I also held to the work on this wall: This means that Nehemiah kept on working on the wall without conducting other activities. Traduction œcuménique de la Bible uses a French idiom, saying “I also attached myself to the work of this wall,” while Biblia Dios Habla Hoy has “Also, I worked my share in the restoration of the wall of the city.” Translators may use a similar equivalent expression.

Specifically, Nehemiah acquired no land. The Hebrew has “we did not acquire land” (Hebrew Old Testament Text Project giving it a B rating), which would include both Nehemiah and his officials (so New King James Version , Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). The text “I did not acquire land” is found in some Hebrew manuscripts and ancient versions and is followed by Revised Standard Version/New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New English Bible, Jerusalem Bible, Luther and other versions. This reading is recommended to translators. The clause may mean that Nehemiah was not a landlord and therefore was not involved in debt slavery or, more probably, that he refrained from taking land from debtors who could not repay their loans. If the plural “we did not acquire land” is adopted, then this would apply to both Nehemiah and his officials (so Bible en français courant).

Under Nehemiah all his servants were gathered there for the work on the wall. He reaffirms here what was reported in Neh 4.16.

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Nehemiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .