Nehemiah 3

¹ Eliashib the high priest and his brother priests set about building the Sheep Gate; they constructed its framework and set its doors, bolts and bars in place, and proceeded as far as the Tower of Hananel.

² The men of Jericho built next to them; Zaccur son of Imri built next to them.

³ The sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate; they constructed its framework and set its doors, bolts and bars in place.

⁴ Meremoth son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz carried out repairs next to them; Meshullam son of Berechiah, son of Meshezabel carried out repairs next to him.

⁵ The men of Tekoa carried out repairs next to him, though their chiefs refused to bow their necks and work for their lords.

⁶ Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah repaired the gate of the new quarter: they constructed its framework and set its doors, bolts and bars in place.

⁷ Next to them repairs were carried out by Melatiah of Gibeon and Jadon of Meronoth, and also by the men of Gibeon and Mizpah, on behalf of the governors of Transeuphrates.

⁸ Next to them repairs were carried out by Uzziel, a member of the goldsmiths’ guild, and next to him repairs were carried out by Hananiah, of the perfumers’ guild: they strengthened Jerusalem as far as the Wall of the Square.

⁹ Next to them repairs were carried out by Rephaiah son of Hur, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem.

¹⁰ Next to them Jedaiah son of Harumaph carried out repairs opposite his own house; next to him repairs were carried out by Hattush son of Hashabneiah.

¹¹ Malchijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab repaired the next section as far as the Tower of the Furnaces.

¹² Next to them repairs were carried out by Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, by him and his sons.

¹³ Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired the Valley Gate; they restored it, constructed its framework and set its doors, bolts and bars in place, and repaired a thousand cubits of wall up to the Dung Gate.

¹⁴ Malchijah son of Rechab, ruler of the district of Beth-hac-cherem, repaired the Dung Gate, he and his sons: he set its doors, bolts and bars in place.

¹⁵ Shallum son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah, repaired the Fountain Gate; he restored it, covered it, and set its doors, bolts and bars in place. He also rebuilt the wall of the conduit cistern, adjoining the king’s garden, as far as the steps coming down from the Citadel of David.

¹⁶ Next to him, Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of half the district of Beth-zur, carried out repairs up to a point opposite the tombs of David, the artificial pool and the House of Heroes.

¹⁷ Next to him repairs were carried out by the Levites: Rehum son of Bani; next to him Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah, carried out repairs for his own district.

¹⁸ Next to him repairs were carried out by their brothers: Binnui son of Henadad, ruler of half the district of Keilah;

¹⁹ next to him, Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section opposite the slope up to the Armoury, towards the Angle.

²⁰ Next to him Baruch son of Zabbai repaired another section from the Angle as far as the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest.

²¹ Next to him Meremoth son of Uriah, son of Hakkoz repaired another section from the door of Eliashib’s house to its farther end.

²² Next to him repairs were carried out by the priests who lived locally in the country.

²³ Next to them repairs were carried out by Benjamin and Hasshub, opposite their own houses. Next to them repairs were carried out by Azariah son of Maaseiah, son of Ananiah, beside his own house.

²⁴ Next to him Binnui son of Henadad repaired another section from the house of Azariah as far as the Angle.

²⁵ Next to him Palal son of Uzai carried out repairs opposite the corner of the tower jutting out over the upper palace of the king and standing in the prison courtyard. Next to him Pedaiah son of Parosh carried out repairs

²⁶ as far as the Water Gate, in an easterly direction and up to a point opposite the projecting tower.

²⁷ Next to him the men of Tekoa repaired another section opposite the great projecting tower as far as the wall of Ophel.

²⁸ From the Horse Gate onwards repairs were carried out by the priests, each opposite his own house.

²⁹ Next to them repairs were carried out by Zadok son of Immer opposite his own house. Next to him repairs were carried out by Shemaiah son of Shecaniah, keeper of the East Gate.

³⁰ Next to him Hananiah son of Shelemiah and Hanun sixth son of Zalaph repaired another section. Next to him repairs were carried out by Meshullam son of Berechiah opposite where he lived.

³¹ Next to him Malchijah, of the goldsmiths’ guild, repaired as far as the quarters of the oblates and of the merchants, opposite the Watch Gate as far as the high chamber of the corner.

³² And between the high chamber of the corner and the Sheep Gate repairs were carried out by the goldsmiths and the merchants.

³³ When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the walls he flew into a rage, beside himself with anger. He ridiculed the Jews

³⁴ and in front of his kinsmen and the wealthy men of Samaria he exclaimed, ‘What are these pathetic Jews trying to do?… Do they expect to finish in one day? Do they think they can put new life into these charred stones, salvaged from the heaps of rubble?’

³⁵ Tobiah the Ammonite was standing beside him. ‘Let them build,’ he said ‘a jackal jumping on their wall will soon knock the stones down again.’

³⁶ See, our God, how we are despised! Make their sneers fall back on their own heads. Give them over to shame in a land of exile.

³⁷ Do not hide their guilt or let their sin be blotted out before you, for heaping insults on the builders.

³⁸ Meanwhile we were rebuilding the wall which was soon finished all the way round to mid-height, since the people put their hearts into the work.