A.C.444 the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the to 433. Heb. tower of wood. + Heb. eyes. law. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people ;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up: 6 And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law and the people stood in their place. 8 So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. was to render the Scripture as plain and intelligible to the people as they could, and not to hide and conceal any of it from them. V. Ezra wrote out the whole in the Chaldee character. For that having now grown wholly into use among the people after the Babylonish captivity, he changed the old Hebrew character for it, since which time the Hebrew has been retained only by the Samaritans; among whom it is preserved even to this day. But though Ezra's government over all Judah and Jerusalem expired with the year when Nehemiah arrived from Persia, yet his labour to serve the church of God did not here end; for still he went on as a preacher of righteousness, and a skilful scribe of the law of God, to perfect the reformation which he had begun, both in preparing for the people correct editions of the Scriptures, and also in bringing all things in Church and State to be conformed to the rules thereof. And this he continued to do as long as he lived; and herein he was thoroughly assisted and supported by the governor; who coming to Jerusalem with the same intention, and the same zeal for promoting of the honour of God, and the welfare of his people in Judah and Jerusalem, as Ezra did, he struck in heartily with him in the work; so that Ezra went on still to do the same things by the authority of the new governor, which he before did by his own. And by their thus joining together in the same holy undertaking, and their mutual assisting each other therein, it exceedingly prospered in their hands; till at length, notwithstanding all manner of oppositions, both from within and from without, it was brought to full perfection forty-nine years after it had been begun by Ears. Whether Ezra lived so long or not, is uncertain; but what he did not live to do, was completed by the piety and zeal of his successor, Nehemiah.-Prideaux's Connection. REFORMATION BY NEHEMIAH. to 433. 9¶ And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra A.C. 444 the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD * Or, the goyour God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law. 10 Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength. 11 So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved. 12 And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them. vernor 13 ¶ And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even + to understand the +Or, that they words of the law. S might instruct in the words of the law. hand of. s Lev. xxiii. 34. Deut. xvi. 13. 14 And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel Heb. by the should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month: 15 And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written. 16 So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim. 17 And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto And there that day had not the children of Israel done so. was very great gladness. 18 Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the straint. feast seven days; and on the eighth day was § a solemn as- Heb, a re sembly, according unto the manner. NEHEMIAH IX. 1 A solemn fast, and repentance of the people. 4 The Levites make a religious t 1 Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the t ch. viii. 2. A. C. 444 children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them. to 433. * 2 And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all child strange strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. children. + Or, scaffold. u Gen. i, 1. & xii. 1. 3 And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the LORD their God." 4 Then stood up upon the + stairs, of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani, and cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God. 5 Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless the LORD your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. 6 Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; "thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. x Gen. xi. 31. 7 Thou art the LORD the God, who didst choose * Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and y Gen. xvii. 5. gavest him the name of y Abraham; z Gen. xv. 6. a Gen. xii. 7. & xv. 19. & xvii. 7, 8. a 8 And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it, I say, to his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous: 9 And didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, c Ex. xiv. 10. and heardest their cry by the Red sea; b Ex. iii. 7. d Ex. vii. viii. ix. x. xii, & xiv. e Ex. xiv. 21, 22. C d 10 And shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them. So didst thou get thee a name, as it is this day. 11 And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; f Ex. xv. 10. and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters. g Ex. xiii. 21. 12 Moreover thou & leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go.. h h Ex. xix. 20. 13 Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judg & xx. l. ments, and * true laws, good statutes and command- A.C. 444 ments: to 433. 14 And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and Hcb. laws of commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the truth. hand of Moses thy servant: k 15 And igavest them bread from heaven for their ger, and broughtest forth water for them out of the for their thirst, and promisedst them that they should in to possess the land † which thou hadst sworn to them. 15. hun- i Ex. xvi. 14, rock k Ex. xvii. 6. go give Num. xx. 9, c. 1 Deut i. 8. +Heb. which thou hadst lift up thine hand to give them. 16 But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments, 17 And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return m Num. xiv. to their bondage: but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not. m 4. Heb, a God of pardons. 18 Yea, "when they had made them a molten calf, and n Ex. xxxii. 4. said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations; Num. xiv 14. 19 Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed noto Ex. xiii. 22. from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the 1 Cor. x. 1. pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein they should go. P 20 Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst. T 21 Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed s Deut. viii. 4. not old, and their feet swelled not. 22 Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and nations, and didst divide them into corners: so they possessed the land of 'Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and Num. xxi. the land of Og king of Bashan. 23 Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it. 24 So the children went in and possessed the land, and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gavest them into their hands, with their kings, and the people of the land, that they might do with them as they would. 21, &c. Heb. according to 25 And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and pos- their will. to 433. A.C. 444 sessed houses full of all goods, *wells digged, vineyards, and oliveyards, and fruit trees in abundance: so they did Or, cisterns, eat, and were filled, and became fat, and delighted them+Heb. tree of selves in thy great goodness. food. 26 Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew ul Kings xix. thy "prophets which testified against them to turn them to thee, and they wrought great provocations. 10. Heb. they returned to do evil. 27 Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their enemies. 28 But after they had rest, they did evil again before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them: yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies; 29 And testifiedst against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law: yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, (which if a man do, he shall live in them ;) Heb. they and S withdrew the shoulder, and hardened their neck, and drawingshoul. Would not hear. gave a with der, Zech. vii. 11. || Heb. pro- them. Heb. in the hand of thy prophets. y Ex. xxxiv. 6, 7. X 30 Yet many years didst thou || forbear them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets : yet would they not give ear: therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands. 31 Nevertheless for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God. 32 Now therefore our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, let not +Heb. weari. all the trouble seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day. ness. + Heb. that hath found us. 33 Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly: 34 Neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, whereby thou didst testify against them. 35 For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and |