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First Zerubbabel. Then Ezra. Now Nehemiah. Maybe the third time’s the charm?

Today’s reading introduces another passionate, visionary leader in Israel’s post-exilic community. Nehemiah serves as cupbearer to the Persian king. When he hears about the sorry state of Jerusalem’s walls, he decides to change careers. He packs his bags and heads to the promised land as a construction supervisor.

Nehemiah has barely arrived in the city and surveyed the scope of the project before harsh naysayers start mocking him and opposing the work. Not that he’ll let insults or threats stop him. Nehemiah stations armed guards to protect his workers and help get those walls built. To him, it’s a matter of trusting God to protect and empower the good work.

At first glance, Nehemiah’s determination seems reasonable—admirable, even. In an age of aggressive empires, the city needs all the defenses it can get.

When we zoom out to consider the larger design of the book, Nehemiah’s actions take on a more hostile tone. Zerubbabel told local volunteers that they had “no part” in the temple (Ezra 4:3). Ezra told local Israelites who intermarried with their neighbors that they would be excluded from the community (Ezra 10:8). Now, Nehemiah tells local officials skeptical of his project that they have “no part” in Jerusalem (Neh. 2:20).

On the one hand, Nehemiah is a positive character in the story. He does what he believes God called him to do, in the way he sees as faithful. On the other hand, the authors connect the dots with literary design to suggest something deeper is at play. An us-versus-them mentality has been plaguing the post-exilic community. That mentality opposes Israel’s original calling to become a blessing to every family and nation on Earth (Gen. 12:2-3).

If we zoom out even further, we can see that this antagonistic attitude doesn’t match the prophets’ hopes for life after exile either. The prophet Zechariah, for example, said that the new Jerusalem of God’s Kingdom would be a city without walls, surrounded by God’s presence and joined by people from all nations (Zech. 2:3-11). Nehemiah seems to operate with the opposite vision.

The Israelites have been longing for home. But who decides who gets to call Jerusalem home?

Reflection Questions

• Take a moment to review Zechariah’s vision of the new Jerusalem in Zechariah 2 and 8. What differences do you notice between the prophet’s hopes for the city and the reality Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah have been building?
• Look up Ezekiel 13:1-7 and Lamentations 5:17-18. How do these passages use the imagery of foxes (or jackals—it’s the same word for both in Hebrew) and ruined, desolate places? What have you learned from this imagery about Tobiah’s insult in Nehemiah 4:3?