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¹ And that day dyd they read in the booke of Moyses in the audience of the people, and therein was founde written, that the Ammonites, & Moabites shoulde neuer come into the congregation of God,² Because they met not the children of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them that he should curse them: and our God turned the curse into a blessing.³ Nowe when they had hearde the law, they separated from Israel euery one that had mixt him selfe therin.⁴ And before this had the priest Eliasib the ouersight of the treasurie of the house of our God, and he was kynsman vnto Tobia,⁵ And had made hym a great chamber, and there had they afore time layed the offringes, frankencence, vessels, and the tythes of corne, wine, and oyle according to the commaundementes geuen to the Leuites, singers and porters, and the heaue offringes of the priestes.⁶ But in all this time was not I at Hierusalem: for in the two and thirtie yere of Artaxerxes king of Babylon, came I vnto the king, & after certayne dayes obtayned I licence of the king to come to Hierusalem.⁷ And I gat knowledge of the euyll that Eliasib dyd for Tobia, in that he had made hym a chamber in the court of the house of God,⁸ And it greeued me sore: therefore I cast foorth all the vessels of the house of Tobia out of the chamber:⁹ And commaunded them to clense the chambers, and thyther brought I againe the vessels of the house of God, with the meate offring, and the incense.

¹⁰ And I perceaued that the portions of the Leuites had not ben geuen them, and that euery one was fled to his land, euen the Leuites and singers that executed the worke.¹¹ Then reproued I the rulers, and sayd: Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place.¹² Then brought all Iuda the tythes of corne, and wine, and oyle, vnto the treasure.¹³ And I made treasures ouer the treasure, euen Selemiah the priest, and Zadoc the scribe, and of the Leuites, Phadaia: and vnder their hand was Hanan the sonne of Zacur, the sonne of Mathania: for they were counted faythful, and their office was to distribute [the portions] vnto their brethren.¹⁴ Thinke vpon me O my God herein, and wype not out my mercie that I haue shewed on the house of my God, and on the offices therof.

¹⁵ And the same time sawe I in Iuda some treading wine presses on the Sabbath, and bringing in sheues, and which laded asses also with wine, grapes, and figges, and all burthens, and brought them into Hierusalem vpon the Sabbath day: And I rebuked them earnestly the same day that they solde the vitayles.¹⁶ There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish and all maner of ware, and solde on the Sabbath vnto the childre of Iuda, euen in Hierusalem.¹⁷ Then reproued I the rulers in Iuda, & sayd vnto them: What euyl thing is this that ye do, & breake the Sabbath day?¹⁸ Dyd not your fathers euen thus, and our God brought all this plague vpon vs, and vpon this citie? And ye make the wrath more yet vpon Israel, in that ye breake the Sabbath?¹⁹ And when the portes of Hierusalem began to be darke in the euening before the Sabbath, I commaunded to shut the gates, and charged that they should not be opened till after the Sabbath: and some of my seruauntes set I at the gates, that there shoulde no burthen be brought in on the Sabbath day.²⁰ Then remayned the chapmen and marchauntes once or twyse ouer night without Hierusalem with all maner of wares.²¹ Then reproued I them sore, and sayde vnto them: Why tary ye all night about the wall? If ye do it once againe, I will lay handes vpon you: From that time foorth came they no more on the Sabbath.²² And I said vnto the Leuites, that they should clense them selues, and that they shoulde come and kepe the gates, to halowe the Sabboth day: Thinke vpon me O my God concerning this also, and spare me, according to thy great mercie.

²³ In those dayes also sawe I Iewes that maried wyues of Asdod, of Ammon, and of Moab,²⁴ And their children spake halfe in the speach of Asdod, and could not speake in the Iewes language, but according to the language of the one people and of the other people.²⁵ Then I reproued them, and cursed them, and smote certayne men of them, and made them bare: and toke an oth of them by God, Ye shall not geue your daughters vnto their sonnes, neither shall ye take their daughters vnto your sonnes, or for your selues.²⁶ Dyd not Solomon the king of Israel sinne by these thinges? and yet among many heathen was there no king like him, which was deare vnto his God, & God made hym king ouer all Israel: and yet neuerthelesse outlandishe women caused him to sinne.²⁷ Shall we then obey vnto you to do al this great euyll, and to transgresse against our God, and marie straunge wyues?²⁸ And one of the children of Iehoiada the sonne of Eliasib the hye priest, was the sonne in law of Sanaballat the Horonite: but I chased him from me.²⁹ O my God, thinke thou vpon them that defile the presthod, and the couenaunt of the presthod and of the Leuites.³⁰ Thus clensed I them from all such as were outlandishe, and appoynted the courses of the priestes and Leuites, euery one in his office:³¹ And to offer the wood at times appoynted, and the first fruites: Thinke thou vpon me O my God for the best.