Rashi
Jewish
1040–1105
“purified themselves First they purified themselves, and afterwards they purified the others. and the gates and the wall that there should be no uncleanliness in the city.”
The interpretation timeline
Neh 12:30
How this passage has been read — the sources, oldest to newest.
From the early Church Fathers to now.
1 Jewish · 1 Reformed · 1 Methodist · 1 Catholic
Neh 12:30 · Douay-Rheims
“And the priests and the Levites purified, and they purified the people, and the gates, and the wall.”
Scholastic
c. 1100 – 1500
1105
A.D.
666 years pass — nothing from this stretch is hosted yet
Post-Reformation
c. 1650 – 1900
1771
A.D.
John Gill
Reformed
1697–1771
“And after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of Judah. The other half of them, with Hoshaiah at the head of them. And after them went Hoshaiah, and half of the princes of Judah. The other half of them, with Hoshaiah at the head of them. Nehemiah 12:33 neh 12:33 neh 12:33 neh 12:33And Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam. Not Ezra the priest and the scribe, for he has another place assigned him in this procession, Neh 12:36, but this seems to be one of the princes.”
1832
A.D.
Adam Clarke
Methodist
1762–1832
“The priests and the Levites purified themselves - This consisted in washings, abstinence from wine, and other matters, which, on all other occasions, were lawful. And as to the purifying of the gates and the walls, nothing was requisite but to remove all filth from the former, and all rubbish that might have been laid against the latter.”
1849
A.D.
George Leo Haydock
Catholic
1774–1849
“Were purified first, that they might purify the rest. (Haydock) — Priests were obliged to abstain from wine, and from their wives, while they were on duty. See 2 Paralipomenon xxix. 34., and xxxv. 2., &c. Levites were to wash their garments, Leviticus viii. 21. All lepers, &c., required a certain purification, ibid. v. 2. 6.[Leviticus viii. 2, 6.?] and Numbers xix. 16. Care was taken that no dead body was found on the walls. These were probably sprinkled with water, &c., like the tabernacle, Leviticus viii. 11.”
Modern · 1953 →
The in-app commentary runs from the Fathers to the early-modern record, then stops — that's where the public-domain sources end, not where the reading does. For the modern reading, follow the sources directly.