THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. THE SECOND STATESMAN OF THAT NAME. AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY. Nehemiah flourished about 446 B.C. have sinned. We have offended ^ lakalraf; against You, and not obeyed the commands, and Institutions, and T happened in the month of 1 Decrees, which You commanded to I Nisan, in the twentieth year Your servant Moses. Remember 8 (of Arthakshasta) when I was at the now the promise You communi­ 2 Palace of Shush an, Hanani, one of cated to Your servant Moses, saying, my relatives, and another man came ' If you abandon them, I will scatter from Judah and Jerusalem from the you amongst the Nations ; but if you 9 Jews who had escaped, who were return to Me, and guard My Com­ left behind from the Captivity and mands, and practise them, although 3 were in Jerusalem, and they told me you may be scattered to the extent that the remnant who were left there of the skies, I will collect you from out of the Captivity in that Province, thence, and bring you to the place were in great distress, and contempt, where I have chosen that My Name and the walls of Jerusalem were should dwell.' And these are Your JO broken, and its gates had been burnt servants, and Your People whom You with fire redeemed by Your Great Power, and strong hand! ALMIGHTY! I now n ^tr-Irettttah/* flrausr far Israel. entreat You let Your ears attend to 4 When I heard their account of the prayer of Your servant, and to this, I sat and wept, and was de­ the prayers of Your servants who pressed for some time, and then I delight in and reverence Your NAME, fasted and prayed before the GOD and I pray You to give Your servant 5 OF THE HEAVENS, and I exclaimed; success to-day, and grant him favour " EVER-LIVING GOD of the Heavens before this man." —the GREAT GOD, and Terrible, I was then butler to the king. Who remembers the Covenant, and shows kindness to those who love %\t |litt« VJBIIJJS brity gUfcnttaJr. 6 Him, and obey His commands,—let It was in the month of Nisan, in 2 Your ears now listen, and Your eyes the twentieth year of King Arthak­ open to receive the prayer of Your shasta, when he was at wine, that I servant, which I pray before You, carried the wine, and gave it to the from day to day, and night to night, King, but my face was sad before an account of the children of Israel him, so the King asked me, " Why is 2 Your servant, who have sinned against your face sad, when you are not ill ? You;—and I and my father's family That can be nothing except sorrow at heart!" 1 NOTE.—Ch. 1, v. 1. The month should be Then I was very much afraid, but 3 replied to the King; " May the King Nisan, ]D\J. not VbOD. Kislu, see Ch. a, live for ever!—Why should not my v. 1. In the-Hebrew alphabet the slip of a face be sad, when the town of the pen in copying makes the difference. The tombs of my fathers is ashes, and its opening of Nehemiah seems to intimate that gates consumed by fire ? " a revolt of the pagan colonists had occurred between 457 and 446 B.C., in which Jerusalem When the King answered, " What 4 was burnt and the Second Ezra was slain.— do you ask for?" !•'. F. So I prayed to the GOD OF THE 925 2-5 NEHEMIAH. 3-S 5 HEAVENS and said to the king, "If what I had done; nor had I informed it seems good to the king, and if your the Jews, or the Priests, or the Depu­ servant has favour before you, it is to ties, or the nobles, and the rest, what send me to Judea to the burial town I had done. I said, however, to them, 17 of my fathers,—and I will rebuild it." " You see the misery that we are in. 6 The King then asked me—and the —How Jerusalem is ashes, and its Queen sat beside him—" How long gates burnt with fire. Let us go and will you be gone ? and when will you rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, when return ? " we shall no longer be an object of contempt." I also explained to them 18 H)ft fling makes Htm (Babernor laf the beneficent hand of the EVER- LIVING that was with me, as well as Jerusalem. the promises of the King which he Thus it pleased the King, and he had promised me, when they replied, sent me, and I fixed a time with him, "We will arise and rebuild"; and 7 and said to the king, " If it is pleasing they invigorated their hands for good. to the king, let them give me letters ~ But when Sanballat the Horonite, 19 to the Governors of the Over-river, and Tobiah his slave, the Amonite, so that they may allow me to proceed and Geshem, the Arabian, heard it, 8 until I arrive at Judea. And letters they laughed at, and jeered about us, to Asaph, the Keeper of the King's and asked " What is this business that Paradises,1 that he may give me you are doing? Are you going to timber to construct the Gates of rebel against the king ? " the Burial-place belonging to the spot, and for the walls of the town, I, however, replied to them, and 20 said: " The GOD OF THE HEAVENS and for the house I am going to." has given us prosperity, so we rise The King consequently gave me up and build;—but you have no them by the good influence of GOD share in it, nor right, nor traditions 9 upon me, and I proceeded to the in Jerusalem." Governors of the Over-river, and gave them the letters of the king. The %\ft HUlla of Jerusalem xlekuilt. King had also sent with me Officers of the Army and cavalry. Aliashib the High Priest, and his 8 relatives the Priests accordingly arose xo But when Sanballat the Horonite, and built the Sheep Gate, conse­ and Tobiah his slave, the Amonite, crated, and set up its doors, and heard the affair, it grieved them very consecrated from the Tower of greatly, that a man should come to Hamah to the Tower of Hananal. try to benefit the Children of Israel. And the men of Jeriko built from the 2 n I, however, went to Jerusalem and side of it; and next to them Zikri- 12 was there three days; bi t had risen ben-Amri built. And the sons of 3 in the night, and a few men with me, Hasenah built the Fish Gate and set and had informed no man what GOD up the doors, with its bolts and bad put into my heart to do for Jeru­ bars. And Merimoth-ben-Auriah- 4 salem,—and I had no animal with ben-Akakoz repaired their side; and me, except the animal I rode upon, next to them Meshalum-ben-Bere- 13 and at night I went out by the Valley kiah-ben-Meshabzabel repaired; and 5 Gate, opposite the Snakes' Well, and next to them, the Thakoites re­ on to the Dung Gate, and I saw the paired, but their gentry did not walls of Jerusalem that were shat­ bring their necks to the work of tered and broken and its Gates con- their Master. And Jorada-ben-Pask, 6 14 sumed by fire. From there I passed and Meshulam - ben - Basodiah, re­ to the Well Gate, and the King's paired the Old Gate; they built it Reservoir, but there was not a place and set up its doors, and bolts and 15 for my animal to pass through. I bars. And next to them Melatiah, 7 afterwards went and viewed by night the Gibanite, and Jadon the Mero- along the brook, and surveyed the thonite, men of Gibaon and Mizpha, shattered wall,—thence I turned and Presidents of the Over-river Court, entered by the Vale Gate, and came repaired, and next to them Uziel- 8 16 back. But the Deputy Governors ben-Harakiah, and the Goldsmiths did not know that I had gone, or repaired; and next to them Hana- niah, head of the Apothecaries, and 1 set Jerusalem free to the breadth of NOTE.—Parks or Forests. 92b 3—9 NEHEMIAH. 3-38 9 the wall! And beside them, Rephiah- site the Corner and the tower that ben-Hur the Governor of half the projects from the Higher Royal 10 district of Jerusalem repaired; And Palace where the Guards' Barracks next to them Jediah-ben-Harumaf are. After him, Pediah-ben-Parash, repaired, and all before his house; with the Attendants who were 26 and next to him Hatorh-ben-Has- lodged on the Hill, opposite the 11 habniah. Next from there Malkiah- Water Gate, towards the East, where ben-Harim repaired; and Hashub- the Tower projects. After them, the 27 ben-Pathakh-Moab repaired to the Thakoites repaired another length, 12 Foundry Tower; And next to them from opposite the Great Projecting Shalem-ben-Halukash, Governor of Tower to the wall of the Hill. From 28 half of the district of Jerusalem, re­ the Horse Gate, the Priests each paired, joined with his daughters; repaired opposite his house. After 29 13 Hanan and the people of Zanoh them, Zadok - ben - Amer, repaired repaired the Valley Gate; they built opposite his house.