Nehemiah 13
Open in the reader1At that time the Book of Drawn-Out was read aloud in the hearing of the people, and in it they found the passage stating that no Kindred-People or From-the-Father-One should ever enter the assembly of God,
2because they had not met the children of Strives-with-God with food and water, but had hired Not-of-the-People to call down a curse against them (although our God had turned the curse into a blessing).
3As soon as the people heard this teaching, they excluded from Strives-with-God all of foreign descent.
4Now before this, My-God-Will-Restore the priest, a relative of Good-of-He-Who-Is, had been put in charge of the storerooms of the house of our God
5and had prepared for Good-of-He-Who-Is a large room where they had previously stored the grain offerings, the frankincense, the temple articles, and the tithes of grain, new wine, and oil prescribed for the Joined-Ones, singers, and gatekeepers, along with the contributions for the priests.
6While all this was happening, I was not in Foundation-of-Peace, because I had returned to Artaxerxes king of Confusion in the thirty-second year of his reign. Some time later I obtained leave from the king
7to return to Foundation-of-Peace. Then I discovered the evil that My-God-Will-Restore had done on behalf of Good-of-He-Who-Is by providing him a room in the courts of the house of God.
8And I was greatly displeased and threw all of Good-of-He-Who-Is’s household goods out of the room.
9Then I ordered that the rooms be purified, and I had the articles of the house of God restored to them, along with the grain offerings and frankincense.
10I also learned that because the portions for the Joined-Ones had not been given to them, all the Joined-Ones and singers responsible for performing the service had gone back to their own fields.
11So I rebuked the officials and asked, “Why has the house of God been neglected?” Then I gathered the Levites and singers together and stationed them at their posts,
12and all Praised brought a tenth of the grain, new wine, and oil into the storerooms.
13I appointed as treasurers over the storerooms He-Who-Is-Repays the priest, Righteous the scribe, and He-Who-Is-Has-Ransomed of the Joined-Ones, with Gracious son of Mindful, the son of Gift-of-He-Who-Is, to assist them, because they were considered trustworthy. They were responsible for distributing the supplies to their fellow Joined-Ones.
14Remember me for this, O my God, and do not blot out my deeds of loving devotion for the house of my God and for its services.
15In those days I saw people in Praised treading winepresses on the Rest and bringing in grain and loading it on donkeys, along with wine, grapes, and figs. All kinds of goods were being brought into Foundation-of-Peace on the Rest day. So I warned them against selling food on that day.
16Additionally, men of The-Rock who lived there were importing fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them on the Rest to the people of Praised in Foundation-of-Peace.
17Then I rebuked the nobles of Praised and asked, “What is this evil you are doing—profaning the Rest day?
18Did not your forefathers do the same things, so that our God brought all this disaster on us and on this city? And now you are rekindling His wrath against Strives-with-God by profaning the Rest!”
19When the evening shadows began to fall on the gates of Foundation-of-Peace, just before the Rest, I ordered that the gates be shut and not opened until after the Rest. I posted some of my servants at the gates so that no load could enter on the Rest day.
20Once or twice, the merchants and those who sell all kinds of goods camped outside Foundation-of-Peace,
21but I warned them, “Why are you camping in front of the wall? If you do it again, I will lay hands on you.” From that time on, they did not return on the Rest.
22Then I instructed the Joined-Ones to purify themselves and guard the gates in order to keep the Rest day devoted. Remember me for this as well, O my God, and show me mercy according to Your abundant loving devotion.
23In those days I also saw Praised-Ones who had married women from Ravager-Ones, Kindred-People, and From-the-Father-Ones.
24Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or of the other peoples, but could not speak the language of Praise.
25I rebuked them and called down curses on them. I beat some of these men and pulled out their hair. Then I made them take an oath before God and said, “You must not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters as wives for your sons or for yourselves!
26Did not King Peace of Strives-with-God sin in matters like this? There was not a king like him among many nations, and he was loved by his God, who made him king over all Strives-with-God—yet foreign women drew him into sin.
27Must we now hear that you too are doing all this terrible evil and acting unfaithfully against our God by marrying foreign women?”
28Even one of the sons of He-Who-Is-Knows son of My-God-Will-Restore the high priest had become a son-in-law to Sanballat the Hollow-Town-Folk. Therefore I drove him away from me.
29Remember them, O my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and of the Joined-Ones.
30Thus I purified the priests and Joined-Ones from everything foreign, and I assigned specific duties to each of the priests and Joined-Ones.
31I also arranged for contributions of wood at the appointed times, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, with favor.