Open English Translation NEH Chapter 12

12 These are the priests and the Levites who came back with Shealtiyel’s son Zerubavel and with Yeshua:

• Serayah, Yermeyah, and Ezra,
• 2 Amaryah, Malluk, and Hattush,
• 3 Shekanyah, Rehum, and Meremot,
• 4 Iddo, Ginneton, and Aviyyah,
• 5 Miyyamin, Moadyah, and Bilgah,
• 6 Shemayah, Yoyariv, and Yedayah,
• 7 Sallu, Amok, Hilkiyyah, and another Yedayah.

Those were the leaders of the priests and their brothers in Yeshua’s time.

8 The Levites were:

• Yeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Shereveyah, Yehudah, and Mattanyah who led the thanksgiving songs along with his brothers,
• 9 Bakbukyah and Unni—their brothers who stood opposite them in the services.

10 Yeshua fathered Yoyakim who then fathered Elyashiv, and Elyashiv fathered Yoyada. 11 Then Yoyada fathered Yonatan who then fathered Yaddua.

12 In Yoyakim’s time, these were the heads of the priestly families:

• Merayah was the head of Serayah’s family,
• Hananyah for Yirmeyah’s,
• 13 Meshullam for Ezra’s family,
• Yehohanan for Amaryah’s,
• 14 Yonatan for Malluk’s family,
• Yosef for Shevanyah’s,
• 15 Adna for Harim’s family,
• Helkai for Merayot’s,
• 16 Zekaryah for Iddo’s family,
• Meshullam for Ginneton’s,
• 17 Zikri for Aviyyah’s family,
• Filtai for Moadyah’s,
• 18 Shammua for Bilgah’s family,
• Yonatan for Shemayah’s,
• 19 Mattenai for Yoyariv’s family,
• Uzzi for Yedayah’s,
• 20 Kallai for Sallai’s family,
• Ever for Amok’s,
• 21 Hashavyah for Hilkiyyah’s family,
• and Netan’el for Yedayah’s.

22 In the days of Elyashiv, Yoyada, Yohanan, and Yaddua, during the reign of Persian King Darius, the heads of the families of the Levites and priests were recorded. 23 The names of the descendants of Levi who were heads of families were written in the official history records up till the time of Elyashiv’s son Yohanan.

24 The Levites’ leaders were Hashavyah, Shereveyah, and Kadmiel’s son Yeshua with their brothers serving opposite them in each service to praise and give thanks as had been commanded by David, the man of God.

25 Mattanyah, Bakbukyah, Ovadyah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkuv were gatekeepers who stood guard at the storerooms near the temple gates.

26 That was at the time of Yoyakim (son of Yeshua, son of Yotsadak), and at the time of Nehemyah the governor and Ezra the priest and scribe.

27 At the dedication of the wall around Yerushalem, they summoned Levites from all over the region to come to Yerushalem to perform the dedication with rejoicing and thanksgiving, and with musical instruments and singing, 28 plus the next generation of singers came both from Yerushalem and its surrounds, and from the Netofati villages. 29 They also came from Beyt-Gilgal, and from the fields of Geva and Azmavet, because the singers had built villages near Yerushalem to live in. 30 The priests and Levites held a purification ceremony for themselves, then they purified the people and the gates and the wall.

31 Then I assembled Yehudah’s leaders together up on top of the wall, and I assigned them into two large groups who would give thanks as they walked around it.

The first group headed towards the Dung Gate on the right. 32 Hoshayah and half of Yehudah’s officials were in that group 33 along with Azaryah, Ezra, and Meshullam, 34 Yehudah, Benyamin, Shemayah, and Yirmeyah, 35 plus some of the next generation of priests with trumpets: Zekaryah (son of Yonatan, son of Shemayah, son of Mattanyah, son of Mikayah, son of Zakkur, son of Asaf) 36 and his brothers Shemayah, Azar’el, Milalai, Gilalai, Ma’ai, Nethan’el, Yehudah, and Hanani. They used the instruments as per the instructions of the late King David, the man of God. Ezra the scribe went in front of them. 37 When they got to the Fountain Gate, they went up the stairs at the City of David, and along the higher portion of the wall by David’s palace as far as the Water Gate (on the east side of the city).

38 The other group giving thanks with the other half of the people went in the opposite direction around the top of the wall—going past the Tower of the Ovens to the wider part of the wall. 39 We passed Efraim Gate, the Old Gate, Fish Gate, and Hananel Tower, the Tower of the Hundred, and all the way to the Sheep Gate, and we stopped at the Guard Gate.

40 Then both groups ended up at the temple and stood there. I was there with the half of the city officials who’d accompanied me, 41 as well as the priests with their trumpets: Elyakim, Ma’aseyah, Minyamin, Mikayah, Elyeoenai, Zekaryah, Hanayah, 42 another Ma’aseyah, Shemayah, El’azar, Uzzi, Yehohanan, Malkiyyah, Eylam, and Ezer. The singers sang loudly with their leader Yizrahyah.

43 Then that same day they offered many sacrifices, and they celebrated because God had made them very pleased. The women and children also celebrated, in fact the sound of the celebrations in Yerushalem was so loud that it can be heard far away.

44 Then still on that same day, men were appointed to be in charge of the storerooms for the tithes and offerings. The percentages for the priests and the Levites were gathered from the fields around the cities as per the written law, because the people of Yehudah were happy to have the priests and the Levites serving. 45 They served God with their daily duties and the purification ceremonies, as well as the duties of the singers and gatekeepers—all done according to the instructions left by King David and his son Shelomoh,[ref] 46 because it was handed down from the original singers who sang songs of praise and thanksgiving to God in the time of David and Asaf. 47 In Zerubavel and Nehemyah’s times, all Israel contributed the daily food allowance for the singers and gatekeepers. They also gave a percentage to the Levites who then gave a percentage of that to the priests (Aharon’s descendants).