A. Records for Repopulating Jerusalem (7:1-73)

City walls are of little defensive value if not properly manned, and a city serves no function if no one lives in it. Thus Nehemiah’s next task was to organize the city and repopulate it. Nehemiah appointed his brother Hanani, who had first alerted him to the disgrace of Jerusalem (1:2-3), over the capital city. Nehemiah also issued strict regulations concerning operation of the gates (v.3).

To repopulate Jerusalem it was necessary to compile an accurate census of the populace. The basis of such a census was the genealogical record of the original returnees, which is reproduced in 7:6-73. With minor variations this is the same list found in Ezr 2.