Nehemiah 3:17

Neh 3:17 After him repaired the Levites, Rehum the son of Bani. Next unto him repaired Hashabiah, the ruler of the half part of Keilah, in his part.

Ver. 17. After him repaired the Levites] Who therefore were not beggarly (as many would make ministers in our days, if they might have their will), but had somewhat to spare for pious uses. For when they are said to repair, the meaning is, they bore the charge of the work, and took care that it was done.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

(17) The Levites.—The circuit is coming round to the Temple.

Rehum the son of Bani.—The Levites were under him as a body.

In his part.—The other part of the Keilah district (now Kila) is in the next verse.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

17. the Levites, Rehum the son of Bani] Here it may be noticed that the community is mentioned first, its representative afterwards. This variation from the usage in Neh_3:7-8 is perhaps intended to give prominence to the work of the Levites or of a particular band of them.

Rehum, whose name is the same as that of one of the chief colleagues of Zerubbabel at the Return from Exile (Ezr_2:2), is perhaps to be identified with the Rehum in Neh_10:25. Bani is mentioned in Neh_9:5.

the ruler of the half part of Keilah] R.V. the ruler of half the district of Keilah. This is in all probability to be identified with the Keilah of Jos_15:44; 1Sa_23:1, a town about 15 miles S. W. of Jerusalem.

in his part] R.V. for his part, i.e. for the district which he represented, in distinction from the district mentioned in the verse following.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

After him repaired their brethren,.... Either the brethren of the two before named particularly, or the Levites their brethren in general, as Jarchi:

Bavai, the son of Henadad, the ruler of the half part of Keilah; the other half of that place.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The constant mention of “priests,” “Levites,” and Nethinims,” sufficiently indicates that the writer is here concerned with the sacerdotal quarter, that immediately about the temple.

Neh 3:18

Bavai - Or, “Binnui” Neh 3:24; Neh 10:9.

The armoury at the turning of the wall - literally, “the armoury of the corner.” The northwestern corner of the special wall of the “city of David” seems to be intended. See Neh 3:1 note.

Neh 3:20

The other piece - Rather, “another piece.” The notice of Baruch’s first piece, like that of Malchijah’s and Hashub’s Neh 3:11, seems to have slipped out of the text.

Neh 3:22

The word here translated “plain” is applied in the rest of Scripture almost exclusively to the Ghor or Jordan valley. Compare, however, Neh 12:28.

Neh 3:24

The turning of the wall - The northeastern angle of the “city of David” seems here to be reached. At this point a tower “lay out” Neh 3:25, or projected extraordinarily, from the wall, being probably a watch-tower commanding the Kidron valley and all the approaches to the city from the southeast, the east, and the northeast.

Neh 3:25

The “king’s high house” is almost certainly the old palace of David, which was on the temple hill, and probably occupied a position directly north of the temple.

That was by the court of the prison - Prisons were in old times adjuncts of palaces. The palace of David must have had its prison; and the “prison gate” Neh 12:39 was clearly in this quarter.

Neh 3:26

The marginal reading is better. On the Nethinims see 1Ch 9:2 note.

Ophel was the slope south of the temple (see the marginal reference “y” note); and the water-gate, a gate in the eastern wall, either for the escape of the superfluous water from the temple reservoirs, or for the introduction of water from the Kidron valley when the reservoirs were low.

Neh 3:27

The foundations of an outlying tower near the southeast angle of the temple area in this position have been recently discovered.

Neh 3:28

“The horse gate” was on the east side of the city, overlooking the Kidron valley. It seems to have been a gate by which horses approached and left the old palace, that of David, which lay north of the temple Neh 3:25.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ceila, in the tribe of Juda. He inspected the workmen from this place.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

17. Keilah — Situated about five miles northwest of Hebron, and some fifteen southwest of Jerusalem. See Jos_15:44; 1Sa_23:1.

In his part — That is, for his district. He represented the part of Keilah which he governed, just as Bavai represented, as mentioned in the next verse, the other half of Keilah.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The ruler of the half part of Keilah. Rather, "ruler of one-half of the region of K." The district within which Keilah stood was divided into two parts, one of which was under Hashabiah and the other under Bavai (ver. 18). Both took part in the work of restoration, and the two working-parties were assigned adjacent portions of the wall In his part; Rather, "for his partpro tractu suo, as Rambach renders.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

half the district From that bailiwick, the half district, he built this structure. In the word לְפִּלְכּוֹ, the “kaff” has a “dagesh,” as one says from מֶלֶךְ, מַלְכּוֹ, from עֶבֶד, עַבְדוֹ, so does one say from פֶּלֶךְ, פִּלְכּוֹ, for [if] the last letter of the noun is one of the letters “beth,” “gimmel,” “daleth,” “kaff,” “pey,” or “tav,” it is punctuated with a “dagesh.”

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.