Nehemiah 12 (JND) - Bible Truth Library

The dedication seems to have consisted in processions of the most eminent persons around the walls, with thanksgivings to God, who had enabled them to bring the work to so happy a conclusion; and, no doubt, to all this were added a particular consecration of the city to God, and the most earnest invocation that He would take it under His guardianship, and defend it and its inhabitants against their enemies.

Deut. 20:5• ⁵And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man is there that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it. (Deut. 20:5)

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Psa. 30:1• ¹A Psalm of David: dedication-song of the house. I will extol thee, Jehovah; for thou hast delivered me, and hast not made mine enemies to rejoice over me. (Psa. 30:1)

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Psa. 30• (Psa. 30)

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out.

Neh. 11:20• ²⁰And the residue of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, every one in his inheritance. (Neh. 11:20)

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1 Chron. 15:4,12• ⁴And David gathered the sons of Aaron and the Levites:
¹²and he said to them, Ye are the chief fathers of the Levites; hallow yourselves, ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of Jehovah the God of Israel to the place that I have prepared for it. (1 Chron. 15:4,12)

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1 Chron. 26:31• ³¹Of the Hebronites was Jerijah the head; (as to the Hebronites, according to their families according to the fathers: in the fortieth year of the reign of David they were sought for, and there were found among them mighty men of valour at Jaazer in Gilead;) (1 Chron. 26:31)

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2 Chron. 29:4‑11,30• ⁴And he brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them into the open place eastward;
⁵and he said to them, Hear me, ye Levites: hallow yourselves now, and hallow the house of Jehovah the God of your fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the sanctuary.
⁶For our fathers have transgressed, and done evil in the sight of Jehovah our God, and have forsaken him and turned away their faces from the habitation of Jehovah, and have turned their backs.
⁷Also they have shut up the doors of the porch, and put out the lamps, and have not burned incense nor offered up burnt-offerings in the sanctuary to the God of Israel.
⁸Therefore the wrath of Jehovah has been upon Judah and Jerusalem, and he has delivered them to vexation, to desolation, and to hissing, as ye see with your eyes.
⁹And behold, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this.
¹⁰Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with Jehovah the God of Israel, that his fierce anger may turn away from us.
¹¹My sons, be not now negligent; for Jehovah has chosen you to stand before him, to do service unto him, and to be his ministers and incense-burners.
³⁰And king Hezekiah and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise to Jehovah with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and bowed their heads and worshipped. (2 Chron. 29:4‑11,30)

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Ezra 8:15‑20• ¹⁵And I gathered them together at the river that runs to Ahava; and there we encamped three days; and I surveyed the people and the priests, and found none of the sons of Levi there.
¹⁶And I sent for Eliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib, and for Elnathan, and for Nathan, and for Zechariah, and for Meshullam, chief men, and for Joiarib and for Elnathan, men of understanding.
¹⁷And I gave them a commission to Iddo the chief, at the place Casiphia, and I put words in their mouths to say to Iddo and his brethren the Nethinim, at the place Casiphia, that they should bring to us ministers for the house of our God.
¹⁸And 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 his brethren, eighteen;
¹⁹and Hashabiah, and with him Isaiah of the sons of Merari, his brethren and their sons, twenty;
²⁰and of the Nethinim, whom David and the princes had appointed for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nethinim: all of them were expressed by name. (Ezra 8:15‑20)

gladness.

Neh. 8:17• ¹⁷And all the congregation of them that had come back from the captivity made booths, and dwelt in the booths. For since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun until that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. (Neh. 8:17)

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Deut. 16:11• ¹¹and thou shalt rejoice before Jehovah thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy bondman, and thy handmaid, and the Levite that is in thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow that are in thy midst in the place that Jehovah thy God will choose to cause his name to dwell there. (Deut. 16:11)

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2 Sam. 6:12• ¹²And it was told king David, saying, Jehovah has blessed the house of Obed-Edom, and all that is his, because of the ark of God. And David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom into the city of David with joy. (2 Sam. 6:12)

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2 Chron. 29:30• ³⁰And king Hezekiah and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise to Jehovah with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and bowed their heads and worshipped. (2 Chron. 29:30)

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Ezra 6:16• ¹⁶And the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy; (Ezra 6:16)

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Psa. 98:4‑6• ⁴Shout aloud unto Jehovah, all the earth; break forth and shout for joy, and sing psalms.
⁵Sing psalms unto Jehovah with the harp: with the harp, and the voice of a song;
⁶With trumpets and sound of cornet, make a joyful noise before the King, Jehovah. (Psa. 98:4‑6)

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Psa. 100:1‑2• ¹A Psalm of thanksgiving. Shout aloud unto Jehovah, all the earth!
²Serve Jehovah with joy: come before his presence with exultation. (Psa. 100:1‑2)

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Phil. 4:4• ⁴Rejoice in the Lord always: again I will say, Rejoice. (Phil. 4:4)

thanksgivings.

1 Chron. 13:8• ⁸And David and all Israel played before God with all their might, and with singing, and with harps, and with lutes, and with tambours, and with cymbals, and with trumpets. (1 Chron. 13:8)

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1 Chron. 15:16,28• ¹⁶And David spoke to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren, the singers, with instruments of music, lutes, and harps, and cymbals, that they should sound aloud, lifting up the voice with joy.
²⁸And all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of Jehovah with shouting, and with sound of the trumpet, and with clarions, and with cymbals, playing aloud with lutes and harps. (1 Chron. 15:16,28)

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1 Chron. 16:5,42• ⁵Asaph the chief, and second to him Zechariah, Jeiel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah and Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, with instruments of lutes and with harps; and Asaph sounding with cymbals;
⁴²and with them, with Heman and Jeduthun, trumpets and cymbals for those that should sound aloud; and the musical instruments of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were at the gate. (1 Chron. 16:5,42)

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1 Chron. 23:5• ⁵and four thousand were doorkeepers; and four thousand praised Jehovah with the instruments which I made, said David, to praise therewith. (1 Chron. 23:5)

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1 Chron. 25:1‑6• ¹And David and the captains of the host separated for the service those of the sons of Asaph and of Heman and of Jeduthun who were to prophesy with harps and lutes and cymbals; and the number of the men employed according to their service was:
²of the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, and Joseph, and Nethaniah, and Asharelah, the sons of Asaph under the direction of Asaph, who prophesied at the direction of the king.
³Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, and Zeri, and Isaiah, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, and Shimei six, under the direction of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with the harp, to give thanks and to praise Jehovah.
⁴Of Heman, the sons of Heman: Bukkijah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel, and Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, and Romamti-ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, Mahazioth:
⁵all these were sons of Heman the king's seer in the words of God, to exalt his power; and God had given to Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.
⁶All these were under the direction of their fathers Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman, for song in the house of Jehovah, with cymbals, lutes and harps, for the service of the house of God, under the direction of the king. (1 Chron. 25:1‑6)

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2 Chron. 7:6• ⁶And the priests stood in their charges, and the Levites with Jehovah's instruments of music, which David the king had made to praise Jehovah, for his loving-kindness endureth for ever, when David praised by their means; and the priests sounded the trumpets opposite to them, and all Israel stood. (2 Chron. 7:6)

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Ezra 3:10‑11• ¹⁰And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of Jehovah, they set the priests in their apparel, with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise Jehovah according to the directions of David king of Israel.
¹¹And they sang alternately together in praising and giving thanks to Jehovah: For he is good, for his loving-kindness endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout to the praise of Jehovah, because the foundation of the house of Jehovah was laid. (Ezra 3:10‑11)

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Psa. 81:1‑4• ¹To the chief Musician. Upon the Gittith. A Psalm of Asaph. Sing ye joyously unto God our strength, shout aloud unto the God of Jacob;
²Raise a song, and sound the tambour, the pleasant harp with the lute.
³Blow the trumpet at the new moon, at the set time, on our feast day:
⁴For this is a statute for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob; (Psa. 81:1‑4)

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Psa. 92:1‑3• ¹A Psalm, a Song, for the Sabbath day. It is good to give thanks unto Jehovah, and to sing psalms unto thy name, O Most High;
²To declare thy loving-kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness in the nights,
³Upon an instrument of ten strings and upon the lute; upon the Higgaion with the harp. (Psa. 92:1‑3)

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Psa. 149:3• ³Let them praise his name in the dance; let them sing psalms unto him with the tambour and harp. (Psa. 149:3)

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Psa. 150:2‑5• ²Praise him in his mighty acts; praise him according to the abundance of his greatness.
³Praise him with the sound of the trumpet; praise him with lute and harp;
⁴Praise him with the tambour and dance; praise him with stringed instruments and the pipe;
⁵Praise him with loud cymbals; praise him with high sounding cymbals. (Psa. 150:2‑5)

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Rev. 5:8• ⁸And when it took the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell before the Lamb, having each a harp and golden bowls full of incenses, which are the prayers of the saints. (Rev. 5:8)

• The dedication of the wall was not required by law, but this time of thanksgiving and rejoicing was an appropriate response to all which had preceded. (“The Dedication of the Wall - Neh. 12:27-47” by N. Simon)

• It is worthy of note, in passing, what a prominent place praise and thanksgiving occupied in the Jewish ritual. The Psalm abundantly testify to this—many are filled with notes of adoration, and some commence and close with Hallelujah—"Praise ye the Lord." (See Psalm 148-150) The believer is enjoined in everything to give thanks. (“Exposition on Nehemiah: Nehemiah 12:1-13:3” by E. Dennett)

• It will at once be seen that the subjects of the latter part of the book are given in their moral rather than in their historical connection. It has already been pointed out that from chapter 7 on to chapter 12:31, Nehemiah, if he is the writer, no longer describes his own actions. In this portion it is "we" or "they," not "I." It might seem therefore that the dedication of the wall belongs historically to the first section of the book—to chapter 6, wherein we find the account of the completion of the building of the wall. But when the order of the intervening chapters is considered—the restoration of the authority of the law, the confession of the sins of the people, and of their fathers, the covenant made to walk according to the law, and to make provision for the services of the temple, etc.; the distribution of the people in Jerusalem and around, the ordering of all the affairs of the house of God under priests and Levites, according to the commandment of David the man of God—it will be perceived that morally it is inserted in its only fitting place. Taking all these things together, indeed, we have the pattern of all divine reformation. (“Exposition on Nehemiah: Nehemiah 12:1-13:3” by E. Dennett)

J. N. Darby Translation

And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to hold the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, lutes and harps.