1. On that day the Book of Moses was read while the people were listening. They heard the passage that no Ammon ite or Moabite should ever be admitted into God’s assembly.
2. (After all, they didn’t welcome the Israelites with food and water. Instead, they hired Balaam to curse the Israelites. But our God turned the curse into a blessing.)
3. After the people heard this Teaching, they separated the non-Israelites from the Israelites.
4. Even before this, the priest Eliashib, who was related to Tobiah and had been put in charge of the storerooms of our God’s temple,
5. had provided a large room for Tobiah. Previously, this room had been used to store grain offerings, incense, utensils, a tenth of all the grain harvested, new wine, and olive oil. These things belonged by law to the Levites, singers, and gatekeepers. The contributions for the priests had also been stored there.