23AND NOT I AND BROTHERS MY AND SERVANTS MY AND [THE] MEN OF THE GUARD WHO [WERE] BEHIND ME NOT WE [WERE] STRIPPING OFF CLOTHES OUR EACH ONE WEAPON HIS THE WATER 23So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the guards with me changed out of our clothes; each carried his weapon, even to go for water.*NoteCloseOr each carried his weapon in his right hand
1AND IT WAS <THE> CRY OF DISTRESS OF THE PEOPLE AND WIVES THEIR GREAT AGAINST COUNTRYMEN THEIR THE JEWS Nehemiah Defends the Oppressed 1About that time there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.
2AND THERE [WERE THOSE] WHO [WERE] SAYING SONS OUR AND DAUGHTERS OUR WE [ARE] MANY AND LET US GET GRAIN SO WE MAY EAT AND WE MAY LIVE 2Some were saying, “We and our sons and daughters are numerous. We must get grain in order to eat and stay alive.”
3AND THERE [WERE THOSE] WHO [WERE] SAYING FIELDS OUR AND VINEYARDS OUR AND HOUSES OUR WE [ARE] MORTGAGING AND WE WILL GET GRAIN IN THE FAMINE 3Others were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our homes to get grain during the famine.”
4AND THERE [WERE THOSE] WHO [WERE] SAYING WE HAVE BORROWED MONEY FOR [THE] TRIBUTE OF THE KING FIELDS OUR AND VINEYARDS OUR 4Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards.
5AND NOW [IS] LIKE [THE] FLESH OF COUNTRYMEN OUR FLESH OUR [ARE] LIKE CHILDREN THEIR CHILDREN OUR AND THERE! WE [ARE] BRINGING INTO BONDAGE <OBJ.> SONS OUR AND <OBJ.> DAUGHTERS OUR TO SLAVES AND THERE [ARE] SOME OF DAUGHTERS OUR BEING BROUGHT INTO BONDAGE AND THERE NOT [IS] TO [THE] POWER OF HAND OUR AND FIELDS OUR AND VINEYARDS OUR [BELONG] TO OTHERS 5We and our children are just like our countrymen and their children, yet we are subjecting our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters are already enslaved, but we are powerless to redeem them because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”
6AND IT BURNED TO ME EXCEEDINGLY <JUST> WHEN I HEARD <OBJ.> OUTCRY THEIR AND <OBJ.> THE WORDS <THE> THESE 6When I heard their outcry and these complaints, I became extremely angry,
7AND IT CONSIDERED HEART MY WITH ME AND I CONTENDED! WITH THE NOBLES AND WITH THE OFFICIALS AND I SAID! TO THEM USURY EACH ON BROTHER HIS YOU [ARE] LENDING AND I MADE ON THEM AN ASSEMBLY GREAT 7and after serious thought I rebuked the nobles and officials, saying You are exacting usury from your own brothers!” So I called a large assembly against them
8AND I SAID! TO THEM WE WE HAVE BOUGHT <OBJ.> COUNTRYMEN OUR THE JEWS WHO SOLD THEMSELVES TO THE NATIONS ACCORDING TO [THE] SUFFICIENCY IN US AND ALSO YOU YOU SOLD <OBJ.> COUNTRYMEN YOUR AND THEY WERE SOLD TO US AND THEY WERE SILENT AND NOT THEY FOUND A WORD 8and said “We have done our best to buy back our Jewish brothers who were sold to foreigners, but now you are selling your own brothers, that they may be sold back to us!” But they remained silent, for they could find nothing to say.
9AND I SAID NOT [IS] GOOD THE THING WHICH YOU [ARE] DOING ¿ NOT IN [THE] FEAR OF GOD OUR ARE YOU WALKING FROM [THE] REPROACH OF THE NATIONS ENEMIES OUR 9So I continued, “What you are doing is not right. Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God to avoid the reproach of our foreign enemies?
10AND ALSO I BROTHERS MY AND SERVANTS MY [ARE] LENDING TO THEM MONEY AND GRAIN LET US ABANDON PLEASE <OBJ.> THE USURY <THE> THIS 10I, as well as my brothers and my servants, have been lending the people money and grain. Please, let us stop this usury.
11RETURN PLEASE TO THEM AS THIS DAY FIELDS THEIR VINEYARDS THEIR OLIVE TREES THEIR AND HOUSES THEIR AND [THE] HUNDRED OF THE MONEY AND THE GRAIN THE NEW WINE AND THE FRESH OIL WHICH YOU [ARE] LENDING TO THEM 11Please restore to them immediately their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and houses, along with the percentage of the money, grain, new wine, and oil that you have been assessing them.”
12AND THEY SAID WE WILL RETURN [IT] AND FROM THEM NOT WE WILL REQUIRE [IT] SO WE WILL DO JUST AS YOU [ARE] SAYING AND I SUMMONED <OBJ.> THE PRIESTS AND I MADE SWEAR AN OATH THEM TO DO ACCORDING TO THE MANNER <THE> THIS 12“We will restore it,” they replied, “and will require nothing more from them. We will do as you say.” So I summoned the priests and required of the nobles and officials an oath that they would do what they had promised.
13ALSO BOSOM MY I SHOOK OUT AND I SAID! THUS MAY HE SHAKE OUT <THE> GOD <OBJ.> EVERY <THE> PERSON WHO NOT HE WILL CARRY OUT <OBJ.> THE WORD <THE> THIS FROM HOUSE HIS AND FROM PROPERTY HIS AND THUS MAY HE BE SHAKEN OUT AND EMPTY AND THEY SAID ALL THE ASSEMBLY AMEN AND THEY PRAISED <OBJ.> YAHWEH AND IT DID THE PEOPLE ACCORDING TO THE MANNER <THE> THIS 13I also shook out the folds of my robe and said, “May God likewise shake out of his house and possessions every man who does not keep this promise. May such a man be shaken out and have nothing!” The whole assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised the LORD. And the people did as they had promised.
14ALSO FROM [THE] DAY WHEN SOMEONE APPOINTED <OBJ.> ME TO BE GOVERNOR THEIR IN [THE] LAND OF JUDAH FROM YEAR TWENTY AND UNTIL YEAR THIRTY AND TWO OF ARTAXERXES THE KING YEARS TWO [PLUS] TEN I AND BROTHERS MY [THE] FOOD OF THE GOVERNOR NOT I ATE Nehemiah’s Generosity 14Furthermore, from the day King Artaxerxes appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah, from his twentieth year until his thirty-second year (twelve years total), neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor.
15AND THE GOVERNORS <THE> FORMER WHO [WERE] <TO> BEFORE ME THEY MADE HEAVY ON THE PEOPLE AND THEY TOOK FROM THEM <IN> FOOD AND WINE AFTER SILVER SHEKELS FORTY ALSO SERVANTS THEIR THEY DOMINEERED OVER THE PEOPLE AND I NOT I DID THUS <FROM> BECAUSE OF [THE] FEAR OF GOD 15The governors before me had heavily burdened the people, taking from them bread and wine plus forty shekels of silver.*NoteClose40 shekels is approximately 1 pound or 453.6 grams of silver. Their servants also oppressed the people. But I did not do this, because of my fear of God.
16AND ALSO ON [THE] WORK OF THE WALL <THE> THIS I KEPT HOLD AND A FIELD NOT WE ACQUIRED AND ALL SERVANTS MY [WERE] ASSEMBLED THERE ON THE WORK 16Instead, I devoted myself to the construction of the wall, and all my servants were gathered there for the work; we did not acquire any land.
17AND THE JEWS AND THE OFFICIALS ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY PERSON[S] AND THE [ONES WHO] CAME TO US FROM THE NATIONS WHICH [WERE] AROUND US [WERE] AT TABLE MY 17There were 150 Jews and officials at my table, besides the guests from the surrounding nations.
18AND [THAT] WHICH IT WAS MADE FOR A DAY ONE [WAS] AN OX ONE SHEEP SIX CHOSEN AND POULTRY THEY WERE MADE FOR ME AND BETWEEN TEN DAYS IN ALL WINE TO ABUNDANCE AND BESIDE THIS [THE] FOOD OF THE GOVERNOR NOT I SOUGHT FOR IT WAS HEAVY THE SERVICE ON THE PEOPLE <THE> THIS 18Each day one ox, six choice sheep, and some fowl were prepared for me, and once every ten days an abundance of all kinds of wine was provided. But I did not demand the food allotted to the governor, because the burden on the people was so heavy.
19REMEMBER! TO ME O GOD MY FOR GOOD ALL THAT I HAVE DONE ON THE PEOPLE <THE> THIS 19Remember me favorably, O my God, for all that I have done for this people.