עַד

And next to them, the Tekoites repaired another section, from a point opposite the great tower that juts out to the wall of Ophel.

Next to him, Malchijah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the temple servants and the merchants, opposite the Inspection Gate, and as far as the upper room above the corner.

So we rebuilt the wall until all of it was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

And our enemies said, “Before they know or see a thing, we will come into their midst, kill them, and put an end to the work.”

So we continued the work, while half of the men held spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out.

Furthermore, from the day King Artaxerxes appointed me to be their governor in the land of Judah, from his twentieth year until his thirty-second year (twelve years total), neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor.

When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and not a gap was left—though to that time I had not yet installed the doors in the gates—

And I told them, “Do not open the gates of Jerusalem until the sun is hot. While the guards are on duty, keep the doors shut and securely fastened. And appoint the residents of Jerusalem as guards, some at their posts and some at their own homes.”

The governor ordered them not to eat the most holy things until there was a priest to consult the Urim and Thummim.

On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could listen and understand.

So Ezra read it aloud from daybreak until noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate, in front of the men and women and those who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.

The whole assembly that had returned from exile made booths and lived in them. From the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated like this. And there was great rejoicing.

Day after day, from the first day to the last, Ezra read from the Book of the Law of God. The Israelites kept the feast for seven days, and on the eighth day they held an assembly, according to the ordinance.

Then the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—said, “Stand up and bless the LORD your God from everlasting to everlasting: Blessed be Your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.

So now, our God, the great and mighty and awesome God who keeps His gracious covenant, do not view lightly all the hardship that has come upon us, and upon our kings and leaders, our priests and prophets, our ancestors and all Your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today.

Zanoah, Adullam, and their villages; in Lachish and its fields; and in Azekah and its villages. So they settled from Beersheba all the way to the Valley of Hinnom.

As for the descendants of Levi, the family heads up to the days of Johanan son of Eliashib were recorded in the Book of the Chronicles.

At the Fountain Gate they went directly up the steps of the City of David on the ascent to the wall and passed above the house of David to the Water Gate on the east.

The second thanksgiving choir proceeded to the left, and I followed it with half the people along the top of the wall, past the Tower of the Ovens to the Broad Wall,

…over the Gate of Ephraim, the Jeshanah Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Sheep Gate. And they stopped at the Gate of the Guard.

At that time the Book of Moses was read aloud in the hearing of the people, and in it they found the passage stating that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God,

When the evening shadows began to fall on the gates of Jerusalem, just before the Sabbath, I ordered that the gates be shut and not opened until after the Sabbath. I posted some of my servants at the gates so that no load could enter on the Sabbath day.

This is what happened in the days of Xerxes, who reigned over 127 provinces from India to Cush.

At the end of this time, in the garden court of the royal palace, the king held a seven-day feast for all the people in the citadel of Susa, from the least to the greatest.

The edict the king issues will be heard throughout his vast kingdom—and so all women, from the least to the greatest, will honor their husbands.”

When the young woman would go to the king, she was given whatever she requested to take with her from the harem to the king’s palace.

And the letters were sent by couriers to each of the royal provinces with the order to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the Jews—young and old, women and children—and to plunder their possessions on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, the twelfth month.

But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because the law prohibited anyone wearing sackcloth from entering that gate.

“What is it, Queen Esther?” the king inquired. “What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be given to you.”

And as they drank their wine, the king said to Esther, “What is your petition? It will be given to you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be fulfilled.”

…and as they drank their wine on that second day, the king asked once more, “Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given to you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be fulfilled.”

At once the royal scribes were summoned, and on the twenty-third day of the third month (the month of Sivan), they recorded all of Mordecai’s orders to the Jews and to the satraps, governors, and princes of the 127 provinces from India to Cush—writing to each province in its own script, to every people in their own language, and to the Jews in their own script and language.

While he was still speaking, another messenger came and reported: “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house,

So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and infected Job with terrible boils from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.

But now trouble has come upon you, and you are weary. It strikes you, and you are dismayed.

…the One who does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number.

They are confounded because they had hoped; their arrival brings disappointment.

When I lie down I think: ‘When will I get up?’ But the night drags on, and I toss and turn until dawn.

Will You never look away from me, or leave me alone to swallow my spittle?

“How long will you go on saying such things? The words of your mouth are a blustering wind.

He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with a shout of joy.

He does great things beyond searching out, and wonders without number.

Can you fathom the deep things of God or discover the limits of the Almighty?

…look away from him and let him rest, so he can enjoy his day as a hired hand.

…so a man lies down and does not rise. Until the heavens are no more, he will not be awakened or roused from sleep.

If only You would hide me in Sheol and conceal me until Your anger has passed! If only You would appoint a time for me and then remember me!

When a man dies, will he live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait, until my renewal comes.