The Book of Nehemiah

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- Chapter 13 -

The principles of separation

On that day the priests read and the people listened, and the passage was read with the laws God gave Moses that said no Ammonite or Moabite was ever to be allowed to come into the place where God’s people worship.

The reason for that was that the people of Ammon and the people of Moab did not give any food or water to the Israelites while the Israelites were going through their areas after they left Egypt. Instead, the people of Ammon and Moab paid money to Balaam to influence him to curse the Israelites. But God turned that attempt to curse Israel into a blessing.

So when the people heard these laws being read to them, they sent away all the people whose ancestors had come from other countries.

The reforms of Nehemiah

Previously, Eliashib the priest had been appointed to be in charge of the storerooms in the temple. He was a relative of Tobiah.

He allowed Eliashib to use a large room. There they had stored the grain offerings and the incense. They put there the equipment that is used in the temple. They put in there the offerings the people gave for the Levites. They brought in tithes of grain and wine and olive oil that God had commanded for the Levites, for the musicians, and the gatekeepers. And they brought in the gifts to support the other priests.

During that time I was not in Jerusalem. It was the thirty-second year that Artaxerxes was the king of Babylonia, and I had gone back to report to the king what I had been doing. After I had been there a while, I requested the king to allow me to return to Jerusalem.

When I returned, I found out that Eliashib had done an evil thing. He let Tobiah take over a storeroom in the very house of God for his own use.

I became very angry. I went to that room and I threw out everything that belonged to Tobiah.

Then I commanded that they perform a ritual cleansing of that room to make it pure again. And I also ordered that all the equipment used in the temple and all the grain offerings and incense should be put back in that room, where they belonged.

I also found out that the temple musicians and other Levites had left Jerusalem and returned to their fields, because the people of Israel had not been bringing into the storerooms the food they needed.

So I rebuked the officials, saying to them, “Why have you not taken care of the services to be held in the temple? So I got them together and put them back at their stations.

Then all the people of Judah again started to bring to the temple storerooms their tithes of grain, wine, and olive oil.

I appointed these men to be in charge of the storerooms. Shelemiah the priest, Zadok, an expert in the Jewish laws, and Pedaiah, a descendant of Levi. I appointed Hanan son of Zaccur and grandson of Mattaniah to assist them. I knew that I could trust those men to distribute the offerings fairly to their fellow workers.

My God, do not forget all these good deeds that I have done for your temple and for the work that is done there!

During that time, I saw some people in Judea who were working on the Sabbath day. Some were pressing grapes to make wine. Others were putting grain, bags of wine, baskets of grapes, figs, and many other things on their donkeys and taking them into Jerusalem. I warned them not to sell things to the people of Judea on Sabbath days.

I also saw some people from Tyre who were living there in Jerusalem who were bringing fish and other things into Jerusalem to sell to the people of Judea on the Sabbath day.

So I rebuked the Jewish leaders and told them, “This is a very evil thing that you are doing! You are making the Sabbath days into something God never wanted it to be.

Your ancestors did things like this, so God punished them. He allowed this city to be destroyed because of their sin! And now by breaking the laws for the Sabbath day, you are going to cause God to be angry with us, and he will punish us even more!”

When it became dark at the gates of Jerusalem, I put some of my men there, so they would make sure that no one could bring any goods into the city to sell on that day.

The merchants and sellers of all kinds of goods and merchandise camped outside Jerusalem a few times on Friday evening when the Sabbath begins, hoping to sell something the next day.

I warned them, “It is useless for you to stay here outside the walls on Friday night! If you do this again, I will take you and remove you myself!” So after that, they did not come on Sabbath days.

I also commanded the descendants of Levi to perform the ritual to purify themselves and to take up their stations to guard the City Gates, to make sure that the Sabbath was kept holy by not allowing merchants to enter it on that holy day. My God, do not forget what I have done for you! And be kind to me, as kind as your love is for me.

During that time, I also found out that many of the Jewish men had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.

Half of their children spoke the language that people in Ashdod speak or some other language, and they did not know how to speak the language of Judah, only the language of the people where they lived.

So I rebuked those men, and I asked God to curse them, and I struck some of them with my fists, and some of them I pulled out their hair! Then I forced them to make a solemn promise, knowing that God was listening, that they would never again marry foreigners and never allow their children to marry foreigners.

I said to them, “Solomon, the king of Israel, sinned as a result of marrying foreign women. He was greater than any of the kings of other nations. God loved him and set him as the king over all the people of Israel. But his foreign wives caused even him to sin.

Do you think that we should do what you have done, you who married foreign wives, and do what we know is wrong, and commit a great sin against our God by marrying foreign women who worship idols?”

One of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the leader of all the priests, married the daughter of Sanballat. So I ran Joiada’s son out of Jerusalem.

My God, remember those who brought shame to the priesthood, and they broke the covenant of the priesthood and of the Levites by what they have done!

I took away everything from them that was from other nations and religions, I also established regulations for the priests and descendants of Levi, so they would know what work each of them should do.

I made sure that there was wood to be burned on the altar at the set times and days. I also arranged for the people to bring into the storerooms the first portion of the harvest. My God, do not forget that I have done all these things, and bless me for doing them.

The principles of separation

On that day they read in the book of Moses in the hearing of the people; and it was found written in it that an Ammonite and a Moabite should not enter into the assembly of God forever,

because they didn’t meet the children of Israel with bread and with water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them; however, our God turned the curse into a blessing.

It came to pass, when they had heard the law, that they separated all the mixed multitude from Israel.

The reforms of Nehemiah

Now before this, Eliashib the priest, who was appointed over the rooms of the house of our God, being allied to Tobiah,

had prepared for him a great room, where before they laid the meal offerings, the frankincense, the vessels, and the tithes of the grain, the new wine, and the oil, which were given by commandment to the Levites, the singers, and the gatekeepers; and the wave offerings for the priests.

But in all this, I was not at Jerusalem; for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I went to the king; and after some days I asked leave of the king,

and I came to Jerusalem, and understood the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, in preparing him a room in the courts of God’s house.

It grieved me severely. Therefore I threw all Tobiah’s household stuff out of the room.

Then I commanded, and they cleansed the rooms. I brought into them the vessels of God’s house, with the meal offerings and the frankincense again.

I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them, so that the Levites and the singers, who did the work, had each fled to his field.

Then I contended with the rulers, and said, “Why is God’s house forsaken?” I gathered them together, and set them in their place.

Then all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, the new wine, and the oil to the treasuries.

I made treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah: and next to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah; for they were counted faithful, and their business was to distribute to their brothers.

Remember me, my God, concerning this, and don’t wipe out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and for its observances.

In those days I saw some men treading wine presses on the Sabbath in Judah, bringing in sheaves, and loading donkeys with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day; and I testified against them in the day in which they sold food.

Some men of Tyre also lived there, who brought in fish and all kinds of wares, and sold on the Sabbath to the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.

Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said to them, “What evil thing is this that you do, and profane the Sabbath day?

Didn’t your fathers do this, and didn’t our God bring all this evil on us and on this city? Yet you bring more wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath.”

It came to pass that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the Sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut, and commanded that they should not be opened until after the Sabbath. I set some of my servants over the gates, so that no burden should be brought in on the Sabbath day.

So the merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares camped outside of Jerusalem once or twice.

Then I testified against them, and said to them, “Why do you stay around the wall? If you do so again, I will lay hands on you.” From that time on, they didn’t come on the Sabbath.

I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the Sabbath day. Remember me for this also, my God, and spare me according to the greatness of your loving kindness.

In those days I also saw the Jews who had married women of Ashdod, of Ammon, and of Moab;

and their children spoke half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak in the Jews’ language, but according to the language of each people.

I contended with them, cursed them, struck certain of them, plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, “You shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons, or for yourselves.

Didn’t Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him, and he was loved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel. Nevertheless foreign women caused even him to sin.

Shall we then listen to you to do all this great evil, to trespass against our God in marrying foreign women?”

One of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite; therefore I chased him from me.

Remember them, my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and of the Levites.

Thus I cleansed them from all foreigners and appointed duties for the priests and for the Levites, everyone in his work;

and for the wood offering, at appointed times, and for the first fruits. Remember me, my God, for good.