Nehemiah, 5

1. Then there rose a great outcry of the common people and their wives against certain of their fellow Jews.

1. There was a great outcry from the people, and from their wives, against their brother Jews.

2. Some said: "We are forced to pawn our sons and daughters in order to get grain to eat that we may live."

2. Some said, 'We are having to pledge our sons and daughters to get enough grain to eat and keep us alive.'

3. Others said: "We are forced to pawn our fields, our vineyards, and our houses, that we may have grain during the famine."

3. Others said, 'We are having to mortgage our fields, our vineyards and our houses to get grain because of the shortage.'

4. Still others said: "To pay the king's tax we have borrowed money on our fields and our vineyards.

4. Still others said, 'We have had to borrow money on our fields and our vineyards to pay the royal tax;

5. And though these are our own kinsmen and our children are as good as theirs, we have had to reduce our sons and daughters to slavery, and violence has been done to some of our daughters! Yet we can do nothing about it, for our fields and our vineyards belong to others."

5. and though we belong to the same race as our brothers, and our children are as good as theirs, we shall have to sell our sons and our daughters into slavery; some of our daughters have been sold into slavery already. We can do nothing about it, since our fields and our vineyards now belong to others.'

6. I was extremely angry when I heard the reasons they had for complaint.

6. When I heard their complaints and these words I was very angry.

7. After some deliberation, I called the nobles and magistrates to account, saying to them, "You are exacting interest from your own kinsmen!" I then rebuked them severely,

7. Having turned the matter over in my mind, I reprimanded the nobles and the officials as follows, 'Each of you is imposing a burden on his brother.' Summoning a great assembly to deal with them,

8. saying to them: "As far as we were able, we bought back our fellow Jews who had been sold to Gentiles; you, however, are selling your own brothers, to have them bought back by us." They remained silent, for they could find no answer.

8. I said to them, 'To the best of our power, we have redeemed our brother Jews who were forced to sell themselves to foreigners, and now you in turn are selling your brothers, for them to be bought back by us!' They were silent and could find nothing to say.

9. I continued: "What you are doing is not good. Should you not walk in the fear of our God, and put an end to the derision of our Gentile enemies?

9. 'What you are doing', I went on, 'is wrong. Do you not want to walk in the fear of our God and escape the sneers of the nations, our enemies?

10. I myself, my kinsmen, and my attendants have lent the people money and grain without charge. Let us put an end to this usury!

10. I too, with my brothers and retainers, have lent them money and grain. Let us cancel these pledges.

11. I ask that you return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves, and their houses, together with the interest on the money, the grain, the wine, and the oil that you have lent them."

11. This very day return them their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves and their houses, and cancel the claim on the money, grain, new wine and olive oil, which you have lent them.'

12. They answered: "We will return everything and exact nothing further from them. We will do just what you ask." Then I called for the priests and had them administer an oath to these men that they would do as they had promised.

12. 'We shall make restitution,' they replied, 'we shall claim nothing more from them; we shall do as you say.' Summoning the priests, I then made them swear to do as they had promised.

13. I also shook out the folds of my garment, saying, "Thus may God shake from his home and his fortune every man who fails to keep this promise, and may he thus be shaken out and emptied!" And the whole assembly answered, "Amen," and praised the LORD. Then the people did as they had promised.

13. Then, shaking out the fold of my garment, I said, 'May God thus shake out of house and possessions anyone who does not make good this promise; may he be shaken out thus and left empty!' And the whole assembly answered, 'Amen' and praised Yahweh. And the people kept this promise.

14. Moreover, from the time that King Artaxerxes appointed me governor in the land of Judah, from his twentieth to his thirty-second year--during these twelve years neither I nor my brethren lived from the governor's allowance.

14. What is more, from the time when the king appointed me to be their governor in Judah, from the twentieth to the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes, for twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ever levied the governor's subsistence allowance,

15. The earlier governors, my predecessors, had laid a heavy burden on the people, taking from them each day forty silver shekels for their food; then too, their men oppressed the people. But I, because I feared God, did not act thus.

15. whereas the former governors, my predecessors, had been a burden on the people, from whom they took forty silver shekels a day for food and wine, while their attendants oppressed the people too. But I, fearing God, never did this.

16. Moreover, though I had acquired no land of my own, I did my part in this work on the wall, and all my men were gathered there for the work.

16. Also, not acquiring any land, I concentrated on the work of this wall and all my attendants joined in the work together, too.

17. Though I set my table for a hundred and fifty persons, Jews and magistrates, as well as those who came to us from the nations round about,

17. Furthermore, magistrates and officials to the number of a hundred and fifty ate at my table, not to mention those who came to us from the surrounding nations.

18. and though the daily preparations were made at my expense--one beef, six choice muttons, poultry--besides all kinds of wine in abundance every ten days, despite this I did not claim the governor's allowance, for the labor lay heavy upon this people.

18. Every day, one ox, six fine sheep, as well as poultry, were prepared for me; every ten days, skins of wine were brought in bulk. But even so, I never claimed the governor's subsistence allowance, since the people already had burden enough to bear.

19. Keep in mind, O my God, in my favor all that I did for this people.

19. To my credit, my God, remember all I have done for this people.