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1 Now these are the priests and the Levites that went up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

2 Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

3 Shechaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

4 Iddo, Ginnetho, Abijah,

5 Miamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,

6 Shemaiah, and Joiarib, Jedaiah,

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

8 Moreover the Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, which was over the thanksgiving, he and his brethren.

9 Also Bakbukiah and Unni, their brethren, were over against them in the watches.

10 And Jeshua begat Joiakim, Joiakim also begat Eliashib, and Eliashib begat Joiada,

11 And Joiada begat Jonathan, and Jonathan begat Jaddua.

12 And in the days of Joiakim were priests, the chief of the fathers: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

13 Of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;

14 Of Melicu, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;

15 Of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai;

16 Of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

17 Of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai:

18 Of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

19 And of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

20 Of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;

21 Of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethaneel.

22 The Levites in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua, were recorded chief of the fathers: also the priests, to the reign of Darius the Persian.

23 The sons of Levi, the chief of the fathers, were written in the book of the chronicles, even until the days of Johanan the son of Eliashib.

24 And the chief of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brethren over against them, to praise and to give thanks, according to the commandment of David the man of God, ward over against ward.

25 Mattaniah, and Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, Akkub, were porters keeping the ward at the thresholds of the gates.

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

27 And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, psalteries, and with harps.

28 And the sons of the singers gathered themselves together, both out of the plain country round about Jerusalem, and from the villages of Netophathi;

29 Also from the house of Gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth: for the singers had builded them villages round about Jerusalem.

30 And the priests and the Levites purified themselves, and purified the people, and the gates, and the wall.

31 Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed two great companies of them that gave thanks, whereof one went on the right hand upon the wall toward the dung gate:

32 And after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of Judah,

33 And Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam,

34 Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah,

35 And certain of the priests' sons with trumpets; namely, Zechariah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Michaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph:

36 And his brethren, Shemaiah, and Azarael, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, and Judah, Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God, and Ezra the scribe before them.

37 And at the fountain gate, which was over against them, they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, above the house of David, even unto the water gate eastward.

38 And the other company of them that gave thanks went over against them, and I after them, and the half of the people upon the wall, from beyond the tower of the furnaces even unto the broad wall;

39 And from above the gate of Ephraim, and above the old gate, and above the fish gate, and the tower of Hananeel, and the tower of Meah, even unto the sheep gate: and they stood still in the prison gate.

40 So stood the two companies of them that gave thanks in the house of God, and I, and the half of the rulers with me:

41 And the priests; Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Michaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets;

42 And Maaseiah, and Shemaiah, and Eleazar, and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, and Malchijah, and Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang loud, with Jezrahiah their overseer.

43 Also that day they offered great sacrifices, and rejoiced: for God had made them rejoice with great joy: the wives also and the children rejoiced: so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off.

44 And at that time were some appointed over the chambers for the treasures, for the offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them out of the fields of the cities the portions of the law for the priests and Levites: for Judah rejoiced for the priests and for the Levites that waited.

45 And both the singers and the porters kept the ward of their God, and the ward of the purification, according to the commandment of David, and of Solomon his son.

46 For in the days of David and Asaph of old there were chief of the singers, and songs of praise and thanksgiving unto God.

47 And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel, and in the days of Nehemiah, gave the portions of the singers and the porters, every day his portion: and they sanctified holy things unto the Levites; and the Levites sanctified them unto the children of Aaron.

<html><b>and Jeshua</b> That is Joshua the High Priest.</html>

<html><b>in the days of Jeshua</b> i.e., those who were leaders in the days of Joshua the High Priest.</html>

<html><b>huyedoth</b> [This was] a type of musical instrument which accompanied the songs.</html>

<html><b>in the watches</b> as we find (in I Chronicles from ch. 24 on) that the Levites were divided into twenty- four watches.</html>

<html><b>Now Jeshua begot Joiakim, etc.</b> All those [listed] in this verse were high priests.</html>

<html><b>And in the days of Joiakim</b> who was the high priest. These priests were the leaders of the fathers’ houses of their watches. <b>of Seraiah was Meraiah</b> Of the watch of Seraiah, the head of the father’s house was Meraiah, and of the watch of Jeremiah, the head of the father’s house was Hananiah, and so it is with them all, and the reason Scripture did not list all twenty-four watches is that it is not exacting in enumerating them all.</html>

<html><b>The Levites in the days of Eliashib</b> These Levites were the heads of the fathers’ houses in the watches of the Levites in the days of Eliashib the High Priest, and the priests enumerated immediately above were the heads of the fathers’ houses in their watches, also in the days of Eliashib. <b>in the reign of</b> This matter came about in the days of Darius.</html>

<html><b>even until the days of Johanan</b> All those who were the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites until the days of Johanan the High Priest were enumerated in the chronicles.</html>

<html><b>a watch opposite a watch</b> for they were divided into their watches to recite the song.</html>

<html><b>sentries of the gates [in their] watch</b> The sentries of the gates were in their watch to guard the gates of the Temple. <b>at the thresholds</b> Heb. בַּאֲסֻפֵּי, like בְּסִיפֵּי הַשְּׁעָרִים, at the thresholds of the gates.</html>

<html><b>These were in the days of Joiakim</b> These were the gate sentries in the days of Joiakim.</html>

<html><b>And in the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem</b> at the completion of the wall of the city, to sanctify the city. <b>and with thanksgivings</b> Heb. וּבְתוֹדוֹת, and with thanksgivings.</html>

<html><b>and from the plain</b> the singers came from [the plain] surrounding Jerusalem.</html>

<html><b>purified themselves</b> First they purified themselves, and afterwards they purified the others. <b>and the gates and the wall</b> that there should be no uncleanliness in the city.</html>

<html><b>upon the wall</b> meaning that he sanctified the city, the princes, the tribunal, and the Levites with two thanksgiving offerings around the city, as is delineated in Tractate Shebuoth (14a, 15a, b), in order to sanctify the city. <b>two…thanksgiving offerings</b> two breads of the thanksgiving offerings, each bread being called a thanksgiving offering. <b>with processions to the right</b> And when they went out of the city in order to encompass it, they went to the right side.</html>

<html><b>Judah and Benjamin</b> They were two princes.</html>

<html><b>And his brethren</b> the colleagues of Zechariah the priest.</html>

<html><b>And by the Fountain Gate</b> Before the Fountain Gate, they marched around the city. <b>and opposite them</b> And before them they ascended from the Fountain Gate to the steps of the City of David, and those steps led to the wall.</html>

<html><b>And the second thanksgiving offering, which went opposite [it]</b> The other thanksgiving offering, which was second to its fellow, went opposite its fellow, alongside it, not one following the other. <b>and I was after it</b> And I marched after it, [i.e.,] after the thanksgiving offering.</html>

<html><b>and they stood</b> They stood, there and did not go any further.</html>

<html><b>the two thanksgiving offerings</b> that they carried to the Temple.</html>

<html><b>with the trumpets</b> They sounded the trumpets out of their joy.</html>

<html><b>were appointed</b> Heb. וַיִפָקְדוּ, a word meaning appointment. <b>the chambers</b> Heb. הַנְשָׁכוֹת, like הַלְשָּׁכוֹת, the chambers of the Temple. <b>to gather in them</b> And in these chambers they would place all the gifts of the priests and the Levites, and from there they would distribute [them] among them. <b>portions</b> Heb. מְנָאוֹת like מָנוֹת. <b>for the priests and for the Levites</b> The priests were taking what was due them and the Levites what was due them. <b>who stood</b> and ministered there before the Holy One, blessed be He, with thanksgiving offerings and thanksgivings.</html>

<html><b>the portions</b> Heb. מְנָיוֹת, like מָנוֹת. <b>and they consecrated [them] for the Levites</b> And they would give the tithe to the Levites, who would take the tithe from the tithe and give it to the priests.</html>