In the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, Ezra brought ¹  up to Jerusalem ²  some of the Israelites and some of the priests, the Levites, the attendants, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants.

And the Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, who together with his colleagues ¹  was in charge of the songs of thanksgiving.

and from Beth Gilgal and from the fields of Geba and Azmaveth, for the singers had built settlements for themselves around Jerusalem.

and also Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malkijah, Elam, and Ezer. The choirs sang loudly ¹  under the direction of Jezrahiah.

They performed the service of their God and the service of purification, along with the singers and gatekeepers, according to the commandment of David and ¹  his son Solomon.

I also discovered that the grain offerings for the Levites had not been provided, and that as a result the Levites and the singers who performed this work had all gone off to their fields.

For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments, according to the sheminith style; ²  a psalm of David. Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger! Do not discipline me in your raging fury! ³ 

For the music director; by the Korahites; according to the alamoth style; ²  a song. God is our strong refuge; ³  he is truly our helper in times of trouble. ⁴ 

For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a well-written song ²  by David. Listen, O God, to my prayer! Do not ignore ³  my appeal for mercy!

For the music director; according to the tune of “Lilies;” ²  by David. Deliver me, O God, for the water has reached my neck. ³ 

For the music director; to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a psalm of Asaph, a song. God has revealed himself in Judah; ²  in Israel his reputation ³  is great.

For the music director; according to the gittith style; ²  by Asaph. Shout for joy to God, our source of strength! Shout out to the God of Jacob!

For the music director; according to the gittith style; ²  written by the Korahites, a psalm. How lovely is the place where you live, ³  O Lord who rules over all! ⁴ 

Just as you do not know the path ¹  of the wind, or how the bones form ²  in the womb of a pregnant woman, ³  so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

So remember ¹  your Creator in the days of your youth – before ²  the difficult ³  days come, and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

I am ¹  the one who forms light and creates darkness; ²  the one who brings about peace and creates calamity. ³  I am the Lord, who accomplishes all these things.

Yet, ¹  Lord, you are our father. We are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the product of your labor. ² 

They are all like bakers, ¹  they ²  are like a smoldering oven; they are like a baker who does not stoke the fire until the kneaded dough is ready for baking.

When they heard this, they raised their voices to God with one mind ¹  and said, “Master of all, ²  you who made the heaven, the earth, ³  the sea, and everything that is in them,

For we have found ¹  this man to be a troublemaker, ²  one who stirs up riots ³  among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader ⁴  of the sect of the Nazarenes. ⁵