Study Desk

But after that our fathers had provoked the God of the heavens to wrath, he gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, and he destroyed this house, and carried the people away unto Babylon.

But in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, king Cyrus gave orders to build this house of God.

For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way; for we had spoken to the king saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him; but his power and his anger is against all them that forsake him.

For we are bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us before the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God and to repair the ruins thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.

But the people are many, and it is a time of pouring rain, and it is not possible to stand without: neither is this a work for one day or two; for we are many that have transgressed in this thing.

but if ye return to me, and keep my commandments and do them, though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heavens, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.

And the king said to me, Why is thy face sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sadness of heart. And I was very sore afraid.

And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me—but I told no man what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem—and there was no beast with me, except the beast that I rode upon.

And I answered them, and said to them, The God of the heavens, he will prosper us, and we his servants will arise and build; but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial in Jerusalem.

And next to them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not their necks to the work of their Lord.

But we built the wall; and all the wall was joined together to the half thereof; for the people had a mind to work.

But the former governors that were before me had been chargeable to the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, besides forty shekels of silver: even their servants bore rule over the people. But I did not so, because of the fear of God.

that Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying, Come, let us meet together in the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief.

And I sent to him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart.

Now the city was large and great; but the people in it were few, and no houses were built.

And these are they that went up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub-Addon and Immer; but they could not shew their father's house, nor their seed, whether they were of Israel.

These sought their genealogical register, but it was not found; therefore were they, as polluted, removed from the priesthood.

But they, our fathers, dealt proudly, and hardened their neck, and hearkened not to thy commandments,

and refused to obey, neither were they mindful of thy wonders which thou hadst done among them; but hardened their neck, and in their rebellion made a captain to return to their bondage. But thou art a +God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great loving-kindness, and thou forsookest them not.

But they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets who testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations.