Nehemiah 12 :: New King James Version (NKJV)

The Priests and Levites

Priests and Levites Who Came with Zerubbabel

(cf. Ezra 2:36–40 )

Neh 12:1Now these are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

Neh 12:2

Neh 12:2Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

Neh 12:3

Neh 12:3Shechaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

Neh 12:4

Neh 12:4Iddo, Ginnethoi,[fn] Abijah,

Neh 12:5

Neh 12:5Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,

Neh 12:6

Neh 12:6Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah,

Neh 12:7

Neh 12:7Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the heads of the priests and their brethren in the days of Jeshua.

Neh 12:8

Neh 12:8Moreover the Levites were Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah who led the thanksgiving psalms, he and his brethren.

Neh 12:9

Neh 12:9Also Bakbukiah and Unni, their brethren, stood across from them in their duties.

Neh 12:10

Neh 12:10Jeshua begot Joiakim, Joiakim begot Eliashib, Eliashib begot Joiada,

Neh 12:11

Neh 12:11Joiada begot Jonathan, and Jonathan begot Jaddua.

Neh 12:12

Neh 12:12Now in the days of Joiakim, the priests, the heads of the fathers’ houses were: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

Neh 12:13

Neh 12:13of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;

Neh 12:14

Neh 12:14of Melichu,[fn] Jonathan; of Shebaniah,[fn] Joseph;

Neh 12:15

Neh 12:15of Harim,[fn] Adna; of Meraioth,[fn] Helkai;

Neh 12:16

Neh 12:16of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

Neh 12:17

Neh 12:17of Abijah, Zichri; the son of Minjamin;[fn] of Moadiah,[fn] Piltai;

Neh 12:18

Neh 12:18of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

Neh 12:19

Neh 12:19of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

Neh 12:20

Neh 12:20of Sallai,[fn] Kallai; of Amok, Eber;

Neh 12:21

Neh 12:21of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; and of Jedaiah, Nethanel.

Neh 12:22

Neh 12:22During the reign of Darius the Persian, a record was also kept of the Levites and priests who had been heads of their fathers’ houses in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua.

Neh 12:23

Neh 12:23The sons of Levi, the heads of the fathers’ houses until the days of Johanan the son of Eliashib, were written in the book of the chronicles.

Neh 12:24

Neh 12:24And the heads of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua the son of Kadmiel, with their brothers across from them, to praise and give thanks, group alternating with group, according to the command of David the man of God.

Neh 12:25

Neh 12:25Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers keeping the watch at the storerooms of the gates.

Neh 12:26

Neh 12:26These lived in the days of Joiakim the son of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak,[fn] and in the days of Nehemiah the governor, and of Ezra the priest, the scribe.

Nehemiah Dedicates the Wall

Neh 12:27

Neh 12:27Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings and singing, with cymbals and stringed instruments and harps.

Neh 12:28

Neh 12:28And the sons of the singers gathered together from the countryside around Jerusalem, from the villages of the Netophathites,

Neh 12:29

Neh 12:29from the house of Gilgal, and from the fields of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built themselves villages all around Jerusalem.

Neh 12:30

Neh 12:30Then the priests and Levites purified themselves, and purified the people, the gates, and the wall.

Neh 12:31

Neh 12:31So I brought the leaders of Judah up on the wall, and appointed two large thanksgiving choirs. One went to the right hand on the wall toward the Refuse Gate.

Neh 12:32

Neh 12:32After them went Hoshaiah and half of the leaders of Judah,

Neh 12:33

Neh 12:33and Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,

Neh 12:34

Neh 12:34Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, Jeremiah,

Neh 12:35

Neh 12:35and some of the priests’ sons with trumpets—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,

Neh 12:36

Neh 12:36and his brethren, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God. Ezra the scribe went before them.

Neh 12:37

Neh 12:37By the Fountain Gate, in front of them, they went up the stairs of the City of David, on the stairway of the wall, beyond the house of David, as far as the Water Gate eastward.

Neh 12:38

Neh 12:38The other thanksgiving choir went the opposite way, and I was behind them with half of the people on the wall, going past the Tower of the Ovens as far as the Broad Wall,

Neh 12:39

Neh 12:39and above the Gate of Ephraim, above the Old Gate, above the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Sheep Gate; and they stopped by the Gate of the Prison.

Neh 12:40

Neh 12:40So the two thanksgiving choirs stood in the house of God, likewise I and the half of the rulers with me;

Neh 12:41

Neh 12:41and the priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Minjamin,[fn] Michaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets;

Neh 12:42

Neh 12:42also Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers sang loudly with Jezrahiah the director.

Neh 12:43

Neh 12:43Also that day they offered great sacrifices, and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and the children also rejoiced, so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard afar off.

Temple Responsibilities

Neh 12:44

Neh 12:44And at the same time some were appointed over the rooms of the storehouse for the offerings, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them from the fields of the cities the portions specified by the Law for the priests and Levites; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and Levites who ministered.

Neh 12:45

Neh 12:45Both the singers and the gatekeepers kept the charge of their God and the charge of the purification, according to the command of David and Solomon his son.

Neh 12:46

Neh 12:46For in the days of David and Asaph of old there were chiefs of the singers, and songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.

Neh 12:47

Neh 12:47In the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah all Israel gave the portions for the singers and the gatekeepers, a portion for each day. They also consecrated holy things for the Levites, and the Levites consecrated them for the children of Aaron.

See the NKJV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).

NKJV Footnotes

(12:4)

Or Ginnethon (compare verse 16)

(12:14)

Or Malluch (compare verse 2)

(12:14)

Or Shechaniah (compare verse 3)

(12:15)

Or Rehum (compare verse 3)

(12:15)

Or Meremoth (compare verse 3)

(12:17)

Or Mijamin (compare verse 5)

(12:17)

Or Maadiah (compare verse 5)

(12:20)

Or Sallu (compare verse 7)

(12:26)

Spelled Jehozadak in 1 Chronicles 6:14

(12:41)

Or Mijamin (compare verse 5)

The text of the New King James Version (NKJV) appearing on or deriving from this or any other web page is for personal use only. Any other use of the NKJV must be in conformity with the Quotation Policy for the New King James Version. For more information about the New King James Version, the Quotation Policy, and for inquiries about permission to use the New King James Version, go to Thomas Nelson, Inc..

For more information on this translation, see the NKJV Preface.