The Father's People Set Apart
Nehemiah returns from the Persian court to find Tobiah housed in our Father's storerooms, Levites gone back to their fields unpaid, Sabbath trade in full swing, and children who cannot speak Judah's language. He throws out the furniture and starts over.
13 1That day they read Moses' book aloud to the people and found it written that no Ammonite or Moabite was ever to enter our Father's assembly, 2because they did not meet the people of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them—yet our Father turned the curse into a blessing. 3As soon as the people heard the Law, they separated from Israel everyone of foreign descent.
4Before this, Eliashib the priest, appointed over the storerooms of the house of our Father, was closely tied to Tobiah. 5He had prepared him a large room, where they used to store the grain offerings, frankincense, temple articles, and the tenth of grain, new wine, and oil assigned to the Levites, singers, and gatekeepers, plus the contribution for the priests. 6Through all this I wasn't in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had gone to the king. After some time I asked his permission to leave, 7I came back to Jerusalem and learned of the evil Eliashib had done for Tobiah, making him a room in the courts of the house of our Father. 8I was deeply grieved, and I threw all of Tobiah's household belongings out of the room. 9So I ordered the rooms cleansed, then restored to them the articles of the house of our Father, the grain offerings and frankincense.
10I also found that the Levites' portions had not been given them, so the Levites and singers who did the work had each fled to his own field. 11So I confronted the officials: "Why is our Father's house neglected?" Then I gathered the Levites and restored them to their posts. 12So all Judah brought the tenth of grain, new wine, and oil to the storehouses. 13I put Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah the Levite in charge of the storehouses, with Hanan son of Zaccur son of Mattaniah assisting them, since they were trustworthy; their task was distributing supplies to their fellow Levites.
14Remember me for this, my Father; don't wipe out the faithful deeds I've done for the house of my Father and its service.
15In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath, hauling in heaps of grain and loading them on donkeys, along with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads, bringing them into Jerusalem on the Sabbath. So that day I warned them about selling food. 16Tyrians living there brought in fish and all kinds of goods, selling them on the Sabbath to Judah's people, in Jerusalem itself. 17So I confronted the nobles of Judah and said to them, "What is this evil thing you're doing, desecrating the Sabbath day? 18Didn't your ancestors do this, and didn't our Father bring all this disaster on us and this city? Now you add even more wrath against Israel by desecrating the Sabbath."
19So when Jerusalem's gates grew dark before the Sabbath, I ordered the doors shut, not to be opened until the Sabbath ended. I stationed some of my servants at the gates so no load could enter on the Sabbath. 20Once or twice the merchants and sellers of all kinds of goods spent the night outside Jerusalem. 21So I warned them and said, "Why spend the night by the wall? If you do it again, I will lay hands on you." From then on, they didn't come on the Sabbath. 22Then I commanded the Levites to purify themselves, come guard the gates, and keep the Sabbath day holy. Remember this for me too, my Father, and spare me by your great faithful love.
23In those days I also saw Jews who had married Ashdodite, Ammonite, and Moabite women. 24Half of their children spoke Ashdod's language, or another people's, and did not know how to speak Judah's language. 25So I confronted them, cursed them, beat some of the men, and pulled out their hair. I made them swear by our Father: "Don't give your daughters to their sons, or take their daughters for your sons or yourselves. 26Didn't marriages like these make Solomon king of Israel sin? No king among the many nations equaled him; our Father loved him, and our Father made him king over all Israel. Yet foreign women led even him into sin. 27Should we listen to you and do all this great evil, betraying our Father by marrying foreign women?"
28A son of Jehoiada, son of Eliashib the high priest, was son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite, so I drove him from me. 29Remember them, my Father, for they made the priesthood unclean, and the covenant of priesthood and Levites.
30So I purified them from everything foreign, and assigned priests' and Levites' duties, each to his task. 31I arranged the wood offering at set times, and the firstfruits. Remember me, my Father, with favor.
