June 5th Nehemiah 1 A. Rebuilding the Walls
Nehemiah prays for Jerusalem
1:
The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in
the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the
palace, 2:
That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah;
and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were
left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 3:
And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity
there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall
of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned
with fire. 4:
And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and
wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God
of heaven, 5:
And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and
terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him
and observe his commandments: 6:
Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest
hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and
night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins
of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I
and my father's house have sinned. 7:
We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the
commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou
commandedst thy servant Moses. 8:
Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant
Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the
nations: 9:
But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though
there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet
will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place
that I have chosen to set my name there. 10:
Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by
thy great power, and by thy strong hand. 11:
O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer
of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear
thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant
him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.
Nehemiah 2 Nehemiah goes to Jerusalem
1:
And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of
Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the
wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in
his presence. 2:
Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing
thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I
was very sore afraid, 3:
And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my
countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers'
sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with
fire? 4:
Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I
prayed to the God of heaven. 5:
And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant
have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto
Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it.
6:
And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how
long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased
the king to send me; and I set him a time. 7:
Moreover I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be
given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me
over till I come into Judah; 8:
And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may
give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which
appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the
house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to
the good hand of my God upon me. 9:
Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the
king's letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and
horsemen with me. 10:
When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite,
heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to
seek the welfare of the children of Israel. 11:
So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days. 12:
And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I
any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem: neither
was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon. 13:
And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the
dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem,
which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with
fire. 14:
Then I went on to the gate of the fountain, and to the king's pool:
but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass. 15:
Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall, and
turned back, and entered by the gate of the valley, and so returned.
16:
And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither had I
as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles,
nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work. 17:
Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how
Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire:
come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a
reproach. 18:
Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as
also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let
us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good
work. 19:
But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the
Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn,
and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do? will ye
rebel against the king? 20:
Then answered I them, and said unto them, The God of heaven, he will
prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but ye
have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem.
Nehemiah 3 Rebuilding the Wall
1:
Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests,
and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the
doors of it; even unto the tower of Meah they sanctified it, unto the
tower of Hananeel. 2:
And next unto him builded the men of Jericho. And next to them
builded Zaccur the son of Imri. 3:
But the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build, who also laid the
beams thereof, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and
the bars thereof. 4:
And next unto them repaired Meremoth the son of Urijah, the son of
Koz. And next unto them repaired Meshullam the son of Berechiah, the
son of Meshezabeel. And next unto them repaired Zadok the son of
Baana. 5:
And next unto them the Tekoites repaired; but their nobles put not
their necks to the work of their Lord. 6:
Moreover the old gate repaired Jehoiada the son of Paseah, and
Meshullam the son of Besodeiah; they laid the beams thereof, and set
up the doors thereof, and the locks thereof, and the bars thereof. 7:
And next unto them repaired Melatiah the Gibeonite, and Jadon the
Meronothite, the men of Gibeon, and of Mizpah, unto the throne of the
governor on this side the river. 8:
Next unto him repaired Uzziel the son of Harhaiah, of the goldsmiths.
Next unto him also repaired Hananiah the son of one of the
apothecaries, and they fortified Jerusalem unto the broad wall. 9:
And next unto them repaired Rephaiah the son of Hur, the ruler of the
half part of Jerusalem. 10:
And next unto them repaired Jedaiah the son of Harumaph, even over
against his house. And next unto him repaired Hattush the son of
Hashabniah. 11:
Malchijah the son of Harim, and Hashub the son of Pahath-moab,
repaired the other piece, and the tower of the furnaces. 12:
And next unto him repaired Shallum the son of Halohesh, the ruler of
the half part of Jerusalem, he and his daughters. 13:
The valley gate repaired Hanun, and the inhabitants of Zanoah; they
built it, and set up the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the
bars thereof, and a thousand cubits on the wall unto the dung gate.
14:
But the dung gate repaired Malchiah the son of Rechab, the ruler of
part of Beth-haccerem; he built it, and set up the doors thereof, the
locks thereof, and the bars thereof. 15:
But the gate of the fountain repaired Shallun the son of Col-hozeh,
the ruler of part of Mizpah; he built it, and covered it, and set up
the doors thereof, the locks thereof, and the bars thereof, and the
wall of the pool of Siloah by the king's garden, and unto the stairs
that go down from the city of David. 16:
After him repaired Nehemiah the son of Azbuk, the ruler of the half
part of Beth-zur, unto the place over against the sepulchres of
David, and to the pool that was made, and unto the house of the
mighty. 17:
After him repaired the Levites, Rehum the son of Bani. Next unto him
repaired Hashabiah, the ruler of the half part of Keilah, in his
part. 18:
After him repaired their brethren, Bavai the son of Henadad, the
ruler of the half part of Keilah. 19:
And next to him repaired Ezer the son of Jeshua, the ruler of Mizpah,
another piece over against the going up to the armoury at the turning
of the wall. 20:
After him Baruch the son of Zabbai earnestly repaired the other
piece, from the turning of the wall unto the door of the house of
Eliashib the high priest. 21:
After him repaired Meremoth the son of Urijah the son of Koz another
piece, from the door of the house of Eliashib even to the end of the
house of Eliashib. 22:
And after him repaired the priests, the men of the plain. 23:
After him repaired Benjamin and Hashub over against their house.
After him repaired Azariah the son of Maaseiah the son of Ananiah by
his house. 24:
After him repaired Binnui the son of Henadad another piece, from the
house of Azariah unto the turning of the wall, even unto the corner.
25:
Palal the son of Uzai, over against the turning of the wall, and the
tower which lieth out from the king's high house, that was by the
court of the prison. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh. 26:
Moreover the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel, unto the place over against
the water gate toward the east, and the tower that lieth out. 27:
After them the Tekoites repaired another piece, over against the
great tower that lieth out, even unto the wall of Ophel. 28:
From above the horse gate repaired the priests, every one over
against his house. 29:
After them repaired Zadok the son of Immer over against his house.
After him repaired also Shemaiah the son of Shechaniah, the keeper of
the east gate. 30:
After him repaired Hananiah the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun the sixth
son of Zalaph, another piece. After him repaired Meshullam the son of
Berechiah over against his chamber. 31:
After him repaired Malchiah the goldsmith's son unto the place of the
Nethinims, and of the merchants, over against the gate Miphkad, and
to the going up of the corner. 32:
And between the going up of the corner unto the sheep gate repaired
the goldsmiths and the merchants.
Nehemiah 4 Workers guard the construction
1:
But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the
wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews.
2:
And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said,
What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they
sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the
stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? 3:
Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they
build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. 4:
Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon
their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity: 5:
And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out
from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the
builders. 6:
So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the
half thereof: for the people had a mind to work. 7:
But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the
Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls
of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped,
then they were very wroth, 8:
And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against
Jerusalem, and to hinder it. 9:
Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against
them day and night, because of them. 10:
And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed,
and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.
11:
And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we
come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to
cease. 12:
And it came to pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came,
they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall return
unto us they will be upon you. 13:
Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the
higher places, I even set the people after their families with their
swords, their spears, and their bows. 14:
And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the
rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them:
remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your
brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.
15:
And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto
us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we returned all
of us to the wall, every one unto his work. 16:
And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my
servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both
the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the
rulers were behind all the house of Judah. 17:
They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with
those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the
work, and with the other hand held a weapon. 18:
For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so
builded. And he that sounded the trumpet was by me. 19:
And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the
people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the
wall, one far from another. 20:
In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye
thither unto us: our God shall fight for us. 21:
So we laboured in the work: and half of them held the spears from the
rising of the morning till the stars appeared. 22:
Likewise at the same time said I unto the people, Let every one with
his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the night they may be a
guard to us, and labour on the day. 23:
So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the
guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes, saving that
every one put them off for washing.
Today we begin
reading in the book of Nehemiah. A good title for this book might be
‘The sword and the trowel’. This book of 13 chapters was written
by Nehemiah in about 445 – 432 BC. Nehemiah wrote to record the
last historical book of the OT. The book records the rebuilding of
the walls of Jerusalem and the revival of faith in Gods people.
Zerubbabel led the first return from Babylon in 538 BC. Ezra led the
second return from Babylon in 458 BC. Nehemiah led the third return
in 445 BC. The books of Ezra and Nehemiah are one book in the Hebrew
Bible. Chronologically, Nehemiah was the last book of the OT.
Daniel said…
‘Know
therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the
commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the
Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street
shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.
Daniel 9v25. This is the story of the rebuilding.
The
book has two parts the rebuilding of the walls and revival among the
people. First we will read of the rebuilding of the walls. We are
introduced to Nehemiah who is praying for Jerusalem while he is in
Babylon. So he returns and is immediately attacked which means that
they build with a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other hand.
In Babylon Nehemiah hears that the walls are broken down and the city
gates are burnt with fire and he becomes deeply upset and prays that
God might do something. He prays and fasts before the God of Heaven.
And this is his prayer.
I plead with you
, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keeps his
covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his
commandments: Let your ears hear and your eyes be open, so that you
may hear the prayer of your servant, that I now pray before you, day
and night, for the children of Israel your servants, and confess the
sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against you:
both I and my father's house have sinned. We have dealt very
corruptly against you, and have not kept the commandments, nor the
statutes, nor the judgments, that you commanded your servant Moses.
Remember, I plead with you, the word that you commanded your servant
Moses, saying, If you transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the
nations: 9:
But if you turn to me, and keep my commandments, and do them there
even though you were cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven,
yet will I gather them from there, and will bring them to the place
that I have chosen to set my name. Now these are your servants and
your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power, and by your
strong hand. O Lord, I plead with you, let now your ear be attentive
to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants,
who desire to fear your name: and prosper, I pray to you, your
servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.
(Nehemiah was the king's cupbearer.)
Nehemiah is brought
before the king because it is his job to give wine to Artexerxes. But
he cannot hide the sadness in his heart so the Kings asks him why he
is sad and Nehemiah explains all that is in his heart. Then the king
says what would you ask of me? Then Nehemiah sent a short prayer
heavenward while he spoke to the king. He says if l have found grace
in your sight send me to Judah to my people and give me permission to
rebuild the tombs of my fathers and the walls of my city. He also
asked for permission to have timber to build with and the king asked
him how long he would be. Nehemiah went to Jerusalem and was there
for just three days. He told no one his mission and he went to view
the city by night. He returned to tell the king of what he had found
but there were people who laughed and mocked the plan but Nehemiah
was encouraged by his trust in the Lord. The work of building began
starting at the sheep gate. First they built it then they sanctified
it. And then the set up the doors. All of the men of Judah set to
work each working in their own place and when the work was completed
they sanctified it. When Sanballat heard of the building he mocked
and was full of indignation. But the people prayed and worked on. The
people had a mind to work and so all the wall was completed. The
Enemies planned to attack the city but the builders worked on praying
to the Lord and they set a watch day and night. Some of the men were
worn out but others came to join in. They also established a signal
so that if they were attacked at one point the rest would come to
their aid.
- What did Nehemiah do for Israel?
- What were the big things that he did for Israel when they returned?
- How did he lead a spiritual revival?
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