17. Then I reproved the nobles of Judah and said, What evil thing is this that you do–profaning the Sabbath day?
18. Did not your fathers do thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us and upon this city? Yet you bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the Sabbath.
19. And when it began to get dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath [day began], I commanded that the gates should be shut and not be opened till after the Sabbath. And I set some of my servants at the gates to prevent any burden being brought in on the Sabbath day.
20. So the merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares lodged outside Jerusalem once or twice.
21. But I reproved and warned them, saying, Why do you lodge by the wall? If you do so again, I will lay hands on you. Then they stopped coming on the Sabbath.
22. And I commanded the Levites to cleanse themselves and come and guard the gates to keep the Sabbath day holy. O my God, [earnestly] remember me concerning this also and spare me according to the greatness of Your mercy and loving-kindness.
23. In those days also I saw Jews who had married wives from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.
24. And their children spoke half in the speech of Ashdod, and could not speak the Hebrew, but in the language of each people.
25. And I contended with them and reviled them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair and made them swear by God, saying, You shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves.