But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry.

参巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亚扪人、亚实突人听见修造耶路撒冷城墙，着手进行堵塞破裂的地方，就甚发怒。

参巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亚扪人和亚实突人听见耶路撒冷城墙正在修造，破裂的地方开始进行修补，就非常愤怒。

参巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亚扪人和亚实突人听见耶路撒冷城墙正在修造，破裂的地方开始进行修补，就非常愤怒。

参巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亚扪人和亚实突人听说耶路撒冷的城墙正在重建、缺口正在填补，非常愤怒，

当参巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亚扪人、亚实突人听见耶路撒冷城墙重修工程仍然进行，已经堵塞城墙的缺口，就非常忿怒。（本节在《马索拉文本》为4:1）

參巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亞捫人、亞實突人聽見修造耶路撒冷城牆，着手進行堵塞破裂的地方，就甚發怒。

參巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亞捫人和亞實突人聽見耶路撒冷城牆正在修造，破裂的地方開始進行修補，就非常憤怒。

參巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亞捫人和亞實突人聽見耶路撒冷城牆正在修造，破裂的地方開始進行修補，就非常憤怒。

參巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亞捫人和亞實突人聽說耶路撒冷的城牆正在重建、缺口正在填補，非常憤怒，

當參巴拉、多比雅、阿拉伯人、亞捫人、亞實突人聽見耶路撒冷城牆重修工程仍然進行，已經堵塞城牆的缺口，就非常忿怒。（本節在《馬索拉文本》為4:1）

參巴拉、多比雅、亞拉伯人、亞捫人、亞實突人、聽說修復耶路撒冷城牆的事節節進行着，而破口的地方都開始堵塞住了，他們就非常惱怒。

參巴拉、多比雅、及亞拉伯人、亞捫人、亞實突人、聞建耶路撒冷城垣、厥工進行、破壞之處修補、則怒甚、

撒八拉、多比、及亞喇伯人、亞捫人、亞實突人、聞耶路撒冷民建邑垣、修損缺、則怒甚、

參巴拉、多比雅、亞拉伯人、亞捫人、亞實突人、聞耶路撒冷城垣被建、損缺之處修補、則怒甚、

But Sanballat and Tobiah heard that Jerusalem’s walls continued to be repaired. The Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard about it too. They heard that the gaps in the wall were being filled in. So they were very angry.

But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry.

But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the work was going ahead and that the gaps in the wall of Jerusalem were being repaired, they were furious.

When Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed, they became furious.

Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the repair of the walls of Jerusalem went on, and that the breaches began to be closed, they were very angry.

Now it happened, when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry,

But it came to pass that, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem went forward, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth;

When Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed, they became furious.

But it came to pass,[ that] when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up,[ and] that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth,

( 4: 1) When Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the people of Ashdod heard that the restoration of the walls of Jerusalem had moved ahead and that the breaches had begun to be closed, they were very angry.

But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabians, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem went forward, and that the breaches began to be filled, they were very angry;

Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring— those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.

But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites.

This is what the Lord says:“ For three sins of Ammon, even for four, I will not relent. Because he ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to extend his borders,

When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews,

and all the foreign people there; all the kings of Uz; all the kings of the Philistines( those of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the people left at Ashdod);

The king should know that we went to the district of Judah, to the temple of the great God. The people are building it with large stones and placing the timbers in the walls. The work is being carried on with diligence and is making rapid progress under their direction.

Ashkelon will see it and fear; Gaza will writhe in agony, and Ekron too, for her hope will wither. Gaza will lose her king and Ashkelon will be deserted.A mongrel people will occupy Ashdod, and I will put an end to the pride of the Philistines.

But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us.“ What is this you are doing?” they asked.“ Are you rebelling against the king?”

After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.Then they carried the ark into Dagon’s temple and set it beside Dagon.

Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.

he became angry with them. He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites,who that year shattered and crushed them. For eighteen years they oppressed all the Israelites on the east side of the Jordan in Gilead, the land of the Amorites.The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin and Ephraim; Israel was in great distress.Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord,“ We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals.”The Lord replied,“ When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines,the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you and you cried to me for help, did I not save you from their hands?But you have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you.Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!”But the Israelites said to the Lord,“ We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now.”Then they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord. And he could bear Israel’s misery no longer.When the Ammonites were called to arms and camped in Gilead, the Israelites assembled and camped at Mizpah.The leaders of the people of Gilead said to each other,“ Whoever will take the lead in attacking the Ammonites will be head over all who live in Gilead.”

Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.They bribed officials to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.At the beginning of the reign of Xerxes, they lodged an accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.And in the days of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel and the rest of his associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. The letter was written in Aramaic script and in the Aramaic language.Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows:Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary, together with the rest of their associates— the judges, officials and administrators over the people from Persia, Uruk and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,and the other people whom the great and honorable Ashurbanipal deported and settled in the city of Samaria and elsewhere in Trans-Euphrates.( This is a copy of the letter they sent him.) To King Artaxerxes, From your servants in Trans- Euphrates:The king should know that the people who came up to us from you have gone to Jerusalem and are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are restoring the walls and repairing the foundations.Furthermore, the king should know that if this city is built and its walls are restored, no more taxes, tribute or duty will be paid, and eventually the royal revenues will suffer.Now since we are under obligation to the palace and it is not proper for us to see the king dishonored, we are sending this message to inform the king,so that a search may be made in the archives of your predecessors. In these records you will find that this city is a rebellious city, troublesome to kings and provinces, a place with a long history of sedition. That is why this city was destroyed.We inform the king that if this city is built and its walls are restored, you will be left with nothing in Trans-Euphrates.

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

But Nahash the Ammonite replied,“ I will make a treaty with you only on the condition that I gouge out the right eye of every one of you and so bring disgrace on all Israel.”

He went to war against the Philistines and broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh and Ashdod. He then rebuilt towns near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines.God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal and against the Meunites.The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful.

In the course of time, the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun succeeded him as king.David thought,“ I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father. When David’s men came to the land of the Ammonites,the Ammonite commanders said to Hanun their lord,“ Do you think David is honoring your father by sending envoys to you to express sympathy? Hasn’t David sent them to you only to explore the city and spy it out and overthrow it?”So Hanun seized David’s envoys, shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments at the buttocks, and sent them away.When David was told about this, he sent messengers to meet the men, for they were greatly humiliated. The king said,“ Stay at Jericho till your beards have grown, and then come back.”

Moreover, in those days I saw men of Judah who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab.Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or the language of one of the other peoples, and did not know how to speak the language of Judah.

After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.

Proclaim to the fortresses of Ashdod and to the fortresses of Egypt:“ Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria; see the great unrest within her and the oppression among her people.”

Then Jephthah sent messengers to the Ammonite king with the question:“ What do you have against me that you have attacked my country?”The king of the Ammonites answered Jephthah’s messengers,“ When Israel came up out of Egypt, they took away my land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, all the way to the Jordan. Now give it back peaceably.”Jephthah sent back messengers to the Ammonite king,saying:“ This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites.But when they came up out of Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea and on to Kadesh.Then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying,‘ Give us permission to go through your country,’ but the king of Edom would not listen. They sent also to the king of Moab, and he refused. So Israel stayed at Kadesh.“ Next they traveled through the wilderness, skirted the lands of Edom and Moab, passed along the eastern side of the country of Moab, and camped on the other side of the Arnon. They did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was its border.“ Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, and said to him,‘ Let us pass through your country to our own place.’Sihon, however, did not trust Israel to pass through his territory. He mustered all his troops and encamped at Jahaz and fought with Israel.“ Then the Lord, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and his whole army into Israel’s hands, and they defeated them. Israel took over all the land of the Amorites who lived in that country,capturing all of it from the Arnon to the Jabbok and from the desert to the Jordan.“ Now since the Lord, the God of Israel, has driven the Amorites out before his people Israel, what right have you to take it over?Will you not take what your god Chemosh gives you? Likewise, whatever the Lord our God has given us, we will possess.Are you any better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel with Israel or fight with them?For three hundred years Israel occupied Heshbon, Aroer, the surrounding settlements and all the towns along the Arnon. Why didn’t you retake them during that time?I have not wronged you, but you are doing me wrong by waging war against me. Let the Lord, the Judge, decide the dispute this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites.”The king of Ammon, however, paid no attention to the message Jephthah sent him.Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites.And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord:“ If you give the Ammonites into my hands,whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.”Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into his hands.He devastated twenty towns from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel Keramim. Thus Israel subdued Ammon.When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of timbrels! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter.When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried,“ Oh no, my daughter! You have brought me down and I am devastated. I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break.”“ My father,” she replied,“ you have given your word to the Lord. Do to me just as you promised, now that the Lord has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites.But grant me this one request,” she said.“ Give me two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry.”“ You may go,” he said. And he let her go for two months. She and her friends went into the hills and wept because she would never marry.After the two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she was a virgin. From this comes the Israelite traditionthat each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.

When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death.

I will destroy the king of Ashdod and the one who holds the scepter in Ashkelon. I will turn my hand against Ekron, till the last of the Philistines are dead,” says the Sovereign Lord.

Say to them,‘ Hear the word of the Sovereign Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you said“ Aha!” over my sanctuary when it was desecrated and over the land of Israel when it was laid waste and over the people of Judah when they went into exile,therefore I am going to give you to the people of the East as a possession. They will set up their camps and pitch their tents among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk.I will turn Rabbah into a pasture for camels and Ammon into a resting place for sheep. Then you will know that I am the Lord.For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet, rejoicing with all the malice of your heart against the land of Israel,therefore I will stretch out my hand against you and give you as plunder to the nations. I will wipe you out from among the nations and exterminate you from the countries. I will destroy you, and you will know that I am the Lord.’”

The Lord sent Babylonian, Aramean, Moabite and Ammonite raiders against him to destroy Judah, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by his servants the prophets.