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Nehemiah 10

The people bind themselves to God’s law through specific commitments governing their households, trade, and support for temple worship.

Nehemiah the governor heads a list of priests, Levites, and community leaders who seal an agreement. The rest of the people, including wives and children with understanding, join them in an oath to obey God’s law given through Moses. They pledge to restrict marriages with surrounding peoples and observe Sabbath and seventh-year commands. They also set out detailed arrangements for offerings and temple support, assigning responsibility for supplies, contributions, and the care of those who serve there.

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1Now those who sealed were: Nehemiah the governor, the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah,
2Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,
3Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah,
4Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch,
5Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,
7Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,
8Maaziah, Bilgai, and Shemaiah. These were the priests.
9The Levites: Jeshua the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel;
10and their brothers, Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,
11Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah,
12Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,
14The chiefs of the people: Parosh, Pahathmoab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,
15Bunni, Azgad, Bebai,
16Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin,
18Hodiah, Hashum, Bezai,
20Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,
25Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,
28The rest of the people, the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple servants, and all those who had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands to the law of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters—everyone who had knowledge and understanding—
29joined with their brothers, their nobles, and entered into a curse and into an oath, to walk in God’s law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord, and his ordinances and his statutes;
30and that we would not give our daughters to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons;
31and if the peoples of the land bring wares or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy from them on the Sabbath, or on a holy day; and that we would forego the seventh year crops and the exaction of every debt.
32Also we made ordinances for ourselves, to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God:
33for the show bread, for the continual meal offering, for the continual burnt offering, for the Sabbaths, for the new moons, for the set feasts, for the holy things, for the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house of our God.
34We, the priests, the Levites, and the people, cast lots for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers’ houses, at times appointed year by year, to burn on the LORD our God’s altar, as it is written in the law;
35and to bring the first fruits of our ground and the first fruits of all fruit of all kinds of trees, year by year, to the LORD’s house;
36also the firstborn of our sons and of our livestock, as it is written in the law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks, to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God;
37and that we should bring the first fruits of our dough, our wave offerings, the fruit of all kinds of trees, and the new wine and the oil, to the priests, to the rooms of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground to the Levites; for they, the Levites, take the tithes in all our farming villages.
38The priest, the descendent of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites take tithes. The Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the rooms, into the treasure house.
39For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the wave offering of the grain, of the new wine, and of the oil, to the rooms where the vessels of the sanctuary are, and the priests who minister, with the gatekeepers and the singers. We will not forsake the house of our God.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Nehemiah 10:29The oath binds the wider community to God’s law through Moses, establishing the basis for every commitment that follows.
Nehemiah 10:33The list of offerings shows what the pledged contribution sustains: regular worship, appointed feasts, and atonement for Israel.
Nehemiah 10:37First fruits and tithes connect the people’s harvests with the support of priests and Levites in their assigned service.
Where this chapter reaches

Ezra shares the concern for marriage boundaries among the restored community, while Exodus and Deuteronomy supply laws concerning Sabbath observance, firstborn dedication, and seventh-year release. Numbers shares the arrangements for supporting Levites through tithes and requiring them to give a portion of what they receive.

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After reading the whole chapter

Which commitment in this agreement would most affect the shape of your ordinary week, and why?

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What do the detailed arrangements for temple support reveal about the responsibilities of shared worship?

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Questions people ask about Nehemiah 10

Why does Nehemiah 10 list so many names?

The names identify those who sealed the agreement, beginning with Nehemiah and including priests, Levites, and chiefs of the people. The list makes the commitment public and accountable. Verses 28–29 then show that the obligation extends beyond the named leaders to the wider community, including family members with understanding.

What does entering into a curse and an oath mean in Nehemiah 10?

The people make a solemn pledge to obey the law God gave through Moses, accepting judgment if they break that pledge. The chapter does not spell out the curse’s wording or a separate ceremony. Its focus is the obligation they accept and the concrete commitments that follow.

Why did the people promise to support the temple in Nehemiah 10?

The temple’s worship required dependable supplies and support for those serving there. The people pledged money for offerings and other work, assigned wood deliveries, and arranged first fruits and tithes. These provisions explain the closing pledge: the community accepts responsibility for keeping the house of God supplied and staffed.

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What the Bible says about worship →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).