some of the descendants of Judah and some of the descendants of Benjamin settled in Jerusalem.) Of the descendants of Judah: Athaiah son of Uzziah, the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalalel, from the descendants of Perez;

At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, ¹  they sought out the Levites from all the places they lived ²  to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication joyfully with songs of thanksgiving and songs accompanied by cymbals, harps, and lyres.

and in the presence of his colleagues ¹  and the army of Samaria ²  he said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they be left to themselves? ³  Will they again offer sacrifice? Will they finish this in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones to life again from piles of dust?”

And you solemnly admonished them in order to return them to your law, but they behaved presumptuously and did not obey your commandments. They sinned against your ordinances – those by which an individual, if he obeys them, ¹  will live. They boldly turned from you; ²  they rebelled ³  and did not obey.

Some of the descendants of ¹  Benjamin settled in Geba, ²  Micmash, Aija, Bethel ³  and its villages,

So it happened that the Jews who were living near them came and warned us repeatedly ¹  about all the schemes ²  they were plotting ³  against us.

So I purified them of everything foreign, and I assigned specific ¹  duties to the priests and the Levites.

For they were under royal orders ¹  which determined their activity day by day. ² 

After him the priests worked, men of the nearby district.

Above the Horse Gate the priests worked, each in front of his house.

Adjacent to them worked Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothite, who were men of Gibeon and Mizpah. These towns were under the jurisdiction ¹  of the governor of Trans-Euphrates.

On that day the book of Moses was read aloud in the hearing ¹  of the people. They found ²  written in it that no Ammonite or Moabite may ever enter the assembly of God,

The governor ¹  instructed them not to eat any of the sacred food until there was a priest who could consult ²  the Urim and Thummim.

And between the room above the corner and the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and traders worked.

I ¹  said to them, “The gates of Jerusalem must not be opened in the early morning, ²  until those who are standing guard close the doors and lock them. ³  Position residents of Jerusalem as guards, some at their guard stations and some near their homes.”

The priests: the descendants of Jedaiah (through the family ¹  of Jeshua), 973;

The temple servants: the descendants of Ziha, the descendants of Hasupha, the descendants of Tabbaoth,

“Due to your great compassion you did not abandon them in the desert. The pillar of cloud did not stop guiding them in the path by day, ¹  nor did the pillar of fire stop illuminating for them by night the path on which they should travel.

Some of the Judean divisions of the Levites settled in Benjamin.

Bakbukiah and Unni, ¹  their colleagues, stood opposite them in the services.