Nehemiah 12

¹ These are the priests and the Levites who came back with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua:

² Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

³ Shecaniah, Harim, Meremoth,

⁴ Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,

⁵ Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,

⁶ Shemaiah; also: Joiarib, Jedaiah,

⁸ And the Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, Mattaniah-this last, with his kinsmen, directed the hymns of thanksgiving

⁹ while Bakbukiah, Unno and their kinsmen in their respective orders formed an alternate choir.

¹⁰ Jeshua was the father of Joiakim, Joiakim father of Eliashib, Eliashib father of Joiada,

¹¹ Joiada father of Johanan, and Johanan father of Jaddua.

¹² In the days of Joiakim the heads of the priestly families were: family of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

¹³ of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;

¹⁴ of Malluchi, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;

¹⁵ of Harim, Adna; of Meremoth, Helkai;

¹⁶ of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

¹⁷ of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, …; of Moadiah, Piltai;

¹⁸ of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

¹⁹ also: of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

²⁰ of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;

²¹ of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethanel.

²² In the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan and Jaddua, the heads of the priestly families had been recorded in the Book of the Chronicles[*a] up to the reign of Darius the Persian.

²³ The sons of Levi. The heads of families were recorded in the Book of the Chronicles, but only up to the time of Johanan, grandson of Eliashib.

²⁴ The heads of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel; and their kinsmen forming an alternate choir for the hymns of praise and thanksgiving, in accordance with the ordinances of David the man of God, in corresponding groups,

²⁵ these were: Mattaniah, Bakbukiah and Obadiah. The gatekeepers, Meshullam, Talmon and Akkub stood guard at the storehouses near the gates.

²⁶ These lived in the days of Joiakim son of Jeshua, son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the governor and of Ezra, priest and scribe.

²⁷ At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem the Levites were sent for, wherever they lived, to come to Jerusalem: the dedication was to be celebrated joyfully with songs of thanksgiving, with cymbal, lute and lyre.

²⁸ Accordingly the cantors, sons of Levi, assembled from the countryside round Jerusalem, from the villages of the Netophathites,

²⁹ from Beth-gilgal, from the districts of Geba and Azmaveth; since the cantors had built themselves villages all round Jerusalem.

³⁰ And the priests and Levites purified themselves, then purified the people, the gates and the wall.

³¹ I then made the leaders of Judah come on to the top of the wall, and organized two great choirs. The first made its way along the top of the wall, right-handed, towards the Dung Gate;

³² bringing up the rear were Hoshaiah and half the leaders of Judah,

³³ and also Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,

³⁴ Judah, Mijamin, Shemaiah and Jeremiah,

³⁵ selected from the priests and carrying trumpets; then Zechariah son of Jonathan, son of Shemaiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Micaiah, son of Zaccur, son of Asaph,

³⁶ with his kinsmen, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, Hanani, carrying the musical instruments of David the man of God. And Ezra the scribe walked at their head.

³⁷ At the Fountain Gate they went straight on up, near the steps of the Citadel of David, along the top of the wall and along the ascent of the Palace of David as far as the Water Gate, on the east.

³⁸ The second choir made its way left-handed; I followed it, with half the leaders of the people, along the top of the wall, above the Tower of the Furnaces and as far as the wall of the Square,

³⁹ then over the Gate of Ephraim, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, as far as the Sheep Gate; they came to a halt at the Watch Gate.

⁴⁰ The two choirs then took their places in the Temple of God. I had half of the officials with me,

⁴¹ as well as the priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, Hananiah, carrying trumpets,

⁴² also Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam and Ezer. The cantors sang under the direction of Jezrahiah.

⁴³ There were great sacrifices offered that day and the people rejoiced, God having given them good cause for rejoicing; the women and children rejoiced too, and the joy of Jerusalem could be heard from far away.

⁴⁴ For the chambers intended for the stores, contributions, first-fruits and tithes, supervisors were then appointed whose business it would be to collect in them those portions from the town lands awarded by the Law to the priests and Levites. For Judah rejoiced in the officiating priests and Levites.

⁴⁵ lt was they who performed the liturgy of their God and the duties of purification-and the cantors and gatekeepers too-in accordance with the ordinances of David and his son Solomon.

⁴⁶ For from ancient times, from the days of David and Asaph, there had been guilds of cantors and canticles of praise and thanksgiving to God.

⁴⁷ And so, in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah, the whole of Israel used to give the cantors and gatekeepers their due portion for each day. They set aside for the Levites their sacred dues, and the Levites would set theirs aside for the sons of Aaron.