Study Desk

And I declare to them the hand of my God that is good upon me, and also the words of the king that he said to me, and they say, `Let us rise, and we have built;' and they strengthen their hands for good.

After him have the Levites strengthened, [and] Rehum son of Bani: by his hand hath Hashabiah, head of the half of the district of Keilah, strengthened, for his district.

Hear, O our God, for we have been despised; and turn back their reproach on their own head, and give them for a spoil in a land of captivity;

and do not cover over their iniquity, and their sin from before Thee let not be blotted out, for they have provoked to anger -- over-against those building.

And I see, and rise up, and say unto the freemen, and unto the prefects, and unto the rest of the people, `Be not afraid of them; the Lord, the great and the fearful, remember ye, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.'

in the place that ye hear the voice of the trumpet thither ye are gathered unto us; our God doth fight for us.'

Also, at that time I said to the people, `Let each with his servant lodge in the midst of Jerusalem, and they have been to us by night a guard, and by day [for] the work:'

And there are who are saying, `Our fields, and our vineyards, and our houses, we are pledging, and we receive corn for the famine.'

And there are who are saying, `We have borrowed money for the tribute of the king, [on] our fields, and our vineyards;

and now, as the flesh of our brethren [is] our flesh, as their sons [are] our sons, and lo, we are subduing our sons and our daughters for servants, and there are of our daughters subdued, and our hand hath no might, and our fields and our vineyards [are] to others.'

And also, in the work of this wall I have done mightily, even a field we have not bought, and all my servants are gathered there for the work;

and that which hath been prepared for one day [is] one ox, six fat sheep, also fowls have been prepared for me, and once in ten days of all wines abundantly, and with this, the bread of the governor I have not sought, for heavy is the service on this people.

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

it is written in it, `Among the nations it hath been heard, and Gashmu is saying: Thou and the Jews are thinking to rebel, therefore thou art building the wall, and thou hast been to them for a king -- according to these words!

And also, prophets thou hast appointed to call for thee in Jerusalem, saying, A king [is] in Judah, and now it is heard by the king according to these words; and now come, and we take counsel together.'

And I send unto him, saying, `It hath not been according to these words that thou art saying, for from thine own heart thou art devising them;'

for all of them are making us afraid, saying, `Their hands are too feeble for the work, and it is not done;' and now, strengthen Thou my hands.

And I have entered the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabeel -- and he is restrained -- and he saith, `Let us meet at the house of God, at the inside of the temple, and we shut the doors of the temple, for they are coming in to slay thee -- yea, by night they are coming in to slay thee.'

And I discern, and lo, God hath not sent him, for in the prophecy he hath spoken unto me both Tobiah and Sanballat hired him,

so that he [is] an hireling, that I may fear and do so, and I had sinned, and it had been to them for an evil name that they may reproach me.