12 AndI aroſe in the night «, I andſome few men with me, neither told FE ay man what Ged had put in my heart to do at Jeruſalem : neither vas there any beaſt with me. ſave the beaſt that I rode upon x.
s Concealing both his Intentions and Attions as far and as long as 1e could, as knowing that the life of his buſineſs lay in ſecrecy and :xpedition. x to prevent noiſe, and the notice of whatT did.
13 And I went out by night y, by the gate of the valley z even before the dragon well a, and tothe dung- port b, and viewed the walls of Jeruſalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were conſumed with fire.
|» The Footmen which accompanied him dire&ing and leading him in theway. His deſign was to go round abour the City, to ob- ſerve the compaſs and condition of the Walls and Gates, that he might make tuffcient proviſions for the work. z. Of which ſee ch. 3. 13: a Afountain or water ſo called, either from ſome figure ofa Dragon or Serpent which was by it : or from ſome living Dragon which abode there when theCity was deſolate forDragons delight to be in deſolate places,and nigh to Springs of Water, as divers have ob- ſerved. bThrough which they uſed to carry the dung out of theCity. 14 Then TI went on to the gate of the fountain c, and to the kings pool 4: but there was no place for the beaft that 2. 5 under me to pals e. c 7. e: Which led to the Fountain, to wit. of S$iah or Gihon. d That which King Hezekiah had made : of which ſee, 2 Chron. 32 3, 39 e The way being obftructed with heaps of rubbiſh. 15 Then wentl up in the night by the brook F, and viewed the wall, and turned back, and entred by the gate of the valley, and ſo returned g. f Of Kiaron ; of which ſee on 2 Sam. 15, 23. g Having gone round about the City. 16 And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did, neither had Ias yet told it to the Jews noc to the prieſts, nor to the nobles, nor to. the Rulers, nor to the reſt that did hb the work z. h Or, were to d», or ſhould do, 7. e, Whom he inteeded to imploy in it. 7 Here following, of building the Walls. 17 Then ſaid | unto them, ye ſee the diſtreſs that we are in, how Jeruſalem Jieth waſte, and the gates there- of are burnt with fire : come, and let us build up the wall of Jeruſalem, that we be no more a reproach. 13 Then I told them of the hand of my God which
ſitting by him&) for how long ſhall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return /? $6 it pleaſed the king to
ſend me, -and I ſet him a time 2. k which'is here nored, partly asan unuſual thing ; for common- Iy the Kings of P.rfia dined alone, and rheir Queens ſeldom dined
| was good upon me ; asalſo the kings wordsthat he had ſpoken unto me. And they ſaid, Let us riſe up and build, So they iirengrhened their hands for 7his good werk.
I 9. Bur
ſ
Chap. II .
s And a letter unto Aſaph the keeper Þ of the kings + jy, , - o 0 f
forreſt, o that he may give me timber to make beams :he King;
for the gates of the palace, which appertained to the houſe chard
0 Gr,
*Ezra7.9
*Juc
" (hap.
. of
g5
9 * Cha12 10, * Ter,31> ;8.
} Heb. at kis hand.
*:Chron.
*Juds. 5. 23s
* Ezra. 3+
Ir. NB # B
i9 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah / the ſervant the Ammonite, and Geſhem the Arabian &
heard ir, they laughed us to ſcorn, and deſpiſed us, and {aid, whar is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel a- gainlt the king /f
k Either the Kings Lieutenant in Arabia, as Tobiah was among the Ammon:tes, and Sanballat among the Moabites ; Or, rather an Arabian by his Birth. And it ſeems probable that both he, and Saz- baYar, and Tobiah, were chief Men or Governours among the Sama- ritans, Or in their Army» Seech. 4. 1, 2, 3. {Do you deſign to fortifie this City againſt rhe King.
20 Then anſwered I them, and faid unto them, The God of heaven, he will proſper - us; therefore we his ſervants will ariſe and build,: bur * ye have no por-
tion, nor right 9, nor memorial » in Jeruſalem.
» You have no authority over us, nor intereſt in our Church or State, or City, but are meer Aliens from rhe Common-wealth of Iſrael, We difown and deteſt that mungrel-Worſhip and Religion which you have ſer up. We defire not yeur favour, or friendthip, or help in this matter. And you have nothing ro do ro enquire into, or meddle with our concerns, or to hinder usn our prelent undertaking. zNo Teſtimony or Monument either of yourRelJation to us by Birth orReligon, or of your kindneſs to us or to this place: Pur we have many memorials of your Malice and Enmirty again{t us.
GH A P.: Ml The Names of the ſeveral Families that builded ; their Order wherein, and the proportion huw much they builded, 1 —— 32.
Hen * Eliaibib the high prieft « roſe up þ with his brethren the prieſts, and they built the ſheep-
M 1 4 H. 8 Next unto him repaired Uzziel the ſon of Har- hajab, of the gold{mirhs; next unto him alſo repaired
Hananiah, th: ſon of one of the aporthecaries, and they || fortified m Jeruſalem unto the broad wall.
m Tt is not ſaid, they repaired, as was ſaid of the'reſt, but they fortified it, either becauſe this part of the Wall was than the other, and therefore they needed nor to repair it, but on- ly to make it ſtronger by ſome additions ; or to note their extra- ordinary care and diligence, that they would not only reparr it, and reſtore it to its former ſtate, but make ic ſtronger than ever it was ; which alſo might be fir to be done in that parr of the City. Others render it, they left, as this word commonly ſignifies : and ſo the meaning 1s, they omitted the building of thar part of rhe Wall,becauſe it remained ftanding ; this being that ſpace of 400Cu- bits which was pulled down by 7oafb King of 1ael, and rebuilt by Uzziah, who madeit ſo ſtrong, that the Chaldeans could nor pull it down withour more trouble than they thought fir ro imploy a= bout ir. Bur this Chapter gives us an account of what they did in the Building, nor of what they did nor, bur left as they found ir.
9 Andnext unto them repaired Rephajali the fon of
Hur, the ruler of the half parr of Jeruſalem ».
n As Rome was anciently divided into ſeveral Quarters or Regi- ons, ſo was Jeruſalem, and eſpecially this was divided into two parts, whereof one was in the 7'ribe of Benjamin, and neareſt ro the Temple, the other in the Tribe of Judah, and more remote from it : which accordingly had two ſeveral Rulers, this man and the 0- ther, verſe 12. but both under the chief Governour of the Ciry. 10 Andnext unto them repaired Jedajah the Sou of