Nehemiah 4

Thomson^{(i) 1} Now when Sanaballat heard that we were building the wall it appeared evil to him and he was much incensed, and railed against the Jews, ² and said before his brethren, Is the army of Somoron reduced to this, that these Jews are building their city? They are indeed offering sacrifice; but can they prevail? Can they heal the stones after being burned to a heap of dust? ³ Thereupon Tobias the Ammonite came near him and said to them, Can they either sacrifice or eat in that place of theirs? Cannot a fox go up and demolish their stone walls? ⁴ Hear, our God, how we are made a laughing stock, and turn their reproach back on their own head, and make them an object of derision in a land of captivity, ⁵ and cover not their iniquity. ⁶ [Omitted] ⁷ But when Sanaballat and Tobias, and the Arabs and the Ammonites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem advanced in height, and that the breaches began to be stopped, it appeared to them very vexatious, ⁸ and they all assembled together to come and attack Jerusalem, and lay it waste. ⁹ Upon this we prayed to our God, and posted our guards against them clay and night for fear of them, ¹⁰ though Juda said, Were the power of these enemies broken, there is so much rubbish that we cannot build the wall; ¹¹ and they who afflicted us said, They shall not know nor see till we are in the midst of them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. ¹² And when the Jews who dwelt near them came and told us, They are coming against us from all quarters, ¹³ I then posted, for the lowest parts of the place in the fortified posts behind the wall, the spear men and bow men; and stationed the people with their swords by communities; ¹⁴ and having taken a view, I arose and said to the nobles, and to the officers, and to the rest of the people, Be not afraid of them. Remember our God who is great and terrible; and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your houses. ¹⁵ And when our enemies heard that we had got intelligence; and God had frustrated their designs, we all returned to the wall, every man to his work. ¹⁶ And from that day one half of them who had been drawn off carried on the work, and the other half was kept ready with spears and shields, and bows and breast plates; and the chiefs were behind all the house of Juda ¹⁷ who were building the wall. And they who were employed in carrying burdens were armed. With one hand they did their work, and with the other grasped a javelin. ¹⁸ And the builders had every man his sword girded on his loins while they were building. And near every chief was a trumpeter with a horn. ¹⁹ And I said to the nobles and to the chiefs, and to the rest of the people, The work is extensive and large, and we are scattered on the wall, one chief far from another. ²⁰ In what place soever you hear the sound of the trumpet, thither you must assemble to us, and our God will fight for us. ²¹ So while we were carrying on the work, one half of them held their spears from break of day till the stars appeared. ²² And at that time I said to the people, let every man with his youths, lodge in Jerusalem, and let the night be devoted to watching and the day to work. ²³ Now I myself mounted guard, and the men on duty attended me, and not a man of us put off our clothes.