Another theme in Nehemiah, as in Ezra, is opposition. Judah’s enemies started rumors that God’s people had revolted against Persia. The goal was to intimidate Judah into forestalling reconstruction of the walls. In spite of opposition from without and heartbreaking corruption and dissension from within, Judah completed the walls of Jerusalem in only 52 days (6:15), experienced revival after the reading of the law by Ezra (8:1ff.), and celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles (8:14ff.; ca. 445 B.C.).
The book’s detailed insight into the personal thoughts, motives, and disappointments of Nehemiah makes it easy for the reader to primarily identify with him, rather than “the sovereign hand of God” theme and the primary message of His control and intervention into the affairs of His people and their enemies. But the exemplary behavior of the famous cupbearer is eclipsed by God who orchestrated the reconstruction of the walls in spite of much opposition and many setbacks; the “good hand of God” theme carries through the book of Nehemiah (1:10; 2:8, 18).
Interpretive Challenges
First, since much of Nehemiah is explained in relationship to Jerusalem’s gates (cf. Neh. 2, 3, 8, 12), one needs to see the map “Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s Day” for an orientation. Second, the reader must recognize that the time line of chapters 1–12 encompassed about one year (445 B.C.), followed by a long gap of time (over 20 years) after Neh. 12 and before Neh. 13 (see “Time Line of Nehemiah”). Finally, it must be recognized that Nehemiah actually served two governorships in Jerusalem, the first from 445–433 B.C. (cf. Neh. 5:14; 13:6) and the second beginning possibly in 424 B.C. and extending to no longer than 410 B.C.
Outline
I. Nehemiah’s First Term as Governor (1:1-12:47)
A. Nehemiah’s Return and Reconstruction (1:1-7:73a)
1. Nehemiah goes to Jerusalem (1:1—2:20)
2. Nehemiah and the people rebuild the walls (3:1—7:3)
3. Nehemiah recalls the first return under Zerubbabel (7:4–73a)
B. Ezra’s Revival and Renewal (7:73b-10:39)
1. Ezra expounds the law (7:73b–8:12)
2. The people worship and repent (8:13—9:37)
3. Ezra and the priests renew the covenant (9:38—10:39)
C. Nehemiah’s Resettlement and Rejoicing (11:1-12:47)
1. Jerusalem is resettled (11:1—12:26)
2. The people dedicate the walls (12:27–47)
II. Nehemiah’s Second Term as Governor (13:1-31)
The Book of
NEHEMIAH
Nehemiah 1
Nehemiah Prays for His People
1The words of aNehemiah the son of Hachaliah.
It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the btwentieth year, as I was in cShushan1 the 2citadel,
2that dHanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.
3And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the eprovince are there in great distress and freproach. gThe wall of Jerusalem his also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”
4So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
5And I said: “I pray, iLORD God of heaven, O great and jawesome God, kYou who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love 3You and observe 4Your commandments,
6“please let Your ear be attentive and lYour eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and mconfess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned.
7n“We have acted very corruptly against You, and have onot kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses.
8“Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, p‘If you 5are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations;
9q‘but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, rthough some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.’
10s“Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand.
11“O Lord, I pray, please tlet Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who udesire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” For I was the king’s vcupbearer. Time Line of Nehemiah
Nehemiah 2
Nehemiah Sent to Judah
1And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of aKing 1Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that bI took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before.
2Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but csorrow of heart.” So I became 2dreadfully afraid,
3and said to the king, d“May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when ethe city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with ffire?”
4Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I gprayed to the God of heaven.
5And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.”
6Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him ha time.
7Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the igovernors of the region beyond 3the River, that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah,
8“and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the 4citadel which pertains jto the 5temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me kaccording to the good hand of my God upon me.
9Then I went to the governors in the region beyond the River, and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me.
10When lSanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite 6official heard of it, they were deeply disturbed that a man had come to seek the well-being of the children of Israel.
Nehemiah Views the Wall of Jerusalem
11So I mcame to Jerusalem and was there three days.
12Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; nor was there any animal with me, except the one on which I rode.
13And I went out by night nthrough the Valley Gate to the Serpent Well and the 7Refuse Gate, and 8viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were obroken down and its gates which were burned with fire.
14Then I went on to the pFountain Gate and to the qKing’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal under me to pass.
15So I went up in the night by the rvalley,9 and 10viewed the wall; then I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned.
16And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the others who did the work. Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s Day
17Then I said to them, “You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies 11waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come and let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer be sa reproach.”
18And I told them of tthe hand of my God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me. So they said, “Let us rise up and build.” Then they uset12 their hands to this good work.
19But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and G
eshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? vWill you rebel against the king?”
20So I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, wbut you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.”
Nehemiah 3
Rebuilding the Wall
1Then aEliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests band built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. They built cas far as the Tower of 1the Hundred, and consecrated it, then as far as the Tower of dHananel.
22Next to Eliashib ethe men of Jericho built. And next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built.
3Also the sons of Hassenaah built fthe Fish Gate; they laid its beams and ghung its doors with its bolts and bars.
4And next to them hMeremoth the son of Urijah, the son of 3Koz, made repairs. Next to them iMeshullam the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs. Next to them Zadok the son of Baana made repairs.
5Next to them the Tekoites made repairs; but their nobles did not put their 4shoulders to jthe work of their Lord.
6Moreover Jehoiada the son of Paseah and Meshullam the son of Besodeiah repaired kthe Old Gate; they laid its beams and hung its doors, with its bolts and bars.
7And next to them Melatiah the Gibeonite, Jadon the Meronothite, the lmen of Gibeon and Mizpah, repaired the mresidence5 of the governor of the region 6beyond the River.
8Next to him Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs. Also next to him Hananiah, 7one of the perfumers, made repairs; and they 8fortified Jerusalem as far as the nBroad Wall.
9And next to them Rephaiah the son of Hur, leader of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs.
10Next to them Jedaiah the son of Harumaph made repairs in front of his house. And next to him Hattush the son of Hashabniah made repairs. Seven Attempts to Stop Nehemiah’s Work
11Malchijah the son of Harim and Hashub the son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section, oas well as the Tower of the Ovens.
12And next to him was Shallum the son of Hallohesh, leader of half the district of Jerusalem; he and his daughters made repairs.
13Hanun and the inhabitants of Zanoah repaired pthe Valley Gate. They built it, hung its doors with its bolts and bars, and repaired a thousand cubits of the wall as far as qthe Refuse Gate.
14Malchijah the son of Rechab, leader of the district of rBeth Haccerem, repaired the Refuse Gate; he built it and hung its doors with its bolts and bars.
15Shallun the son of Col-Hozeh, leader of the district of Mizpah, repaired sthe Fountain Gate; he built it, covered it, hung its doors with its bolts and bars, and repaired the wall of the Pool of tShelah9 by the uKing’s Garden, as far as the stairs that go down from the City of David.
16After him Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, leader of half the district of Beth Zur, made repairs as far as the place in front of the 10tombs of David, to the vman-made pool, and as far as the House of the Mighty.
17After him the Levites, under Rehum the son of Bani, made repairs. Next to him Hashabiah, leader of half the district of Keilah, made repairs for his district.
18After him their brethren, under 11Bavai the son of Henadad, leader of the other half of the district of Keilah, made repairs.
19And next to him Ezer the son of Jeshua, the leader of Mizpah, repaired another section in front of the Ascent to the Armory at the wbuttress.12
20After him Baruch the son of 13Zabbai carefully repaired the other section, from the 14buttress to the door of the house of Eliashib the high priest.
21After him Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of 15Koz, repaired another section, from the door of the house of Eliashib to the end of the house of Eliashib.
22And after him the priests, the men of the plain, made repairs.
23After him Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs opposite their house. After them Azariah the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, made repairs by his house.
24After him xBinnui the son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to ythe 16buttress, even as far as the corner.
25Palal the son of Uzai made repairs opposite the 17buttress, and on the tower which projects from the king’s upper house that was by the zcourt of the prison. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh made repairs.
26Moreover athe Nethinim who dwelt in bOphel made repairs as far as the place in front of cthe Water Gate toward the east, and on the projecting tower.
27After them the Tekoites repaired another section, next to the great projecting tower, and as far as the wall of Ophel.
28Beyond the dHorse Gate the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house.
29After them Zadok the son of Immer made repairs in front of his own house. After him Shemaiah the son of Shechaniah, the keeper of the East Gate, made repairs.
30After him Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. After him Meshullam the son of Berechiah made repairs in front of his 18dwelling.
31After him Malchijah, 19one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the Nethinim and of the merchants, in front of the 20Miphkad Gate, and as far as the upper room at the corner.
32And between the upper room at the corner, as far as the eSheep Gate, the goldsmiths and the merchants made repairs.
Nehemiah 4
The Wall Defended Against Enemies
1But it so happened, awhen Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, that he was furious and very indignant, and mocked the Jews.
2And he spoke before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they fortify themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Will they revive the stones from the heaps of rubbish—stones that are burned?”
3Now bTobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall.”
4cHear, O our God, for we are despised; dturn their reproach on their own heads, and give them as plunder to a land of captivity!
5eDo not cover their iniquity, and do not let their sin be blotted out from before You; for they have provoked You to anger before the builders.
6So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.
7Now it happened, fwhen Sanballat, Tobiah, gthe Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the 1gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry,
8and all of them hconspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion.
9Nevertheless iwe made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.
10Then Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is failing, and there is so much rubbish that we are not able to build the wall.”
11And our adversaries said, “They will neither know nor see anything, till we come into their midst and kill them and cause the work to cease.”
12So it was, when the Jews who dwelt near them came, that they told us ten times, “From whatever place you turn, they will be upon us.”
13Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall, at the openings; and I set the people according to their families, with their swords, their spears, and their bows.
14And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, j“Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, kgreat and awesome, and lfight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”
15And it happened, when our enemies heard that it was known to us, and mthat God had brought their plot to nothing, that all of us returned to the wall, everyone to his work.
16So it was, from that time on, that half of my servants worked at construction, while the other half held the spears, the shields, the bows,
and wore armor; and the leaders 2were behind all the house of Judah.
17Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon.
18Every one of the builders had his sword girded at his side as he built. And the one who sounded the trumpet was beside me.
19Then I said to the nobles, the rulers, and the rest of the people, “The work is great and extensive, and we are separated far from one another on the wall.
20“Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. nOur God will fight for us.”
21So we labored in the work, and half of 3the men held the spears from daybreak until the stars appeared.
22At the same time I also said to the people, “Let each man and his servant stay at night in Jerusalem, that they may be our guard by night and a working party by day.”
23So neither I, my brethren, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me took off our clothes, except that everyone took them off for washing.
Nehemiah 5
Nehemiah Deals with Oppression
1And there was a great aoutcry of the people and their wives against their bJewish brethren.
2For there were those who said, “We, our sons, and our daughters are many; therefore let us get grain, that we may eat and live.”
3There were also some who said, “We have mortgaged our lands and vineyards and houses, that we might buy grain because of the famine.”
The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV Page 229