1Now there arose a great outcry of the people and their wives against their brothers, the Jews.
2For there were those who were saying, “With our sons and our daughters, we are many; let us get grain that we may eat and live.”
3And there were those who were saying, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses, that we may get grain during the famine.”
4And there were those who were saying, “We have borrowed money for the king’s tax on our fields and our vineyards.
5And now, our flesh is like the flesh of our brothers, our children are like their children; yet here we are, forcing our sons and our daughters into slavery. Some of our daughters are already subjected, and we are powerless, for our fields and our vineyards belong to others.”
6And I became very angry when I heard their outcry and these words.
7And my heart took counsel within me, and I brought a charge against the nobles and the officials, and I said to them, “You are each exacting interest from your brother!” And I called a great assembly against them.
8And I said to them, “We ourselves, as far as we were able, have bought back our brothers the Jews who had been sold to the nations; and now you yourselves would even sell your brothers, and they would be sold to us!” Then they were silent and could find no word.
9And I said, “The thing you are doing is not good. Should you not walk in the fear of our God, to avoid the reproach of the nations, our enemies?
10Moreover, I myself, my brothers, and my servants have been lending them money and grain. Let us now abandon this exaction of interest.
11Restore to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves, and their houses, and the hundredth part of the money, the grain, the new wine, and the fresh oil that you are lending them.”
12And they said, “We will restore it, and we will require nothing from them. We will do just as you say.” So I called the priests and made them swear to act according to this promise.
13I also shook out the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out from his house and from his possession every man who does not keep this promise; so may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said, “Amen,” and they praised Yahweh. And the people acted according to this promise.
14Moreover, from the day I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year until the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king—twelve years—neither I nor my brothers ate the food allotted to the governor.
15But the former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for food and wine, besides forty shekels of silver; even their servants domineered over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.
16I also devoted myself to the work on this wall, and we bought no field; and all my servants were gathered there for the work.
17And the Jews and the officials, a hundred and fifty men, besides those who came to us from the nations around us, were at my table.
18Now what was prepared for a single day was one ox, six choice sheep, and birds were prepared for me; and every ten days all kinds of wine in abundance. Yet with all this I did not demand the food allotted to the governor, because the labor was heavy on this people.
19Remember me, my God, for good, for all that I have done for this people.
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