| International Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1These are the leaders of the families listed among those who left Babylon with me during the reign of King Artaxerxes: | 1These are the leaders and those enrolled with them by genealogy who were coming up with me from Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes: |
| 2From Phinehas's descendants: Gershom. From Ithamar's descendants: Daniel. From David's descendants: Hattush. | 2from the descendants of Phinehas, Gershom; from the descendants of Ithamar, Daniel; from the descendants of David, Hattush |
| 3From Shecaniah's descendants and from Parosh's descendants: Zechariah, along with 150 men whose genealogies had been certified. | 3the son of Shecaniah; from the descendants of Parosh, Zechariah, and with him were enrolled by genealogy 150 men; |
| 4From Pahath-moab's descendants: Zerahiah's son Eliehoenai and 200 men with him. | 4from the descendants of Pahath-Moab, Eliehoenai son of Zerahiah, and with him 200 men; |
| 5From Zattu's descendants: Jahaziel's son Shecaniah and 300 men with him. | 5from the descendants of Zattu, Shecaniah son of Jahaziel, and with him 300 men; |
| 6From Adin's descendants: Jonathan's son Ebed and 50 men with him. | 6from the descendants of Adin, Ebed son of Jonathan, and with him 50 men; |
| 7From Elam's descendants: Athaliah's son Jeshaiah and 70 men with him. | 7from the descendants of Elam, Jeshaiah son of Athaliah, and with him 70 men; |
| 8From Shephatiah's descendants: Michael's son Zebadiah and 80 men with him. | 8from the descendants of Shephatiah, Zebadiah son of Michael, and with him 80 men; |
| 9From Joab's descendants: Jehiel's son Obadiah and 218 men with him. | 9from the descendants of Joab, Obadiah son of Jehiel, and with him 218 men; |
| 10From Bani's descendants: Josiphiah's son Shelomith and 160 men with him. | 10from the descendants of Bani, Shelomith son of Josiphiah, and with him 160 men; |
| 11From Bebai's descendants: Bebai's son Zechariah and 28 men with him. | 11from the descendants of Bebai, Zechariah son of Bebai, and with him 28 men; |
| 12From Azgad's descendants: Hakkatan's son Johanan and 110 men with him. | 12from the descendants of Azgad, Johanan son of Hakkatan, and with him 110 men; |
| 13From Adonikam's later descendants: Eliphelet, Jeuel, Shemaiah, and 60 men with him. | 13from the descendants of Adonikam there were the latter ones. Their names were Eliphelet, Jeuel, and Shemaiah, and with them 60 men; |
| 14From Bigvai's descendants: Uthai, Zabbud, and 70 men with him. | 14from the descendants of Bigvai, Uthai, and Zaccur, and with them 70 men. |
| 15I gathered them together at the river that flows toward Ahava, where we camped three days. Afterwards, I examined the people and the priests, but found no descendants of Levi there. | 15I had them assemble at the canal that flows toward Ahava, and we camped there for three days. I observed that the people and the priests were present, but I found no Levites there. |
| 16So I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and Meshullam, who were senior leaders, as well as for Joiarib and Elnathan, who were men of discernment. | 16So I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and Meshullam, who were leaders, and Joiarib and Elnathan, who were teachers. |
| 17I told them to go see Iddo, a leader of Casiphia, and tell him and his relatives (administrators of Casiphia) to bring us men who could serve in the Temple of our God. | 17I sent them to Iddo, who was the leader in the place called Casiphia. I told them what to say to Iddo and his relatives, who were the temple servants in Casiphia, so they would bring us attendants for the temple of our God. |
| 18By the grace of our God they brought back a discerning man from the descendants of Mahli, a descendant of Israel's son Levi, along with Sherebiah and eighteen of his sons and brothers; | 18Due to the fact that the good hand of our God was on us, they brought us a skilled man, from the descendants of Mahli the son of Levi son of Israel. This man was Sherebiah, who was accompanied by his sons and brothers, 18 men, |
| 19Hashabiah and Jeshaiah from the descendants of Merari and 20 of his brothers and their sons; | 19and Hashabiah, along with Jeshaiah from the descendants of Merari, with his brothers and their sons, 20 men, |
| 20220 descendants of the Temple Servants whom David and the leaders had appointed to serve the descendants of Levi, listed by name. | 20and some of the temple servants that David and his officials had established for the work of the Levites--220 of them. They were all designated by name. |
| 21Then I called for a fast there at the Ahava River so we could humble ourselves before our God and seek from him an appropriate way for us and our little ones to live, and how we should guard our personal wealth, | 21I called for a fast there by the Ahava Canal, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and seek from him a safe journey for us, our children, and all our property. |
| 22because I was ashamed to ask the king for a contingent of soldiers and cavalry to protect us from enemies we might encounter on the way. After all, we had told the king, "The hand of our God seeks the good of all who seek him, but his power and anger are against everyone who forsakes him." | 22I was embarrassed to request soldiers and horsemen from the king to protect us from the enemy along the way, because we had said to the king, "The good hand of our God is on everyone who is seeking him, but his great anger is against everyone who forsakes him." |
| 23So we fasted and asked our God about this, and he listened to us. | 23So we fasted and prayed to our God about this, and he answered us. |
| 24Next I selected twelve of the chief priests—Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brothers with them— | 24Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests, together with Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their brothers, |
| 25and divided between them the silver, the gold, the vessels, and the offering for the Temple of our God which the king had offered, along with his advisors, his senior officials, and all of Israel assembled there. | 25and I weighed out to them the silver, the gold, and the vessels intended for the temple of our God--items that the king, his advisers, his officials, and all Israel who were present had contributed. |
| 26I divided among them 650 silver talents, silver utensils weighing 100 talents, 100 talents of gold, | 26I weighed out to them 650 talents of silver, silver vessels worth 100 talents, 100 talents of gold, |
| 2720 gold basins weighing 1,000 darics each, and two vessels made of polished brass, as valuable as gold. | 2720 gold bowls worth 1,000 darics, and two exquisite vessels of gleaming bronze, as valuable as gold. |
| 28I told them, "You are consecrated to the LORD, and the vessels are also consecrated. The silver and the gold are a freely given offering to the LORD God of your ancestors. | 28Then I said to them, "You are holy to the LORD, just as these vessels are holy. The silver and the gold are a voluntary offering to the LORD, the God of your fathers. |
| 29Guard and protect them until you disperse them to the chief priests, the descendants of Levi, and to the family leaders of Israel at Jerusalem in the chambers of the Temple of the LORD." | 29Be careful with them and protect them, until you weigh them out before the leading priests and the Levites and the family leaders of Israel in Jerusalem, in the storerooms of the temple of the LORD." |
| 30So the priests and descendants of Levi took possession of the silver, the gold, and the vessels in order to bring them to Jerusalem, to the Temple of our God. | 30Then the priests and the Levites took charge of the silver, the gold, and the vessels that had been weighed out, to transport them to Jerusalem to the temple of our God. |
| 31Then we left the Ahava River for Jerusalem on the twelfth day of the first month. Our God's protection was with us, and he delivered us from the enemy's power and from ambush along the way. | 31On the twelfth day of the first month we began traveling from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from our enemy and from bandits along the way. |
| 32We arrived in Jerusalem and remained there three days. | 32So we came to Jerusalem, and we stayed there for three days. |
| 33On the fourth day the silver, the gold, and the vessels were distributed at the Temple of our God into the care of Uriah's son Meremoth the priest, Phinehas' son Eleazar, Jeshua's son Jozabad, and Binnui's son Noadiah, the descendants of Levi. | 33On the fourth day we weighed out the silver, the gold, and the vessels in the house of our God into the care of Meremoth son of Uriah, the priest, and Eleazar son of Phinehas, who were accompanied by Jozabad son of Jeshua and Noadiah son of Binnui, who were Levites. |
| 34Distribution was according to inventory and weight, with all weights being recorded at that time. | 34Everything was verified by number and by weight, and the total weight was written down at that time. |
| 35The descendants of those who had been taken into captivity and who had returned from captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all of Israel, 96 rams, 77 lambs, and twelve male goats as a sin offering—all of them burnt offerings to the LORD. | 35The exiles who were returning from the captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel--twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven male lambs, along with twelve male goats as a sin offering. All this was a burnt offering to the LORD. |
| 36Then they delivered copies of the king's orders to the king's officers, and governors on this side of the Euphrates River. The orders were in support of the people and God's Temple. | 36Then they presented the decrees of the king to the king's satraps and to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, who gave help to the people and to the temple of God. |
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