OET interlinear NEH 12:30

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-contrast

וַ⁠יִּֽטַּהֲר֔וּ הַ⁠כֹּהֲנִ֖ים וְ⁠הַ⁠לְוִיִּ֑ם וַֽ⁠יְטַהֲרוּ֙ אֶת־הָ⁠עָ֔ם וְ⁠אֶת־הַ⁠שְּׁעָרִ֖ים וְ⁠אֶֽת־הַ⁠חוֹמָֽה

and,purified the,priests and,the,Levites and,purified DOM the,people and=DOM the,gates and, the,wall

This sentence draws a contrast between the joyful celebration that is about to begin in this part of the story and the solemn ceremony that the priests and Levites performed beforehand. You could begin the sentence with a phrase such as “but first” to indicate this contrast. Alternate translation: “But first the priests and Levites performed a ceremony to make themselves clean, and they did the same thing for the people, the gates, and the wall”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

וַ⁠יִּֽטַּהֲר֔וּ

and,purified

Nehemiah expects his readers to know specifically how the priests and Levites did this, but the details are no longer certain. They may have sprinkled themselves, the people, the gates, and the walls with water or with blood, or they may have offered sacrifices. But while the details are uncertain, the purpose of the ceremony is clear. It was to show that the Israelites wanted this place and everyone in it to be acceptable to God. So while it might be best not to suggest how the priests and Levites performed this ceremony, since that is unknown, you could say explicitly what the purpose was if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: “And they performed a ceremony to show that they wanted to be clean and acceptable to God”