King James Version › Nehemiah › 4

Nehemiah

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1 But it came to pass, that when San­bal­lat heard that we build­ed the wall, he was wroth, and took great in­dig­na­tion, and mocked the Jews. 2 And he spake be­fore his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these fee­ble Jews? will they for­ti­fy them­selves? will they sac­ri­fice? will they make an end in a day? will they re­vive the stones out of the heaps of the rub­bish which are burned? 3 Now To­bi­ah the Am­monite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. 4 Hear, O our God; for we are de­spised: and turn their re­proach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of cap­tiv­i­ty: 5 And cov­er not their in­iq­ui­ty, and let not their sin be blot­ted out from be­fore thee: for they have pro­voked thee to anger be­fore the builders. 6 So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined to­geth­er unto the half there­of: for the peo­ple had a mind to work. 7 But it came to pass, that when San­bal­lat, and To­bi­ah, and the Ara­bi­ans, and the Am­monites, and the Ash­dodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breach­es be­gan to be stopped, then they were very wroth, 8 And con­spired all of them to­geth­er to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hin­der it. 9 Nev­er­the­less we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, be­cause of them. 10 And Ju­dah said, The strength of the bear­ers of bur­dens is de­cayed, and there is much rub­bish; so that we are not able to build the wall. 11 And our ad­ver­saries said, They shall not know, nei­ther see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. 12 And it came to pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall re­turn unto us they will be upon you. 13 There­fore set I in the low­er places be­hind the wall, and on the high­er places, I even set the peo­ple af­ter their fam­i­lies with their swords, their spears, and their bows. 14 And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the no­bles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the peo­ple, Be not ye afraid of them: re­mem­ber the Lord, which is great and ter­ri­ble, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daugh­ters, your wives, and your hous­es. 15 And it came to pass, when our en­e­mies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their coun­sel to nought, that we re­turned all of us to the wall, ev­ery one unto his work. 16 And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my ser­vants wrought in the work, and the oth­er half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the haber­geons; and the rulers were be­hind all the house of Ju­dah. 17 They which build­ed on the wall, and they that bare bur­dens, with those that lad­ed, ev­ery one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the oth­er hand held a weapon. 18 For the builders, ev­ery one had his sword gird­ed by his side, and so build­ed. And he that sound­ed the trum­pet was by me. 19 And I said unto the no­bles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the peo­ple, The work is great and large, and we are sep­a­rat­ed upon the wall, one far from an­oth­er. 20 In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trum­pet, re­sort ye thith­er unto us: our God shall fight for us. 21 So we laboured in the work: and half of them held the spears from the ris­ing of the morn­ing till the stars ap­peared. 22 Like­wise at the same time said I unto the peo­ple, Let ev­ery one with his ser­vant lodge with­in Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labour on the day. 23 So nei­ther I, nor my brethren, nor my ser­vants, nor the men of the guard which fol­lowed me, none of us put off our clothes, sav­ing that ev­ery one put them off for wash­ing.