set them aside for the descendants of Aaron.

Because they did not meet the children of Israel with bread and water, but hired Baalam to curse them; but our God turned his curses into blessings.

And I learned that the portions of the Levites had not been given them and that the Levites and the singers and they that did the work had fled every one to his field.