Ezra

1Many years later, Artaxerxes was king of Persia. A man named Ezra lived then. Ezra was the son of Seraiah. Seraiah was the son of Azariah. Azariah was the son of Hilkiah.

Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,

NotePersia was a large country far from Israel. Its king ruled many lands and many people. The Bible lists Ezra's father, grandfather, and their fathers before them. Long name lists like this showed which family a person came from.

2Hilkiah was the son of Shallum. Shallum was the son of Zadok. Zadok was the son of Ahitub.

The son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub,

3Ahitub was the son of Amariah. Amariah was the son of Azariah. Azariah was the son of Meraioth.

The son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth,

4Meraioth was the son of Zerahiah. Zerahiah was the son of Uzzi. Uzzi was the son of Bukki.

The son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki,

5Bukki was the son of Abishua. Abishua was the son of Phinehas. Phinehas was the son of Eleazar. Eleazar was the son of Aaron, the chief priest.

The son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest:

NoteAaron was the very first priest of Israel, long before Ezra. A priest worked at God's house and helped people worship God. This long list shows that Ezra came from Aaron's family.

6This Ezra came up from the city of Babylon. He was a scribe, someone who studied and copied God's Law. He knew the Law of Moses very well, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king gave Ezra everything he asked for. God was helping Ezra.

This Ezra went up from Babylon; and he was a ready scribe in the law of Moses, which the LORD God of Israel had given: and the king granted him all his request, according to the hand of the LORD his God upon him.

NoteBabylon was a big city far from Israel. Its army had taken the Jewish people there years before. Some of them still lived there when Ezra was born. The Law of Moses was the set of rules God gave Israel. God gave those rules to Moses long, long before this.

7It was the seventh year that Artaxerxes was king. Some of the people of Israel went up to Jerusalem too. Priests and Levites went, who worked at God's house. Singers, gatekeepers, and temple workers went as well.

And there went up some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, and the Nethinims, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king.

NoteLevites came from one family of Israel that worked at God's house. They helped the priests with the singing, the doors, and the daily work. Gatekeepers watched the doors so only the right people came in. Jerusalem sits high on hills, so people always said they went up to it.

8Ezra reached Jerusalem in the fifth month of that year.

And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king.

NoteTheir year did not start in January like ours. It started in the spring. The fifth month was near our July and August.

9He left Babylon on the first day of the first month. He reached Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month. God's kind hand was on him the whole way.

For upon the first day of the first month began he to go up from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month came he to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him.

NoteThe trip took four whole months. It was about nine hundred miles, and most people walked.

10Ezra had made up his mind to study the Law of the LORD. He wanted to obey it. He also wanted to teach its rules to the people of Israel.

For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.

11Here is what King Artaxerxes wrote in a letter to Ezra. Ezra was a priest and a scribe. He knew all the commands and rules the LORD gave Israel.

Now this is the copy of the letter that the king Artaxerxes gave unto Ezra the priest, the scribe, even a scribe of the words of the commandments of the LORD, and of his statutes to Israel.

12"From Artaxerxes, the greatest king, to Ezra the priest. You are a teacher of the Law of the God of heaven. Greetings.

Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace, and at such a time.

Note"King of kings" means he ruled over other kings too. Many smaller kings had to obey him. Persians called Israel's God "the God of heaven" when they wrote about him.

13I now make this rule. Any of my people from Israel may go with you to Jerusalem. Priests and Levites may go too. They may go if they want to.

I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, go with thee.

14The king and his seven helpers are sending you. You are to go and see how things are in Judah and Jerusalem. You will look at them by the Law of your God, which you carry.

Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king, and of his seven counsellors, to enquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of thy God which is in thine hand;

NoteThe king had seven special helpers who gave him advice. Ezra carried God's Law with him on the trip. Books then were long rolls of paper called scrolls.

15You are also to carry silver and gold with you. The king and his helpers gladly gave it to the God of Israel. That God's house is in Jerusalem.

And to carry the silver and gold, which the king and his counsellors have freely offered unto the God of Israel, whose habitation is in Jerusalem,

16Take all the silver and gold you can find in the land of Babylon too. Take the gifts the people and priests give on their own. These are for the house of their God in Jerusalem.

And all the silver and gold that thou canst find in all the province of Babylon, with the freewill offering of the people, and of the priests, offering willingly for the house of their God which is in Jerusalem:

17Use that money quickly to buy bulls, rams, and lambs. Buy grain and wine to go with them. Offer them all on the altar at your God's house in Jerusalem.

That thou mayest buy speedily with this money bullocks, rams, lambs, with their meat offerings and their drink offerings, and offer them upon the altar of the house of your God which is in Jerusalem.

NoteAn altar was a big stone table outside God's house. People burned animal gifts to God on it. Grain and wine were given along with the animals.

18Some silver and gold will be left over. You and your fellow workers may use it as you think best. Just do what your God wants.

And whatsoever shall seem good to thee, and to thy brethren, to do with the rest of the silver and the gold, that do after the will of your God.

19You have been given special bowls and cups for your God's house. Bring them all to God in Jerusalem.

The vessels also that are given thee for the service of the house of thy God, those deliver thou before the God of Jerusalem.

NoteThese were the gold and silver bowls and cups from God's house. Babylon's army had carried them away long before. Now they were going home.

20Your God's house may need other things too. If you must pay for them, take the money from the king's treasure room.

And whatsoever more shall be needful for the house of thy God, which thou shalt have occasion to bestow, bestow it out of the king’s treasure house.

21I, King Artaxerxes, also make this rule. It is for all my money keepers west of the Euphrates River. Ezra the priest teaches the Law of the God of heaven. Give him quickly whatever he asks for.

And I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers which are beyond the river, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall require of you, it be done speedily,

NoteThe Euphrates was a very wide river far from Jerusalem. The king's lands stretched out on both sides of it.

22Give him up to a hundred talents of silver. Give up to a hundred large baskets of wheat. Give up to a hundred barrels of wine and a hundred of olive oil. Give him as much salt as he needs.

Unto an hundred talents of silver, and to an hundred measures of wheat, and to an hundred baths of wine, and to an hundred baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much.

NoteA talent of silver weighed about as much as a small child. A hundred of them was a huge pile of money. A bath was a big jar that held about six gallons. Salt was needed for the gifts given at God's house.

23The God of heaven has given commands. Do all of them carefully for his house. We do not want God to be angry with the king or his sons.

Whatsoever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be diligently done for the house of the God of heaven: for why should there be wrath against the realm of the king and his sons?

24Here is one more thing you should know. You may not make the workers at God's house pay taxes. That means the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and other temple workers.

Also we certify you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, singers, porters, Nethinims, or ministers of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose toll, tribute, or custom, upon them.

NoteTaxes are money that people must pay to the king. The king said the workers at God's house did not have to pay.

25Ezra, your God has given you wisdom. Use it to pick leaders and judges. They will judge all the people west of the Euphrates River. These are people who know your God's laws. You must teach the laws to those who do not know them.

And thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that is in thine hand, set magistrates and judges, which may judge all the people that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy God; and teach ye them that know them not.

NoteA judge is someone who decides when a person has broken a law.

26Some people will not obey your God's law or the king's law. They must be punished right away. The punishment may be death, or being sent away. It may be losing what they own, or going to prison."

And whosoever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, let judgment be executed speedily upon him, whether it be unto death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprisonment.

NoteBeing sent away meant leaving home and not coming back.

27Ezra said, "May the LORD be praised. He is the God of our fathers. He is the one who gave the king this idea. The king wants to make the LORD's house in Jerusalem beautiful.

Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers, which hath put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to beautify the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem:

Note"Our fathers" means the family who lived long, long before them.

28God has also been kind to me. The king was good to me, and so were his helpers and his strong officers. The LORD my God was helping me, so I was brave. I gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me."

And hath extended mercy unto me before the king, and his counsellors, and before all the king’s mighty princes. And I was strengthened as the hand of the LORD my God was upon me, and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me.

1Ezra prayed and told God what the people had done wrong. He cried and lay face down in front of God's house. A very big crowd of Israel came to him. Men, women, and children came. They cried hard too.

Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore.

NoteEzra was a priest and a teacher who knew God's laws very well. God's house means the temple in Jerusalem. That was the special building where people came to worship God. Lying face down on the ground showed he was very, very sorry.

2A man named Shechaniah spoke to Ezra. His father was Jehiel, from the family of Elam. He said, "We have not been true to our God. We married women from the other nations here. But even so, there is still hope for Israel.

And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said unto Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the land: yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing.

NoteThe King James says these men took "strange wives." Here "strange" means foreign, from another country. It does not mean odd. "The people of the land" means the neighbors living nearby who prayed to other gods.

3"Let us make a promise to our God now. We will send away all these wives and their children. We will do what you say, sir. We will do what those who obey God's command say. Let it be done the way God's law says.

Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.

NoteA covenant is a big, serious promise. People made one when they really meant to keep their word. The King James says "put away" the wives. That means to send them back to their own families and homes.

4"Get up. This job is yours to lead. We will stand with you. Be brave, and do it."

Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we also will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it.

5So Ezra stood up. He made the head priests promise to do this. He made the Levites promise, and all Israel too. And they promised.

Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word. And they sware.

NoteA priest was a man who led worship and brought people's gifts to God. The Levites were a family group who helped at God's house. To swear means to make a promise out loud in a very serious way.

6Then Ezra left the front of God's house. He went into a room that belonged to Johanan son of Eliashib. While he was there, he ate no food and drank no water. He was very sad about what the returned people had done.

Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water: for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried away.

NoteGoing without food and water is called fasting. People did this to show they were sad or sorry. The King James calls them "them that had been carried away." Years before, an army had taken the people of Judah far away to a land called Babylon. Later some of them were allowed to come home again.

7A message was sent all through Judah and Jerusalem. It told everyone who came back from far away to meet in Jerusalem.

And they made proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem unto all the children of the captivity, that they should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem;

NoteJerusalem was the main city, where God's house stood. A message like this was called out loud in every town, because most people could not read.

8The leaders and elders made a rule. Anyone who did not come within three days would lose all he owned. He would also be put out of the group of returned people.

And that whosoever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all his substance should be forfeited, and himself separated from the congregation of those that had been carried away.

NoteElders were older men that everyone trusted to help decide things. To lose all he owned means his house, land, and animals would be taken. Being put out of the group meant he could not live and worship with them anymore.

9So all the men of Judah and Benjamin came to Jerusalem in three days. It was the twentieth day of the ninth month. All the people sat in the open square by God's house. They were shaking, because of this matter and the heavy rain.

Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves together unto Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month; and all the people sat in the street of the house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain.

NoteJudah and Benjamin were two of the family groups of Israel. The ninth month was about our December. That is the cold, rainy time of year in that land, so sitting outside was miserable.

10Then Ezra the priest stood up. He said, "You have not been true to God. You married women from other nations. You added to Israel's guilt.

And Ezra the priest stood up, and said unto them, Ye have transgressed, and have taken strange wives, to increase the trespass of Israel.

11"So now tell the LORD, the God of your fathers, what you did. Do what he wants. Stay apart from the people of this land. Send away these foreign wives."

Now therefore make confession unto the LORD God of your fathers, and do his pleasure: and separate yourselves from the people of the land, and from the strange wives.

NoteWhen you see LORD in big letters, it stands for God's own special name. "The God of your fathers" means the same God their grandparents and great grandparents had worshiped.

12The whole crowd answered in a loud voice. They said, "You are right. We must do what you say.

Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice, As thou hast said, so must we do.

13"But there are many of us here. It is the rainy time of year. We cannot stand outside like this. And this job will take more than a day or two. Many of us have done this wrong thing.

But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to stand without, neither is this a work of one day or two: for we are many that have transgressed in this thing.

NoteIn that land the rain comes hard for a few months in winter. There were no umbrellas or shelters for such a big crowd.

14"Let our leaders act for the whole group. Then each man in our towns who married a foreign woman can come at a set time. The elders and judges of his town can come with him. We will keep going until our God is no longer angry about this."

Let now our rulers of all the congregation stand, and let all them which have taken strange wives in our cities come at appointed times, and with them the elders of every city, and the judges thereof, until the fierce wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us.

NoteJudges were men who listened to a problem and decided what was fair. Each town had its own.

15Only Jonathan son of Asahel and Jahaziah son of Tikvah spoke against this plan. Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them.

Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the son of Tikvah were employed about this matter: and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them.

16So the returned people did as planned. Ezra the priest picked out men who were heads of families. Each one was chosen by name. On the first day of the tenth month, they sat down to look into it.

And the children of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain chief of the fathers, after the house of their fathers, and all of them by their names, were separated, and sat down in the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter.

NoteA head of a family was the man who spoke for all his relatives. The tenth month was about our January.

17By the first day of the first month, they had finished. They had dealt with every man who married a foreign woman.

And they made an end with all the men that had taken strange wives by the first day of the first month.

NoteTheir first month was in early spring, about our March. So this work took them about three months.

1All the people came together in the open square by the Water Gate. They asked Ezra to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses. Ezra was a scribe, a man who studied and copied God's law. The LORD had given this law to Israel.

And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.

NoteThe Water Gate was one of the doorways in the wall around Jerusalem. In the King James Bible, LORD in big letters stands for God's own name. The Book of the Law of Moses held the rules God gave his people long before this day.

2It was the first day of the seventh month. Ezra the priest brought the law out to the crowd. Men and women were there, and everyone old enough to understand.

And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.

NoteA priest was a man who led people in worship at God's house. The seventh month came in the fall. It was a month with special feast days in it.

3He read it out loud from early morning until noon. He faced the square by the Water Gate. The men, the women, and all who could understand were there. Everyone listened closely to the Book of the Law.

And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.

NoteThat means Ezra read out loud for about six hours. The people stood and listened the whole time.

4Ezra stood on a tall wooden platform built just for this. On his right stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah. On his left stood Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchiah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam.

And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam.

NoteA platform is a raised floor, a bit like a small stage. Ezra stood up on it so everyone could see and hear him.

5Ezra opened the book where everyone could see it. He was standing up higher than the crowd. When he opened it, all the people stood up.

And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up:

NoteThis book was a scroll, a long strip of writing rolled up. People unrolled it to read instead of turning pages. Standing up showed that the people cared about God's words.

6Ezra praised the LORD, the great God. All the people lifted up their hands and said, "Amen, Amen!" Then they bowed down low and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

NoteAmen means "yes, that is true." People said it to agree with a prayer. Lifting your hands and bowing low were normal ways to pray back then.

7Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah helped too. These men were Levites, workers who helped at God's house. They taught the people the law while the people stood in their places.

Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place.

8So they read from the Book of the Law of God clearly. They explained what it meant. They helped the people understand what was being read.

So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.

NoteThe law was written in an older way of speaking. Many people needed help to know what the words meant.

9Nehemiah was the governor, the leader in charge of the land. He and Ezra the priest and the teaching Levites spoke to everyone. They said, "This day is holy to the LORD your God. Do not be sad and do not cry." They said this because all the people were crying as they heard the law.

And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.

NoteHoly means set apart as special for God. A holy day was a day for God, not an ordinary day.

10Then Nehemiah said, "Go on your way. Eat good food and drink something sweet. Send some food to people who have nothing ready. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not be sad. The joy of the LORD is your strength."

Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

NoteAt a feast, people sent plates of food to neighbors who had none. That way everyone could join in the happy day.

11So the Levites calmed all the people down. They said, "Be quiet now. This day is holy. Do not be sad."

So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved.

12So all the people went off to eat and drink. They sent food to others, and they were very glad. They were glad because now they understood the words they had heard.

And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.

13On the second day, the leaders of all the families came together. The priests and the Levites came too. They met with Ezra the scribe to study the words of the law.

And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the law.

NoteThe leaders of the families were the older men. Each one spoke for his whole family group.

14In the law that the LORD gave through Moses, they found something written. The people of Israel were to live in booths during the feast in the seventh month. Booths are small huts made of branches.

And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month:

NoteThis feast was called the Feast of Booths. Long before, the people of Israel lived in tents in the desert. Each year they slept in leafy huts to remember those days.

15They were to send this news through all their towns and in Jerusalem: "Go out to the hills. Bring back branches from olive trees, wild olive trees, myrtle trees, and palm trees. Bring other leafy branches too. Use them to make booths, just as the law says."

And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.

NoteA myrtle is a small tree with shiny green leaves. Olive, myrtle, and palm trees all grow in that land.

16So the people went out and brought back branches. They made booths on their own flat roofs and in their yards. They made them in the courtyard of God's house too. They made them in the square by the Water Gate and by the Gate of Ephraim.

So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.

NoteHouses there had flat roofs. People used a roof like an extra room outside. God's house was the temple in Jerusalem, the big building where people worshiped God.

17Everyone who had come back from being held in another land made booths. They lived in them. Israel had not kept this feast this way since the days of Joshua son of Nun. And they were filled with great gladness.

And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness.

NoteYears before, an army had carried the people away to a faraway land. Later they were allowed to come home again. Joshua son of Nun led Israel into this land hundreds of years earlier.

18Every day, from the first day to the last, Ezra read from the Book of the Law of God. They kept the feast for seven days. On the eighth day they held a special meeting, just as the law said to do.

Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

NoteThe feast lasted a whole week. Then one more day of meeting together closed it.

31Then I brought the leaders of Judah up onto the wall. I chose two big choirs to sing thank-you songs. One choir walked right along the wall, toward the Dung Gate.

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:

NoteThe Dung Gate was where trash and animal waste were carried out. Each gate in the wall had its own name.

32Hoshaiah walked behind them. So did half the leaders of Judah.

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

33Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam went too.

And Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam,

34So did Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah.

Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah,

35Some sons of the priests came with trumpets. One was Zechariah, son of Jonathan. Jonathan was the son of Shemaiah, whose father was Mattaniah. Mattaniah's father was Michaiah, son of Zaccur, son of Asaph.

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:

NoteThese trumpets were long horns made of silver. Priests blew them at happy times and holy days.

36His fellow workers came too. They were Shemaiah, Azarael, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, Judah, and Hanani. They carried the music instruments David had chosen. Ezra the scribe walked in front of them.

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.

37At the Fountain Gate they went straight up the steps. These steps led into the City of David and up to the wall. They passed above David's house and reached the Water Gate on the east.

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.

NoteThe City of David was the oldest part of Jerusalem. King David had lived there long before.

38The second choir walked the other way along the wall. I followed them with half the people. We went past the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall.

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;

NoteThis tower was named for the ovens near it. People baked bread in those ovens.

39We went above the Ephraim Gate, the Old Gate, and the Fish Gate. We passed the Tower of Hananeel and the Tower of the Hundred. We kept going to the Sheep Gate. Then we stopped at the Gate of the Guard.

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.

NoteSheep were brought into the city through the Sheep Gate. Many of them were gifts for God's house.

40The two thank-you choirs stood in God's house. I stood there too. So did half the leaders who were with me.

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:

NoteGod's house was the temple in Jerusalem. It was the special place where people came to worship.

41The priests with trumpets were there. They were Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Michaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah.

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

42Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer were there too. The singers sang out loud. Jezrahiah was their leader.

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.

43That day they gave many animals to God as gifts. The people were full of joy, because God had made them glad. The women and children were happy too. People far away could hear the happy sounds of Jerusalem.

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.

NotePeople brought animals as gifts to God. This was one way of saying thank you and sorry. It was a normal part of worship then.