Nehemia 3:1

The Names of the Builders

3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest and his priestly colleagues ¹  arose and built the Sheep Gate. They dedicated ²  it and erected its doors, working as far as the Tower of the Hundred ³  and ⁴  the Tower of Hananel.

Nehemia 5:9

5:9 Then I ⁵  said, “The thing that you are doing is wrong! ⁶  Should you not conduct yourselves ⁷  in the fear of our God in order to avoid the reproach of the Gentiles who are our enemies?

Nehemia 8:2

8:2 So Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly which included men and women and all those able to understand what they heard. (This happened on the first day of the seventh month.)

Nehemia 12:36

12:36 and his colleagues – Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani – with musical instruments of ⁸  David the man of God. (Ezra the scribe led them.) ⁹ 

[3:1]  ¹ tn Heb “his brothers the priests.”

[3:1]  ² tn Or “consecrated” (so NASB, NRSV); KJV, ASV “sanctified”; NCV “gave it to the Lord’s service.”

[3:1]  ³ tc The MT adds קִדְּשׁוּהוּ (qidshuhu, “they sanctified it”). This term is repeated from the first part of the verse, probably as an intentional scribal addition to harmonize this statement with the preceding parallel statement.

[3:1]  ⁴ tc The translation reads וְעַד (vÿ’ad, “and unto”) rather than the MT reading עַד (ad, “unto”). The original vav (ו) was probably dropped accidentally due to haplography with the final vav on the immediately preceding word in the MT.

[5:9]  ⁵ tc The translation reads with the Qere and the ancient versions וָאוֹמַר (va’omar, “and I said”) rather than the MT Kethib, וַיֹּאמֶר (vayyo’mer, “and he said”).

[5:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “not good.” The statement “The thing…is not good” is an example of tapeinosis, a figurative expression which emphasizes the intended point (“The thing…is wrong!”) by negating its opposite.

[5:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “[should you not] walk.”

[12:36]  ⁸ tn Or “prescribed by” (NIV, NLT); TEV “of the kind played by.” The precise relationship of these musical instruments to David is not clear.

[12:36]  ⁹ tn Heb “was before them.”