American Standard Version of 1901
Versliste
The {Or, history}words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah.Now it came to pass in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the {Or, castle}palace,
that Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men out of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, that were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.
And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.
And when the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.
Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.
And they set the altar {Or, in its place}upon its base; for fear was upon them because of the peoples of the countries: and they offered burnt-offerings thereon unto Jehovah, even burnt-offerings morning and evening.
And they kept the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt-offerings by number, according to the ordinance, as the duty of every day required;
and afterward the continual burnt-offering, and the offerings of the new moons, and of all the set feasts of Jehovah that were consecrated, and of every one that willingly offered a freewill-offering unto Jehovah.
From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt-offerings unto Jehovah: but the foundation of the temple of Jehovah was not yet laid.
They gave money also unto the {Or, hewers}masons, and to the carpenters; and food, and drink, and oil, unto them of Sidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar-trees from Lebanon to the sea, unto Joppa, according to the grant that they had of Cyrus king of Persia.
Now in the second year of their coming unto the house of God at Jerusalem, in the second month, began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the rest of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all they that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem, and appointed the Levites, from twenty years old and upward, to {Or, set forward the work}have the oversight of the work of the house of Jehovah.
Then stood Jeshua with his sons and his brethren, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of {In chapter 2:40, Hodaviah.}Judah, {Hebrew; as one.}together, to have the oversight of the workmen in the house of God: the sons of Henadad, with their sons and their brethren the Levites.
And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of Jehovah, {According to some Massoretic text, the priests stood.}they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise Jehovah, after the order of David king of Israel.
And they sang one to another in praising and giving thanks unto Jehovah, saying, For he is good, for his lovingkindness endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised Jehovah, because the foundation of the house of Jehovah was laid.
But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers' houses, the old men that had seen {Or, the first house standing on its foundation, when this house was before their eyes}the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy:
so that the people could not discern the noise of the shout of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people; for the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off.
Now the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem; in the name of the God of Israel {Or, which was upon them}prophesied they unto them.
Then rose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the house of God which is at Jerusalem; and with them were the prophets of God, helping them.
At the same time came to them Tattenai, the governor beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai, and their companions, and said thus unto them, Who gave you a decree to build this house, and to finish this wall?
Then we told them after this manner, what the names of the men were that were making this building.
But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, and they did not make them cease, till the matter should come to Darius, and then {Or, they returned answer}answer should be returned by letter concerning it.
The copy of the letter that Tattenai, the governor beyond the River, and Shethar-bozenai, and his companions the Apharsachites, who were beyond the River, sent unto Darius the king;
they sent a letter unto him, wherein was written thus: Unto Darius the king, all peace.
Be it known unto the king, that we went into the province of Judah, to the house of the great God, which is builded with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls; and this work goeth on with diligence and prospereth in their hands.
Then asked we those elders, and said unto them thus, Who gave you a decree to build this house, and to finish this wall?
We asked them their names also, to certify thee, that we might write the names of the men that were at the head of them.
And thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and are building the house that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and finished.
But {Or, because that}after that our fathers had provoked the God of heaven unto wrath, he gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house, and carried the people away into Babylon.
But in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree to build this house of God.
And the gold and silver vessels also of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in Jerusalem, and brought into the temple of Babylon, those did Cyrus the king take out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered unto one whose name was Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor;
and he said unto him, Take these vessels, go, put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be builded in its place.
Then came the same Sheshbazzar, and laid the foundations of the house of God which is in Jerusalem: and since that time even until now hath it been in building, and yet it is not completed.
Now therefore, if it seem good to the king, let there be search made in the king's treasure-house, which is there at Babylon, whether it be so, that a decree was made of Cyrus the king to build this house of God at Jerusalem; and let the king send his pleasure to us concerning this matter.
Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the {Aramaic: books.}archives, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon.
And there was found at {That is, Ecbatana.}Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of Media, a roll, and therein was thus written for a record:
In the first year of Cyrus the king, Cyrus the king made a decree: Concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, let the house be builded, the place where they offer sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid; the height thereof threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof threescore cubits;
with three courses of great stones, and a course of new timber: and let the expenses be given out of the king's house.
And also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, every one to its place; and thou shalt put them in the house of God.
Now therefore, Tattenai, governor beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and {Aramaic: their.}your companions the Apharsachites, who are beyond the River, be ye far from thence:
let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this house of God in its place.
Moreover I make a decree what ye shall do to these elders of the Jews for the building of this house of God: that of the king's goods, even of the tribute beyond the River, expenses be given with all diligence unto these men, that they be not hindered.
And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for burnt-offerings to the God of heaven; also wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the word of the priests that are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail;
that they may offer sacrifices of sweet savor unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons.
Also I have made a decree, that whosoever shall alter this word, let a beam be pulled out from his house, and let him be lifted up and fastened thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this:
and the God that hath caused his name to dwell there overthrow all kings and peoples that shall put forth their hand to alter the same, to destroy this house of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree; let it be done with all diligence.
Then Tattenai, the governor beyond the River, Shethar-bozenai, and their companions, {Or, because of that which &c.}because that Darius the king had sent, did accordingly with all diligence.
And the elders of the Jews builded and prospered, through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the decree of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.
And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king.
And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy.
And they offered at the dedication of this house of God a hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin-offering for all Israel, twelve he-goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.
And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses.
And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month.
For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves {Hebrew; as one.}together; all of them were pure: and they killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.
And the children of Israel that were come again out of the captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the nations of the land, to seek Jehovah, the God of Israel, did eat,
and kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for Jehovah had made them joyful, and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.
For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that through {Or, stedfastness}patience and through comfort of the scriptures we might have hope.
Blessed are ye when men shall reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
If ye are reproached {Greek: in.}for the name of Christ, blessed are ye; because the Spirit of glory and the Spirit of God resteth upon you.