Nehemiah 5

1 [Later, ] many of the men and their wives protested loudly about what [some of] the [other] Jews were doing.

And it was cry of distress of the people and wives their great against countrymen their the Jews.

2 Some/One of them said, “We have many children. So we need a lot of grain to be able to eat and continue to live.”

And there [were those] who [were] saying sons our and daughters our we [are] many and let us get grain so we may eat and we may live.

3 Others said, “The fields and vineyards and houses that we own, it has been necessary for us to (mortgage them/promise to give them to someone if we do not pay back to him the money he has loaned us) in order to get money to buy grain, during this (famine/time where there is not much food).”

And there [were those] who [were] saying fields our and vineyards our and houses our we [are] mortgaging and we will get grain in the famine.

4 Others said, “We have [needed to] borrow money to pay the taxes that the king [commanded us to pay] on our fields and our vineyards.

And there [were those] who [were] saying we have borrowed money for [the] tribute of the king fields our and vineyards our.

5 We are Jews just like [IDM] they are. Our children are ([just as good as/equal with)] their children. But we have needed to sell some of our children to become slaves [in order to pay what we owe]. We have already sold some of our daughters to become slaves. Our fields and vineyards have been taken away from us, so now we do not have [the money to pay what we owe, and we are forced to sell our children to get money to pay those debts].”

And now [is] like [the] flesh of countrymen our flesh our [are] like children their children our and there! we [are] bringing into bondage sons our and daughters our to slaves and there [are] some of daughters our being brought into bondage and there not [is] to [the] power of hand our and fields our and vineyards our [belong] to others.

6 I was very angry when I heard these things that they were complaining about.

And it burned to me exceedingly when I heard outcry their and the words these.

7 So I thought about what I could do about it. I told the leaders and officials [who were responsible for this work], “You are charging interest to your own relatives [when they borrow money from you]!” Then I called together a large group of people,

And it considered heart my with me and I contended! with the nobles and with the officials and I said! to them usury each on brother his you ([are] lending *QK) and I made on them an assembly great.

8 and I said to their [leaders], “Some of our Jewish relatives have been forced to sell themselves to become slaves of people who have come from other countries. As much as we have been able to, we have been buying them back [out of slavery]. But now you are forcing your own relatives to sell themselves to you, their fellow Jews, as slaves!” [When I said that to them, ] they were silent. There was nothing that they could say [because they knew that what I said was true].

And I said! to them we we have bought countrymen our the Jews who sold themselves to the nations according to [the] sufficiency in us and also you you sold countrymen your and they were sold to us and they were silent and not they found a word.

9 Then I said to them, “What you are doing is terrible [EUP]! You certainly ought to [RHQ] obey God and do what is right! If you did that, our enemies who do not revere Yahweh [would see that we are doing what is right and] would not ridicule us.

(And I said *QK) not [is] good the thing which you [are] doing ¿ not in [the] fear of God our are you walking from [the] reproach of the nations enemies our.

10 My fellow Jews and I and my servants have lent money and grain to people [without charging interest]. So you all should stop charging interest on these loans.

And also I brothers my and servants my [are] lending to them money and grain let us abandon please the usury this.

11 Also, you must give back to them their fields, their vineyards, their olive tree orchards, and their houses that you have taken from them. You must also give back to them the interest that you charged them when they borrowed money, grain, wine, and [olive] oil from you, and you must do it today!”

Return please to them as this day fields their vineyards their olive trees their and houses their and [the] hundred of the money and the grain the new wine and the fresh oil which you [are] lending to them.

12 The leaders replied, “We will do what you have said. We will return to them everything that we forced them to give to us, and we will not require that they give us anything more.” Then I summoned the priests, and I forced the leaders to vow in front of them that they would do what they had promised to do.

And they said we will return [it] and from them not we will require [it] so we will do just as you [are] saying and I summoned the priests and I made swear an oath them to do according to the manner this.

13 I shook out the folds of my robe and said to them, “If you do not do what you have just now promised to do, I hope/desire that God will shake you like I am shaking my robe. He will take away your homes and everything else that you own.” They all replied, “Amen/May it be so!” And they praised Yahweh. Then they did what they had promised to do.

Also bosom my I shook out and I said! thus may he shake out God every person who not he will carry out the word this from house his and from property his and thus may he be shaken out and empty and they said all the assembly amen and they praised Yahweh and it did the people according to the manner this.

14 I was appointed to be the governor of Judea in the twentieth year that Artaxerxes was the king [of Persia]. For the next twelve years, until he had been ruling for almost 32 years, neither I nor my officials accepted [the money that we were allowed/entitled to receive to buy] food because of my being the governor.

Also from [the] day - when someone appointed me to be governor their in [the] land of Judah from year twenty and until year thirty and two of Artaxerxes the king years two plus ten I and brothers my [the] food of the governor not I ate.

15 The men who were governors before I became the governor had burdened the people by requiring them to pay a lot of taxes. They had forced each person to pay to them 40 silver coins every day, in addition to giving food and wine to them. Even their servants/officials oppressed the people. But I did not do that, because I revered God.

And the governors former who [were] before me they made heavy on the people and they took from them food and wine after silver shekels forty also servants their they domineered over the people and I not I did thus because of [the] fear of God.

16 I also continued to work on the wall, and I did not take land from people [who were unable to pay back the money that they had borrowed from me]. All those who worked for me joined me to work on the wall.

And also on [the] work of the wall this I kept hold and a field not we acquired and all servants my [were] assembled there on the work.

17 Also, every day I was responsible to feed 150 Jewish officials, and also [official] visitors who came from nearby countries.

And the Jews and the officials one hundred and fifty person[s] and the [ones who] came to us from the nations which [were] around us [were] at table my.

18 Each day I [told my servants to] serve [us the meat from] one ox, six very good sheep, and chickens. And every ten days I gave them a large new supply of wine. But I knew that the people were burdened [by paying lots of taxes], so I did not accept [the money that I was entitled/allowed to receive to buy all this] food because of my being the governor.

And [that] which it was made for a day one [was] an ox one sheep six chosen and poultry they were made for me and between ten days in all wine to abundance and beside this [the] food of the governor not I sought for it was heavy the service on the people this.

19 My God, do not forget me, and reward me because of all that I have done for these people.

Remember! to me O God my for good all that I have done on the people this.