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Nehemías 7

VBL · Chapter 7/13

1Una vez reconstruida la muralla y levantadas las puertas, nombré a los porteros, a los cantores y a los levitas.

2Puse a mi hermano Hanani a cargo de Jerusalén, junto con Hananías, el comandante de la fortaleza, porque era un hombre honesto que respetaba a Dios más que muchos otros.

3Les dije: “No permitan que se abran las puertas de Jerusalén hasta que el sol esté caliente, y asegúrate de que los guardias cierren y echen el cerrojo a las puertas mientras estén de servicio. Nombra a algunos de los habitantes de Jerusalén como guardias, para que estén en sus puestos, frente a sus propias casas”.

4En aquellos tiempos la ciudad era grande y con mucho espacio, pero no había mucha gente en ella, y las casas no habían sido reconstruidas.

5Mi Dios me animó a que todos -los nobles, los funcionarios y el pueblo- vinieran a registrarse según su genealogía familiar. Encontré el registro genealógico de los que habían regresado primero. Esto es lo que descubrí escrito allí.

6Esta es una lista de la gente de la provincia que regresó del cautiverio. Estos eran los exiliados que habían sido llevados a Babilonia por el rey Nabucodonosor. Regresaron a Jerusalén y a Judá, a sus ciudades de origen.

7Estaban dirigidos por Zorobabel, Jesúa, Nehemías, Azarías, Raamías, Nahamani, Mardoqueo, Bilsán, Misperet, Bigvai, Nehum y Baana.

8Los hijos de Paros, 2.172;

9los hijos de Sefatías, 372;

10los hijos de Ara, 652;

11los hijos de Pahat-moab, (los hijos de Jesúa y Joab), 2.818;

12los hijos de Elam, 1.254;

13los hijos de Zatu, 845;

14los hijos de Zacai, 760;

15los hijos de Binui, 648;

16los hijos de Bebai, 628;

17los hijos de Azgad, 2.322;

18los hijos de Adonicam, 667;

19los hijos de Bigvai, 2.067.

20Los hijos de Adin, 655.

21Los hijos de Ater, (hijos de Ezequías), 98;

22los hijos de Hasum, 328;

23los hijos de Bezai, 324;

24los hijos de Harif, 112;

25los hijos de Gabaón, 95;

26el pueblo de Belén y Netofa, 188;

27el pueblo de Anatot, 128;

28el pueblo de Bet-azmavet 42;

29el pueblo de Quiriat-jearim, Cafira y Beerot, 743;

30el pueblo de Ramá y Geba, 621;

31el pueblo de Micmas, 122;

32el pueblo de Bet-el y Ai, 123;

33el pueblo del otro Nebo, 52;

34los hijos del otro Elam, 1.254;

35los hijos de Harim, 320;

36los hijos de Jericó, 345;

37los hijos de Lod, Hadid y Ono, 721;

38los hijos de Senaa, 3.930.

39Este es el número de los sacerdotes: los hijos de Jedaías (por la familia de Jesúa), 973;

40los hijos de Imer, 1.052;

41los hijos de Pasur, 1.247;

42los hijos de Harim, 1.017.

43Este es el número de los levitas: los hijos de Jesúa por Cadmiel (hijos de Hodavías), 74;

44los cantores de los hijos de Asaf, 148;

45los porteros de las familias de Salum, Ater, Talmón, Acub, Hatita y Sobai, 138.

46Los descendientes de estos servidores del Templo: Ziha, Hasufa, Tabaot,

47Queros, Sia, Padón,

48Lebana, Hagaba, Salmai,

49Hanán, Gidel, Gahar,

50Reaía, Rezín, Necoda,

51Gazam, Uza, Paseah,

52Besai, Mehunim, Nefusim,

53Bacbuc, Hacufa, Harhur,

54Bazlut, Mehída, Harsa,

55Barcos, Sísara, Tema,

56Nezía, y Hatifa.

57Los descendientes de los siervos del rey Salomón: Sotai, Soferet, Perida,

58Jaala, Darcón, Gidel,

59Sefatías, Hatil, Poqueret-hazebaim y Amón.

60El total de los siervos del Templo y de los descendientes de los siervos de Salomón era de 392.

61Los que procedían de las ciudades de Tel-mela, Tel-Harsa, Querub, Addán e Imer no podían demostrar su genealogía familiar, ni siquiera que eran descendientes de Israel.

62Entre ellos estaban las familias de Delaía, Tobías y Necoda, 642 en total.

63Además había tres familias sacerdotales, hijos de Habaía, Cos y Barzilai. (Barzilai se había casado con una mujer descendiente de Barzilai de Galaad, y se llamaba por ese nombre).

64Se buscó un registro de ellos en las genealogías, pero no se encontraron sus nombres, por lo que se les prohibió servir como sacerdotes.

65El gobernador les ordenó que no comieran nada de los sacrificios del santuario hasta que un sacerdote pudiera preguntar al Señor sobre el asunto utilizando el Urim y el Tumim.

66El total de personas que regresaron fue de 42.360.

67Además había 7.337 sirvientes y 245 cantores y cantoras.

68Tenían 736 caballos, 245 mulas,

69435 camellos y 6.720 burros.

70Algunos de los jefes de familia hicieron contribuciones voluntarias para el trabajo. El gobernador entregó a la tesorería 1.000 dáricos de oro, 50 cuencos y 530 conjuntos de ropa para los sacerdotes.

71Algunos de los jefes de familia donaron al tesoro para la obra 20.000 dáricos de oro y 2.200 minas de plata.

72El resto del pueblo donó 20.000 dáricos de oro, 2.000 minas de plata y 67 conjuntos de ropa para los sacerdotes.

73Los sacerdotes, los levitas, los porteros, los cantores y los servidores del Templo, así como parte del pueblo y el resto de los israelitas, volvieron a vivir en sus pueblos específicos. En el séptimo mes los israelitas vivían en sus pueblos,

📖 Chapter study

Summary

With the wall completed, Nehemiah appoints guards for the city gates and records the genealogy of the people, repeating the list of those who returned from exile with Zerubbabel decades earlier.

Explanation

After the euphoria of finishing the physical work, Nehemiah turns his attention to internal organization: he chooses trustworthy leaders for the gates, since the city was still sparsely populated and vulnerable. The repetition of the genealogical list from Ezra 2, nearly identical, serves to reaffirm the legitimate identity of the people now living in the newly fortified city, connecting this new generation to the same community that had returned from exile. It is a reminder that rebuilding physical walls is not enough: it is also necessary to care for the people who live within them and for their collective identity.

Fun facts

  • The near-identical repetition of this list, found both here and in Ezra 2, is considered by scholars evidence that both books drew on the same original documentary source.
  • Nehemiah chooses his own brother Hanani, already mentioned in chapter 1, as one of those responsible for the city's security, showing his trust in family ties for critical tasks.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Nehemías 7:1With the wall finished and the doors finally installed, Nehemiah organizes gatekeepers, singers, and Levites for their duties — the city regains a complete religious and administrative structure.
  2. Nehemías 7:2Nehemiah puts his own brother, Hanani, the same one who had brought the news back in chapter 1, in charge of the city together with Hananiah, chosen for being especially trustworthy.
  3. Nehemías 7:3Nehemiah orders that the city gates only be opened once the sun is already high and be shut before nightfall, with residents standing guard in shifts. It is a basic security measure for a city that had only just finished rebuilding its walls.
  4. Nehemías 7:4Even with the wall finished, Jerusalem was still practically empty inside, with few houses built — a problem the next chapter begins to address.
  5. Nehemías 7:5Nehemiah feels the impulse to gather the people to record their genealogies, and this is how he finds the old book with the list of the first who returned from exile. This record repeats, almost word for word, the list already found in the book of Ezra.
  6. Nehemías 7:6Nehemiah transcribes here the same list of returnees that Ezra had already recorded decades earlier, in chapter 2 of his own book, with small differences in numbers between the two versions.
  7. Nehemías 7:7The list names another Nehemiah among the leaders of the first wave of return, sharing the name of this book's author, who had not even been born yet at that time.
  8. Nehemías 7:8The family of Parosh opens the list with a number almost identical to the one recorded by Ezra, just a small difference in count between the two versions of the census.
  9. Nehemías 7:9The family of Shephatiah appears with the exact same number cited by Ezra, one of the few exact matches between the two lists.
  10. Nehemías 7:10Here a real difference appears: Ezra counted this family at seven hundred seventy-five people, while Nehemiah records six hundred fifty-two.
  11. Nehemías 7:11The family of Pahath-moab appears again, with a number very close to Ezra's, just six more people in this version of the list.
  12. Nehemías 7:12The family of Elam repeats the exact same number as both appearances in the book of Ezra — one thousand two hundred fifty-four, again.
  13. Nehemías 7:13The family of Zattu appears here with almost a hundred fewer people than the number recorded by Ezra, one of the most visible differences between the two lists.
  14. Nehemías 7:14The family of Zaccai keeps the exact same number in both versions of the list, with no difference in count.
  15. Nehemías 7:15Here the name changes: where Ezra recorded “the children of Bani,” Nehemiah writes “the children of Binnui,” probably two ways of spelling the same family name.
  16. Nehemías 7:16The family of Bebai appears with a number close to, but not identical with, the one recorded by Ezra, another small variation between the two versions.
  17. Nehemías 7:17The family of Azgad grows significantly in this version: a thousand more than the number recorded by Ezra decades earlier.
  18. Nehemías 7:18The family of Adonikam appears with just one more person than Ezra's number, one of the most minor differences in the entire list.
  19. Nehemías 7:19The family of Bigvai also shifts slightly in number between the two versions, one more small, natural variation between records made at different times.
  20. Nehemías 7:20The family of Adin now appears with far more people than the four hundred fifty-four recorded by Ezra.
  21. Nehemías 7:21The family of Ater repeats the exact same number as Ezra, including the same link to the name Hezekiah.
  22. Nehemías 7:22The family of Hashum appears with a larger number than the two hundred twenty-three recorded in Ezra's list.
  23. Nehemías 7:23The family of Bezai also grows slightly compared to the earlier count made by Ezra.
  24. Nehemías 7:24Here the name changes from Jorah, as it appears in Ezra, to Hariph in this version by Nehemiah, one more spelling variation between the two lists of the same census.
  25. Nehemías 7:25Ezra's family of Gibbar appears here as “the children of Gibeon,” possibly identifying the group by its town rather than by an ancestor.
  26. Nehemías 7:26Unlike Ezra, who separated Bethlehem and Netophah into two distinct groups, here the two towns are counted together.
  27. Nehemías 7:27Anathoth, the hometown of the prophet Jeremiah, repeats the exact same number from Ezra's list.
  28. Nehemías 7:28The group Ezra called simply “the children of Azmaveth” appears here under the town's full name, Beth-azmaveth.
  29. Nehemías 7:29These three towns appear counted together again, with the exact same number recorded by Ezra.
  30. Nehemías 7:30Ramah and Geba also repeat the exact same number from the earlier list, one of several perfect matches between the two versions.
  31. Nehemías 7:31Michmas keeps the exact same number recorded by Ezra decades earlier.
  32. Nehemías 7:32Bethel and Ai appear here with a slightly smaller number than the two hundred twenty-three cited by Ezra.
  33. Nehemías 7:33The family of the other Nebo repeats the exact same number as Ezra, closing this first block of names tied to towns and lay families.
  34. Nehemías 7:34“The other Elam” reappears with the same number as the first family of Elam, repeating exactly the same coincidence of numbers already seen in Ezra's list.
  35. Nehemías 7:35The family of Harim repeats the exact number recorded by Ezra, with no variation between the two lists.
  36. Nehemías 7:36The residents of Jericho also keep the exact same number from the earlier list.
  37. Nehemías 7:37These three towns appear together again, with a minimal difference of two fewer compared to Ezra's count.
  38. Nehemías 7:38The family of Senaah, one of the largest groups in the list, now appears with three hundred more people than the number recorded by Ezra.
  39. Nehemías 7:39Here begins the block of priests, with the exact same number for the family of Jedaiah already seen in Ezra.
  40. Nehemías 7:40The priestly family of Immer repeats the exact same number recorded by Ezra.
  41. Nehemías 7:41The family of Pashur also keeps the number identical to the earlier list.
  42. Nehemías 7:42The fourth priestly family, Harim, closes out the group of priests with the exact same number as Ezra, the four families together totaling nearly four thousand men.
  43. Nehemías 7:43The Levites appear again with the same very low number, seventy-four, the same problem of few Levites willing to return already seen in Ezra's list.
  44. Nehemías 7:44The singers of the family of Asaph appear here with twenty more people than the number recorded by Ezra.
  45. Nehemías 7:45The group of temple gatekeepers appears with one fewer person than Ezra's count, a minimal difference between the two versions.
  46. Nehemías 7:46The list of Nethinims, servants of the temple, begins again, repeating almost the same names already seen in the book of Ezra.
  47. Nehemías 7:47Three more families of Nethinims, with small spelling variations compared to the names recorded by Ezra.
  48. Nehemías 7:48The list of Nethinims continues, with names such as Shalmai matching Ezra's list almost exactly, only minor spelling differences appearing elsewhere in the two censuses.
  49. Nehemías 7:49More Nethinims are listed, in an order similar to, but not identical with, the list Ezra had recorded.
  50. Nehemías 7:50The list of Nethinims continues, each name reaffirming these families' place among the restored residents of Jerusalem.
  51. Nehemías 7:51Three more families of Nethinims appear, completing almost the same set of names already seen before.
  52. Nehemías 7:52Here Ezra's Mehunim and Nephusim appear with slightly different names, Meunim and Nephishesim, but representing the same groups.
  53. Nehemías 7:53The list of Nethinims continues almost identical to Ezra's, with only a few spelling variations between the two books.
  54. Nehemías 7:54Three more families of Nethinims, keeping the same repeated list structure from the book of Ezra.
  55. Nehemías 7:55The list of temple servants continues, practically copying the sequence of names already recorded decades earlier.
  56. Nehemías 7:56The list of the Nethinims closes here, setting up the transition to the descendants of Solomon's former servants.
  57. Nehemías 7:57The list of Solomon's servants begins, a labor category that had existed for centuries, repeated here almost word for word from Ezra's list.
  58. Nehemías 7:58More families descended from Solomon's former servants complete this small group within the general census.
  59. Nehemías 7:59The list of Solomon's servants ends with four more families, including one name, Amon, spelled differently from the “Ami” cited by Ezra.
  60. Nehemías 7:60The total of Nethinims and Solomon's servants matches exactly the number recorded by Ezra: three hundred ninety-two in all.
  61. Nehemías 7:61This group from Babylonian towns reappears with the same problem already seen in Ezra: they could not prove by documents that they truly descended from Israel.
  62. Nehemías 7:62The number of these families without proof appears here with a minimal difference from Ezra's count: six hundred forty-two, against six hundred fifty-two.
  63. Nehemías 7:63Here the case repeats of the priest who took a new surname upon marrying a descendant of Barzillai, further complicating the proof of his original lineage.
  64. Nehemías 7:64Again there appear families of priests who could not prove their descent in the old records and were therefore removed from the priesthood until the matter could be clarified. It is the same problem of genealogical proof that had already occurred at the first return from exile, decades earlier.
  65. Nehemías 7:65The same temporary solution from Ezra repeats here: the priests without proof are forbidden to eat of the sacred offerings until someone arises able to consult God by Urim and Thummim.
  66. Nehemías 7:66The overall total of the congregation matches exactly the number Ezra had already recorded: forty-two thousand three hundred sixty people.
  67. Nehemías 7:67The number of singing men and women appears here much larger than the two hundred cited by Ezra, one of the most visible differences between the two lists.
  68. Nehemías 7:68The count of horses and mules repeats the exact same numbers already recorded in Ezra's list.
  69. Nehemías 7:69Camels and donkeys also keep the exact same numbers from the earlier list, closing out the animal inventory of this great caravan.
  70. Nehemías 7:70Here a detail appears that Ezra had not recorded: the governor himself, called the Tirshatha, personally contributes a generous donation to the temple.
  71. Nehemías 7:71Other family leaders also donate generous amounts of gold and silver, adding to what the governor had already offered.
  72. Nehemías 7:72Even the rest of the common people contribute a significant amount, showing that the donation to the temple involved every level of society, not just the leaders.
  73. Nehemías 7:73The chapter ends exactly like Ezra's list: everyone settles, each in his own city, setting the stage for the great public reading of the law in the next chapter.

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