Nehemiah 12 is the twelfth chapter of the Book of Nehemiah in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, or the 22nd chapter of the book of Ezra-Nehemiah in the Hebrew Bible, which treats the book of Ezra and the book of Nehemiah as one book. Jewish tradition states that Ezra is the author of Ezra-Nehemiah as well as the Book of Chronicles, but modern scholars generally accept that a compiler from the 5th century BCE (the so-called "Chronicler") is the final author of these books. This chapter recounts the lineage of the priests and Levites and describes the dedication of the walls of Jerusalem, whose construction has been a primary concern since the beginning of the book.
Text
The original text of this chapter is in Hebrew language. This chapter is divided into 47 verses.
Textual witnesses
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text, which includes Codex Leningradensis (1008).
There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; B; 4th century), Codex Sinaiticus (S; BHK: S; 4th century), and Codex Alexandrinus (A; A; 5th century).
Priests and Levites (12:1–26) This part records the several lists of priests and Levites to document the genuineness of the Jewish community and its religious authority, in order to give legitimacy in this postexilic community. The list starts with those said to have returned with Zerubbabel in the first wave at the time of the Persian king, Cyrus (verses 1–9), but this list is quite different from the one in Ezra 2. After listing the high priests from the last one at the time of exile, Jozadak, the father of Jeshua, until Jaddua (verses 10–11), it records those returning at the time of Ezra (verses 12–21), with a careful note on its sources (verses 22–23).
Verse 1
Now these are the priests and the Levites that went up with Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra, "Zerubbabel" was the leader of the group and of Davidic line (), so he is associated with the messianic hope in the book of Zechariah, although this association is not mentioned in this book. His office is not named in this book, but he is identified as the "governor of Judah" in Haggai 1:1, ; . "Jeshua": or "Joshua". His office is not named in this book, but he is identified as the "high priest" in Haggai 1:1, , ; ; .
Verse 3
Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth, "Shecaniah": the name of the tenth of "24 Priestly Divisions" in 1 Chronicles 24. This name appears in a stone inscription that was found in 1970 on a partially buried column in a mosque, in the Yemeni village of Bayt al-Ḥaḍir, among the ten names of priestly wards and their respective towns and villages. This "Yemeni inscription" is the longest roster of names of this sort ever discovered, unto this day. The names legible on the stone column discovered by Walter W. Müller. It is spelled as "Shebaniah" in Nehemiah 12:14 (cf. Nehemiah 10:4; 1 Chronicles 3:21). "Rehum": spelled as "Harim" in Nehemiah 12:15. "Meremoth": spelled as "Meraioth" in Nehemiah 12:15.
Verse 4
Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah, "Ginnethoi": spelled as "Ginnethon" in a number of Hebrew manuscripts and the Latin Vulgate version (cf. Nehemiah 12:16 and NIV, NCV, NLT). "Abijah": the name of the eighth of "24 Priestly Divisions" in 1 Chronicles 24. Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, was a member of this division (Luke 1:5; also spelled as "Abia"). This name appears in the "Yemeni inscription", found in 1970 in the Yemeni village of Bayt al-Ḥaḍir, among the ten names of priestly wards and their respective towns and villages (cf. verse 3 "Shecaniah").
Verse 5
Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah, "Mijamin": from Hebrew ; the name of the sixth of "24 Priestly Divisions" in 1 Chronicles 24 (spelled as ). This name appears in the "Yemeni inscription", found in 1970 in the Yemeni village of Bayt al-Ḥaḍir, among the ten names of priestly wards and their respective towns and villages (cf. verse 3 "Shecaniah"). It is spelled as "Minjamin" () in Nehemiah 12:17. "Maadiah": from Hebrew , spelled as "Moadiah" () in Nehemiah 12:17. Probably is the same as "Maaziah" (), the name of the twenty-fourth of "24 Priestly Divisions" in 1 Chronicles 24. "Bilgah": The name of the fifteenth of "24 Priestly Divisions" in 1 Chronicles 24 (cf. Nehemiah 10:8).