Nehemiah 12

¹ These are the priests and Levites who came up with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

² Amariah, Malluk, Hattush,

³ Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

⁴ Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,

⁵ Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,

⁶ Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah,

⁷ Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the heads of the priests and their brothers in the days of Jeshua.

⁸ The Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, who was in charge of the thanksgiving songs, he and his brothers.

⁹ Bakbukiah and Unni, their brothers, stood opposite them in their duties.

¹⁰ Jeshua fathered Joiakim, Joiakim fathered Eliashib, Eliashib fathered Joiada,

¹¹ Joiada fathered Jonathan, and Jonathan fathered Jaddua.

¹² In the days of Joiakim, the heads of the priestly families were: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

¹³ of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;

¹⁴ of Malkijah, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;

¹⁵ of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai;

¹⁶ of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

¹⁷ of Abijah, Zikri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai;

¹⁸ of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

¹⁹ of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

²⁰ of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;

²¹ of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethanel.

²² The Levites in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua were recorded as heads of families, as were the priests during the reign of Darius the Persian.

²³ The descendants of Levi, the heads of families, were recorded in the Book of the Chronicles up to the days of Johanan son of Eliashib.

²⁴ The heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua son of Kadmiel, with their brothers standing opposite them to give praise and thanksgiving, one section responding to the other, as David the man of God had commanded.

²⁵ Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers standing guard at the storerooms of the gates.

²⁶ These served in the days of Joiakim son of Jeshua, son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah the governor and of Ezra the priest and scribe.

²⁷ At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sought out the Levites from all their places to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgiving and singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres.

²⁸ The sons of the singers gathered together from the district around Jerusalem, from the villages of the Netophathites,

²⁹ from Beth-Gilgal, and from the fields of Geba and Azmaveth, for the singers had built settlements for themselves around Jerusalem.

³⁰ The priests and the Levites purified themselves, and then they purified the people, the gates, and the wall.

³¹ Then I brought the leaders of Judah up on top of the wall and appointed two large choirs to give thanks. One went to the right on top of the wall toward the Dung Gate.

³² Behind them went Hoshaiah and half the leaders of Judah,

³³ along with Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,

³⁴ Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah,

³⁵ and some of the priests' sons with trumpets: Zechariah son of Jonathan, son of Shemaiah, son of Mattaniah, son of Micaiah, son of Zakkur, son of Asaph,

³⁶ and his brothers Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God. Ezra the scribe went before them.

³⁷ At the Fountain Gate they went straight up the steps of the City of David on the ascent of the wall, above the house of David, to the Water Gate on the east.

³⁸ The second choir went to the left. I followed with half the people on top of the wall, past the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall,

³⁹ above the Gate of Ephraim, past the Old Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, to the Sheep Gate. They stopped at the Gate of the Guard.

⁴⁰ So the two choirs that gave thanks took their stand in the house of God, as did I and half the officials with me,

⁴¹ and the priests Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets,

⁴² and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers sang, with Jezrahiah as their director.

⁴³ On that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy. The women and children also rejoiced, and the joy of Jerusalem was heard from far away.

⁴⁴ On that day men were appointed over the storerooms for the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and Levites according to the fields of the cities. For Judah rejoiced over the priests and Levites who served.

⁴⁵ They performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the command of David and his son Solomon.

⁴⁶ For in the days of David and Asaph long ago, there were directors of the singers and songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.

⁴⁷ In the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah, all Israel contributed the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers. They set apart what was for the Levites, and the Levites set apart what was for the descendants of Aaron.