These [are] the heads of their fathers' [houses,] and [this is] the genealogy of those who went up with me from Babylon, in the reign of King Artaxerxes:
Now I gathered them by the river that flows to Ahava, and we camped there three days. And I looked among the people and the priests, and found none of the sons of Levi there.
Then I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and Meshullam, leaders; also for Joiarib and Elnathan, men of understanding.
And I gave them a command for Iddo the chief man at the place Casiphia, and I told them what they should say to Iddo [and] his brethren the Nethinim at the place Casiphia -- that they should bring us servants for the house of our God.
Then, by the good hand of our God upon us, they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli the son of Levi, the son of Israel, namely Sherebiah, with his sons and brothers, eighteen men;
also of the Nethinim, whom David and the leaders had appointed for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethinim. All of them were designated by name.
Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions.
For I was ashamed to request of the king an escort of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the road, because we had spoken to the king, saying, "The hand of our God [is] upon all those for good who seek Him, but His power and His wrath [are] against all those who forsake Him."
and weighed out to them the silver, the gold, and the articles, the offering for the house of our God which the king and his counselors and his princes, and all Israel [who were] present, had offered.
And I said to them, "You [are] holy to the LORD; the articles [are] holy also; and the silver and the gold [are] a freewill offering to the LORD God of your fathers.
"Watch and keep [them] until you weigh [them] before the leaders of the priests and the Levites and heads of the fathers' [houses] of Israel in Jerusalem, [in] the chambers of the house of the LORD."
Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth [day] of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. And the hand of our God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambush along the road.
Now on the fourth day the silver and the gold and the articles were weighed in the house of our God by the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the priest, and with him [was] Eleazar the son of Phinehas; with them [were] the Levites, Jozabad the son of Jeshua and Noadiah the son of Binnui,
The children of those who had been carried away captive, who had come from the captivity, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and twelve male goats [as] a sin offering. All [this was] a burnt offering to the LORD.
And they delivered the king's orders to the king's satraps and the governors [in the region] beyond the River. So they gave support to the people and the house of God.