Nehemiah 13:10-30 - Putting things right

13:10-13

He also learnt that there were other problems, the Levites had not been receiving their proper allocations, and so some had abandoned their duties and returned to their fields. We can sometimes take the attitude that those who work “full-time” for God should be happy to be poor for the sake of the Lord, but this is not a Biblical attitude. God’s workers still need to live and to look after their families, and the rest of us should ensure that they are properly provided for. Of course, this can be taken to excess, but this is not often the problem in the UK, though it can be in the USA.

13:14-30

Another problem Nehemiah discovered was the breaking of the Sabbath. Again Nehemiah took firm steps to eradicate the problem. So he put guards on the gates, and the doors were locked on the Sabbath. Nehemiah took steps to ensure the purity of the nation.

Nehemiah 12:1-9 - Deadling with problems

13:1-3

We now get more consequences of the Law having been read out. After the exodus The Ammonite and Moabites had refused to help Israel, but had hired Balaam to curse them. However, God had turned the curses into blessings. However, Their refusal to help was still held against Israel, and Ammonites and Moabites were to have no part in Israel, the people decided to expand this and to exclude all who were of foreign descent. It is still a mistake to treat Israel badly. Various Western nations should remember this!

13:4-9

As well as overt enemies, churches all have “useful idiots”. Eliashib was one such person in Israel. He had been put in charge of the storerooms in the house of God. He was also a close associate of Tobiah. If you remember from earlier parts of the book, Tobiah was one of the enemies of Israel. Eliashib provided Tobiah with the use of one of the storerooms, the storeroom had been used for offerings and tithes. All this happened while Nehemih had returned to Babylon for a time. He learnt of these things after he returned and took firm action to sort them out. He ejected all of Tobiah’s goods from the storeroom and had the rooms purified, and then returned to their proper purpose.

Nehemiah 12 - Priests and Levites

12:1-26

The lists continue with the priests and Levites, and the heads of families.

12:27-47

The wall was dedicated to the Lord, the Levites and musicians were brought in to lead the joyful singing. The priests and Levites purified themselves, then purified the people. Two large choirs were assigned to give thanks. Note the importance given to worship throughout the old testament. One of the features of this chapter seems to be a concern about doing things the way that David had set them up, or wanted them done. In a way, David was the focal point of life in the Old Testament. They knew that God had promised that he would always have someone on the throne. Now Jesus is the focal point of life under the gospel. The two choirs wen in opposite directions around the walls.

Nehemiah 11 - Repopulating Jerusalem

11:1-36

Jerusalem was relatively sparsely populated, partly because of the rubble and the state of the walls. Now the walls and gates had been repaired it was time to set about repopulating the city.  The leaders were settled in Jerusalem, setting an example. We then get a list of those who had settled in Jerusalem. These included descendants of Judah and Benjamin, the two tribes of the southern kingdom, priests and Levites and gatekeepers. Musicians were also provided and play an important role in the daily activity. Jerusalem was seen as an important place, and still is today,

Nehemiah 10 - Commited to the Lord

10:1-39

Israel, under Nehemiah, had decided to confess their sins and to commit themselves to the Lord. This commitment was made more certain by having it sealed. So in this chapter we get  a list of all those who sealed this commitment. Nehemiah is the first mentioned, the list that follows is presumably a list of officials. This is followed byLevites and priests., then the “leaders of the people”. There was a  mass binding of themselves to the Lord. two particular ordinances of the law are highlighted. One is not marrying non-Jews, and the other is the observance of the Sabbath, including the sabbath years and jubilees. They had not been doing this, so the exile had ensured that the land would get its sabbath rest. It is estimated that the seventy years in exile would account for the sabbath years the land had filed to have.

“We will not neglect the house of God” sums up the whole process. The people had seriously committed themselves to God.

Nehemiah 8 - Hearing the word of the Lord

8:1-18

Ezra had returned some fifteen years before Nehemiah, his task was to teach the people the Law. So the wall and gates had all been concluded, now the task was to complete the walls in peoples’ lives, so they all gathered to hear the Book of the Law of Moses. It was read to both men and women, and children who could understand it. The people listened attentively. On hearing the word Ezra and the people praised the Lord. and responded “Amen! Amen!” and worshipped the Lord. There were also Levites who instructed the people. Ezra was on a raised platform, so everyone could see and hear him. On hearing the word the people wept, perhaps because they realised that they had sinned against God, and so were in big trouble. However, the people were told not to mourn for the day was a day holy to the Lord. Instead they were to “enjoy choice food and sweet drinks”. The joy of the Lord was their strength. The gospel is about us being saved from our sins. So there is a two part realisation, first realising the reality of our sins, and then realising the effectiveness of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Joy in our salvation is a key part of our lives.. The people learnt from the word of the Lord and enacted it. So they celebrated the festival of shelters.

Nehemiah - Numbering the people

7:1-3

The work was completed with walls rebuilt and the doors set in place. The musicians and Levites were then appointed. Nehemiah put his brother Hanani in charge of Jerusalem. He was chosen, not just because he was his brother, but because he was a man of integrity and who feared the Lord “more than most people do”. These are vital characteristics for any appointment, for a man with these characteristics is (i) less likely to go astray; and (ii) more likely to make the right decision in key circumstances. Nehemiah also took practical steps to ensure the safety of the city.

7:4-63

Relatively few people had returned to Jerusalem, partly because few houses had been rebuilt. Nehemiah set about compiling a list of the returnees. God had put this in his heart to do this, so it was not like the census that David had carried out and which caused so much trouble. There are some discrepancies with equivalent lists elsewhere in the Bible, particularly in Ezra 2. These may be due to copyist errors, or other reasons.

7:64-73

The purity of the priesthood was considered to be of particular importance. AFter the numbers had been obtained Ezra read the Law.