1   When the news came to Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies, that I had rebuilt the wall and that not a single breach remained in it, although I had not yet set up the doors in the gates, 2   Sanballat and Geshem sent me an invitation to come and confer with them at Hakkephirim in the plain of Ono; this was a ruse on their part to do me harm. 3   So I sent messengers to them with this reply: ‘I have important work on my hands at the moment; I cannot come down. Why should the work be brought to a standstill while I leave it and come down to you?’ 4   They sent me a similar invitation four times, and each time I gave them the same answer. 5   On a fifth occasion Sanballat made a similar approach, but this time his messenger came with an open letter. 6   It ran as follows: ‘It is reported among the nations—and Gashmu ^note confirms it—that you and the Jews are plotting rebellion, and it is for this reason that you are rebuilding the wall, and—so the report goes—that you yourself want to be king. 7   You are also said to have put up prophets to proclaim in Jerusalem that Judah has a king, meaning yourself. The king will certainly hear of this. So come at once and let us talk the matter over.’ 8   Here is the reply I sent: ‘No such thing as you allege has taken place; you have made up the whole story.’ 9   They were all trying to intimidate us, in the hope that we should then relax our efforts and that the work would never be finished. So I applied myself to it with greater energy. ^note

The walls of Jerusalem rebuilt

10   One day I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, son of Mehetabel, for he was confined to his house. He said, ‘Let us meet in the house of God, within the sanctuary, and let us shut the doors, for they are coming to kill you—they are coming to kill you by night.’ 11   But I said, ‘Should a man like me run away? And can a man like me go into the sanctuary and survive ^note? 12   I will not go in.’ Then it dawned on me: God had not sent him. His prophecy aimed at harming me, and Tobiah and Sanballat had bribed him to utter it. 13   He had been bribed to frighten me into compliance and into committing sin; then they could give me a bad name and discredit me. 14   Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O God, for what they have done, and also the prophetess Noadiah and all the other prophets who have tried to intimidate me.

15   On the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul the wall was finished; it had taken fifty-two days. 16   When our enemies heard of it, and all the surrounding nations saw it, ^note they thought it a very wonderful achievement, ^note and they recognized that this work had been accomplished by the help of our God.

17   All this time the nobles in Judah were sending many letters to Tobiah, and receiving replies from him. 18   For many in Judah were in league with him, because he was a son-in-law of Shecaniah son of Arah, and his son Jehohanan had married a daughter of Meshullam son of Berechiah. 19   They were always praising ^note him in my presence and repeating to him what I said. Tobiah also wrote to me to intimidate me.

Previous section

Next section