 1 When Sanballat heard that we built the wall, he was angry and greatly displeased, and mocked the Jews. 2 He spoke before his brothers and the army of Samaria and said, What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they fortify themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they make an end in a day? Will they bring to life the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish that are burned? 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, Even what they build, if a fox goes up, he will even break down their stone wall. 4 Oh God, hear, for we are despised. Turn their curse upon their own head and give them as a prey in the land of captivity. 5 Do not cover their iniquity and do not let their sin be blotted out from before you. For they have provoked you to anger before the builders. 6 So we built the wall and all the wall was joined together to the half of it. For the people had a mind to work. 7 When Sanballat and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem had gone up, and that the breaks were being filled, they were very angry. 8 All of them conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem and do harm to it. 9 But we made our prayer to our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them. 10 Judah said, The strength of the carriers of burdens is weakening, and there is much rubbish, so that we are not able to build the wall. 11 Our foes have said, They will not know, or see, until we come in the middle of them, and kill them, and cause the work to cease. 12 When the Jews who lived near them came in, they said to us ten times, From all places where you will turn to us, they will be against us. 13 I stationed in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people according to their families with their sword, their spears, and their bows. 14 I looked and said to the nobles and to the rulers and to the rest of the people, Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord who is great and awesome+, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses. 15 When our enemies heard that it was known to us, and that God had brought their counsel to nothing, all of us returned to the wall, each one to his work. 16 From that time forth, half of my servants worked in the work and the other half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows, and the armor+. The rulers were behind all the house of Judah, 17 the ones who built on the wall, and the ones who carried burdens. With those who were lifting, one a worker in the work, and one held a weapon. 18 For of the builders, each one had his sword tied by his side, and built. And the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me. 19 I said to 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, far from one another. 20 In whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, gather there to us. Our God will fight for us. 21 We labored in the work. And half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning until the stars appeared. 22 Also at the same time I said to the people, Let everyone with his servant stay inside Jerusalem, so that in the night they may be a guard to us, and labor in the day. 23 None, I, nor my brothers, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us put off our clothes except that everyone had his vessel of water.
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