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Day 300 and 55
Here is the list of the priests and Levites who returned with Abel,
son of Shi and Je the high priest.
Re.
Jeremiah Ezra.
Amiah.
Maek.
Ishaya Haram.
Meath.
Ido Han Aja Minya
Mobil.
She Joya, Judea, slu, ak, AYA, and Judea.
These were the leaders of the priests and their associates in the days of je.
The Levis who returned with them were Jesu ua, CAEL, abaya, Judah, and
Matia, who with his associates was in charge of the songs of Thanksgiving.
Their associates, BAK, Bacha, and Anai stood opposite them during the service.
Jehu, the high priest was the father of Joki.
Joki was the father of Eliashib.
Eliashib was the father of Joah.
Jota was the father of Johannan.
Johannan was the father of Jaa.
Now, when Joya Kim was high priest, the family leaders of
the priests were as follows.
Mariah was leader of the family of Seray.
Hananiah was leader of the family of Jeremiah.
Ms.
Shula was leader of the family of Ezra Jijo.
Hanan was leader of the family of Amiah.
Jonathan was leader of the family of Maluk.
Joseph was leader of the family of Shena, was leader of the family of Harem.
Hel Chi was leader of the family of Marath.
Zechariah was leader of the family of Ito.
Machu was leader of the family of Guhan.
Zaria was leader of the family of Aja.
There was also a leader of the family of Minan.
Pil was leader of the family of Moad.
Shaa was leader of the family of Bil Ga Johanan was leader of the family of Shama.
Matt and I was leader of the family of Joya Rib.
Aai was leader of the family of Judea.
Kalai was leader of the family of Slu Eber was leader of the family of Amoc.
Hasha Baah was leader of the family of Alka.
Neel was leader of the family of Jaa.
A record of the Levite family was kept during the years when Eliashib, Joda,
Johannan, and Jaa served as high priests.
Another record of the priests was kept during the reign of Arias, the
Persian, a record of the heads of the Levite families was kept in the
book of history down to the days of Johannan, the grandson of Eliashib.
These were the family leaders of the Levites, has Shabiah,
Shi Abaya, Joshua Nui, CAEL.
And other associates who stood opposite them during the ceremonies
of Praise and Thanksgiving.
One section responding to the other, as commanded by David the man of God.
This included Matt Aniah, vak, Bacha, and Obadiah.
Ms.
Shula.
Talman and ACA were the gatekeepers in charge of the store rooms at the gates.
These all served in the days of Joya Kim, son of Je, son of Jeh, Zak.
And in the days of Nehemiah, the governor and of Ezra, the priest and scribe
for the dedication of the new wall of Jerusalem, the Levites throughout
the land were asked to come to Jerusalem to assist in the ceremonies.
They were to take part in the joyous occasion with their songs
of Thanksgiving and with the music of symbols, harps, and liars.
The singers were brought together from the region around Jerusalem
and from the villages of the nites.
They also came from Beth Gilgal and the rural areas near Giba and asthma.
Beth, for the singers had built their own settlements around Jerusalem.
The priests and Levites first purified themselves.
Then they purified the people, the gates and the wall.
I led the leaders of Judah to the top of the wall and organized
two large choirs to give thanks.
One of the choirs proceeded southward along the top of
the wall to the dung gate.
Hohaia and half the leaders of Judah followed them along with
Azariah, Ezra, Chulo, Judah, Benjamin, Shama, and Jeremiah.
Then came some priests who played trumpets, including Zechariah,
son of Jonathan, son of Shama, son of Matia, son of McKay, son of
Zachary, a descendant of ASAP and Zachariah's colleagues were Shema Elle.
Milly, Gilli, Mayi, Nathaniel Judah, and Hane nai.
They used the musical instruments prescribed by David the man of God.
Ezra the scribe led this procession at the Fountain Gate.
They went straight up the steps on the ascent of the city
wall toward the city of David.
They passed the house of David and then proceeded to the Watergate on the east.
The second choir giving thanks went northward around
the other way to meet them.
I followed them together with the other half of the people along the top of the
wall, passed the tower of the ovens to the broad wall, then passed the Efram
gate to the old city gate, passed the fish gate and the Tower of Hannanel,
and onto the tower of the hundred.
Then we continued on to the sheep gate and stopped at the guard gate.
The two choirs that were giving thanks.
Then proceeded to the Temple of God where they took their places.
So did I.
Together with the group of leaders who were with me.
We went together with the trumpet playing priests, Eliakim, Maia,
Yemen, McKay, EAI, Zacharia, and Hananiah, and the singers Meia.
She Zer.
Aai, Jijo, Hanan, mal Caja, ELAM, and Zer.
They played and sang loudly under the direction of Jez Haya, the choir director.
Many sacrifices were offered on that joyous day.
For God had given the people cause for great joy.
The women and children also participated in the celebration
and the joy of the people of Jerusalem could be heard far away.
On that day, men were appointed to be in charge of the store
rooms for the offerings.
The first part of the harvest and the tithes.
They were responsible to collect from the fields outside the towns.
The portions required by the law for the priests and Levites for all
the people of Judah took joy in the priests and Levites and their work.
They performed the service of their God and the service of purification as
commanded by David and his son Solomon.
And so did the singers and the gatekeepers.
The custom of having choir directors to lead the choirs in hymns of praise
and Thanksgiving to God began long ago in the days of David and asap.
So now in the days of Zabul and of Nehemiah, all is Israel brought a
daily supply of food for the singers, the gatekeepers, and the Levites.
The Levites, in turn, gave a portion of what they received to the
priests, the descendants of Aaron.
On that same day as the book of Moses was being read to the people, the
passage was found that said, no Amite or Moabite should ever be permitted
to enter the assembly of God for they had not provided the Israelites with
food and water in the wilderness.
Instead, they hired Balaam to curse them.
Though our God turned the curse into a blessing when this passage of the law
was read, all those of foreign descent.
Were immediately excluded from the assembly.
Before this had happened, Eliashib the priest who had been appointed
as supervisor of the store rooms of the temple of our God and who
was also a relative of Tobiah, had converted a large storage room and
placed it at Tobiah's disposal.
The room had previously been used for storing the grain offerings,
the frankincense, various articles for the temple and the tithes of
grain, new wine, and olive oil.
Which were prescribed for the Levites, the singers, and the gatekeepers, as
well as the offerings for the priests.
I was not in Jerusalem at that time for I had returned to King Arteris of Babylon
in the 32nd year of his reign, though I later asked his permission to return.
When I arrived back in Jerusalem, I learned about Eliashib's evil deed
in providing Tobiah with a room in the courtyards of the temple of God.
I became very upset and threw all of Tobiah's belongings out of the room.
Then I demanded that the rooms be purified and I brought back the
articles for God's temple, the grain offerings, and the frankincense.
I also discovered that the Levites had not been given their prescribed portions
of food, so they, and the singers who were to conduct the worship services
had all returned to work their fields.
I immediately confronted the leaders.
And demanded, why has the temple of God been neglected?
Then I called all the levies back again and restored them to their proper duties.
And once more, all the people of Judah began bringing their tithes
of grain, new wine, and olive oil to the temple store rooms.
I assigned supervisors for the store rooms, shamiah the priest, Zadok the
scribe, and Padea one of the Levites.
And I appointed Hanan son of Zacker and grandson of Mat Aniah as their assistant.
These men had an excellent reputation, and it was their job to make honest
distributions to their fellow levies.
Remember this good deed, oh my God.
And do not forget all that I have faithfully done for the temple
of my God and its services.
In those days, I saw men of Judah treading out their wine presses on the Sabbath.
They were also bringing in grain, loading it on donkeys, and bringing their wine,
grapes, figs, and all sorts of produce to Jerusalem to sell on the Sabbath.
So I rebuked them for selling their produce on that day.
Some men from tire who lived in Jerusalem were bringing in fish
and all kinds of merchandise.
They were selling it on the Sabbath to the people of Judah and in Jerusalem at that.
So I confronted the nobles of Judah, why are you profaning
the Sabbath in this evil way?
I asked, wasn't it just this sort of thing that your ancestors did
that caused our God to bring all this trouble upon us and our city?
Now you are bringing even more wrath upon Israel by permitting the
Sabbath to be desecrated in this way.
Then I commanded that the gates of Jerusalem should be shut as darkness
fell every Friday evening, not to be opened until the Sabbath ended.
I sent some of my own servants to guard the gates so that no merchandise
could be brought in on the Sabbath day.
The merchants and tradesmen with a variety of wares camped outside
Jerusalem once or twice, but I spoke sharply to them and said, what are you
doing out here camping around the wall?
If you do this again, I will arrest you.
That was the last time they came on the Sabbath.
Then I commanded the Levites to purify themselves and to guard the gates in order
to preserve the holiness of the Sabbath.
Remember this good deed also, oh my God, have compassion on me according
to your great and unfailing love.
About the same time I realized that some of the men of Judah had married
women from Ashdod, Amon, and Moab.
Furthermore, half their children spoke the language of Ash Dodd or
of some other people and could not speak the language of Judah at all.
So I confronted them and called down curses on them.
I beat some of them and pulled out their hair.
I made them swear in the name of God that they would not let
their children intermarry with the pagan people of the land.
Wasn't this exactly what led King Solomon of Israel into sin?
I demanded.
There was no king from any nation who could compare to him.
And God loved him and made him king over all Israel, but even he was
led into sin by his foreign wives.
How could you even think of committing this sinful deed and acting unfaithful
toward God by marrying foreign women?
One of the sons of Jota, son of Eliashib, the high priest, had married
a daughter of San Ballad the Ho Night.
So I banished him from my presence.
Remember them, oh my God, for they have defiled the priesthood and the
solemn vows of the priests and levies.
So I purged out everything, foreign and assigned tasks to the priests and levies,
making certain that each knew his work.
I also made sure that the supply of wood for the altar and the
first portions of the harvest were brought at the proper times.
Remember this in my favor.
Oh my God.