Isn’t this the way your ancestors acted, causing our God to bring on them and on this city all this misfortune? And now you are causing even more wrath on Israel, profaning the Sabbath like this!”

Ezra the scribe stood on a towering wooden platform constructed for this purpose. Standing near him on his right were Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Masseiah. On his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.

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

But I warned them and said, “Why do you spend the night by the wall? If you repeat this, I will forcibly remove you!” From that time on they did not show up on the Sabbath.

In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath, bringing in heaps of grain and loading them onto donkeys, along with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads, and bringing them to Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. So I warned them on the day that they sold these provisions.

The temple attendants were living on Ophel, and Ziha and Gishpa were over them.

We will not buy on the Sabbath or on a holy day from the neighboring peoples who bring their wares and all kinds of grain to sell on the Sabbath day. We will let the fields lie fallow every seventh year, and we will cancel every loan.

So we worked on, with half holding spears, from dawn till dusk.

So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in just fifty-two days.

Jedaiah son of Harumaph worked on the section adjacent to them opposite his house, and Hattush son of Hashabneiah worked on the section adjacent to him.

I brought the leaders of Judah up on top of the wall, and I appointed two large choirs to give thanks. One was to proceed on the top of the wall southward toward the Dung Gate.

They went over the Fountain Gate and continued directly up the steps of the City of David on the ascent to the wall. They passed the house of David and continued on to the Water Gate toward the east.

On the twenty-fourth day of this same month the Israelites assembled; they were fasting and wearing sackcloth, their heads covered with dust.

The people gave their blessing on all the men who volunteered to settle in Jerusalem.

On the sealed documents were the following names: Nehemiah the governor, son of Hacaliah, along with Zedekiah,

Then there were those who said, “We have borrowed money to pay our taxes to the king on our fields and our vineyards.

and the temple servants who were living on Ophel worked up to the area opposite the Water Gate toward the east and the protruding tower.

I gave myself to the work on this wall, without even purchasing a field. All my associates were gathered there for the work.

Hanun and the residents of Zanoah worked on the Valley Gate. They rebuilt it and positioned its doors, its bolts, and its bars, in addition to working on fifteen hundred feet of the wall as far as the Dung Gate.

Hear, O our God, for we are despised! Return their reproach on their own head! Reduce them to plunder in a land of exile!