Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 1
In 606-586 BC the Babylonians had conquered the Jews
and taken them into captivity.
Jerusalem was left in ruins.
In 536 BC fifty thousand Jews returned to their
homeland to rebuild the Temple. This
was accomplished despite much opposition from their northern neighbours, the
Samaritans.
In 457 BC Ezra, the priest, leads a further party of
Jews from Babylon to Judah.
And in 444 BC we come to the time of Nehemiah. He is not a preacher, a priest, a prophet,
nor a prince. He is a …
(i) Patriot. He loves his people and Jerusalem … despite the fact he has never
been there, having been born in captivity!
(ii) Prayer-Warrior. Read through the book of Nehemiah and count the number of times
he lifts up his voice to God.
(iii) Practical Child of God. He may not be able to preach or sing or write or play the piano …
but he can swing an axe … and mix cement … and flex his muscles (as we shall
surely see!). He works no miracles … it
is all done with brawn and the sweat of his brow. Watch him in action!
1. THE
POSITION HE OCCUPIED … vs. 1, 11
He is cup-bearer to the Persian King,
Artaxerxes. It is a responsible
position in the royal court.
2. THE
PAIN HE EXPERIENCED … vs. 2-4
News from his brethren reveals the sorry state of
things back in Jerusalem. Nehemiah is a
man with a compassionate heart. Are we
also grieving over the plight of the Church … where the Walls of Holiness, and
the Walls of Doctrinal Conviction, and the Walls of Evangelism are ‘broken
down’ in so many places?
3. THE
PRAYER HE OFFERED … vs. 5-11
·
It was Reverent (v. 5). Notice how he addresses
his God. There is no ‘Old Buddy’
attitude here. A realisation of his
greatness of God will make our problems seem smaller.
·
It was Conditional (v. 5). Nehemiah realised that
“if I regard iniquity in my heart … the Lord will not hear!” (Psalm 66:18).
·
It was Humble (v. 6). Nehemiah takes his
place as a sinner before His Holy God.
·
It was Bible-based (vs. 8-9). Notice how our prayer-warrior
stands on the promises of God’s Word.
“God, You said back in Leviticus 26 that You would punish us if we
disobeyed … and You did! But You also
said that You would bless us if we returned to You. So Nehemiah confesses the sin of the nation … and claims the
promise. Of course, the sin existing
back in Judah will have to be dealt with … and Nehemiah is just the boy to do
it!
· It was Persistent. Not just “day and night” (v. 6), but in the next chapter we find him still praying, FOUR MONTHS LATER! (2:1). The Amplified Bible captures the proper translation of the original Greek in Matthew 7:7 when it puts it: “Keep on asking and it will be given you, keep on seeking and you will find, keep on knocking reverently and the door will be opened unto you…” Nehemiah kept on praying until the answer came!
· It was Dangerous … a dangerous prayer? Yes. Little did he realise when he started praying for someone to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem that God was going to say, “You go and do it”!
Praying for someone to serve with OMS in Indonesia? … careful! He might tell YOU to answer your own prayer. Praying about finance needed to meet the church bills? … careful! You know what He might say …
4. THE
PROBLEM HE FACED … v. 11
Being the king’s cup-bearer had its problems. Difficult as it was to get into the king’s
court, it was even harder to get out.
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 2
·
Nehemiah
is SAD … and it is beginning to show. The king asks him what is the matter.
·
Nehemiah
is SCARED! How about that! See verse 2. That makes
him all the more human in my book; the
kind of person I can identify with.
Mmmm?
·
Nehemiah
is SUPPLICATING (v. 4).
Another prayer. So quick it
didn’t even get written down. It was
something like Peter’s prayer, I guess (read Matthew 14:30).
·
Nehemiah
is SENT … by the King of Persia, with a letter of authority, and
an escort (v. 9), and a requisition for materials to build that wall!
When God’s people get crackin’ it doesn’t take long
for the Old Devil to get mad and do what he can to stop the progress. And sure enough, that’s what happens here.
The Samaritan trio, Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem,
are out to hinder Nehemiah in his God-given task (vs. 10, 19).
What will he do?
Go back to Persia? Give up the
idea of building the wall?
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 3
This third chapter brings us to the story of who
built what … and where. At first glance
it seems to be incredibly dull reading for us in the 21st
century. But the Eye of Faith will see
some relevant and fascination lessons in these verses.
1. DIVERSITY
IN UNITY
In other words, here are 42 groups of people, all with their own specific tasks to do … yet all labouring together for a common purpose: to build Jerusalem’s Wall.
There is no petty rivalry among them; no feudin’, no fussin’, no fightin’. From all walks of life they do the task
appointed by Nehemiah.
And the Church, Spiritual Jerusalem, is likewise
made up on people from all walks of life.
Whilst we may all have differing tasks to do (and differing talents to
do them with) yet there is one common purpose … to build God’s Kingdom.
Don’t despise … or envy … the person with a
different jot to you. Just do the job
your Heavenly Nehemiah has given to you (Romans 12:4-8).
2. RESPONSIBILITY
AND ENTHUSIASM
(a) Jedaiah (v. 10) … note where he
laboured: “over against his own house”
(also vs. 22, 23, 29). Here is a
reminder that we start where we are … and if faithful there, then we move to
other spheres of service. See Acts 1:8
… Jerusalem first!
(b) Meremoth (vs. 4, 21). Here is someone who did his allotted task,
and then oved on to do “another piece” of repair work. And Nehemiah noted it down. So our Heavenly Nehemiah watches the word we
do for Him…
(c) Baruch (v. 20) … he repaired
“earnestly”, and Nehemiah noted it down.
One writer suggested that this third chapter is like a “specimen page
from the Book of Life!” Mmmm?
(d) The
Nobles (v.
5). The watching foreman not only
records the good workers … but the lazy ones too! Read I Corinthians 3:11-15.
Mmmm? How are YOU buildin’?
(e) The
Daughters of Shallum (v. 12). Yes, sir! The ladies were in there too. Making cups of tea for the bricklayers? Maybe … but there were faithfully doing the
job Nehemiah had given them to do … and that deserved a mention. After all, even a friendly greeting to a
visitor at the church door may be more helpful to the cause of Christ than the
forty minute sermon…
3. EXAMPLE
AND TREACHERY
Both in verse 1.
Eliashib was the High Priest, so it’s good to see
him in there, setting the example.
are the men who LIVE their
creeds,
For to see good put in
action
is what everybody needs…
See also Titus 2:7.
Good advice for a young preacher!
Note the recurring phrase in verses 3, 6, 13 and 14
… “set up the gates with the locks and the bars”. But in verse 1 they just “set up the gates” … What? No locks, no bars? Eliashib, you see, is in fellowship with the enemies of God’s
people. He has even prepared a room for
Tobiah in the Temple! (Nehemiah 13:7).
How careful we must be in these days of apostasy not
to leave the door ‘ajar’ … “certain men crept in” to the apostolic church (Jude
v. 4) … and it has been happening ever since.
That’s one of the major reasons the walls of (spiritual) Jerusalem are
broken down.
Carefully worded doctrinal statements are needed to
keep the false teachers from taking over.
Make sure the Wall of Doctrinal Conviction has its “locks and bars”
intact.
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 4
Chapter 3 tells of the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. You will notice that ten gates are mentioned. And more than one expositor has found a spiritual lesson therein. “A closer look at this chapter discloses a line of spiritual truth that is one of the most beautiful I have ever found,” writes Theodore Epp. Amen!
GATE 1 The Sheep Gate. A reminder that the only door into God’s spiritual Jerusalem is
through the “Door of the Sheep”…John 10:7.
GATE 2 The Fish Gate. One of the reasons why the Lord saved us is that we in turn might
‘fish’ for others…Matthew 4:18-20.
GATE 3 The Old Gate. Let’s be true to the ‘old fashioned way’. See Jeremiah 6:16. Beware the ‘new’ morality, the ‘new gospels’.
GATE 4 The Valley Gate. A reminder that pride has no place in the believer’s life…Romans
12:3.
GATE 5 The Dung Gate. The place where all that is vile is disposed of. “Cleanse yourself of the filthiness of the
flesh”…2 Corinthians 7:1.
GATE 6 The Fountain Gate. Surely a picture of the Holy Spirit…see John 7:37-39.
GATE 7 The Water Gate. Most expositors see here an allusion to the Word of God, the
Scriptures…Psalm 119:9, John 15:3, and Ephesians 5:26 all refer to the
cleansing power of God’s Word.
GATE 8 The Horse Gate. A symbol of warfare. And
we need to be reminded that the Christian life is just that…2 Timothy 2:3.
GATE 9 The East Gate. Watch for the rising of the Sun of Righteousness! …Malachi 4:2.
GATE 10 The
Mikphad Gate. The place of judgement…2
Corinthians 5:10.
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 5
The events of Nehemiah 4-6 run parallel to the
building of the wall described in chapter 3.
Whilst they were building, they also had all kinds of troubles as
described here.
The apostle Jude describes our responsibility in a
similar way. We are to be ‘building’
(Jude v. 20), and at the same time ‘contending’ with the enemies of God’s work
(v. 3).
And 2 Corinthians 2:11 reminds us that it is good to
be aware of the enemy’s tactics. In
these chapters of Nehemiah the enemy tries every trick he knows to thwart God’s
plans.
Read … and learn.
1. OPPOSITION
FROM WITHOUT
(a) Taunts
… vs. 1-2
Sanballat and his followers mock the Jews … a device
the Old Devil still uses, especially on young believers.
(b) Threats
… vs. 4-8
A ‘united nations’ conference decides to attack the
Jews.
* Nehemiah prays … AND PREPARES for the
attack (v. 9).
Prayer must not be confused with presumption. Unless specifically told not to do so by God
Himself, He expects us to use common-sense.
A student facing exams may pray … good … but must
also study!
A preacher must pray … and prepare.
A builder must pray … and lay bricks. God did not raise the walls of Jerusalem by
a miracle.
A patient should pray … and take the prescribed
medicine!
Nehemiah prayed … and set a watch! (v. 9).
2. OPPOSITION
FROM WITHIN
(a) Discouragement
... v. 10
The men of the tribe of Judah … (whose very name
means ‘praise’) start moaning! “The job
just can’t be done!” they say.
(b) Compromise
… read Nehemiah 6:17-19
There are influential leaders among the Jews in
league with Tobiah … Sanballat’s off-sider (v. 3).
Tobiah has married a Jewess … it may well be that Johanan
is the future High Priest! (6:8). An
archaeological discovery in Egypt seems to confirm this. Remember, too, that the present High Priest
is allied to Tobiah (13:4) … although Nehemiah does not learn of this fact
until sometime later.
These ‘traitors’ keep on telling Nehemiah what a
‘good fellow’ Tobiah really is! (6:19).
(c) Betrayal
… 6:19
The Jews in cohorts with Tobiah even “uttered my
words to him”, says Nehemiah. They were
a fifth column inside Jerusalem!
(d) Fear
… 4:11-12
The fear of a surprise attack by the enemy started
to disrupt the “mind to work” that had once been evident (4:6).
Some Jews lived outside the walls … and their
ungodly neighbours continued to warn them that any day the armies led by
Sanballat would be ready to attack.
---------------------------
i. A
Lesson in Victory
What was Nehemiah’s response to all this? (I’m glad you asked!)
He bids his workmen … “Remember the Lord!” (4:14)
He assures them ... “Our God will fight for
us!” (4:20)
He arms his workers! … (4:16)
And he bids them prepare to FIGHT! … (4:14)
“Trust God … and keep your powder dry” said a famous
soldier, taking a leaf from Nehemiah’s book.
ii. A
Lesson in Loyalty
Look at chapter 4 verse 13.
Some Jews were appointed to ‘lower places’ … and
some to ‘higher places’. And so it is
in the Church today. Not all serve in
the limelight. Not all are in the heart
of the battle … on the front line.
The main thing is to be faithful … loyal to your
Heavenly Nehemiah … in the place He has put YOU.
iii. A
Lesson in Eschatology
That means, “The Last Things”.
And what a lovely illustration we have here of the
Day when our Lord Jesus comes again.
Nehemiah has ordered that if the enemy attacks a
certain part of the wall, a trumpet blast will rally the other Jews to that area
(4:19-20).
So it is … today the Christian Church is beset by
foes on every side. The Hosts of Hell
are battering at her gates. There are
enemies within as well as without. But
one day soon the Trumpet will sound, and our Heavenly Nehemiah will say, “Resort
ye hither.”
And we shall be “caught up to meet the Lord in the
air” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).
Until then … we keep on building … and battling!
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 6
The building of Jerusalem’s wall continues … until a
‘stop work’ meeting takes place.
Nehemiah must be wondering why he took on such a
thankless job … and then, I guess, reminds himself that it was because the Lord
called him. Boy! If it wasn’t for that he would have packed
his bags and headed home to the king’s palace a month ago.
Well, the wall is half finished (4:6), despite all
sorts of problems … and just when they get sorted out … along comes another.
Doesn’t the Old Devil ever give up? (No, he doesn’t!!)
1. THE
COMPLAINT OF THE WORKERS … v. 1
It is against their fellow Jews. There is dissension in the ‘family of
God’. And THAT brings the work to a
standstill.
Read what Jesus said in Matthew 12:25.
In a
church split, the Devil is neutral.
He
just supplies ammunition to both sides…
2. THE
CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM … vs. 2-5
Building the wall has led to the neglect of their
normal business life. Taxes must still
be paid (v. 4). Food must still be
purchased. There is a drought which has
bumped prices up (v. 3). To meet these
emergencies many of the workmen have mortgated their property, and even sold
children into slavery (v. 5).
Leviticus 25:39-41 does not forbid
this.
But such slaves are to be released at the end of the
sixth year (Exodus 21:2); nor is
‘usury’ (interest) to be charged to fellow Israelites (Leviticus 25:35-37).
But that’s what the nobles were doing (v. 7).
3. THE
CONDEMNATION OF THE NOBLES … vs. 6-11
Nehemiah rebukes them … reasons with them (v. 9),
and confesses his own sin in this matter!
(See verse 10 in most modern translations.) And he pronounces God’s judgement on those who refuse to put
things right (v. 13).
4. THE
CONCLUSION OF THE MATTER … vs. 12-13
The nobles agree to restore that which they have
wrongfully acquired. And the workmen
rejoice … and give God the praise.
And the building of the wall continues…
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 7
“Through many dangers, toils
and snares,
I have already come …”
so Nehemiah might have sung (had it been written
then!) as he continued to build that wall.
Now he is confronted with more attacks of the Enemy
…
1. THE
SUBTLE SUGGESTION … vs. 2-4
Nehemiah’s foes invite him to a ‘summit conference’
at the plain of Ono.
And our hero replies, “O, No!”
Whether a spy told him … or it was just old
fashioned common-sense … he knew they planned to do him mischief (v. 2).
Note his great reply in verse 3, a reply every
believer should make when the Devil tries to side-track him from building up
God’s Kingdom.
2. THE
SLANDEROUS ACCUSATION … vs. 5-9
An open letter from Sanballat seeks to discredit
Nehemiah in the sight of his fellow Jews.
It accuses him of rebellion against Persia … and seeking the kingship
for himself. Nehemiah denies the charge
(v. 8), and commits it to the Lord (KJV., v. 9b).
3. THE
SPIRITUAL INFILTRATION … vs. 1014
The Samaritans bribe a priest/prophet named Shemaiah
to give Nehemiah a message ‘from the Lord’.
“Flee into the Temple”, says the pseudo-prophet (v. 10).
Nehemiah detects the falseness of the prophecy … it
was unscriptural for any but the priests to enter the Temple, and Nehemiah was
not a priest. It would be a “sin” (v.
13) for him to agree to Shemaiah’s prophecy.
And it would appear as an act of cowardice to the
builders of the wall.
4. SUCCESS!
… v. 15
The
wall is completed in 52 days!
The
enemies of the Lord are dumbfounded!
(v. 16)
The
Lord is Glorified!
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 8
The wall is completed.
Now comes the task of re-constructing the people …
making them the kind of people God meant them to be.
The genealogy of chapter 7 is given so that they
might know whether or not they really belong to Israel.
Some could not prove their ancestory (7:63-64), a
reminder that we need to make sure … NOW … that our names are in the Book of
Life.
How tragic to be excluded from the Heavenly
Jerusalem.
-------------------------------------
1. THE
READING OF THE LAW
Nehemiah 8:1-8 tells of this great ‘Bible
Conference’. We have a specially
erected pulpit (v. 4a), and top preachers (v. 4b) … a responsive crowd (v. 6),
and most important … the Book of the Law (vs. 1, 3, 8, 18 …)
Imagine the excitement if you were about to hear the
Word of GOD for the first time.
And notice how Ezra and his fellow expositors
explained the meaning of each passage of Scripture as it was read (v. 8).
2. THE
REACTION TO THE LAW … vs. 9-12
Firstly, there was weeping (v. 9b).
The people are conscious of their sinfulness. They have not only broken God’s law, but
God’s heart.
But the preachers exhort the crowd to be filled with
joy. God’s blessing now rests upon
them. He has given them ‘beauty for
ashes’.
Godly sorrow leads to repentance … and that leads to
salvation (2 Corinthians 7:10).
Like these Jews of old, we also have much to rejoice
about … deliverance from bondage, sins forgiven, a Home in Glory bye and bye,
freedom of worship, an open Bible, a God Who says, “Call Me Father” … so
much!! “Rejoice!” Philippians 4:4.
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“The Joy of the Lord is your
Strength” Nehemiah 8:10
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 9
Following the reading of the Law at Water Gate and
the resultant joy (8:1-12), the people come back again the next day for another
sermon (v. 13).
They discover that the Feast of Tabernacles
commanded by God through Moses has not been observed for 1000 years (v.
17). So they observe it!
“Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it!” John 2:15.
Chapter 9 introduces us to another great rally …
again the Word of God is read and worship follows (v. 3).
Verses 6-38 comprise the longest prayer in the Bible
– a prayer that thanks God for His past dealings with the Hebrew nation, and
leads up to a point of re-dedication on their part. (Make sure you read it!)
1. God,
their God, is the Creator of the Universe … vs. 5-6
2. God
chose them to be His servant nation … vs. 7-8
Israel was chosen to be His witnesses (Isaiah
43:10).
Although God chooses individuals to serve Him, they
still have a free-will and the ability to resist His call.
3. God
delivered them from Egypt … vs. 9-11
He saved them from bondage … just as He saved
believers from spiritual bondage.
4. God
guided them in the wilderness … v. 12
guide me all my journey
through …”
Yes, He still guides today…
5. God
revealed His Will to them … vs. 13-14
Today we find that Will revealed primarily in the
pages of Holy Scripture. Make sure you
read it!
6. God
provided for them … v. 15
For 40 years He sent them manna from Heaven, and
provided for their other daily needs.
7. God
was long-suffering toward them … vs. 16-17
Just as He is with us!
But eventually, after repeated warnings, they sinned
once too often. And died in the
wilderness (Jude verse 5).
So we need to see God with both eyes … He is not
only merciful and long-suffering, He is also Holy and Just.
Let us add …
8. God
punishes sin!
Eventually He even said “Goodbye” to the Hebrew
Nation (Matthew 21:43), and chose new witnesses, the Church. You and me.
As a result, the Israelites actually sign an
agreement in which they promise to keep His Laws from henceforth. The names of the folk who signed are listed
in chapter 10:1-27. Have you committed
yourself to Him like that?
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Studies
in Nehemiah : No. 10
In the task of re-building the spiritual lives of
the people (chapters 7-13), Nehemiah finds himself not only leading a
‘construction gang’ but a ‘wrecking crew’ (cf. Jeremiah 1:10).
We have seen: the
Reading of the Book (8:1-12)
the
Return to keeping God’s Law (8:13-18)
the
Rejoicing of the People (8:10-12, 18)
the
Rehearsal of God’s Goodness (9:5-37)
the
Recording of Their Vows (9:38-10:27)
The signing of this covenant included especially
three things:
(a) Separation from the Heathen (10:28-30)
(b) Sabbath
Observance (10:31)
(c) Support of the Priesthood and the
Levites (10:32-39)
In chapter 11 we find the Re-populating of Jerusalem
(vs. 1-36)/
Some are chosen by lot (v.
1).
Others move into the city
willingly (v. 2).
In chapter 12 we read of the Dedication of the Walls
(v. 27).
Two companies of singers march around the wall,
praising God as they go (vs. 31-43).
******************
At this stage Nehemiah returns to Persia for 12
years. Compare the dates in 1:1 with
13:6.
On his return to Jerusalem he finds that certain
problems have arisen again and need to be dealt with!
1. THE
INFILTRATION OF THE ENEMY
Tobiah, arch-enemy of Nehemiah, has been given a
chamber in the Temple by the High Priest.
Nehemiah does some ‘spring-cleaning’ (13:8).
Maybe there needs to be some spring cleaning in the
temple of our soul?
2. THE
DEPRIVATION OF THE LEVITES
They were not being given their rightful salary (13:10-11).
3. THE
DESECRATION OF THE SABBATH
God had given the Jews strict rules re Sabbath-keeping. And they were not being kept! So Nehemiah ‘rides again’! (13:15-22).
4. THE CO-HABITATION OF SOME JEWS … 13:23-30
Inter-marriage with the heathen was an ever-recurring problem. Yet it was this sin that had brought the nation so much woe in previous years. Even the High Priest’s grandson had married Sanballat’s daughter!
Conclusion
Note Nehemiah’s three prayers in this chapter, 13:14, 22, 31.
However unpopular he may have been, God’s approval was all he desired (cf. Galatians 1:10).
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