Nehemiah 4
4
Sanballat and Tobiah
1When Sanballat heard that we were building the wall of Jerusalem, he was very angry and upset. He started making fun of the Jews. 2Sanballat talked with his friends and the army at Samaria and said, “What are these weak Jews doing? Do they think we will leave them alone? Do they think they will offer sacrifices? Maybe they think they can finish building in only one day. They cannot bring stones back to life from these piles of trash and dirt. These are just piles of ashes and dirt!”
3Tobiah the Ammonite was with Sanballat. Tobiah said, “What do these Jews think they are building? If even a small fox climbed up on it, he would break down their wall of stones!”
4Nehemiah prayed and said, “Our God, listen to our prayer. These men hate us. Sanballat and Tobiah are insulting us. Make bad things happen to them. Make them ashamed, like people taken away as prisoners. 5Don’t take away their guilt or forgive the sins they have done in your sight. They have insulted and discouraged the builders.”
6We built the wall of Jerusalem all the way around the city. But it was only half as tall as it should be. We did this much because the people worked with all their heart.
7But Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the men from Ashdod were very angry. They heard that the people continued working on the walls of Jerusalem. They heard the people were repairing the holes in the wall. 8So all these men got together and made plans against Jerusalem. They planned to stir up trouble against Jerusalem. They planned to come and fight against the city. 9But we prayed to our God. And we put guards on the walls to watch day and night so that we could be ready to meet them.
10And so at that time the people of Judah said, “The workers are becoming tired. There is too much dirt and trash in the way. We cannot continue to build the wall. 11And our enemies are saying, ‘Before the Jews know it or see us, we will be right there among them. We will kill them and that will stop the work.’”
12Then the Jews living among our enemies came and said this to us ten times, “Our enemies are all around us. They are everywhere we turn.”
13So I put some of the people behind the lowest places along the wall, and I put them by the holes in the wall. I put families together, with their swords, spears, and bows. 14After looking over everything, I stood up and spoke to the important families, the officials, and the rest of the people. I said, “Don’t be afraid of our enemies. Remember the Lord, who is great and powerful! You must fight for your brothers, your sons, and your daughters! You must fight for your wives and your homes!”
15Then our enemies heard that we knew about their plans. They knew that God ruined their plans. So we all went back to work on the wall. Everyone went back to their own place and did their part. 16From that day on, half of my men worked on the wall. The other half of my men were on guard, ready with spears, shields, bows, and armor. The army officers stood behind all the people of Judah who were building the wall. 17The builders and their helpers had their tools in one hand and a weapon in the other hand. 18Each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. The man who blew the trumpet to warn the people stayed next to me. 19Then I spoke to the leading families, the officials, and the rest of the people. I said, “This is a very big job and we are spread out along the wall. We are far from one another. 20So if you hear the trumpet, run to that place. We will all meet together there, and our God will fight for us!”
21So we continued to work on the wall of Jerusalem, and half the men held spears. We worked from the first light of the morning until the stars came out at night.
22At that time I also said this to the people, “Every builder and his helper must stay inside Jerusalem at night. Then they can be guards at night and workers during the day.” 23So none of us took off our clothes—not me, not my brothers, not my men, and not the guards. Each of us had our weapon ready at all times, even when we went to get water.
Currently Selected:
Nehemiah 4: ERV
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
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.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.