1These are the priests and Levites who went up with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,
2Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,
3Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,
4Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,
5Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,
6Shemaiah, Joiarib, and Jedaiah.
7Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, and Jedaiah. These were the leaders of the priests and their relatives during Jeshua’s time.
8The Levites included Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, and Judah. Mattaniah and his relatives were in charge of the thanksgiving services.
9Bakbukiah and Unno, their relatives, served alongside them in their assigned duties.
10Jeshua was the father of Joiakim. Joiakim was the father of Eliashib. Eliashib was the father of Joiada.
11Joiada was the father of Jonathan. Jonathan was the father of Jaddua.
12During Joiakim’s time, the heads of the priestly families were: Meraiah from Seraiah’s family; Hananiah from Jeremiah’s family;
13Meshullam from Ezra’s family; Jehohanan from Amariah’s family;
14Jonathan from Malluchi’s family; Joseph from Shebaniah’s family;
15Adna from Harim’s family; Helkai from Meraioth’s family.
16from Iddo, Zechariah; from Ginnethon, Meshullam;
17from Abijah, Zichri; from Miniamin, from Moadiah, Piltai;
18from Bilgah, Shammua; from Shemaiah, Jehonathan;
19and from Joiarib, Mattenai; from Jedaiah, Uzzi;
20from Sallai, Kallai; from Amok, Eber;
21from Hilkiah, Hashabiah; from Jedaiah, Nethanel.
22Regarding the Levites, during the time of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua, the heads of the family lines were recorded. The priests were also recorded during the reign of Darius the Persian.
23The heads of the Levite family lines were written in the book of chronicles, up until the time of Johanan, the son of Eliashib.
24The leaders of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua, the son of Kadmiel, along with their relatives. They were responsible for praise and thanksgiving, following the instructions of David, the man of God, taking turns on duty.
25Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers who guarded the storerooms at the gates.
26These events took place during the time of Joiakim, the son of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and during the time of Nehemiah, the governor, and Ezra, the priest and scribe.
27When the wall of Jerusalem was dedicated, they gathered the Levites from all their locations and brought them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with joy, giving thanks and singing, accompanied by cymbals, stringed instruments, and harps.
28The singers' descendants gathered from the plain around Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites;
29also from Beth Gilgal, and from the fields of Geba and Azmaveth, because the singers had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem.
30The priests and Levites purified themselves; then they purified the people, the gates, and the wall.
31Then I brought the leaders of Judah onto the wall and assigned two large groups to give thanks and march in procession. One group went to the right on the wall toward the Dung Gate;
32and behind them went Hoshaiah, with half of the leaders of Judah,
33and Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam,
34Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, Jeremiah,
35and some of the priests' sons with trumpets: Zechariah, the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph;
36His brothers, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, played the musical instruments that David, the man of God, had used. Ezra, the scribe, walked in front of them.
37They went through the Spring Gate and straight ahead, up the stairs of David’s city, along the wall, past David’s house, and all the way to the Water Gate on the east side.
38The other group of those who gave thanks came to meet them, and I followed them with half of the people. We walked on the wall, above the Tower of the Furnaces, all the way to the Wide Wall,
39and above the Ephraim Gate, past the Old Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of Hammeah, to the Sheep Gate. They stopped at the Guard Gate.
40So the two groups praising God stood in God’s house, along with me and half of the leaders who were with me.
41The priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, played their trumpets.
42Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer were also there. The singers sang loudly, led by Jezrahiah.
43That day they offered many sacrifices and rejoiced, because God had filled them with great joy. Even the women and children rejoiced so much that the joy in Jerusalem could be heard from far away.
44On that day, men were put in charge of the storerooms for the treasures, the special offerings, the first fruits, and the tithes. Their job was to collect the portions required by law for the priests and Levites from the surrounding fields and bring them into these rooms, because the people of Judah were happy for the priests and Levites who served.
45The priests and Levites did their duties for God, and the duties of purification. The singers and gatekeepers also did their duties, following the commands of David and his son Solomon.
46In the past, during the time of David and Asaph, there was a leader of the singers, and there were songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.
47In the days of Zerubbabel and Nehemiah, all of Israel gave the daily portions for the singers and gatekeepers. They also set aside portions for the Levites, and the Levites in turn set aside portions for the descendants of Aaron (the priests).