OVERVIEW:
The anger of Nehemiah regarding the way the wealthy Jews had taken advantage of the poorer Jews; the enemy attacks with deceit, slander, and threats; the people who returned are numbered; the word of God is preached to the people; the Levites cry out to God praising Him for His mercy and goodness.
HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:
Nehemiah 5 is just a sad chapter. The Jews are selfishly preying upon one another for the sake of material gain and wealth! It just so happens, that no building takes place in this chapter! There were great economic burdens on the Jews, not only because of the famine (Haggai 1:7–11), but also because of taxes and tributes that were being inflicted upon them. To provide food and the basic necessities for their families, the poorer Jews were being forced to mortgage their property and sell themselves into servitude to their own Jewish kinsmen. God had instructed and admonished His people, the Jews, just as He has Christians today, to watch out for one another; to love one another; to help one another; and to care for one another. They did the exact opposite! Rather than “PRAY FOR” each other, they “PREYED UPON” each other. Proverbs 3:27 tells us to, “withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.” Philippians 2:4 says, “look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” It is a great reminder to us that if we aren’t careful, we can become so selfish and self-serving that we choose to make money on those to whom we should be ministering! Note that Nehemiah’s extremely angry response to witnessing the Jews gauging one another for personal gain is the same response our Lord Jesus Christ had when this same type of thing was happening in His day! (Mark 11:15–17) Nehemiah very wisely put this evil and selfish practice to an end, and refocused the people to the work at hand. (Nehemiah 5:9–12)
In chapter 6 the work on the walls resumes. Recognize that it is no coincidence that when the work restarted, the enemy also reappeared! This time, however, Sanballat and his men aim their attack against Nehemiah, the leader. Satan knows very well that everything rises and falls on leadership. He knows that if he can get Nehemiah to stop leading, the work of rebuilding the walls will soon come to a complete halt. It should be noted, that if you are in any type of leadership position (i.e. pastor, father, mother, teacher, discipler, etc.), there is a high price to pay! There is a large target on your back for which the enemy is constantly seeking to take aim. It is of great necessity and importance, therefore, that we learn to put on the whole armor of God on a daily basis! (Ephesians 6:10–18)
Observe that Sanballat repeatedly tries to arrange a meeting with Nehemiah “just to talk”, as it were. Nehemiah did not fall for this deception, however, because he was “not ignorant of Satan’s devices.” (2nd Corinthians 2:11) Let us, likewise, learn to beware of the smiles of the enemy, for Satan is often more dangerous when he appears to be our friend than when he appears to be our enemy! Sanballat extends four invitations to Nehemiah, and he wisely refused them all. (Nehemiah 6:3–4) Again, let us likewise, learn to keep ourselves focused on the task at hand when our enemy extends an invitation designed to deceptively redirect us in an attempt to halt the work of the Lord through us. When the first four “invitations” failed to get the response Sanballat was hoping for, notice that the fifth messenger was sent with a different strategy. He arrives with an “open letter” filled with slanderous accusations against Nehemiah. (6:5) “It is reported”, as it says in 6:6, is one of the devil’s chief weapons when wanting to disrupt the people of God and the work of the Lord. “People are saying…” or “I’ve been hearing…” and “Did you know…” are usually phrases that introduce gossip and lies. In this case, Nehemiah’s life and character, however, refuted every lie in the letter. Note that as a tremendous leader of God’s people, once again, Nehemiah takes this problem to the Lord in prayer. (6:9) As servants of God, may we learn that we can’t control what people may say about us but we can certainly control what kind of character and testimony we have! And we can certainly do with the accusations against us what Nehemiah did: we can take them to the Lord in prayer! Recognize that had Nehemiah stopped the work to defend his reputation, the walls would never have been built! Because he gave the problem to God, the walls were completed in just 52 days! (6:15) The result was, God was glorified and the enemy was embarrassed! (6:16). May all the work we allow the Lord to do through us end with this same incredible result!
Chapter 7 is a numbering of all the people who had returned from the exile. In Chapter 8, Ezra returned to Jerusalem to assist Nehemiah with the dedication of the walls and the sanctifying of the people. It is significant that the people gathered to hear the word of God at the “water gate” (8:1) as water, in the Bible, consistently pictures the word of God. (Ephesians 5:26) Notice also, that 8:1–9 provides a description of what we might refer to as the “perfect church service”!
- The people all assembled to listen.
- The Word was exalted high.
- The preacher read and explained the word so the people could understand it.
- The people wept at hearing the word, which no doubt, revealed their sensitivity to the working of the Spirit as He revealed areas of sinfulness in their lives!
This reading of “the word of God” in chapter 8, provoked the leaders to pray to “the God of the word” in chapter 9. All of chapter 9 is simply a prayer that provides us a beautiful spiritual summary of the Old Testament history of the Jews. In this prayer, they praise God for His mercy to them despite their unfaithfulness to Him. Let us praise Him today for the same!
CHRIST IS REVEALED:
- Through NEHEMIAH — Nehemiah 5:17–19. He was the governor of the people, yet, he fed all who came to his table (Jews, nobles, and even Gentiles!) at no cost to them.