Nehemiah 3 and 4
1 Eliashib
the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilt the Sheep Gate.
They dedicated it and set its doors in place, building as far as the Tower of
the Hundred, which they dedicated, and as far as the Tower of Hananel. 2 The
men of Jericho built the adjoining section, and Zakkur son of Imri built next
to them.
a. They built … built … built:
Nehemiah 3
is all about work - how individuals pitched in and did the work together,
coordinated and led by Nehemiah.
3The Fish Gate was rebuilt by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid
its beams and put its doors and bolts and bars in place. 4Meremoth son of
Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired the next section. Next to him Meshullam son
of Berekiah, the son of Meshezabel, made repairs, and next to him Zadok son of
Baana also made repairs. 5 The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa,
but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their
supervisors. A
From
vs 3
“its
bars.” Gates were barred from the
inside so they could be securely closed.
Vs 5
“put their necks to the work.” This idiomatic language compares people to oxen, who put their
neck in the yoke so they can do work. If an ox will not take a yoke, it will
not work, and that is the image here. The nobles considered themselves above
the work, and perhaps did not even support it at all, so they refused to work.
“lords.” The Hebrew is plural, “lords.” Many scholars think this is the
plural of majesty, and the “lord” is Nehemiah, which is why a number of
versions read “lord” (cp. CJB; ESV; JPS; KJV), and that may be true. However,
since the Hebrew is plural, it is at least as possible that it refers to all
the “supervisors,” or even the work of God via Nehemiah and his officers.
6 The
Jeshanah b Gate was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of
Besodeiah. They laid its beams and put its doors with their bolts and bars in
place. 7 Next to them, repairs were made by men from Gibeon and Mizpah—Melatiah
of Gibeon and Jadon of Meronoth—places under the authority of the governor of
Trans-Euphrates. 8 Uzziel son of Harhaiah, one of the goldsmiths, repaired the
next section; and Hananiah, one of the perfume-makers, made repairs next to
that. They restored Jerusalem as far as the Broad Wall. 9 Rephaiah son of Hur,
ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section. 10 Adjoining
this, Jedaiah son of Harumaph made repairs opposite his house, and Hattush son
of Hashabneiah made repairs next to him. 11 Malkijah son of Harim and Hasshub
son of Pahath-Moab repaired another section and the Tower of the Ovens. 12 Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of a
half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section with the help of his
daughters.
In vs 7 the river again is the Euphrates
Verse 8 “Broad Wall.” The Broad Wall is a wall that King Hezekiah built to
defend Jerusalem from the Assyrians. Today a part of it can be seen in the
Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. The archaeologist Nahman Avigad
uncovered about 70 yards (about 65 meters) of the Broad Wall in the 1970’s. The
wall is over 21 feet wide (7 meters) in some places, so we can see why the
ancients referred to it as “the Broad Wall.” Although it would have been much
taller in biblical times, the archaeological remains are just over 10 feet high
(3.3 meters). The Broad Wall is mentioned here in Nehemiah, and is likely
included as part of the fortification of the “wall” of Jerusalem (Isaiah 22:10).
13 The Valley Gate was repaired by Hanun and the residents of
Zanoah. They rebuilt it and put its doors with their bolts and bars in place.
They also repaired a thousand cubits c of the wall as far as the Dung Gate.
“1,000 cubits.” Scholars estimate that a standard cubit was about 18 inches, so 1,000
cubits would be 1,500 feet (500 yards or 450 meters).
14 The Dung Gate was repaired by Malkijah son of Rekab, ruler of
the district of Beth Hakkerem. He rebuilt it and put its doors with their bolts
and bars in place.
15 The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallun son of Kol-Hozeh,
ruler of the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt it, roofing it over and putting its
doors and bolts and bars in place. He also repaired the wall of the Pool of
Siloam, d by the King’s Garden, as far as the steps going down from the
City of David. 16 Beyond him, Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of a half-district
of Beth Zur, made repairs up to a point opposite the tombs e of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the
Heroes.
17 Next to him, the repairs were made by the Levites under Rehum
son of Bani. Beside him, Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah,
carried out repairs for his district. 18 Next to him, the repairs were made by
their fellow Levites under Binnui f son of Henadad, ruler of the other half-district of Keilah. 19
Next to him, Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section,
from a point facing the ascent to the armory as far as the angle of the wall.
20 Next to him, Baruch son of Zabbai zealously repaired another section, from
the angle to the entrance of the house of Eliashib the high priest. 21 Next to
him, Meremoth son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired another section, from
the entrance of Eliashib’s house to the end of it.
22 The repairs next to him were made by the priests from the
surrounding region. 23 Beyond them, Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs in front
of their house; and next to them, Azariah son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah,
made repairs beside his house. 24 Next to him, Binnui son of Henadad repaired
another section, from Azariah’s house to the angle and the corner, 25 and Palal
son of Uzai worked opposite the angle and the tower projecting from the upper
palace near the court of the guard. Next to him, Pedaiah son of Parosh 26 and
the temple servants living on the hill of Ophel made repairs up to a point
opposite the Water Gate toward the east and the projecting tower. 27 Next to
them, the men of Tekoa repaired another section, from the great projecting
tower to the wall of Ophel.
28 Above the Horse Gate, the priests made repairs, each in front
of his own house. 29 Next to them, Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite his
house. Next to him, Shemaiah son of Shekaniah, the guard at the East Gate, made
repairs. 30 Next to him, Hananiah son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth
son of Zalaph, repaired another section. Next to them, Meshullam son of
Berekiah made repairs opposite his living quarters. 31 Next to him, Malkijah,
one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the temple servants
and the merchants, opposite the Inspection Gate, and as far as the room above
the corner; 32 and between the room above the corner and the Sheep Gate the
goldsmiths and merchants made repairs.
Chapter
4
SATAN'S
DEVICES"
Intro: Under the guidance & inspiration of
Nehemiah they set upon the task of rebuilding the wall. As it really began to
take shape, apparent they were sincere, opposition began to take shape. Any
work you attempt for God will be opposed.
I. OPPOSITION BY RIDICULE. VS 3
"EVEN THAT WHICH THEY BUILD, IF A FOX GO UP, HE SHALL EVEN BREAK DOWN
THEIR STONE WALL."
A. Ridicule is one of
hardest forms of opposition to face.
1. "This Jesus
thing with him, it's just a fad, wait a few weeks & he will get over
it."
2. "You really
think you're going to heaven?"
3. "He's so holy
now you have to speak to him in King James."
4. "He thinks he
is some sort of saint."
B. Ridicule is usually
a probe.
1. They are really sure
of themselves.
2. They seek to probe
your sincerity.
a. If you back down
from your position.
C. Moses choose to
suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy... esteeming the
reproach of Christ...
II. OPPOSITION BY ANGER. VS. 7
"THEN THEY WERE VERY WROTH."
A. When ridicule fails
to stop your progress then anger next device.
B. Anger often stems
from conviction.
1. Your sincerity
convicts them.
III. OPPOSITION BY DISCOURAGEMENT. VS
10.
A. How the enemy seeks
to discourage us.
1. This often comes
from close friends.
B. Discouragement &
faith mutually exclusive.
C. Thoughts planted in
the mind.
1. I really didn't
realize it was hot.
2. I really didn't realize
it was so hard (Job...)
3. I really didn't
realize I was thirsty.
IV. OPPOSITION BY LURE. vs. 6:2.
"COME, LET US MEET TOGETHER IN SOME ONE OF THE VILLAGES IN THE
PLAIN."
A. How Satan seeks to
lure us away from the place of our defense.
1. He wants us to come
to his territory.
2. There are places I
just shouldn't be as a Christian. Certain parties.
3. There are certain
persons I just shouldn't date.
V. OPPOSITION BY FALSE ACCUSATIONS.
VI. OPPOSITION BY FEAR. VS. 10. CHAP. 6
MOVE INTO TEMPLE & SHUT DOORS AT NIGHT FOR SAFETY.
A. Satan seeks to
strike our hearts with fear.
1. Out of fear seek
human devices.
a. Trust in temple for
safety instead of God.
b. Trust in our good
works for salvation.
VII. WHAT CAN I DO TO FORTIFY MYSELF
AGAINST THESE MULTIPLE ATTACKS OF SATAN?
A. When faced with
ridicule Nehemiah prayed 4:4,5.
B. When faced with
anger 4:9.
C. When faced with
discouragement, Nehemiah encouraged them to remember Jehovah.
1. So easy to forget
God in discouragement.
2. "Why art thou
cast down, O my soul?"
D. Against the lures he
stood firm.
1. "I cannot come
down."
E. Against false
accusations he simply dismissed them as lies.
F. Against fear, He
committed Himself to God, to trust Him more.
1 When
Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was
greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, 2 and in the presence of his
associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing?
Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a
day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned
as they are?”
3 Tobiah the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are
building—even a fox climbing up on it would break down their wall of stones!”
4 Hear us, our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back
on their own heads. Give them over as plunder in a land of captivity. 5 Do not
cover up their guilt or blot out their sins from your sight, for they have
thrown insults in the face of the builders.
Hear, O our God, for we are despised; turn
their reproach on their own heads, and give them as plunder to a land of
captivity! Do 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.
a. Hear, O our God: Nehemiah's response
was a great example. He didn't debate, he didn't form a committee, he didn't
even deal with the two enemies directly. Instead, he took it to God in prayer.
i. For
Nehemiah, prayer was a first resource, not a last resort. When times of
opposition come, God wants us to rely on Him - and the purest way of expressing
our reliance on God is through prayer.
b. Hear, O
our God, for we are despised: In his prayer, Nehemiah first asked for God's
attention and mercy. God did care about Nehemiah and the work of rebuilding,
but Nehemiah needed God to display it
and he also needed to sense God's
presence and care.
c. Turn
their reproach on their own heads … give them as plunder … do not cover their
iniquity: Nehemiah then asked God to battle their enemies for them. He
depended on God to fight the battle. God gave him a work to do, and he would
not be distracted from it.
i. This prayer seems pretty tough, but prayers in
the Psalms are even tougher: Breath their
teeth in their mouth, O God! (Psalm 58:6) Let their dwelling place be desolate; let no one live in their tents
(Psalm 69:25). It is proper for a
child of God to pray such a prayer, because they are giving their violent
inclinations over to God, and letting Him
deal with them.
ii. If we are angry and someone or have a
real enemy, then we can go at them in prayer. Never in the sense of praying
evil upon them, but in turning them over to a good and just God, because He
knows exactly what to do with them.
d. They have provoked You to anger:
Finally, Nehemiah's prayer gave God a reason to show mercy and to come against
his enemies. Nehemiah recognized that this was God's cause, not his own.
6 So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height,
for the people worked with all their heart.
7 But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the
people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead and
that the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. 8 They all plotted
together to come and fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. 9
But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.
10 Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, “The strength of the
laborers is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the
wall.”
11 Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we
will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.”
12 Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times
over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”
13 Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest
points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their
swords, spears and bows. 14 After I looked things over, I stood up and said to
the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them.
Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your
sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”
15 When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and
that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to our own work.
16 From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the
other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers
posted themselves behind all the people of Judah 17 who were building the wall.
Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in
the other, 18 and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked.
But the man who sounded the trumpet stayed with me.
“shofar.” The ram’s horn trumpet, not the metal
trumpet.
19 Then I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the
people, “The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from
each other along the wall. 20 Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join
us there. Our God will fight for us!”
Same as above about the horn.
21 So we continued the work with half the men holding spears,
from the first light of dawn till the stars came out. 22 At that time I also
said to the people, “Have every man and his helper stay inside Jerusalem at
night, so they can serve us as guards by night and as workers by day.” 23
Neither I nor my brothers nor my men nor the guards with me took off our
clothes; each had his weapon, even when he went for water.
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