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Nehemiah 13:10–14 — Tithes Restored. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

The Levites, i.e., the assistants of the priests, the singers, and also the porters, who are not expressly mentioned in this passage, were accustomed to receive during the time of their ministry their daily portions of the tenths and first-fruits ( Nehemiah 12:47 ). When then these offerings were discontinued, they were obliged to seek their maintenance from the fields of the towns and villages in which they dwelt ( Nehemiah 12:28 .), and to forsake the service of the house of God.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The Levites to escape starvation had dispersed into the country. The Temple services were therefore crippled.

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Matthew PooleAnnotations upon the Holy Bible1685

From this corrupt high priest Eliashib, who took their portions, as he did the sacred chambers, to his own use, or employed them for the entertainment of Tobiah, and his other great allies.

Poole offers this as the first of two possible causes and does not decide between them; the second, that the people themselves withheld out of covetousness or disgust, follows in the same entry. The excerpt should not be read as his settled verdict.

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Matthew HenryConcise Commentary on the Whole Bible1706

The Levites had been wronged; their portions had not been given them. They were gone to get livelihoods for themselves and their families, for their profession would not maintain them. A maintenance not sufficient, makes a poor ministry. The work is neglected, because the workmen are.

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I also learned that because the portions for the Levites had not been given to them, all the Levites and singers responsible for performing the service had gone back to their own fields.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wā·’ê·ḏə·‘āh kî- mə·nā·yō·wṯ hal·wî·yim lō nit·tā·nāh ’îš- hal·wî·yim wə·ham·šō·rə·rîm ‘ō·śê ham·mə·lā·ḵāh way·yiḇ·rə·ḥū lə·śā·ḏê·hū

Word by word13 · parsed

וָאֵ֣דְעָ֔הwā·’ê·ḏə·‘āhI also learnedH3045

√ yâdaʻ — to know (properly, to ascertain by seeing)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectfirst person common singularthird person feminine singular

yâdaʻ: to know, properly to ascertain by seeing The lexicon's own note matters: this root knows by seeing. Pulpit reads the verse exactly so: "What Nehemiah saw was that the Levites were absent." The narrative begins with an empty building, and the cause is inferred backward from the emptiness.

כִּֽי־kî-thatH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

מְנָי֥וֹתmə·nā·yō·wṯbecause the portionsH4521

√ mᵉnâth — an allotment (by courtesy, law or providence)Nounfeminine plural construct

mᵉnâth: an allotment (by courtesy, law or providence) A rare noun (8 verses), and the hinge of the whole unit. Cambridge identifies the allotment precisely: "The portion which the people had covenanted to contribute to the Levites" had not been paid. What stopped was not charity but a sworn share.

הַלְוִיִּ֖םhal·wî·yimfor the LevitesH3881

√ Lêvîyîy — a Levite or descendant of LeviArticleNounpropermasculine plural

לֹ֣אlōhad notH3808

√ lôʼ — not (the simple or absAdverbNegative particle

נִתָּ֑נָהnit·tā·nāhbeen given to themH5414

√ nâthan — to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etcVerbNifalPerfectthird person feminine singular

nâthan: to give (Nifal perfect) The passive hides the culprit, and that hiding is the point of v. 11: someone had to stop giving, and Nehemiah goes looking for him. The Nifal states the fact without yet naming the hand.

אִישׁ־’îš-allH376

√ ʼîysh — a man as an individual or a male personNounmasculine singular

Distributive "each man," not a collective "all."

הַלְוִיִּ֥םhal·wî·yimthe LevitesH3881

√ Lêvîyîy — a Levite or descendant of LeviArticleNounpropermasculine plural

וְהַמְשֹׁרְרִ֖יםwə·ham·šō·rə·rîmand singersH7891

√ shîyr — to singConjunctive waw, ArticleVerbPielParticiplemasculine plural

shîyr: to sing (Piel participle) The singers are named as a class alongside the Levites. Cambridge notes the list is shorthand: "Under this head, the porters ( Nehemiah 13:5 ) would be included." The first casualty of the unpaid portion is the temple's music.

עֹשֵׂ֥י‘ō·śêresponsible for performingH6213

√ ʻâsâh — to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest applicationVerbQalParticiplemasculine plural construct

ʻâsâh: to do or make A participle of settled occupation, "the doers of the work." These are not volunteers but men whose trade was the service itself, which is why the failure of maintenance ends the trade.

הַמְּלָאכָֽה׃ham·mə·lā·ḵāhthe serviceH4399

√ mᵉlâʼkâh — properly, deputyship, iArticleNounfeminine singular

mᵉlâʼkâh: properly deputyship, hence work, business The lexicon's root sense is telling: the word carries the idea of commission, work done on another's behalf. The Levites' labor is deputed labor, God's work performed by proxy, so when it lapses the loss is not theirs alone.

וַיִּבְרְח֧וּway·yiḇ·rə·ḥūhad gone backH1272

√ bârach — to bolt, iConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectthird person masculine plural

bârach: to bolt, to flee A verb of escape, used of Jacob from Esau and David from Saul. K&D reads the flight as compelled: "they were obliged to seek their maintenance from the fields." Cambridge is blunter still: "The Levites to escape starvation had dispersed into the country."

לְשָׂדֵ֛הוּlə·śā·ḏê·hūto their own fieldsH7704

√ sâdeh — a field (as flat)Preposition-lNounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine singular

Singular "his field," matching the distributive "each man" of word 6.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-I-came-to-know that portions-of the-Levites not had-been-given: each-man of-the-Levites and-the-singers, the-doers-of the-work, and-they-fled, each-to-his-field.

Where the English smooths the original

אִישׁ־ אִישׁ־ (ʼîš, H376, noun masculine singular) is rendered "all" in the BSB, but the word is "a man, each one." The Hebrew counts the desertion one body at a time: not a crowd walking out, but each man of the Levites and the singers going home. The distributive singular returns at the end of the verse in "to his field."
וַיִּבְרְח֧וּ וַיִּבְרְח֧וּ (way·yiḇ·rə·ḥū, Qal consecutive imperfect of bârach, H1272) is smoothed to "had gone back." The root means to bolt, to break away, to flee. K&D says plainly: "This is the meaning of the בּרח, to flee to the fields." It is the verb of a fugitive, not of a commuter.
לְשָׂדֵ֛הוּ לְשָׂדֵ֛הוּ (lə·śā·ḏê·hū, sâdeh H7704 with third masculine singular suffix) is singular, "to his field," though the English reads "to their own fields." Pulpit keeps the singular force: "Every Levite had a plot of ground, which he cultivated when not engaged in the work of the temple."
מְנָי֥וֹת מְנָי֥וֹת (mə·nā·yō·wṯ, mᵉnâth H4521, feminine plural construct) is "the portions." The lexicon glosses it "an allotment (by courtesy, law or providence)," and the word is rare (8 verses). It is not a wage owed for labor but a share assigned by covenant, which is why its withholding is a covenant failure and not merely an unpaid bill.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

The Pulpit CommentarySpence & Exell, eds.1880s

While the guilt of profaning the temple lay especially with the priestly class, that of withholding the tithes was mainly chargeable on the "rulers," or "nobles." These persons, as wealthy landowners, had of course a pecuniary interest in keeping back the tithe.

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Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

The rich men had taken advantage of Nehemiah’s absence to indulge their covetousness.

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Jamieson, Fausset & BrownCommentary Critical and Explanatory1871

He upbraided them with the serious charge of having not only withheld from men their dues, but of having robbed God, by neglecting the care of His house and service.

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

“A Levite in his field,” says Henry, “is out of his station: God’s house is his place, and there let him be found. Say to Archippus, Take heed to thy ministry.”

Benson is citing Matthew Henry inside his own entry and says so; the sentence belongs to Henry, and the closing charge is Benson's application of Colossians 4:17.

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So I rebuked the officials and asked, “Why has the house of God been neglected?” Then I gathered the Levites and singers together and stationed them at their posts,

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wā·’ā·rî·ḇāh ’eṯ- has·sə·ḡā·nîm wā·’ō·mə·rāh mad·dū·a‘ bêṯ- hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm ne·‘ĕ·zaḇ wā·’eq·bə·ṣêm wā·’a·‘ă·mi·ḏêm ‘al- ‘ā·mə·ḏām

Word by word12 · parsed

וָאָרִ֙יבָה֙wā·’ā·rî·ḇāhSo I rebukedH7378

√ rîyb — properly, to toss, iConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectfirst person common singularthird person feminine singular

rîyb: properly to toss, to grapple, hence to contend at law The standing verb for a covenant suit (Micah 6:1, Hosea 4:1). Nehemiah, a layman and a civil governor, files it against the leadership of the sanctuary. Cambridge links it to his earlier confrontation over usury at Nehemiah 5:7, so the reader is meant to hear a pattern, not an outburst.

אֶת־’eṯ-H854

√ ʼêth — properly, nearness (used only as a preposition or an adverb), nearPreposition

הַסְּגָנִ֔יםhas·sə·ḡā·nîmthe officialsH5461

√ çâgân — a prefect of a provinceArticleNounmasculine plural

çâgân: a prefect of a province An administrative title, not a priestly one. The voices disagree about who is in the dock: Pulpit says "that of withholding the tithes was mainly chargeable on the 'rulers,' or 'nobles'," while Poole and Gill read them as the priests set over the chambers. The Hebrew title supports Pulpit; the context of Eliashib supports Poole.

וָאֹ֣מְרָ֔הwā·’ō·mə·rāhand askedH559

√ ʼâmar — to say (used with great latitude)Conjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectfirst person common singularthird person feminine singular

מַדּ֖וּעַmad·dū·a‘WhyH4069

√ maddûwaʻ — what (is) known?Interrogative

Interrogative "for what reason." The question is an indictment in the form of a question.

בֵּית־bêṯ-has the houseH1004

√ bayith — a house (in the greatest variation of applications, especially family, etcNounmasculine singular construct

bayith: a house, in the greatest variation of applications Construct with hâ-ʼĕlōhîm: "the house of the God." The definite article on God sharpens it. The charge is not that a building fell into disrepair but that the household of the living God was left.

הָאֱלֹהִ֑יםhā·’ĕ·lō·hîmof GodH430

√ ʼĕlôhîym — gods in the ordinary senseArticleNounmasculine plural

נֶעֱזַ֣בne·‘ĕ·zaḇbeen neglectedH5800

√ ʻâzab — to loosen, iVerbNifalPerfectthird person masculine singular

ʻâzab: to loosen, to forsake The same Nifal that K&D cross-references to Nehemiah 10:39, the very covenant clause the people had signed: "we will not forsake the house of our God." The indictment is therefore quotation of their own oath back at them. K&D notes the effect: "This rebuke made the impression desired."

וָֽאֶ֨קְבְּצֵ֔םwā·’eq·bə·ṣêmThen I gathered the Levites and singers togetherH6908

√ qâbats — to grasp, iConjunctive wawVerbQalConsecutive imperfectfirst person common singularthird person masculine plural

qâbats: to grasp, to gather The verb of regathering a scattered people. Applied here to scattered ministers, it treats the Levites' dispersal as a small exile and their recall as a small return.

וָֽאַעֲמִדֵ֖םwā·’a·‘ă·mi·ḏêmand stationed themH5975

√ ʻâmad — to stand, in various relations (literal and figurative, intransitive and transitive)Conjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectfirst person common singularthird person masculine plural

ʻâmad: to stand (Hifil) Causative: he does not ask them to stand, he stands them. Restoration in this verse is an act of governance, not of persuasion. Gill: "set them in their place; in the temple, and in the course of their ministry there."

עַל־‘al-atH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

עָמְדָֽם׃‘ā·mə·ḏāmtheir postsH5977

√ ʻômed — a spot (as being fixed)Nounmasculine singular constructthird person masculine plural

ʻômed: a spot, as being fixed Rare (9 verses). The noun names an assigned position, a place one belongs to by appointment. Cambridge glosses it "in their proper positions" and sends the reader to Nehemiah 8:7 and 9:3, where the same fixed standing-place is where the Levites teach and confess.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-I-contended with the-prefects and-I-said: For-what-reason is-the-house-of the-God forsaken? And-I-gathered-them and-I-made-them-stand upon their-standing-place.

Where the English smooths the original

וָאָרִ֙יבָה֙ וָאָרִ֙יבָה֙ (wā·’ā·rî·ḇāh, Qal of rîyb, H7378) is "I rebuked" in the BSB, but the root is forensic: to toss, to grapple, to bring a suit. It is the verb of the prophetic lawsuit. Cambridge cross-references the same verb at Nehemiah 5:7 and 13:17. Nehemiah is not losing his temper; he is opening a case.
הַסְּגָנִ֔ים הַסְּגָנִ֔ים (has·sə·ḡā·nîm, çâgân H5461) is "the officials." The lexicon gives "a prefect of a province," a loanword for the imperial administrative class. Cambridge records the alternative: "R.V. marg. 'Or, deputies'." K&D identifies them as "the heads of the community," whose duty it was to see the dues delivered. Commentators split on whether these were civil nobles or temple officers: Pulpit and Ellicott say the wealthy laity, Poole and Gill say the priests.
נֶעֱזַ֣ב נֶעֱזַ֣ב (ne·‘ĕ·zaḇ, Nifal perfect of ʻâzab, H5800) is softened to "been neglected." The root is "to loosen, to abandon, to forsake outright." Cambridge catches both directions at once: "Neglected by the Jews and deserted by the Levites." The house is not under-attended; it is let go of.
עָמְדָֽם׃ עָמְדָֽם׃ (‘ā·mə·ḏām, ʻômed H5977, "a spot as being fixed") is cognate with the preceding Hiphil וָֽאַעֲמִדֵ֖ם (ʻâmad, H5975). Hebrew says roughly "I made-them-stand upon their standing-place"; the English "stationed them at their posts" loses the echo. Cambridge preserves the ancient rendering: "LXX. ἐπὶ στάσει αὐτῶν . Vulg. 'in stationibus suis.'"

The Voices✦ 3 public domain

John GillExposition of the Entire Bible1746–63

When they saw a reformation made, and things were going in their proper channel, and a right use would be made of their tithes, these given to proper persons, who were now reinstated in their office.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The same word in the Hebrew as that rendered ‘treasures’ in Nehemiah 12:44 ; and it might here be rendered ‘for (or, as) treasures,’ i.e. to be stored. But the sense in the English version is preferable, so also LXX. εἰς τοὺς θησαυρούς , Vulg. ‘in horrea:’ and it occurs with the same meaning in Malachi 3:10 , which aptly illustrates the present passage.

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Albert BarnesNotes on the Bible1834

Nehemiah gathered the Levites from their lands, and reinstated them in their set offices.

Barnes's note is attached in the source to the phrase "I gathered them together" of v. 11 and is repeated by the commentary series across vv. 12 to 14; it is quoted here for the restoration it describes, not as a comment on the tithe itself.

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and all Judah brought a tenth of the grain, new wine, and oil into the storerooms.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wə·ḵāl yə·hū·ḏāh hê·ḇî·’ū ma‘·śar had·dā·ḡān wə·hat·tî·rō·wōš wə·hay·yiṣ·hār lā·’ō·w·ṣā·rō·wṯ

Word by word8 · parsed

וְכָל־wə·ḵāland allH3605

√ kôl — properly, the wholeConjunctive wawNounmasculine singular construct

Construct "all of Judah," the whole community acting as one.

יְהוּדָ֗הyə·hū·ḏāhJudahH3063

√ Yᵉhûwdâh — Jehudah (or Judah), the name of five IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

Yᵉhûwdâh: Judah Cambridge reads the phrase as national rather than tribal: "For the expression 'all Judah' = 'the whole nation'." The point of the verse is completeness: the reform is not enforced on a faction, it is obeyed by everyone.

הֵבִ֜יאוּhê·ḇî·’ūbroughtH935

√ bôwʼ — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)VerbHifilPerfectthird person common plural

bôwʼ: to go or come (Hifil) Causative, "brought in." The grammatical shift from Nehemiah's first person chain to a third person plural perfect is the quiet climax of the unit: the governor stops acting and the people start.

מַעְשַׂ֧רma‘·śara tenthH4643

√ maʻăsêr — a tenthNounmasculine singular construct

maʻăsêr: a tenth The tithe named here is the same one Cambridge traces back through this chapter: "This is the tithe spoken of in Nehemiah 13:5 and in Nehemiah 10:37 , the contribution of which was described in Nehemiah 12:44-47." The chain matters: what was pledged in ch. 10, described in ch. 12, and abused in 13:5 is finally paid here.

הַדָּגָ֛ןhad·dā·ḡānof the grainH1715

√ dâgân — properly, increase, iArticleNounmasculine singular

dâgân: properly increase, hence grain The root sense is growth, not the threshed product. Grain, must and fresh oil together form the standing Deuteronomic triad (Deuteronomy 12:17; 14:23), the three staples by which the land's yield was summarized.

וְהַתִּיר֥וֹשׁwə·hat·tî·rō·wōšnew wineH8492

√ tîyrôwsh — must or fresh grape-juice (as just squeezed out)Conjunctive waw, ArticleNounmasculine singular

tîyrôwsh: must, fresh grape-juice as just squeezed out Not aged wine. The word insists on immediacy: what is tithed is the first flow, before any of it has been enjoyed or stored for the giver's own use.

וְהַיִּצְהָ֖רwə·hay·yiṣ·hārand oilH3323

√ yitshâr — oil (as producing light)Conjunctive waw, ArticleNounmasculine singular

yitshâr: oil, as producing light The lamp oil of the sanctuary and the anointing oil share this word's world. Bringing it in restores not only the Levites' food but the temple's light.

לָאוֹצָרֽוֹת׃lā·’ō·w·ṣā·rō·wṯinto the storeroomsH214

√ ʼôwtsâr — a depositoryPreposition-l, ArticleNounmasculine plural

ʼôwtsâr: a depository The plural storehouses are the same chambers Eliashib had emptied for Tobiah earlier in the chapter. Filling them is the exact reversal of the abuse that opened the chapter.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-all-of Judah brought-in the-tenth of-the-grain and-the-new-wine and-the-shining-oil to-the-storehouses.

Where the English smooths the original

הֵבִ֜יאוּ הֵבִ֜יאוּ (hê·ḇî·’ū, Hifil perfect of bôwʼ, H935) is causative: they caused to come in. The tithe does not arrive; it is walked in by hand. Note also that after four consecutive imperfects driven by Nehemiah's "I," the verb here is a plain perfect with "all Judah" as subject: the sentence changes hands.
וְהַיִּצְהָ֖ר וְהַיִּצְהָ֖ר (wə·hay·yiṣ·hār, yitshâr H3323) is flattened to "oil." The lexicon defines it as "oil (as producing light)," the fresh gleaming oil of the new pressing, not the general word shemen. Paired with tîyrôwsh (H8492), "must or fresh grape-juice as just squeezed out," the triad names first produce, not pantry stock.
לָאוֹצָרֽוֹת׃ לָאוֹצָרֽוֹת׃ (lā·’ō·w·ṣā·rō·wṯ, ʼôwtsâr H214, "a depository") is "into the storerooms." Cambridge flags a real ambiguity: "it might here be rendered 'for (or, as) treasures,' i.e. to be stored. But the sense in the English version is preferable, so also LXX. εἰς τοὺς θησαυρούς." The same consonantal root produces the verb of the next verse.
מַעְשַׂ֧ר מַעְשַׂ֧ר (ma‘·śar, maʻăsêr H4643) is simply "a tenth," a number used as an institution. The BSB's "a tenth of the grain" is exact; what the English cannot carry is that this noun is the covenant's own accounting word (27 verses), the fixed fraction by which Israel measured whether it still belonged to God.

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Charles EllicottCommentary for English Readers1878

And I made. —The reform was made effectual by organisation. Eliashib had failed in his duty ( Nehemiah 13:4 ); and the appointment of treasurers ( Nehemiah 12:44 ) is now confirmed.

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Joseph BensonCommentary on the Old and New Testaments1810s

Men should be tried first, and then trusted; tried in the less, and then trusted with more. The office of these treasurers was to receive and pay; to distribute to their brethren in due season, and due proportions. And Nehemiah sought out for faithful men the more diligently, because he had had experience of the perfidiousness of the former trustees.

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Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

It is natural to conjecture from the fact that these names are followed by ‘and of the Levites,’ that Shelemiah and Zadok were priests, and that the treasurers consisted of two priests and two Levites.

Cambridge presents this as conjecture and says so in its own first words; Pulpit reconstructs the same four men differently, as a priest, a Levite, a layman and a scribe. The text itself names only the offices of Shelemiah, Zadok and Pedaiah.

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Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

These four were placed in this position because they were esteemed faithful. ועליהם, and it was (incumbent) on them (comp. 1 Chronicles 9:27 ; Ezra 10:12 ) to distribute to their brethren, i.e., to the priests and Levites, the portions due to them ( Nehemiah 13:10 ).

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I appointed as treasurers over the storerooms Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah of the Levites, with Hanan son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah, to assist them, because they were considered trustworthy. They were responsible for distributing the supplies to their fellow Levites.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

wā·’ō·wṣ·rāh ‘al- ’ō·w·ṣā·rō·wṯ še·lem·yāh hak·kō·hên wə·ṣā·ḏō·wq has·sō·w·p̄êr ū·p̄ə·ḏā·yāh min- hal·wî·yim ḥā·nān ben- zak·kūr ben- mat·tan·yāh wə·‘al- yā·ḏām kî neḥ·šā·ḇū ne·’ĕ·mā·nîm wa·‘ă·lê·hem la·ḥă·lōq la·’ă·ḥê·hem

Word by word23 · parsed

וָאוֹצְרָ֣הwā·’ō·wṣ·rāhI appointed as treasurersH686

√ ʼâtsar — to store upConjunctive wawVerbHifilConsecutive imperfectfirst person common singularthird person feminine singular

ʼâtsar: to store up A denominative Hiphil built on ʼôwtsâr (v. 12), and a rare verb, occurring in only 5 verses of the canon. Its other appearances are almost all about hoards that will be lost or surrendered (2 Kings 20:17; Isaiah 39:6; Isaiah 23:18; Amos 3:10), which makes its single constructive use here quietly striking.

עַל־‘al-overH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

א֠וֹצָרוֹת’ō·w·ṣā·rō·wṯthe storeroomsH214

√ ʼôwtsâr — a depositoryNounmasculine plural

שֶׁלֶמְיָ֨הše·lem·yāhShelemiahH8018

√ Shelemyâh — Shelemjah, the name of nine IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

הַכֹּהֵ֜ןhak·kō·hênthe priestH3548

√ kôhên — literally one officiating, a priestArticleNounmasculine singular

kôhên: literally one officiating, a priest The committee is deliberately mixed. Cambridge conjectures the balance: "We may conjecture that Shelemiah represented the Temple priests, Zadok the 'judicial' section of the priests; Pedaiah the Levites proper, and Hanan the singers and porters." Pulpit counts differently, "one was a priest, one a Levite, one a layman of rank, and one a professional scribe." Neither can be proved from the text.

וְצָד֣וֹקwə·ṣā·ḏō·wqZadokH6659

√ Tsâdôwq — Tsadok, the name of eight or nine IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

הַסּוֹפֵ֗רhas·sō·w·p̄êrthe scribeH5608

√ çâphar — properly, to score with a mark as a tally or record, iArticleNounmasculine singular

çâphar: to score with a mark as a tally, hence to count, to write The root is bookkeeping before it is literature. K&D insists on the plain sense here: Zadok is "a writer or secretary, not a scribe in the Jewish sense of that word." Cambridge is less sure and sees in the title evidence that "the work of 'the scribe' was obtaining increasing importance." Recorded disagreement, not settled fact.

וּפְדָיָה֙ū·p̄ə·ḏā·yāhand PedaiahH6305

√ Pᵉdâyâh — Pedajah, the name of six IsraelitesConjunctive wawNounpropermasculine singular

מִן־min-ofH4480

√ min — properly, a part ofPreposition

הַלְוִיִּ֔םhal·wî·yimthe LevitesH3881

√ Lêvîyîy — a Levite or descendant of LeviArticleNounpropermasculine plural

חָנָ֥ןḥā·nānwith HananH2605

√ Chânân — Chanan, the name of seven IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

בֶּן־ben-sonH1121

√ bên — a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etcNounmasculine singular construct

זַכּ֖וּרzak·kūrof ZaccurH2139

√ Zakkûwr — Zakkur, the name of seven IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

בֶּן־ben-the sonH1121

מַתַּנְיָ֑הmat·tan·yāhof MattaniahH4983

√ Mattanyâh — Mattanjah, the name of ten IsraelitesNounpropermasculine singular

וְעַל־wə·‘al-to assistH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsConjunctive wawPreposition

יָדָ֔םyā·ḏāmthemH3027

√ yâd — a hand (the open one (indicating power, means, direction, etcNounfeminine singular constructthird person masculine plural

yâd: a hand, the open one, indicating power, means, direction The idiom "upon their hand" places Hanan under the others' authority and beside their work at once.

כִּ֤יkîbecauseH3588

√ kîy — (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below)Conjunction

Causal "for, because": the appointment is grounded, not arbitrary.

נֶחְשָׁ֔בוּneḥ·šā·ḇūthey were consideredH2803

√ châshab — properly, to plait or interpenetrate, iVerbNifalPerfectthird person common plural

châshab: properly to plait or interpenetrate, hence to reckon A Nifal perfect: they were reckoned faithful. The verb is the same root used of righteousness credited to Abraham. Here the reckoning is human and public. Poole locates it: "by common fame, and the consent of those who knew them." Benson draws the rule out: "Men should be tried first, and then trusted; tried in the less, and then trusted with more."

נֶאֱמָנִים֙ne·’ĕ·mā·nîmtrustworthyH539

√ ʼâman — properly, to build up or supportVerbNifalParticiplemasculine plural

ʼâman: properly to build up or support (Nifal participle) The pivotal word of the verse. Reform in Nehemiah does not end with money returning; it ends with load-bearing men installed where money passes. K&D: "These four were placed in this position because they were esteemed faithful." Benson adds the motive: Nehemiah sought faithful men "the more diligently, because he had had experience of the perfidiousness of the former trustees."

וַעֲלֵיהֶ֖םwa·‘ă·lê·hemThey were responsible forH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsConjunctive wawPrepositionthird person masculine plural

לַחֲלֹ֥קla·ḥă·lōqdistributing the suppliesH2505

√ châlaq — to be smooth (figuratively)Preposition-lVerbQalInfinitive construct

châlaq: to be smooth, hence to divide, to apportion The office is defined by its verb: these men exist to give the shares out, not to hold them. The noun of v. 10, mᵉnâth, is what they hand over; the whole unit closes the loop it opened.

לַאֲחֵיהֶֽם׃פla·’ă·ḥê·hemto their fellow [Levites]H251

√ ʼâch — a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance (like father))Preposition-lNounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine plural

ʼâch: a brother, in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity Pulpit identifies them: "to the priests and Levites, brethren of Shelemiah and Pedaiah." Cambridge extends the duty: "to distribute fairly among the various houses, and to decide upon the Levites' tenth paid to the priests." The word keeps the transaction inside a family rather than a payroll.

Literal — word-for-word from the original

And-I-made-storekeepers over storehouses Shelemiah the-priest and-Zadok the-scribe and-Pedaiah from the-Levites, and-upon their-hand Hanan son-of Zaccur son-of Mattaniah, for trustworthy they-were-reckoned; and-upon-them to-apportion to-their-brothers.

Where the English smooths the original

וָאוֹצְרָ֣ה וָאוֹצְרָ֣ה (wā·’ō·wṣ·rāh, Hifil of ʼâtsar, H686, "to store up") is expanded to "I appointed as treasurers," which is the sense but not the shape. K&D explains the form: "ואוצרה, Hiphil, for אוצירה, is a denominative from אוצר, to set some one over the treasures." The verb is coined from the noun ʼôwtsâr of v. 12, so Hebrew says something like "I storehoused men over the storehouses." The verb is very rare (5 verses).
וְעַל־ יָדָ֔ם וְעַל־יָדָ֔ם (wə·‘al-yā·ḏām, ʻal H5921 with yâd H3027) is rendered "to assist them." Cambridge gives the literal: "Literally 'upon their hand,' i.e. attending and assisting, cf. Nehemiah 11:24 , 'at the king's hand." K&D reads Hanan as "probably as an under-steward." The English states the function and drops the idiom of the hand.
נֶאֱמָנִים֙ נֶאֱמָנִים֙ (ne·’ĕ·mā·nîm, Nifal participle of ʼâman, H539) is "trustworthy." The lexicon's root sense is architectural: "properly, to build up or support." This is the root behind amen. The men are not merely honest; they are load-bearing. The English adjective cannot carry that the word is a passive participle: they are men who have been made firm and so can be leaned on.
לַחֲלֹ֥ק לַחֲלֹ֥ק (la·ḥă·lōq, Qal infinitive of châlaq, H2505) is "distributing the supplies," but "the supplies" has no word in the Hebrew; the object is supplied by the translators. The root means to be smooth, hence to divide into smooth shares. Cambridge concedes the clause is hard: "The construction is the same as in Ezra 10:12 , but proved too difficult for the versions."

The Voices✦ 4 public domain

Geneva Study BibleMarginal Notes1599

He protests that he did his duty with a good conscience yet he does not justify himself in it, but desires God to favour him and to be merciful to him

source ↗

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges—1880s

The actual phrase is not found elsewhere in the O.T. The metaphor, which is that of sponging off from the leathern roll of record

source ↗

John GillExposition of the Entire Bible1746–63

Not in a way of strict justice, as if he thought he merited anything at the hand of God for what he had done; but in a way of grace and mercy, that he would graciously accept thereof, as done for the honour of his name

source ↗

Keil & DelitzschBiblical Commentary on the Old Testament1860s

Nehemiah concludes his account of this matter with the wish, that God may remember him concerning it (comp. Nehemiah 5:19 ), and not wipe out the kindnesses which he has shown to the house of God and its watches.

source ↗

Remember me for this, O my God, and do not blot out my deeds of loving devotion for the house of my God and for its services.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Hebrew — tap a word ↓

zā·ḵə·rāh- lî ‘al- zōṯ ’ĕ·lō·hay wə·’al- te·maḥ ḥă·sā·ḏay ’ă·šer ‘ā·śî·ṯî bə·ḇêṯ ’ĕ·lō·hay ū·ḇə·miš·mā·rāw

Word by word13 · parsed

זָכְרָה־zā·ḵə·rāh-RememberH2142

√ zâkar — properly, to mark (so as to be recognized), iVerbQalImperativemasculine singularthird person feminine singular

zâkar: properly to mark, so as to be recognized Nehemiah's signature prayer, recurring at 5:19, 13:22 and 13:31. Cambridge sets it beside Psalm 106:4. The imperative is bold, but what it asks for is notice, not payment. Benson is careful to say what it is not: Nehemiah appeals "not in pride, or as boasting of what he had done, much less depending upon it as his righteousness."

לִּ֥יlîme

Prepositionfirst person common singular

עַל־‘al-forH5921

√ ʻal — above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applicationsPreposition

זֹ֑אתzōṯthisH2063

√ zôʼth — this (often used adverb)Pronounfeminine singular

Feminine demonstrative "this," pointing back at the whole reform of vv. 10 to 13.

אֱלֹהַ֖י’ĕ·lō·hayO my GodH430

√ ʼĕlôhîym — gods in the ordinary senseNounmasculine plural constructfirst person common singular

ʼĕlôhîym: God (construct with first person suffix) "My God," not "our God." Cambridge notices the pronoun shifting with the genre: the phrase "is appropriate to the writer's change from narrative to soliloquy." The public memoir breaks, for one verse, into private prayer.

וְאַל־wə·’al-and do notH408

√ ʼal — not (the qualified negation, used as a deprecative)Conjunctive wawAdverb

תֶּ֣מַחte·maḥblot outH4229

√ mâchâh — properly, to stroke or rubVerbHifilImperfect Jussivesecond person masculine singular

mâchâh: properly to stroke or rub, hence to erase The same verb erases Amalek's memory (Exodus 17:14) and threatens Moses' own name in the book (Exodus 32:32-33), which is where Cambridge sends the reader. Nehemiah asks that his name not be sponged off a ledger he cannot see.

חֲסָדַ֗יḥă·sā·ḏaymy deeds of loving devotionH2617

√ chêçêd — kindnessNounmasculine plural constructfirst person common singular

chêçêd: kindness, covenant loyalty The weightiest word in the verse. It is ordinarily God's loyal love toward His people; used in the plural of a man's acts it appears, Cambridge notes, at 2 Chronicles 32:32 of Hezekiah and 2 Chronicles 35:26 of Josiah, always of kings who labored to restore worship. Nehemiah, no king, places his work in that company and then asks for mercy on it anyway.

אֲשֶׁ֥ר’ă·šerH834

√ ʼăsher — who, which, what, thatPronounrelative

עָשִׂ֛יתִי‘ā·śî·ṯîH6213

√ ʻâsâh — to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest applicationVerbQalPerfectfirst person common singular

בְּבֵ֥יתbə·ḇêṯfor the houseH1004

√ bayith — a house (in the greatest variation of applications, especially family, etcPreposition-bNounmasculine singular construct

bayith: a house The object of the whole unit: what was forsaken in v. 11 is what he has served here.

אֱלֹהַ֖י’ĕ·lō·hayof my GodH430

√ ʼĕlôhîym — gods in the ordinary senseNounmasculine plural constructfirst person common singular

וּבְמִשְׁמָרָֽיו׃ū·ḇə·miš·mā·rāwand for its servicesH4929

√ mishmâr — a guard (the man, the post or the prison)Conjunctive waw, Preposition-bNounmasculine plural constructthird person masculine singular

mishmâr: a guard (the man, the post or the prison) A hapax in this exact plural form, as K&D observes. The root is watch-keeping, the same idea as the Levitical "wards" of Nehemiah 12:9 and 12:24. Whether it means the watch-posts themselves or the observances kept at them is undecided in the sources: K&D says "here the office of attending on the service of the temple," Cambridge says "probably quite general, denoting 'observances,' 'customs,' and 'usages'."

Literal — word-for-word from the original

Remember for-me, O-my-God, concerning this, and-do-not wipe-out my-kindnesses which I-have-done in-the-house-of my-God and-in-its-watch-posts.

Where the English smooths the original

זָכְרָה־לִּ֥י זָכְרָה־לִּ֥י (zā·ḵə·rāh-lî, Qal imperative of zâkar, H2142, with the preposition l) is "Remember me," but the Hebrew is "remember to me, remember for me." The lexicon root is "properly, to mark so as to be recognized." Henry hears the restraint exactly: "He prays, Remember me; not, Reward me."
חֲסָדַ֗י חֲסָדַ֗י (ḥă·sā·ḏay, plural of chêçêd, H2617) is "my deeds of loving devotion." Cambridge records the literal and the difficulty together: "R.V. marg. 'Heb. kindnesses'. The actual phrase is not found elsewhere in the O.T." and "At first sight the word seems scarcely appropriate," since chesed is normally God's covenant kindness toward man. Nehemiah dares to use the covenant word of his own acts.
תֶּ֣מַח תֶּ֣מַח (te·maḥ, Hifil jussive of mâchâh, H4229) is "blot out," and the lexicon's root is physical: "properly, to stroke or rub." K&D notes the clipped form: "תּמה, abbreviated from the Hiphil תּמחה, to cause to wipe out." Cambridge names the image: "The metaphor, which is that of sponging off from the leathern roll of record."
וּבְמִשְׁמָרָֽיו׃ וּבְמִשְׁמָרָֽיו׃ (ū·ḇə·miš·mā·rāw, mishmâr H4929) is "its services," the AV's "offices." The lexicon gives "a guard (the man, the post or the prison)." K&D calls this plural "the form occurring only here, properly watches, watch-posts." Cambridge prefers the R.V. "observances" and reads it generally; Pulpit reads it of "the rites, ceremonies, usages." The English choice conceals a genuinely disputed word.

The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.

⚙

Grand Commentary — the unit, read whole

synthesis · verify

AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.

i. An empty house, discovered by eye — 13:10

The unit opens on a verb of sight. וָאֵ֣דְעָ֔ה (yâdaʻ, H3045) is glossed in the lexicon "to know, properly to ascertain by seeing," and Pulpit reads the scene exactly that way: "What Nehemiah saw was that the Levites were absent." The cause is reasoned backward from an absence. What had stopped was the מְנָי֥וֹת (mᵉnâth, H4521), a rare noun the lexicon defines as "an allotment (by courtesy, law or providence)." Cambridge specifies the allotment: "The portion which the people had covenanted to contribute to the Levites" had not been paid. K&D describes the consequence with no moralizing at all: the Levites "were obliged to seek their maintenance from the fields of the towns and villages in which they dwelt, and to forsake the service of the house of God." Cambridge is harder: "The Levites to escape starvation had dispersed into the country." The verb of departure is bârach (H1272), to bolt or flee, and K&D refuses to soften it: "This is the meaning of the בּרח, to flee to the fields." Who was to blame the sources do not agree. Poole offers two options and decides neither, naming first "this corrupt high priest Eliashib, who took their portions, as he did the sacred chambers, to his own use," and then the people, who may have withheld out of covetousness or out of disgust at Eliashib. JFB takes the second road: the people, "disgusted with the malversations of Eliashib," withheld the tithes. Henry states the mechanism that all of them assume: "The work is neglected, because the workmen are."

ii. The lawsuit, and the sentence that is a homecoming — 13:11 to 13:12

Nehemiah's response is filed, not shouted. וָאָרִ֙יבָה֙ is rîyb (H7378), the root of the covenant lawsuit; Cambridge sets it beside the same verb at Nehemiah 5:7. His question quotes the defendants' own oath: the Nifal נֶעֱזַ֣ב (ʻâzab, H5800) is the verb K&D traces to Nehemiah 10:39, the covenant clause the community had signed. Who stands accused is genuinely disputed in the sources. Pulpit reads the sāgānîm as the wealthy laity: "These persons, as wealthy landowners, had of course a pecuniary interest in keeping back the tithe," and Ellicott agrees that "the rich men had taken advantage of Nehemiah's absence to indulge their covetousness." Poole and Gill instead read them as the priests set over the chambers. JFB frames the charge itself in terms the text supports: they had "not only withheld from men their dues, but of having robbed God, by neglecting the care of His house and service." ⚙ The Hebrew title çâgân (H5461), "a prefect of a province," leans toward Pulpit and Ellicott; the immediate context of Eliashib leans toward Poole. We do not decide it. The sentence handed down is restoration: qâbats (to gather, the verb of regathering exiles) and then a Hiphil of ʻâmad with its own cognate noun ʻômed, "I made them stand upon their standing place." Then the grammar turns over. After a chain of first person consecutive imperfects, v. 12 hands the verb to the nation: "all Judah brought in." Gill reads the motive plainly: "When they saw a reformation made, and things were going in their proper channel, and a right use would be made of their tithes," they paid. Benson quotes Henry for the principle: "The better church-work is done, the better will church-dues be paid." Cambridge notes that the storehouse word here "occurs with the same meaning in Malachi 3:10, which aptly illustrates the present passage."

iii. Load-bearing men, and an account left open — 13:13 to 13:14

Reform that stops at payment will not hold, so v. 13 installs people. The verb וָאוֹצְרָ֣ה is coined from the storehouse noun of v. 12; K&D parses it: "a denominative from אוצר, to set some one over the treasures." The ground of the appointment is a Nifal participle, נֶאֱמָנִים֙ (ʼâman, H539), whose lexicon root is "properly, to build up or support." K&D: "These four were placed in this position because they were esteemed faithful." Poole grounds the reckoning socially, "by common fame, and the consent of those who knew them," and Benson supplies both the rule and the reason: "Men should be tried first, and then trusted," and Nehemiah sought such men "the more diligently, because he had had experience of the perfidiousness of the former trustees." Ellicott states the structural point: "The reform was made effectual by organisation." Who exactly the four were is conjecture, and Cambridge marks it as such in its own opening words, while Pulpit reconstructs the same men differently. Then the memoir drops into prayer. Cambridge notices even the pronoun: "the house of my God" rather than "our God" is "appropriate to the writer's change from narrative to soliloquy." He asks not to be paid but to be noticed, and Henry catches the two refusals exactly: "He prays, Remember me; not, Reward me. Wipe not out my good deeds; not, Publish them." The word he uses of his own acts is chêçêd, God's own covenant word; Cambridge admits "At first sight the word seems scarcely appropriate" and traces the plural to Hezekiah and Josiah, kings who restored worship. Gill guards the request from merit: Nehemiah asks "Not in a way of strict justice, as if he thought he merited anything at the hand of God." Geneva says the same in a sentence: "He protests that he did his duty with a good conscience yet he does not justify himself in it."

Read under Sola Scriptura — this tool’s own fallible reading (⚙)

⚙ This is the tool's own fallible reading, offered to be tested against the text. Read at the level of grammar, the passage is a study in what a reformer can and cannot do. Every verb in vv. 10 and 11 is Nehemiah's: I knew, I contended, I said, I gathered, I stood them up. Then v. 12 changes subject without warning and the nation acts: "all Judah brought in." That seam is the argument. Nehemiah can restore the personnel and he can build the machinery, but he cannot manufacture the obedience; when it comes it comes from a people who were watching. Gill says as much about their motive, and Benson, quoting Henry, states it as a proverb. What we would add is that the text is equally clear about the other direction of causation: the Levites did not apostatize, they starved. Cambridge's word for their flight is escape. The house was not emptied by unbelief first; it was emptied by an unpaid allotment, and unbelief followed. A community that will not fund what it confesses should not be surprised when what it confesses quietly leaves town. The last verse then refuses the obvious ending. Having engineered a working system, Nehemiah does not point at it. He asks God not to sponge his name off a ledger, and he calls his own labor chesed, the word Scripture normally reserves for God's loyalty to us. Cambridge is right that this is strange. We take it as the honest speech of a man who knows that even a successful reform is not a claim, and that the only safe place for a good record is in the memory of the God who kept the covenant first. The line set below is ours, a reading and not a verse of Scripture.

A house is forsaken long before the doors are shut; it is forsaken the first month the portion stays home.

⚙

Canonical Threads — out to the whole of Scripture

cross-refs · verify

AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.

A rare verb for storing: the hoards that are carried away, and the one that is filled verbal / quotation: confirmed

The verb behind "I appointed as treasurers" in v. 13, וָאוֹצְרָ֣ה (ʼâtsar, H686), is one of the rarest in the canon: the Verifier finds it in only five verses. K&D identifies it as "a denominative from אוצר, to set some one over the treasures." Its other occurrences are almost uniformly about stores that will not be kept. Isaiah tells Hezekiah that all his fathers have stored up will be carried to Babylon (2 Kings 20:17; Isaiah 39:6). Amos indicts those who store up violence and robbery in their palaces. Isaiah 23:18 turns the verb once, promising that Tyre's gain will not be stored up but set apart for those who dwell before the LORD. ⚙ Against that concordance, Nehemiah 13:13 is the outlier where the storing actually works, because it is storing for immediate distribution: the men are appointed to apportion to their brothers. We note this as lexical recurrence, not as citation; none of these texts quotes another.

2 Kings 20:17 · Isaiah 39:6 · Isaiah 23:18 · Amos 3:10

basis: Verifier: shared Hebrew lexeme H686 ʼâtsar, in only 5 verses of the canon, which is rare enough to make the link genuinely verbal. It is lexical recurrence within the Hebrew canon, not a quotation of one text by another.

The portion (mᵉnâth): an eight verse word that Nehemiah keeps using verbal / quotation: confirmed

מְנָי֥וֹת (mᵉnâth, H4521) occurs in only eight verses, and three of them stand inside Nehemiah's own account. Nehemiah 12:44 records men appointed over the chambers "for the portions" of priests and Levites; 12:47 says that in the days of Zerubbabel and of Nehemiah all Israel gave the portions daily. 2 Chronicles 31:4 uses the same word of Hezekiah commanding the people to give the priests' portion so that they might devote themselves to the law. Cambridge makes the covenant link explicit at 13:10: "The portion which the people had covenanted to contribute to the Levites" had not been paid. ⚙ The rare word therefore functions in this literature as a technical term: not alms, and not salary, but a fixed covenant share. When it stops, the sanctuary stops.

Nehemiah 12:44 · Nehemiah 12:47 · 2 Chronicles 31:4

basis: Verifier: shared Hebrew lexeme H4521 mᵉnâth, in 8 verses only, so rare enough to be a real verbal link; Nehemiah 12:44 and 12:47 also share H3881 Lêvîyîy (263 vv) and 12:44 shares H7704 sâdeh (309 vv), which are common and carry no weight on their own. The link is recurrence of a technical term, not citation.

Standing in their standing place: Nehemiah 8:7 and the posture of a restored Levite structural / thematic: confirmed

The noun עָמְדָֽם (ʻômed, H5977), which the lexicon glosses "a spot, as being fixed," appears in only nine verses; the Verifier finds it shared with Nehemiah 8:7, where the Levites teach the law and the people stand in their place. Cambridge sends the reader to exactly this passage, glossing "in their place" as "i.e. in their proper positions. See notes Nehemiah 8:7 , Nehemiah 9:3." ⚙ The thread is worth drawing because the two scenes are the same reform from two angles: in ch. 8 the Levites are standing where they belong and the word of God is understood; in ch. 13 they have left, and the house is forsaken. We tier this structural rather than verbal deliberately: ʻômed is a common noun of position, and a shared word for "place" is thinner evidence than a shared rare verb.

Nehemiah 8:7

basis: Verifier: shared Hebrew lexemes H5977 ʻômed (in 9 vv) and H3881 Lêvîyîy (in 263 vv). Deliberately under-tiered: the shared noun is a general word for position, so the real link is the recurring picture of Levites at their assigned station, not a quotation.

Grain, new wine and fresh oil: the Deuteronomic triad of the tithe structural / thematic: confirmed

Verse 12 lists הַדָּגָ֛ן (dâgân, H1715), וְהַתִּיר֥וֹשׁ (tîyrôwsh, H8492) and וְהַיִּצְהָ֖ר (yitshâr, H3323) under the heading maʻăsêr (H4643), a tenth. The Verifier finds the same cluster of lexemes at Deuteronomy 12:17 and 14:23, the two statutes that define where the tithe of grain, new wine and oil may and must be eaten, and at 2 Chronicles 31:5, where Hezekiah's reform produces exactly this triad in abundance. Cambridge independently traces the chain inside Nehemiah: "This is the tithe spoken of in Nehemiah 13:5 and in Nehemiah 10:37 , the contribution of which was described in Nehemiah 12:44-47." ⚙ The point is that v. 12 is not describing a generous impulse but the resumption of a statutory formula. Judah pays the Deuteronomic list, item by item.

Deuteronomy 12:17 · Deuteronomy 14:23 · 2 Chronicles 31:5

basis: Verifier: three shared Hebrew lexemes at Deuteronomy 12:17 and 14:23, H8492 tîyrôwsh (38 vv), H4643 maʻăsêr (27 vv), H1715 dâgân (40 vv); 2 Chronicles 31:5 shares H8492, H4643 and H7704 sâdeh (309 vv). Under-tiered on purpose: none of these lexemes is rare on its own, and the co-occurrence is a stock legal formula rather than one text quoting another.

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse: Malachi and Nehemiah in the same generation flagged: verify source

Cambridge draws this link twice and in its own words. On 13:10 it says of the Levites' dispersal, "Compare the similar rebuke in Malachi 3:7-12." On 13:12 it says that the storehouse word ʼôwtsâr (H214) "occurs with the same meaning in Malachi 3:10 , which aptly illustrates the present passage." ⚙ The two texts describe the same crisis from two offices: the prophet charges a nation with robbing God in tithes and offerings, and the governor files suit against its officials for the same default. The value of the pairing is historical rather than literary. It shows that the withholding in Nehemiah 13 was not a local lapse but the situation a canonical prophet was addressing.

Malachi 3:10

basis: Flagged deliberately. The Verifier returned no shared lexeme basis for this pair in the candidate set, so nothing in this link is machine confirmed. The whole basis is a named commentary cross reference (Cambridge at Nehemiah 13:10 and again at 13:12) plus shared subject matter, tithes brought into the ʼôwtsâr storehouse. Verify Malachi 3:7-12 directly before leaning on it.

Those who serve at the altar share in the altar: the apostolic form of the same rule structural / thematic: confirmed

Paul argues from the temple economy that the Lord commanded those who preach the gospel to get their living by the gospel, and elsewhere tells the taught to share all good things with the one who teaches. ⚙ Nehemiah 13:10 is the negative demonstration of that rule: withhold the share and the service stops, not out of rebellion but out of hunger. Henry states the mechanism in almost Pauline terms: "A maintenance not sufficient, makes a poor ministry. The work is neglected, because the workmen are." JFB frames the withholding itself as robbing God. This link cannot be verbal: the New Testament texts are Greek and share no Strong's number with the Hebrew of this unit. It is a structural parallel in the arrangement of worship, and we claim nothing more.

1 Corinthians 9:13-14 · Galatians 6:6

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew), so shared Strong's numbers are impossible by definition and no verbal tier is available. The basis is structural: both texts reason from the same arrangement, that those who serve the sanctuary live from what is brought to the sanctuary. Named support in this unit from Henry and JFB.

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

The house of God forsaken, and the Lord who came suddenly to His temple ancient/widely-held

⚙ Nehemiah's charge is a single Nifal: נֶעֱזַ֣ב, the house of God has been let go of. K&D ties the word back to the community's own oath at Nehemiah 10:39. The reform that follows is a layman clearing the accounts of a sanctuary whose own officers had failed it, and it is the third cleansing in three chapters of Nehemiah's memoir. The Gospels present Jesus doing what Nehemiah does here, and in the same building's successor: driving out what had turned the house into a market and refusing to let the temple traffic continue. John records the disciples remembering "Zeal for Your house will consume Me." The prophet who stands closest to Nehemiah in time, Malachi, announces that the Lord whom you seek will come suddenly to His temple and will purify the sons of Levi so that they may bring offerings in righteousness. Reading the temple cleansing as the fulfilment of Malachi 3:1-3 is ancient and widely held in the church. We note honestly that none of the commentators quoted in this unit draws the line to Christ from these verses; the connection here is ours, built on the shared act rather than on any shared vocabulary.

Malachi 3:1-3 · John 2:14-17 · Mark 11:15-17

Counted faithful, and put into service novel

⚙ Four men are appointed in v. 13 on one ground: נֶאֱמָנִים֙, they were reckoned trustworthy. The root ʼâman (H539) is, per the lexicon, "properly, to build up or support." K&D states the logic without ornament: "These four were placed in this position because they were esteemed faithful." Their office is defined by the infinitive châlaq, to apportion to their brothers: they hold nothing, they hand out. Paul uses exactly this shape when he thanks Christ Jesus for counting him faithful and putting him into service, and when he says that what is required of stewards is that a man be found faithful. The Lord's own parable asks who then is the faithful and wise steward whom the master sets over his household to give them their portion of food at the proper time. The steward who distributes the portion is a figure the New Testament uses directly of ministry, and in that sense the reading is widely held. What is ours, and therefore marked novel, is the specific claim that Nehemiah 13:13 supplies the Old Testament picture behind it: a rare storing verb turned into an office of giving out.

Luke 12:42 · 1 Timothy 1:12 · 1 Corinthians 4:2

Remember me: a plea that cannot rest on the deeds it names novel

⚙ Verse 14 is the hardest verse in the unit to read well. Nehemiah calls his own works חֲסָדַ֗י, using the covenant word for God's loyal love, and Cambridge admits the difficulty: "At first sight the word seems scarcely appropriate." Yet every commentator here hears the request as a plea for mercy rather than a claim of merit. Gill: "Not in a way of strict justice, as if he thought he merited anything at the hand of God." Geneva: "He protests that he did his duty with a good conscience yet he does not justify himself in it." Benson: not "depending upon it as his righteousness." The petition is that a name not be sponged off a record, and Cambridge locates the metaphor at Exodus 32:32-33, where Moses offers to be blotted out instead of Israel. The Gospel's answer to a man asking only to be remembered is given once and plainly, to a criminal who had no deeds at all to name: today you will be with Me in Paradise. ⚙ We are not claiming a verbal link; the Greek of Luke shares no Strong's number with this Hebrew, and the resemblance of "remember me" in English is a translator's coincidence, not evidence. The link we do claim is that Nehemiah's prayer asks for the thing the Gospel grants on a ground he did not yet name.

Luke 23:42-43 · Exodus 32:32-33 · Hebrews 6:10

Apparatus & Provenance

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.

Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:

Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible (1834)
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
John Gill, Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746–63)
Joseph Benson, Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1810s)
Keil & Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1860s)
Matthew Henry, Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706)
Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible (1685)
The Pulpit Commentary, Spence & Exell, eds. (1880s)

Text: BSB (CC0) with the Berean interlinear, Strong's numbers and parsing as supplied in the brief. All Hebrew forms, glosses and parses above are taken from that interlinear; no form has been supplied from memory.

Sources: eleven public domain commentators are present for this unit (Ellicott, Benson, Henry, Barnes, JFB, Poole, Gill, Geneva, Cambridge, Pulpit, K&D) and all eleven are quoted. Several entries in the source are block notes covering Nehemiah 13:10 to 13:14 as a whole rather than a single verse: Henry's concise note and the JFB paragraph are identical across all five verses, and the Barnes note on "I gathered them together" is repeated by the series under vv. 12, 13 and 14. Quotations from those entries are therefore cited for what they say about the passage, not as verse-specific comment. Geneva's notes at 13:10, 13:11, 13:12 and 13:13 contain only the verse text and a section heading, so Geneva is quoted from 13:14, the one verse where it carries an actual gloss.

What is uncertain. First, the identity of the sāgānîm rebuked in v. 11: Pulpit and Ellicott read wealthy lay rulers, Poole and Gill read the priests over the chambers, and the text does not settle it. Second, the composition of the four treasurers in v. 13: Cambridge conjectures two priests and two Levites and marks its own reconstruction as conjecture, while Pulpit counts a priest, a Levite, a layman and a professional scribe. Identifications of Shelemiah, Zadok and Pedaiah with men of the same names elsewhere in Nehemiah are explicitly undecidable, and K&D says so. Third, the sense of mishmâr in v. 14: K&D calls the plural form a hapax and reads it of the office of temple attendance, while Cambridge prefers the general "observances." Fourth, K&D's entry on 13:13 twice names the first treasurer "Shemaiah" where the Hebrew of the verse reads Shelemiah; we reproduce the quotation as printed and flag the discrepancy rather than silently correcting a source.

Thread bases are the Verifier's computed shared lexemes as given in the brief, with frequencies stated. Two threads are tiered verbal on genuinely rare lexemes (H686, 5 verses; H4521, 8 verses) and both say in the basis that they record recurrence rather than citation. The Malachi thread carries no Verifier lexeme basis at all and rests only on Cambridge's own cross reference, so it is tiered flagged rather than confirmed and asks the reader to check it. The New Testament thread and all three Christ readings are cross-Testament and can never be verbal; where the connection is the tool's own rather than a received reading, the attestation says novel.

✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)