16Men of Tyre also lived there, who brought in fish and all kinds of goods, and sold them on the Sabbath to the children of Judah and in Jerusalem.
17Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said to them, What evil thing is this that you are doing, profaning the Sabbath day?
18Did not your fathers do this, and did not our God bring all this disaster on us and on this city? Yet you bring added wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath.
19So it was, at the gates of Jerusalem as it began to be dark before the Sabbath, that I commanded the gates to be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the Sabbath. Then I stationed some of my servants at the gates, so that no burdens would be brought in on the Sabbath day.
20Now the merchants and sellers of all kinds of goods spent the night outside Jerusalem once or twice.
21Then I warned them, and said to them, Why do you spend the night around the wall? If you do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time on they came no more on the Sabbath.
22And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and come and guard the gates, to sanctify the Sabbath day. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of Your mercy.
23In those days I also saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab;