Nehemiah 12:42-44
New Catholic Bible
42 and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. The singers sang loudly under the direction of Jezrahiah.
43 There were great sacrifices offered on that day, and the people rejoiced because God had given them great joy. The women and children rejoiced along with them, and the joy of Jerusalem could be heard from a great distance away.
44 Offerings for Priests and Levites.[a] On that occasion men were appointed to take charge of the chambers that had been set aside for the storerooms, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, and to collect in them those portions required by the law for the priests and the Levites from the fields belonging to them. For all Judah rejoiced in its officiating priests and Levites,
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Nehemiah 12:44 In the view of the Chronicler, the acknowledged royal officials, Zerubbabel and Nehemiah, are the pioneers of a time of perfection in which the rights and dignity of the Levites are respected and the law is strictly observed. The author once again emphasizes the role of the Levites against the overly exclusive claims of the priests, who were more favorable to the Samaritans, though the latter had meanwhile become schismatics.
