And
I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “The
work is great and widely spread, and we are separated on the wall, far from one
another.20 In
the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God
will fight for us.”
Those who carried burdens were loaded
in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon
with the other.18 And each of the builders had his
sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was
beside me.
From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah, 17 who were building on the wall.
And I looked and arose
and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do
not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight
for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”
So in the lowest parts
of the space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their
clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows.