Nehemiah
8and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I will occupy.” The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me. 9Then 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. 10When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly, because a man had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel. 11So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days. 12I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I didn’t tell anyone what my God put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There wasn’t any animal with me, except the animal that I rode on. 13I went out by night by the valley gate, even toward the jackal’s well, then to the dung gate, and inspected the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and its gates were consumed with fire. 14Then I went on to the spring gate and to the king’s pool, but there was no place for the animal that was under me to pass. 15Then went I up in the night by the brook, and inspected the wall; and I turned back, and entered by the valley gate, and so returned. 16The rulers didn’t know where I went, or what I did. I had not as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest who did the work. 17Then I said to them, “You see the bad situation that we are in, how Jerusalem lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come, let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we won’t be disgraced.” 18I told them of the hand of my God which was good on me, as also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me. They said, “Let’s rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. 19But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammontite servant, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they ridiculed us, and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?” 20Then I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven will prosper us. Therefore we, his servants, will arise and build; but you have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem.”
Israel treasured the temple as dearly as life itself. To protect the holy temple and to offer sacrifices there, a wall was absolutely necessary. But the people of Israel had turned their backs on God’s command to depart from sin and had fallen into corruption, and in the end they were brought down by Babylon. In those days most of the people lived outside the city. Within the walled city lived the lord of the city, the merchants who paid taxes, the soldiers, and the priestly class who offered sacrifices and prayed for the nation’s safety. Since only about 10 percent of the population lived inside the city, the rest lived in villages around the wall; when war broke out, they sometimes came inside for protection, and sometimes joined forces to drive back the enemy.
Under Babylon’s assault, Jerusalem became a ruin, its temple and walls destroyed. The elders who had sat at the city gate to judge the people were carried off, and the priests who had offered sacrifices to God were taken captive too, and with that, in a moment, their whole way of life collapsed. Even those inside the city were dragged away as captives; from that we can tell how mercilessly the conquerors slaughtered the people living outside it. The people could live rightly only if they were taught the law, but in Jerusalem the very priests who taught the law had become corrupt, and it was for this that the city came under God’s wrath. God had warned Israel many times about their sins, but when they disobeyed, he caused them to be carried captive to Babylon. For seventy long years in exile they could not offer sacrifices to God, and they could not go back to the homeland they longed for.
But God moved the heart of Cyrus, the first king of the Persian Empire, which had overthrown Babylon, and so fulfilled his promise to bring his people back to Jerusalem after seventy years.
The name Nehemiah means “comforted by Yahweh.” He lived around BC 464-424, and during the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia he was appointed governor of Jerusalem and rebuilt its walls. In the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, he was in Shushan the palace when his younger brother Hanani, who lived in Judah, came and told him of the wretched state of their homeland, where the temple lay in ruins. When Nehemiah heard that the walls of Jerusalem were broken down and its gates burned, he fasted, wept, and prayed to God. God had warned them beforehand that if they did not keep his commandments, statutes, and ordinances, he would scatter them among the nations, and Nehemiah knew that Judah had not repented; that is what made his prayer all the more earnest. Judah, fallen into idolatry and a life given over to pleasure, deserved God’s discipline, yet he prayed that God would now bring them back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and the wall. Four months after Nehemiah began to pray, God answered him.
In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, the king saw that Nehemiah’s face was full of sorrow and asked him why. Yet however urgent his situation, Nehemiah could not tell his conqueror that the walls of his own country had been torn down. Still, knowing that there was no one but the king who could help, he prayed silently to God and then made his request: if it pleased the king, would he send him to Judah to rebuild the city? The king gladly agreed and even gave him letters so that he could travel safely to Judah.
After that came the remarkable work of God by which the exiles returned under King Cyrus. Zerubbabel and Ezra came back to the homeland in the first and second returns and labored to rebuild the temple, while Nehemiah rebuilt the wall. Under the leadership of Zerubbabel, a descendant of David, the people of Israel became one and began to rebuild the temple that their own sins had left desolate.
After laboring to rebuild the walls, Nehemiah worked to set right what had gone wrong in the people’s faith: the keeping of the Sabbath, marriages to foreign women, and the support of the Levites, which had stopped.
The rebuilding of the temple went forward through God’s providence and the wholehearted devotion of the people, and as they rebuilt it, they came to realize how precious their nation was. They learned that if they lost their country, they could not keep their faith. They came to know what deep anguish it was to lose their homeland through their own sins, to be taken captive and unable to return, and to be unable to hear the word.
But at every moment they had to endure great hardship, for Satan fiercely opposed the rebuilding of the temple and the wall. From Satan’s point of view, once the temple was finished the word would be proclaimed and souls bound in sin would repent, and he would not simply stand by and watch. From the moment God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, Satan did not want them to live by the word. In the same way, because Satan’s aim is to tear down the Kingdom of God, he did everything he could to keep the temple and the wall from being built.
When Israel poured all its strength into rebuilding the temple, the Samaritans for their part spent six years doing all they could to stop the work, until at last a royal order to halt construction brought the rebuilding to a standstill for fifteen years. You must keep in mind that Satan will never leave you alone to work zealously for God. That is Satan: since every advance of the Kingdom of God in the world spells his defeat, he will use every means to block the work of restoration. Since we have no idea what plan Satan will attack with, we must always be armed with prayer and receive God’s help. Spiritual warfare begins the moment you make your decision in faith. Having received Jesus Christ, then, you must live as a new person, born again.
By the grace of God and their own devoted faith, the people of Israel finished the work of rebuilding the temple. Ezra and the people were overcome with emotion, and as the word of God was proclaimed in the completed temple, the people were at last able to return to the God they had longed for.
But once they could easily hear in the temple the word they had craved so desperately, sadly, they fell back into sin. Having come so long a way around to hear the word, they should have kept their faith to the end. How they had yearned for that temple! How eagerly they had wished to offer those sacrifices, how hungry they had been for that word! Yet once they could enjoy all of it every day, they forgot the wonder of it.
Ezra 9:10
10“Now, our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments,
Seeing how corrupt the people had become, Ezra fasted and wept aloud. When by God’s grace they came back to their homeland, they had vowed never to change; yet once they had grown somewhat used to a comfortable life, they cast off their first love entirely, mingled with the people of the world, and worshiped idols. With their consciences seared, they heard the word of truth without being moved, and the worship they had once offered with deep emotion became a mere formality. Just as a high priest who offered sacrifice in a state of sin would die where he stood, if God took the life of everyone who offered empty worship, right there on the spot, no one would worship half-heartedly. Having forgotten to give thanks, the people revealed their human nature and fell into sin.
The robe the saints wear is white cloth without even the smallest stain. If a white cloth were dipped into red dye while boasting that it would never take the color, that would be foolishness. Whether it has been dyed deep red or only a faint pink, God says that if it is not white, it is sin. Yet people think, “The world is that red, but I am not so bad; God will forgive me.” This is a wicked attitude we must guard against. They think, “I am not the only one living like this; everyone does. Besides, I know the word and I have a sense of sin, so I am fine.” But let us remember that a single sin can be enough to bring death. Only when we heed the word that tells us to abstain from every form of evil can we overcome in this sin-filled world. Nehemiah was truly grieved to see the people who, even after suffering God’s fearful wrath, could not resist the world’s temptations and fell into corruption.
Nehemiah 2:8
8and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I will occupy.” The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me.
For seventy years the temple and the walls of Jerusalem lay in ruins, and no one even dared to think of rebuilding them. The temple had barely been rebuilt, but the walls remained broken down, so foreigners came and went freely to trade, and even preached their own gods in the temple. Then the bad habits the people had picked up during their captivity gradually surfaced, and the sacrifices they had longed for so earnestly were offered as a mere formality.
Nehemiah knew that God would not accept sacrifices unless they were offered with a sincere heart, and he feared that Israel would be rebuked; so he resolved to build the wall to protect the temple and to guard the people’s faith. In his mind, the first thing needed for worshiping God was a rebuilt wall, and only then could the temple be preserved. Feeling keenly how much the wall needed rebuilding, he drew up a detailed plan and prayed earnestly for God’s help. Since a wall not only protects the temple but also plays a vital part in keeping out evil spirits and evil people, it must be built.
1 Corinthians 3:16
16Don’t you know that you are a temple of God, and that God’s Spirit lives in you?
Just as Jesus spoke of his own body as the temple, all who have been redeemed by God are temples. Because each of us is a temple where the Holy Spirit dwells, we must keep laboring to build a wall around it to protect it.
When a wall of the word, of prayer, and of holy living is built around the temple, sexual immorality, greed, and our fallen human nature cannot assault it. Because of this, those who build the wall high are able to stand against Satan. It is not that we try to hold back the world by our own strength; rather, the wall of faith shuts it out as a matter of course. Nehemiah gave everything he had to awaken the people, because they must never go back to the place of suffering where they had lived as captives.
For us, the church and our brothers and sisters in the faith play a very important part, but the one who plays the greatest part is the Holy Spirit who walks with us. The reason is that the intercession of our brothers and sisters gives us strength to live boldly in this present age, and the Holy Spirit helps us discern spiritual things with wisdom and understanding. Those who have built the wall, even if they become king like David, prime minister like Joseph, or wealthy like Job, will be able to discern the world rightly by the word, because they have the wisdom the Holy Spirit gives.
Longing for the place where God’s word is heard is also building the wall. Holding back when our temper flares, bearing it patiently even when we feel a little wronged, is building the wall, too. If we do not endure by the word but act on human judgment, sin may stand in the way and keep us from coming to God. That is why we must build the wall high: then we will not compare ourselves with others and fall into greed or discouragement, and the world’s way of thinking will not flood in unfiltered and shake us.
Protecting us from the world is precisely what the wall does. Nehemiah, who knew deep spiritual truth, pitied the people who, having no wall, were being pushed around by foreigners. But because this could not be accomplished by human strength, Nehemiah prayed earnestly to God to protect his nation and people. He began to pray for the wall twenty-nine years after Purim, the feast that remembers the events of Esther.
Prayer is the privilege of the saints, the means by which we are clothed with God’s power. In every age, prayer has always been the best way of solving problems. Prayer moves the heart of God, who supplies the materials and the people needed to build the wall of faith, and it becomes the power that overthrows the schemes of the enemy. A feeble prayer, murmured on bended knee with barely moving lips, is the key that stirs heaven and earth and human life. Starting today, I hope you too will pray with an earnest heart to cleanse the temple and to build the wall perfectly. God will surely show you: “I have heard your prayer, and this is how I am at work now.”
Though Nehemiah was prime minister, he never forgot that he was a captive, and he did all he could not to live a life that would bring shame on him as one of the people of Israel. Only when leaders are clean themselves can they set the people on the right path. In carrying out his work, Nehemiah had decisiveness, thoroughness, and a gift for getting along with people, and he was wise enough to know how to make use of people and circumstances. He dealt with others with faith, character, and wisdom, and he had the humility to honor them, build them up, and embrace them. Becoming a leader in society is never easy, but becoming a spiritual leader who bears the work of God is harder still, because without painstaking effort, sacrifice, and self-examination, no one can ever become a true leader. In the world, even leaders with a fair share of faults will be followed, with grumbling, as long as they bring people some benefit.
But leaders who bear the work of God must not only have faith, character, and ability; because theirs is a weighty position, responsible for leading souls to salvation, their relationship with God must also be holy.
Now Nehemiah had risen, in the land of the enemy to which he had been carried captive, to the post of prime minister in charge of the king’s wine; yet he never once abandoned his faith, and he served loyally in the earthly office he had been given. His high position is what enabled him to receive help from the king who ruled the world and to build the wall of Jerusalem in fifty-two days. So we, too, must faithfully carry the responsibilities entrusted to us in society, and we must have power in order to make God’s goodness known.
Had Nehemiah been irresponsible and lazy, without the respect and recognition of others, he could not have won the king’s trust. Like Nehemiah, we too must stand upright in faith within, building up our own souls and the souls of others, and without, raise the wall and take up well the role of a fence that guards those souls.
Nehemiah 3:4
4Next to them, Meremoth the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz made repairs. Next to them, Meshullam the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel made repairs. Next to them, Zadok the son of Baana made repairs.
Nehemiah divided the work so that the people could share in building the wall. Next to them Meremoth, next Meshullam, next Zadok: by handing out the work among the people in this way he showed true leadership, and that is how a wall more than 3 kilometers long was completed in fifty-two days.
This is Nehemiah’s wisdom. He did not excuse those with money or power while putting all the work on the weak and the poor; he made it possible for all the people to take part in God’s work. In the same way, the work of the church cannot be done by one person alone. When pastors, church officers, and the whole congregation serve together, each working according to their talents, the Kingdom of God expands; and this is what it looks like when the members of the body of Jesus Christ, who is the head, are spiritually healthy. For the church to stand this firm, the wall of the word, the wall of prayer, and the wall of devotion must be raised.
When Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabians, and the Ammonites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being repaired, they were furious and prepared to attack. Satan’s assault had begun again, just as when the rebuilding of the temple was opposed. They tried to stop the wall from going up because, once it was built, they would no longer be able to enter the temple at will and trade there. When Nehemiah heard that they were going to attack, he ordered the people to work with their swords, spears, and bows. The people could barely keep up with the building, yet he had them take up sword, spear, and bow. This teaches us that we must put on the whole armor of God to stand against the forces of evil.
You too must fight this fierce spiritual battle to hold your place in the world as those who belong to God. If you are lazy and idle and fall behind in life, then even if you want to help the people as Nehemiah did, you will not be able to, nor will you be able to fulfill the calling God has given you. Strive, then, to gain real skill and ability. This is not the same as saying that you must have money and power in the world. If you are lazy in body and ignorant in spirit, your judgment grows clouded, so that you do not recognize Satan’s attack and may even end up helping the enemy; that is why you must be diligent and wise, in body and in spirit alike.
Nehemiah laid aside worldly desires and lived as one who had died. Appointed by the king of Persia as governor of Judah, he held considerable power, yet he took no allowance from the impoverished people. Because he knew how needy the people were and how hard their lives, he served them selflessly, though he had every right to a fair reward. To give up everything one could enjoy in the office of prime minister is something no one can ever do unless they live as one who has died. Nehemiah’s faith that God is the living and almighty one is what made him help and serve the people as governor of Judah and lead the way in building the wall.
When the wall was complete, Ezra the prophet began to proclaim the word in the temple from the book of the law of Moses. In the holy temple, which foreigners could not enter because of the strong wall, the genuine truth was proclaimed. The people who heard the law through Ezra began to live rightly; this shows that only when people hear the word and understand it can they be changed.
Is it possible that your temple has no wall, so that the desires and lusts of the world come and go freely? We must watch carefully that the idols of the world do not get inside the city. All of this happens because there is no wall protecting the temple. We are God’s children who have already seen how the world ends. If we, who know that the world, Satan, and our own lives are all in God’s hands, collapse under Satan’s attacks and waver at every temptation, then even with the Holy Spirit walking beside us, we will not be able to overcome sin.
May you, just as Nehemiah won a splendid victory in the kingdom where we live by dying, live as those who are dead to the world and risen in God, and show him what victory looks like. You can do it, because, like Nehemiah, you are God’s people who understand his will, establish your faith fully, and are loyal to God. Let us follow the faithful trust and courage of Nehemiah, who, for the sake of God’s word alone, asked the king of Persia, his conqueror, to let him return to his own land; let us live holy lives and proclaim the gospel to the world.
Like Nehemiah, who by faith rebuilt the temple and the wall and restored the faith of the people, you too can give your utmost to proclaiming the truth honestly and boldly for the Kingdom of God and for this nation and its people.