Jerusalem

In the cities of Y'hudah, everyone lived on his own property - the people of Isra'el, the cohanim, the L'vi'im, the temple servants and the descendants of Shlomo's servants. But the leaders of the province lived in Yerushalayim.

Some of those living in Yerushalayim were from people of Y'hudah, and others were from people of Binyamin. Those from the people of Y'hudah were: 'Atayah the son of 'Uziyah, the son of Z'kharyah, the son of Amaryah, the son of Sh'fatyah, the son of Mahalal'el, from the descendants of Peretz;

The total number of descendants of Peretz living in Yerushalayim was 468 courageous men.

The overseer of the L'vi'im in Yerushalayim was 'Uzi the son of Bani, the son of Hashavyah, the son of Matanyah, the son of Mikha, from the descendants of Asaf the singers; [he was] in charge of the work of the house of God.

At the dedication of the wall of Yerushalayim, they sought out the L'vi'im from wherever they had settled to bring them to Yerushalayim and celebrate the dedication with hymns of thanksgiving and with songs accompanied by cymbals, lutes and lyres.

The trained singers assembled together from the area around Yerushalayim, the villages of the N'tofati,

Beit-Gilgal and the region of Geva and 'Azmavet; for the singers had built villages for themselves all around Yerushalayim.

With joy they offered great sacrifices that day, for God had made them celebrate with great joy. The women and children too rejoiced, so that the celebrating in Yerushalayim could be heard far off.

During all this time I wasn't present in Yerushalayim; because in the thirty-second year of Artach'shashta king of Bavel, I went to see the king; then, after some time had passed, I asked permission from the king

and returned to Yerushalayim, where I found out about the terrible thing Elyashiv had done for Toviyah by preparing a room for him in the courtyards of the house of our God.

During this time I saw in Y'hudah some people who were treading winepresses on Shabbat, also bringing in heaps of grain and loading donkeys with it, likewise wine, grapes, figs and all kinds of loads; and they were bringing them into Yerushalayim on the day of Shabbat. On the day when they were planning to sell the food, I warned them not to.

There were also living there people from Tzor who brought in fish and all kinds of goods, and sold them on Shabbat to the people in Y'hudah and even in Yerushalayim.

So when the gates of Yerushalayim began to grow dark before Shabbat, I ordered that the doors be shut; and I ordered that they not be reopened until after Shabbat. I put some of my servants in charge of the gates, to see to it that no loads be brought in on Shabbat.

The merchants and sellers of all kinds of goods spent the night outside Yerushalayim once or twice,

He had been exiled from Yerushalayim with the captives exiled with Y'khanyah king of Y'hudah, whom N'vukhadnetzar king of Bavel had carried off.

In your good pleasure, make Tziyon prosper; rebuild the walls of Yerushalayim.

from your temple in Yerushalayim, where kings will bring tribute to you.

A psalm of Asaf: God, the pagans have entered your heritage. They have defiled your holy temple and turned Yerushalayim into rubble.

All around Yerushalayim they have shed their blood like water, and no one is left to bury them.

to proclaim the name of ADONAI in Tziyon and his praise in Yerushalayim

in the courtyards of ADONAI's house, there in your very heart, Yerushalayim. Halleluyah!

Our feet were already standing at your gates, Yerushalayim.

Yerushalayim, built as a city fostering friendship and unity.

Pray for shalom in Yerushalayim; may those who love you prosper.

Yerushalayim! Mountains all around it! Thus ADONAI is around his people henceforth and forever.