Nehemiah 2:18

2:18 Then I related to them how the good hand of my God was on me and what ¹  the king had said to me. Then they replied, “Let’s begin rebuilding right away!” ²  So they readied themselves ³  for this good project.

Nehemiah 4:2

4:2 and in the presence of his colleagues ⁴  and the army of Samaria ⁵  he said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they be left to themselves? ⁶  Will they again offer sacrifice? Will they finish this in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones to life again from piles of dust?”

Nehemiah 8:16

8:16 So the people went out and brought these things ⁷  back and constructed temporary shelters for themselves, each on his roof and in his courtyard and in the courtyards of the temple ⁸  of God and in the plaza of the Water Gate and the plaza of the Ephraim Gate.

Nehemiah 10:28

10:28 “Now the rest of the people – the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple attendants, and all those who have separated themselves from the neighboring peoples ⁹  because of the law of God, along with their wives, their sons, and their daughters, all of whom are able to understand –

Nehemiah 13:22

13:22 Then I directed the Levites to purify themselves and come and guard the gates in order to keep the Sabbath day holy.

For this please remember me, O my God, and have pity on me in keeping with your great love.

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¹ tn Heb “the words of the king which he had spoken to me.”

² tn Heb “Arise! Let us rebuild!”

³ tn Heb “strengthened their hands.”

⁴ tn Heb “brothers.”

⁵ map For location see Map2-B1; Map4-D3; Map5-E2; Map6-A4; Map7-C1.

⁶ tc The Hebrew text is difficult here. The present translation follows the MT, but the text may be corrupt. H. G. M. Williamson (Ezra, Nehemiah [WBC], 213-14) translates these words as “Will they commit their cause to God?” suggesting that MT לָהֶם (lahem, “to them”) should be emended to לֵאלֹהִים (lelohim, “to God”), a proposal also found in the apparatus of BHS. In his view later scribes altered the phrase out of theological motivations. J. Blenkinsopp’s translation is similar: “Are they going to leave it all to God?” (Ezra–Nehemiah [OTL], 242-44). However, a problem for this view is the absence of external evidence to support the proposed emendation. The sense of the MT reading may be the notion that the workers – if left to their own limited resources – could not possibly see such a demanding and expensive project through to completion. This interpretation understands the collocation עָזַב (’azav, “to leave”) plus לְ (lÿ, “to”) to mean “commit a matter to someone,” with the sense in this verse “Will they leave the building of the fortified walls to themselves?”

⁷ tn The words “these things” are not in the Hebrew text but have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁸ tn Heb “the house.”

⁹ tn Heb “from the peoples of the lands.” Cf. vv. 30, 31.