12:1 Now these are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,
12:2 Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,
12:3 Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,
12:4 Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,
12:5 Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,
12:6 Shemaiah and Joiarib, Jedaiah,
12:7 Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the heads of the priests and their kinsmen in the days of Jeshua.
12:8 And the Levites were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah who was ①in charge of the songs of thanksgiving, he and his brothers.
▷ ①Lit over
12:9 Also Bakbukiah and Unni, their brothers, stood opposite them in their service divisions.
12:10 Jeshua fathered Joiakim, Joiakim fathered Eliashib, Eliashib fathered Joiada,
12:11 Joiada fathered Jonathan, and Jonathan fathered Jaddua.
12:12 Now in the days of Joiakim, the priests, the heads of fathers’ households were: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;
12:13 of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;
12:14 of ①Malluchi, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;
▷ ①In v 2, Malluch
12:15 of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai;
12:16 of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;
12:17 of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai;
12:18 of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;
12:19 of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;
12:20 of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;
12:21 of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; and of Jedaiah, Nethanel.
12:22 As for the Levites, the heads of fathers’ households were registered in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua; so were the priests in the reign of Darius the Persian.
12:23 The sons of Levi, the heads of fathers’ households, were registered in the Book of the Chronicles up to the days of Johanan the son of Eliashib.
12:24 And the heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brothers opposite them, to praise and give thanks, ①as prescribed by David the man of God, division corresponding to division.
▷ ①Lit by the commandment of
12:25 Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers keeping watch at the storerooms of the gates.
12:26 These men served in the days of Joiakim the son of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the governor and Ezra the priest and scribe.
12:27 Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites from all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem so that they could celebrate the dedication with joy, with songs of thanksgiving and with songs to the accompaniment of cymbals, harps, and lyres.
12:28 So the sons of the singers were assembled from the territory around Jerusalem, and from the villages of the Netophathites,
12:29 from Beth-gilgal and from their fields in Geba and Azmaveth, because the singers had built themselves villages around Jerusalem.
12:30 The priests and the Levites purified themselves; they also purified the people, the gates, and the wall.
12:31 Then I had the leaders of Judah come up on top of the wall, and I appointed two large ①choirs, ②the first proceeding to the right on top of the wall toward the Dung Gate.
▷ ①Lit thanksgiving choirs ②Heb and processions to the right
12:32 Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah followed them,
12:33 with Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,
12:34 Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, Jeremiah,
12:35 and some of the sons of the priests with trumpets; and Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph,
12:36 and his kinsmen, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God. And Ezra the scribe went before them.
12:37 At the Fountain Gate they went directly up the steps of the city of David by the stairway of the wall, above the house of David to the Water Gate on the east.
12:38 The second ①choir proceeded to the ②left, while I followed them with half of the people on the wall, above the Tower of Furnaces, to the Broad Wall,
▷ ①Lit thanksgiving choir ②Heb uncertain, perhaps opposite
12:39 and above the Gate of Ephraim, by the Ancient Gate, by the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Sheep Gate; and they stopped at the Gate of the Guard.
12:40 Then the two choirs took their positions in the house of God. So did I and half of the officials with me;
12:41 and the priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with the trumpets;
12:42 and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. And the singers ①sang, with Jezrahiah their leader,
▷ ①Lit made themselves heard
12:43 and on that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced because God had given them great joy, and the women and children rejoiced as well, so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard from far away.
12:44 On that day men were also appointed over the chambers for the supplies, the contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them from the fields of the cities the portions required by the Law for the priests and Levites; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ①served.
▷ ①Lit stood
12:45 For they performed the ①worship of their God and the service of purification, together with the singers and the gatekeepers in accordance with the command of David and of his son Solomon.
▷ ①Lit service
12:46 For in the days of David and Asaph, in ancient times, there were ①leaders of the singers, songs of praise and songs of thanksgiving to God.
▷ ①Lit heads
12:47 So all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and Nehemiah gave the portions due the singers and the gatekeepers as each day required, and they ①set apart the consecrated portion for the Levites, and the Levites ②set apart the consecrated portion for the sons of Aaron.
▷ ①Or gave votive offerings to ②Or gave votive offerings to