Nehemia 13
1 Toen in die tijd uit het boek van Moses aan het volk werd voorgelezen, vond men daarin voorgeschreven: Geen Ammoniet of Moabiet mag ooit tot de gemeente Gods toetreden;
On that day, when someone read to the people parts of the laws [that God gave] to Moses, they read where it was written that no one from the Ammon people-group or the Moab people-group was ever to be allowed to be with God’s people while they were gathered together [to worship].
2 want zij hebben de kinderen Israëls niet aan brood en water geholpen, maar hebben Balaäm gehuurd, om hen te vervloeken, ofschoon onze God de vloek in zegening heeft veranderd.
The reason for that was that the people of Ammon and the people of Moab did not give/sell any food or water to the Israelis [while the Israelis were going through their areas after they left Egypt]. Instead, the people of Ammon and Moab paid money to Balaam in order that he would curse the Israelis. But God commanded Balaam to bless the people, not to curse them.
3 Toen men deze wet had gehoord, zonderde men allen, die van gemengd ras waren, van Israël af.
So when the people heard these laws [being read to them], they sent away all the people whose ancestors had come from other countries.
4 Maar reeds vroeger was de priester Eljasjib, die met het toezicht over de kamers van het huis van onzen God was belast, aan Tobi-ja verwant geworden.
Previously, Eliashib the priest had been appointed to be in charge of the storerooms in the temple. He was a relative of [our enemy] Tobiah.
5 Daarom had hij hem een grote kamer ingeruimd, waar men vroeger het spijsoffer, de wierook, de vaten, de tienden van koren, most en olie, als de cijns voor de levieten, zangers en poortwachters, en het hefoffer der priesters had opgeborgen.
He allowed Tobiah to use a large room in which they had previously stored the grain offerings and the incense, the equipment that is used in the temple, the offerings [that the people had brought] for the priests, and the tithes of grain and wine and [olive] oil that [God] had commanded the people to bring to the [other] descendants of Levi, and to the temple musicians, and to the temple guards.
6 Toen dit alles voorviel, was ik echter niet in Jerusalem; want in het twee en dertigste jaar van Artaxerxes, den koning van Babel, was ik naar den koning gegaan, en eerst enige tijd later had ik den koning verlof gevraagd,
While [Tobias was using that room], I was not in Jerusalem, because in the 32nd year that Artaxerxes was the king of Babylonia, I went back there to report to him. After a while I requested the king to allow me to return to Jerusalem, [and he allowed me to go].
7 om naar Jerusalem terug te keren. Toen ik bemerkte, wat kwaad Eljasjib had gedaan, door voor Tobi-ja een kamer in te ruimen op de voorhoven van het huis van God,
When I arrived in Jerusalem, I found out that Eliashib had done an evil thing by allowing Tobiah to use a room in God’s temple.
8 was ik er hevig over verontwaardigd. Ik liet al het huisraad van Tobi-ja naar buiten smijten,
I became very angry, and I threw out of that room everything that belonged to Tobiah.
9 gelastte, de kamer te reinigen, en liet er de tempelvaten met het spijsoffer en de wierook in terugbrengen.
Then I commanded [that they perform a ritual] to make the rooms (pure/acceptable to God) again. And I also ordered that all the equipment used in the temple and all the grain offerings and incense should be put in that room again.
10 Ook vernam ik, dat de cijnzen voor de levieten niet. werden opgebracht, en dat daarom de levieten met de zangers, die voor de eredienst moesten zorgen, naar hun eigen akkers waren teruggetrokken.
I also found out that the temple musicians and [other] descendants of Levi had left Jerusalem and returned to their fields/farms, because the Israeli people had not been bringing to them the food [that they needed].
11 Ik beklaagde mij erover bij de voormannen, en sprak: Waarom heeft men het huis van God verwaarloosd? Ik riep ze dus terug, en stelde ze weer op hun post;
So I rebuked the officials, saying to them, “(Why have you not taken care of the work in the temple?/It is disgraceful that you have not taken care of the work in the temple.)” [RHQ] So I brought the descendants of Levi and the musicians back to the temple, and told them to do their work there again.
12 en al de Judeërs brachten weer de tienden aan koren, most en olie naar de voorraadkamers.
Then all the people of Judah again started to bring to the temple storerooms their tithes of grain, wine, and [olive] oil.
13 Vervolgens stelde ik den priester Sjelemja, den schriftgeleerde Sadok en den leviet Pedaja aan, om toezicht op de voorraadkamers te houden, en als hun helper Chanan, den zoon van Zakkoer, zoon van Mattanja; en daar zij voor eerlijke lieden golden, werd hun de taak opgedragen, de uitkering aan hun broeders te doen.
I appointed these men to be in charge of the storerooms: Shelemiah, who was a priest; Zadok, who knew the Jewish laws very well; and Pedaiah, a descendant of Levi. I appointed Hanan, who is the son of Zaccur and grandson of Mattaniah, to assist them. I knew that I could trust these men while they distributed those offerings to their fellow workers.
14 Mijn God, wees hierom mijner indachtig, en wis mijn goede daden niet uit, die ik voor het huis van God en zijn eredienst heb verricht!
My God, do not forget all these good things that I have faithfully done for your temple and for the work that is done there!
15 In die tijd bemerkte ik, dat sommigen in Juda op de sabbat de perskuipen traden en vrachten koren binnenhaalden, en dat zij zelfs op de sabbat wijn, druiven, vijgen en allerlei koopwaar op ezels laadden en naar Jerusalem brachten. Hen waarschuwde ik, zodra zij levensmiddelen verkochten.
During that time, I saw some people in Judea [who were working] on the Sabbath day. [Some were] pressing grapes [to make wine]. Others were putting grain, [bags of] wine, [baskets of] grapes, figs, and many [HYP] other things, on their donkeys and taking them into Jerusalem. I warned them that they should not sell things to the people of Judea on Sabbath days.
16 Maar toen ook de Tyriërs, die in Jerusalem woonden, op de sabbat vis en allerlei koopwaar begonnen aan te voeren en aan de Judeërs verkochten,
I also saw some people from Tyre [city] who were living there in Jerusalem who were bringing fish and other things [into Jerusalem] to sell to the people of Judea on the Sabbath day.
17 beklaagde ik mij daarover bij de edelen van Juda, en sprak tot hen: Beseft gij niet, wat kwaad gij doet, door zó de sabbat te ontheiligen?
So I rebuked the Jewish leaders and told them, “This is [RHQ] a very evil thing that you are doing! You are causing the Sabbath days to be unholy.
18 Hebben uw vaderen niet hetzelfde gedaan, en heeft onze God daarom niet over ons en deze stad al die rampen gebracht? Gaat gij nu de gramschap over Israël nog erger doen woeden, door de sabbat te ontheiligen?
Your ancestors did [RHQ] things like that, so God punished them, and as a result, this city was destroyed! And now by causing the Sabbath day to be unholy, you are going to cause God to be angry with us Israeli people [and punish us] more!”
19 En ik beval, bij het begin van de sabbat, zodra de poorten van Jerusalem in het donker lagen, de deuren te sluiten, en ze niet te openen, voordat de sabbat voorbij was. Ik stelde enigen van mijn mannen bij de poorten op wacht, zodat er op de sabbat geen last naar binnen kon worden gebracht.
So I ordered that at (the beginning of every Sabbath day/every Friday evening) they should shut the gates of the city before it became dark. I also ordered that they should not open the gates until (the Sabbath day was ended [the next day]/Saturday evening). Then [each Sabbath day] I put some of my men at the gates, so they would make sure that nothing to sell was brought into the city on that day.
20 Toen nu echter de kramers en kooplieden in allerlei waren buiten Jerusalem bleven overnachten,
One or two times merchants [DOU] stayed outside of the city on (Friday night/[the night before the Sabbath day]).
21 waarschuwde ik hen en sprak tot hen: Hoe durft gij vlak bij de muur overnachten! Zo gij het nog eens durft wagen, zal ik mijn hand aan u slaan. Sinds die tijd zijn ze op de sabbat niet meer gekomen.
I warned them, “It is useless [RHQ] for you to stay here outside the walls [on Friday night]! If you do this again, I will tell my men to arrest you!” So after that, they did not come on Sabbath days.
22 Toch beval ik de levieten, zich te reinigen, en de poorten te komen bewaken, om de sabbat heilig te houden. Mijn God, wees mij ook hierom indachtig, en ontferm U mijner naar de rijkdom van uw genade.
I also commanded the descendants of Levi to [perform the ritual to] purify themselves and to guard the city gates, to make sure that the Sabbath was kept holy [by not allowing merchants to enter it on Sabbath days]. My God, do not forget this also that I [have done for you]! And because of your faithfully loving me, allow me to continue to live [many more years]!
23 In die tijd bemerkte ik ook, dat er Joden waren, die vrouwen uit Asjdod, Ammon en Moab hadden getrouwd,
During that time, I also found out that many of the Jewish men had married women from Ashdod [city], and from [the] Ammon and Moab [people-groups].
24 en wier kinderen voor de helft geen joods konden spreken, maar wel asjdodietisch of de taal van een of ander volk.
The result was that half of their children spoke the language that people in Ashdod speak or some other language, and they didn’t know how to speak our language.
25 Ik verweet het hun en vervloekte hen, ranselde sommigen hunner af en trok ze de haren uit. Ik bezwoer ze bij God: Neen, gij moogt uw dochters niet aan hun zonen geven, en hun dochters niet voor uw zonen nemen of voor uzelf!
So I rebuked those men, and I [asked God to] curse them, and I beat them and pulled out [some of] their hair. Then I forced them to solemnly promise, knowing that God [MTY] was [listening], that they would never again marry foreigners, and never allow their children to marry foreigners.
26 Is Salomon, Israëls koning, niet om vreemde vrouwen in zonde gevallen? Ofschoon er onder de grote volken geen koning was zoals hij, ofschoon hij een gunsteling was van zijn God, die hem tot koning over heel Israël had aangesteld, hebben zij hem tot zonde verleid.
[I said to them], “Solomon, the king of Israel, sinned [RHQ] as a result of [marrying] foreign women. He was greater than any of the kings of other nations. God loved him, and caused him to become the king of all the Israeli people, but his foreign wives caused even him to sin.
27 Is het dan niet ongehoord, dat gij zo’n groot kwaad durft bedrijven, en ontrouw wordt aan onzen God, door vreemde vrouwen te huwen?
[Do you think that] we should do what you have done, and disobey our God by marrying foreign women [who worship idols]? [RHQ]”
28 En een der zonen van Jojada, den zoon van den hogepriester Eljasjib, die de schoonzoon van Sanbállat, den Choroniet, was geworden, joeg ik uit mijn omgeving weg.
One of the sons of Jehoiada, the son of Eliashib the Supreme Priest, had married the daughter of [our enemy] Sanballat, from Beth-Horon [town]. So I forced Jehoiada’s son to leave Jerusalem.
29 Mijn God, reken hun de ontwijding van het priesterschap en het verbond der priesters en levieten aan!
My God, do not forget that those people [who have married foreign women] have caused it to be a shame/disgrace to be a priest, and have caused people to despise the agreement that you made with the priests and with the [other] descendants of Levi [who help the priests])!
30 Zo reinigde ik hen van al wat uitheems was, regelde de dienst van priesters en levieten, zodat ieder zijn eigen taak had,
I did all that to make sure that there were no more foreign people among the [Israeli] people [who would encourage them to worship idols]. I also established regulations for the priests and [other] descendants of Levi, in order that they would know what work they should do.
31 en regelde de levering van hout op vaste tijden, en de eerstelingen. Mijn God, gedenk mijner ten goede!
I also arranged for people to bring the firewood [that was needed to burn on the altar, as Moses had declared] that we should [do]. I also arranged for the people to bring the first part of what they harvested [each year]. My God, do not forget [that] I [have done all these things], and bless me [for doing them]!
