Nehemiah 12

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

2. Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

3. Shechaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

4. Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,

5. Mijamin, 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, who was over the psalms of thanksgiving, he and his brethren.

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

10. And Jeshua begot Joiakim, Joiakim also begot Eliashib, and Eliashib begot Joiada,

11. and Joiada begot Jonathan, and Jonathan begot 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, until 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 opposite them, to praise and to give thanks, according to the commandment of David the man of God, watch opposite watch.

25. Mattaniah and Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, Akkub, were porters keeping the watch 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 the Netophathites,

29. also from the house of Gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built themselves 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 those who 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 Azarel, 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 opposite 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 those who gave thanks went opposite them, and I after them with 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 at the Prison Gate.

40. So stood the two companies of those who gave thanks in the house of God, and I, and 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 some were appointed over the chambers of the treasuries for the offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them out of the fields of the cities the portions appointed by the law for the priests and Levites; for Judah rejoiced for the priests and for the Levites who waited.

45. And both the singers and the gatekeepers kept the watch of their God and the watch 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 chiefs 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 for the singers and the gatekeepers, every day his portion; and they sanctified holy things unto the Levites, and the Levites sanctified them unto the children of Aaron.