Nehemiah 4:5

4:5 Do not cover their iniquity, and do not wipe out their sin from before them. For they have bitterly offended ¹  the builders! ² 

Nehemiah 4:17

4:17 who were rebuilding the wall. ³  Those who were carrying loads did so ⁴  by keeping one hand on the work and the other on their weapon.

[4:5]  ¹ tn The Hiphil stem of כָּעַס (ka’as) may mean: (1) “to provoke to anger”; (2) “to bitterly offend”; or (3) “to grieve” (BDB 495 s.v. Hiph.; HALOT 491 s.v. כעס hif). The Hebrew lexicons suggest that “bitterly offend” is the most appropriate nuance here.

[4:5]  ² tn Heb “before the builders.” The preposition נֶגֶד (neged, “before”) here connotes “in the sight of” or “in the view of” (BDB 617 s.v. 1.a; HALOT 666 s.v. 1.a).

[4:17]  ³ tn The first words of v. 17, “who were rebuilding the wall,” should be taken with the latter part of v. 16.

[4:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “were carrying loads.” The LXX reads ἐν ὅπλοις (en hoplois, “with weapons”).