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And they of the captiuitie did so, & departed, euen Ezra the Priest, & the men that were chiefe fathers to the familie of their fathers by name, and sate downe in the first day of the tenth moneth to examine the matter.

And the King sayd vnto me, (the Queene also sitting by him) How long shall thy iourney be? & when wilt thou come againe? So it pleased the King, and he sent me, and I set him a time.

So I came to Ierusalem, & was there three dayes.

Then I tolde them of the hande of my God, (which was good ouer me) and also of the Kings wordes that he had spoken vnto me. And they sayd, Let vs rise, and buyld. So they strengthened their hand to good.

So we built the wall, and all the wall was ioyned vnto the halfe thereof, and the heart of the people was to worke.

And Iudah said, The strength of the bearers is weakened, and there is much earth, so that we are not able to build the wall.

For euery one of the buylders had his sworde girded on his loynes, and so buylded: and he that blewe the trumpet, was beside me.

So we laboured in the worke, and halfe of them helde the speares, from the appearing of the morning, till the starres came foorth.

So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my seruants, nor the men of the warde, (which followed me) none of vs did put off our clothes, saue euery one put them off for washing.

So I shooke my lappe, and said, So let God shake out euery man that wil not perfourme this promise from his house, & from his labour: euen thus let him be shaken out, & emptied. And all the Cogregation said, Amen, & praised the Lord: and the people did according to this promes.

For the former gouernours that were before me, had bene chargeable vnto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, besides fourtie shekels of siluer: yea, and their seruants bare rule ouer the people: but so did not I, because of the feare of God.

So the people went foorth and brought them, and made them boothes, euerie one vpon the roofe of his house, and in their courtes, and in the courtes of the house of God, and in the streete by the watergate, and in the streete of the gate of Ephraim.

And all the Congregation of them that were come againe out of the captiuitie made boothes, and sate vnder the boothes: for since the time of Ieshua the sonne of Nun vnto this day, had not the children of Israel done so, and there was very great ioy.

But they and our fathers behaued them selues proudely, and hardened their neck, so that they hearkened not vnto thy commandements,

And thou gauest them kingdomes & people, and scatteredst them into corners: so they possessed the land of Sihon & the land of ye King of Heshbon, and the land of Og King of Bashan.

So the children went in, and possessed the lande, and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the lande, euen the Canaanites, and gauest them into their handes, with their Kings and the people of the lande, that they might do with them what they would.

But when they had rest, they returned to doe euill before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hande of their enemies, so that they had the dominion ouer them, yet when they conuerted and cryed vnto thee, thou heardest them from heauen, and deliueredst them according to thy great mercies many times,

So stood the two companies (of them that gaue thankes) in the house of God, and I and the halfe of the rulers with me.

And the same day they offered great sacrifices and reioyced: for God had giuen them great ioy, so that both the women, and the children were ioyfull: and the ioy of Ierusalem was heard farre off.

So the chapmen and marchants of al marchandise remained once or twise all night without Ierusalem.