Ezra 8

⁷So in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, he went up to Jerusalem with some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and temple servants.

¹So all Israel was recorded in the genealogies written in the Book of the Kings of Israel. But Judah was exiled to Babylon because of their unfaithfulness.

¹³I hereby decree that any volunteers among the Israelites in my kingdom, including the priests and Levites, may go up with you to Jerusalem.

⁷⁰Some of the heads of the families contributed to the project. The governor gave to the treasury 1,000 darics of gold, 50 bowls, and 530 priestly garments.

⁷¹And some of the heads of the families gave to the treasury for the project 20,000 darics of gold and 2,200 minas of silver.

⁵So the family heads of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and Levites—everyone whose spirit God had stirred—prepared to go up and rebuild the house of the Lord in Jerusalem.

³⁴All these were heads of Levite families, chiefs according to their genealogies, and they lived in Jerusalem.

²²The six descendants of Shecaniah were Shemaiah and his sons: Hattush, Igal, Bariah, Neariah, and Shaphat.

¹These were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: The firstborn was Amnon by Ahinoam of Jezreel; the second was Daniel by Abigail of Carmel;

¹These were the divisions of the descendants of Aaron. The sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

²But Nadab and Abihu died before their father did, and they had no sons; so Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests.

³The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

⁴Eleazar was the father of Phinehas, Phinehas was the father of Abishua,

³the descendants of Parosh, 2,172;

¹⁴And the leaders of the people: Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,

⁸the descendants of Parosh, 2,172;

⁶the descendants of Pahath-moab (through the line of Jeshua and Joab), 2,812;

¹¹the descendants of Pahath-moab (through the line of Jeshua and Joab), 2,818;

¹⁴And the leaders of the people: Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,

¹⁶Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin,

¹⁵the descendants of Adin, 454;

²⁰the descendants of Adin, 655;

¹²the descendants of Elam, 1,254;

³¹the descendants of the other Elam, 1,254;

⁷the descendants of Elam, 1,254;

³⁴the descendants of the other Elam, 1,254;

⁴while some of the descendants of Judah and Benjamin settled in Jerusalem.) From the descendants of Judah: Athaiah son of Uzziah, the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalalel, a descendant of Perez;

⁴the descendants of Shephatiah, 372;

⁹the descendants of Shephatiah, 372;

⁶the descendants of Pahath-moab (through the line of Jeshua and Joab), 2,812;

¹¹the descendants of Pahath-moab (through the line of Jeshua and Joab), 2,818;

²⁸From the descendants of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai.

¹¹the descendants of Bebai, 623;

¹⁶the descendants of Bebai, 628;

¹²the descendants of Azgad, 1,222;

¹⁷the descendants of Azgad, 2,322;

¹³the descendants of Adonikam, 666;

¹⁸the descendants of Adonikam, 667;

¹²Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,

¹⁴the descendants of Bigvai, 2,056;

¹⁹the descendants of Bigvai, 2,067;

²¹And there by the Ahava Canal I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask Him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions.

³¹On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem, and the hand of our God was upon us to protect us from the hands of the enemies and bandits along the way.

⁷So in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, he went up to Jerusalem with some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and temple servants.

²from the descendants of Phinehas, Gershom; from the descendants of Ithamar, Daniel; from the descendants of David, Hattush

¹By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.

¹⁵I came to the exiles at Tel-abib who dwelt by the River Kebar. And for seven days I sat where they sat and remained there among them, overwhelmed.

³²From Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do: 200 chiefs with all their kinsmen at their command.

²A land in rebellion has many rulers, but a man of understanding and knowledge maintains order.

¹⁴The lot for the East Gate fell to Shelemiah. Then lots were cast for his son Zechariah, a wise counselor, and the lot for the North Gate fell to him.

²¹He changes the times and seasons; He removes kings and establishes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.

¹¹So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this instead of requesting long life or wealth for yourself or death for your enemies—but you have asked for discernment to administer justice—

²⁰And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true—in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

⁴³The temple servants: the descendants of Ziha, the descendants of Hasupha, the descendants of Tabbaoth,

³The Levites thirty years of age or older were counted, and the total number of men was 38,000.

⁴“Of these,” said David, “24,000 are to oversee the work of the house of the Lord, 6,000 are to be officers and judges,

⁷So in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, he went up to Jerusalem with some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and temple servants.

²²After that, the Levites came to perform their service at the Tent of Meeting in the presence of Aaron and his sons. Thus they did with the Levites just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

²³And the Lord said to Moses,

²⁶So now the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the articles for its service.”

²⁷For according to the final instructions of David, the Levites twenty years of age or older were counted,

¹⁵You are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth. I will help both of you to speak, and I will teach you what to do.

²⁸and who has shown me favor before the king, his counselors, and all his powerful officials. And because the hand of the Lord my God was upon me, I took courage and gathered the leaders of Israel to return with me.

⁸And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house I will occupy.” And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests.

¹⁵Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.”

¹⁹The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites listed according to their fathers:

⁶this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted Ezra all his requests, for the hand of the Lord his God was upon him.

²⁰In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.

¹⁶The sons of Levi: Gershom, Kohath, and Merari.

¹The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

¹⁷Next to him, the Levites made repairs under Rehum son of Bani, and next to him, Hashabiah, ruler of a half-district of Keilah, made repairs for his district.

¹¹Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah,

¹⁹The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites listed according to their fathers:

⁴³The temple servants: the descendants of Ziha, the descendants of Hasupha, the descendants of Tabbaoth,

⁷So in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, he went up to Jerusalem with some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and temple servants.

²Now the first to resettle their own property in their cities were Israelites, priests, Levites, and temple servants.

³Yes, and I ask you, my true yokefellow, to help these women who have contended at my side for the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.

¹⁷And I sent them to Iddo, the leader at Casiphia, with a message for him and his kinsmen, the temple servants at Casiphia, that they should bring to us ministers for the house of our God.

³Jehoshaphat was alarmed and set his face to seek the Lord. And he proclaimed a fast throughout Judah.

¹⁴Consecrate a fast; proclaim a solemn assembly! Gather the elders and all the residents of the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord.

²¹And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.”

⁶When they had gathered at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the Lord. On that day they fasted, and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” And Samuel judged the Israelites at Mizpah.

⁵And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.

²⁹This is to be a permanent statute for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month, you shall humble yourselves and not do any work—whether the native or the foreigner who resides among you—

¹²For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

¹⁸Surely the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His loving devotion

¹⁹to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.

⁹For the eyes of the Lord roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him. You have acted foolishly in this matter. From now on, therefore, you will be at war.”

¹⁵The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their cry.

¹⁶But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to wipe out all memory of them from the earth.

²⁵The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him.

²So he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.

¹²Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.

¹³You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.

⁷Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.

⁸For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

³¹On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem, and the hand of our God was upon us to protect us from the hands of the enemies and bandits along the way.

¹²And in his distress, Manasseh sought the favor of the Lord his God and earnestly humbled himself before the God of his fathers.

¹³And when he prayed to Him, the Lord received his plea and heard his petition. So He brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.

²⁹But if from there you will seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

²⁰And because they cried out to God in battle, they were helped against their enemies, and the Hagrites and all their allies were delivered into their hands. Because they put their trust in God, He answered their prayers.

¹⁸And since the gracious hand of our God was upon us, they brought us Sherebiah—a man of insight from the descendants of Mahli son of Levi, the son of Israel—along with his sons and brothers, 18 men;

¹⁹also Hashabiah, together with Jeshaiah, from the descendants of Merari, and his brothers and their sons, 20 men.

¹⁴You are sent by the king and his seven counselors to evaluate Judah and Jerusalem according to the Law of your God, which is in your hand.

¹⁵Moreover, you are to take with you the silver and gold that the king and his counselors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem,

³³On the fourth day, in the house of our God, we weighed out the silver and gold and sacred articles into the hand of Meremoth son of Uriah, the priest. Eleazar son of Phinehas was with him, along with the Levites Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui.

⁸Cyrus king of Persia had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah.

²⁰We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this generous gift.

²¹For we are taking great care to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord, but also in the eyes of men.

⁸Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.

⁹This was the inventory: 30 gold dishes, 1,000 silver dishes, 29 silver utensils,

¹⁰30 gold bowls, 410 matching silver bowls, and 1,000 other articles.

²How the precious sons of Zion, once worth their weight in pure gold, are now esteemed as jars of clay, the work of a potter’s hands!

²“Tell Aaron and his sons to treat with respect the sacred offerings that the Israelites have consecrated to Me, so that they do not profane My holy name. I am the Lord.

³Tell them that for the generations to come, if any of their descendants in a state of uncleanness approaches the sacred offerings that the Israelites consecrate to the Lord, that person must be cut off from My presence. I am the Lord.

⁶They must be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God. Because they present to the Lord the food offerings, the food of their God, they must be holy.

⁷A priest must not marry a woman defiled by prostitution or divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.

⁴This service of the Kohathites at the Tent of Meeting regards the most holy things.

⁵Whenever the camp sets out, Aaron and his sons are to go in, take down the veil of the curtain, and cover the ark of the Testimony with it.

⁷King Cyrus also brought out the articles belonging to the house of the Lord that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the temple of his gods.

⁸Cyrus king of Persia had them brought out by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah.

¹¹Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; come out from it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the Lord.

⁸⁴So these were the offerings from the leaders of Israel for the dedication of the altar when it was anointed: twelve silver platters, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold dishes.

⁸⁵Each silver platter weighed a hundred and thirty shekels, and each silver bowl seventy shekels. The total weight of the silver articles was two thousand four hundred shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel.

³³On the fourth day, in the house of our God, we weighed out the silver and gold and sacred articles into the hand of Meremoth son of Uriah, the priest. Eleazar son of Phinehas was with him, along with the Levites Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui.

³⁴Everything was verified by number and weight, and the total weight was recorded at that time.

³¹Therefore be alert and remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

³⁴It is like a man going on a journey who left his house, put each servant in charge of his own task, and instructed the doorkeeper to keep watch.

³⁵Therefore keep watch, because you do not know when the master of the house will return—whether in the evening, at midnight, when the rooster crows, or in the morning.

²⁰Now their fellow Levites were in charge of the treasuries of the house of God and the treasuries of the dedicated things.

²¹From the descendants of Ladan, who were Gershonites through Ladan and heads of the families of Ladan the Gershonite, were Jehieli,

⁵But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

²Now with all my ability I have made provision for the house of my God—gold for the gold articles, silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron, and wood for the wood, as well as onyx for the settings, turquoise, stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and slabs of marble—all in abundance.

³Moreover, because of my delight in the house of my God, I now give for it my personal treasures of gold and silver, over and above all that I have provided for this holy temple:

⁹For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your prosperity.

¹³The glory of Lebanon will come to you—its cypress, elm, and boxwood together—to adorn the place of My sanctuary, and I will glorify the place of My feet.

²²For I was ashamed to ask the king for an escort of soldiers and horsemen to protect us from our enemies on the road, since we had told him, “The hand of our God is gracious to all who seek Him, but His great anger is against all who forsake Him.”

²¹And there by the Ahava Canal I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask Him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions.

²²For I was ashamed to ask the king for an escort of soldiers and horsemen to protect us from our enemies on the road, since we had told him, “The hand of our God is gracious to all who seek Him, but His great anger is against all who forsake Him.”

¹⁵Now I assembled these exiles at the canal that flows to Ahava, and we camped there three days. And when I searched among the people and priests, I found no Levites there.

⁹He had begun the journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was upon him.

¹⁰Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

¹¹Behold, all who rage against you will be ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing and will perish.

²²But I have had God’s help to this day, and I stand here to testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen:

⁹Because you have made the Lord your dwelling—my refuge, the Most High—

¹⁰no evil will befall you, no plague will approach your tent.

¹¹After I had arrived in Jerusalem and had been there three days,

⁸Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king.

⁹He had begun the journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was upon him.

⁴Next to them, Meremoth son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, made repairs. Next to him, Meshullam son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs; and next to him, Zadok son of Baana made repairs as well.

³⁰So the priests and Levites took charge of the silver and gold and sacred articles that had been weighed out to be taken to the house of our God in Jerusalem.

²¹Next to him, Meremoth son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired another section, from the doorway of the house of Eliashib to the end of the house.

⁹The Levites: Jeshua son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel,

¹⁴the weight of all the gold articles for every kind of service; the weight of all the silver articles for every kind of service;

¹⁵the weight of the gold lampstands and their lamps, including the weight of each lampstand and its lamps; the weight of each silver lampstand and its lamps, according to the use of each lampstand;

²⁴After him, Binnui son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to the angle and the corner,

¹⁷For the dedication of the house of God they offered a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and a sin offering for all Israel of twelve male goats, one for each tribe of Israel.

¹²How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me?

¹³I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.

²⁷one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering;

³¹Then Hezekiah said, “Now that you have consecrated yourselves to the Lord, come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of the Lord.” So the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all whose hearts were willing brought burnt offerings.

³²The number of burnt offerings the assembly brought was seventy bulls, a hundred rams, and two hundred lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord.

¹Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles carried away to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar its king. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town,

¹Then the Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying,

²“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When any of you brings an offering to the Lord, you may bring as your offering an animal from the herd or the flock.

²¹I, King Artaxerxes, decree to all the treasurers west of the Euphrates: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, may require of you, it must be provided promptly,

²²up to a hundred talents of silver, a hundred cors of wheat, a hundred baths of wine, a hundred baths of olive oil, and salt without limit.

¹³In response, Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates diligently carried out what King Darius had decreed.

⁶This is the text of the letter that Tattenai the governor of the region west of the Euphrates, Shethar-bozenai, and their associates, the officials in the region, sent to King Darius.

⁷The report they sent him read as follows: To King Darius: All peace.

²⁷When Apollos resolved to cross over to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. On his arrival, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed.

¹⁶But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow up the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth.

⁷And in the days of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. It was written in Aramaic and then translated.

⁸Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote the letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes as follows: