Nehemiah 4
4
Progress in Spite of Opposition
1When Sanballat#Neh 2:10,19; 4:7 heard that we were rebuilding the wall,#Neh 2:17,19 he became furious. He mocked the Jews#Neh 2:19 2before his colleagues and the powerful men#4:2 Or the army of Samaria#Ezr 4:9–10 and said, “What are these pathetic Jews doing? Can they restore it by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they ever finish it? Can they bring these burnt stones#2Ch 26:19 back to life from the mounds of rubble?” #2Ch 26:19; Neh 1:3 3Then Tobiah the Ammonite,#Neh 2:10,19; 6:1,14 who was beside him, said, “Indeed, even if a fox#Lm 5:18 climbed up what they are building, he would break down their stone wall!”
4Listen, our God, for we are despised. Make their insults return on their own heads and let them be taken as plunder to a land of captivity. 5Do not cover their guilt or let their sin be erased from your sight, because they have angered#4:5 Or provoked you in front of the builders.#Neh 6:14; Jr 18:23
6So we rebuilt the wall until the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had the will to keep working.#Neh 2:20; 6:1,15
7When Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs,#Neh 2:19 Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed,#Neh 4:2–3 they became furious.#Neh 2:10 8They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw it into confusion. 9So we prayed to our God and stationed a guard because of them day and night.
10In Judah, it was said:#4:10 Lit Judah said
The strength of the laborer fails,
since there is so much rubble.
We will never be able
to rebuild the wall.
11And our enemies said, “They won’t realize it#4:11 Lit won’t know or see until we’re among them and can kill them and stop the work.” 12When the Jews who lived nearby arrived, they said to us time and again,#4:12 Lit us 10 times “Everywhere you turn, they attack#4:12 Or again from every place, “You must return to us.” 13So I stationed people behind the lowest sections of the wall, at the vulnerable areas. I stationed them by families with their swords, spears, and bows. 14After I made an inspection, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people,#Neh 2:16 “Don’t be afraid of them.#Dt 1:29; Ezr 3:3; 4:4 Remember the great and awe-inspiring Lord, and fight for your countrymen, your sons and daughters, your wives and homes.”#2Sm 10:12
Sword and Trowel
15When our enemies heard that we knew their scheme and that God had frustrated it, every one of us returned to his own work on the wall. 16From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor.#2Ch 18:33 The officers supported all the people of Judah, 17who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other. 18Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the one who sounded the ram’s horn was beside me. 19Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people,#Neh 2:16 “The work is enormous and spread out, and we are separated far from one another along the wall.#Neh 3:1–32 20Wherever you hear the sound of the ram’s horn, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us!” #Nm 10:1–9; Dt 1:30 21So we continued the work, while half of the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came out. 22At that time, I also said to the people, “Let everyone and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they can stand guard by night and work by day.” 23And I, my brothers, my servants, and the men of the guard with me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.#4:23 Lit Each his weapon the water
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© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Nehemiah 4
4
Nehemiah’s Enemies Oppose the Rebuilding
1Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall. So he became very angry and upset. He made fun of the Jews. 2He spoke to his friends and the army of Samaria. He said, “What are those Jews trying to do? Can they make their city wall like new again? Will they offer sacrifices? Can they finish everything in a single day? The stones from their city wall and buildings are piled up like trash. And everything has been badly burned. Can they use those stones to rebuild everything again?”
3Tobiah from Ammon was at Sanballat’s side. He said, “What are they building? They’re putting up a stone wall. But suppose a fox climbs on top of it. Even that will break it down!”
4I prayed to God. I said, “Our God, please listen to our prayer. Some people hate us. They’re saying bad things about us. So let others say bad things about them. Let them be carried off like stolen goods. Let them be taken to another country as prisoners. 5Don’t hide your eyes from their guilt. Don’t forgive their sins. They have said bad things about the builders.”
6So we rebuilt the wall. We repaired it until all of it was half as high as we wanted it to be. The people worked with all their heart.
7But Sanballat and Tobiah heard that Jerusalem’s walls continued to be repaired. The Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard about it too. They heard that the gaps in the wall were being filled in. So they were very angry. 8All of them made evil plans to come and fight against Jerusalem. They wanted to stir up trouble against it. 9But we prayed to our God. We put guards on duty day and night to watch out for danger.
10During that time, the people in Judah spoke up. They said, “The workers are getting weaker and weaker all the time. Broken stones are piled up everywhere. They are in our way. So we can’t rebuild the wall.”
11And our enemies said, “We will be right there among them. We’ll kill them. We’ll put an end to their work. We’ll do it before they even know it or see us.”
12Then the Jews who lived near our enemies came to us. They told us ten times, “No matter where you are, they’ll attack us.”
13So I stationed some people behind the lowest parts of the wall. That’s where our enemies could easily attack us. I stationed the people family by family. They had their swords, spears and bows with them. 14I looked things over. Then I stood up and spoke to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people. I said, “Don’t be afraid of your enemies. Remember the Lord. He is great and powerful. So fight for your families. Fight for your sons and daughters. Fight for your wives and homes.”
15Our enemies heard that we knew what they were trying to do. They heard that God had blocked their evil plans. So all of us returned to the wall. Each of us did our own work.
16From that day on, half of my men did the work. The other half were given spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers stationed themselves behind all the people of Judah. 17The people continued to build the wall. The people who carried supplies did their work with one hand. They held a weapon in the other hand. 18Each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. But the man who blew the trumpet stayed with me.
19Then I spoke to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people. I said, “This is a big job. It covers a lot of territory. We’re separated too far from one another along the wall. 20When you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us at that location. Our God will fight for us!”
21So we continued the work. Half of the men held spears. We worked from the first light of sunrise until the stars came out at night. 22At that time I also spoke to the people. I told them, “Have every man and his helper stay inside Jerusalem at night. Then they can guard us at night. And they can work during the day.” 23My relatives and I didn’t take off our clothes. My men and the guards didn’t take theirs off either. Each man kept his weapon with him, even when he went to get water.
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