Reflections on Nehemiah 4

Nehemiah 04 (Contemporary English Version)

1. When Sanballat, the governor of Samaria, heard that we were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he became angry and started insulting our people.
   
2. In front of his friends and the Samaritan army he said, "What is this feeble bunch of Jews trying to do? Are they going to rebuild the wall and offer sacrifices all in one day? Do they think they can make something out of this pile of scorched stones?"
   
3. Tobiah from Ammon was standing beside Sanballat and said, "Look at the wall they are building! Why, even a fox could knock over this pile of stones."
   
4. But I prayed, "Our God, these people hate us and have wished horrible things for us. Please answer our prayers and make their insults fall on them! Let them be the ones to be dragged away as prisoners of war.
   
5. Don't forgive the mean and evil way they have insulted the builders."
   
6. The people worked hard, and we built the walls of Jerusalem halfway up again.
   
7. But Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the people from the city of Ashdod saw the walls going up and the holes being repaired. So they became angry
   
8. and decided to stir up trouble, and to fight against the people of Jerusalem.
   
9. But we kept on praying to our God, and we also stationed guards day and night.
   
10. Meanwhile, the people of Judah were singing a sorrowful song: "So much rubble for us to haul! Worn out and weary, will we ever finish this wall?"
    
11. Our enemies were saying, "Before those Jews know what has happened, we will sneak up and kill them and put an end to their work."
    
12. On at least ten different occasions, the Jews living near our enemies warned us against attacks from every side,
    
13. and so I sent people to guard the wall at its lowest places and where there were still holes in it. I placed them according to families, and they stood guard with swords and spears and with bows and arrows.
    
14. Then I looked things over and told the leaders, the officials, and the rest of the people, "Don't be afraid of your enemies! The Lord is great and fearsome. So think of him and fight for your relatives and children, your wives and homes!"
    
15. Our enemies found out that we knew about their plot against us, but God kept them from doing what they had planned. So we went back to work on the wall.
    
16. From then on, I let half of the young men work while the other half stood guard. They wore armor and had spears and shields, as well as bows and arrows. The leaders helped the workers
    
17. who were rebuilding the wall. Everyone who hauled building materials kept one hand free to carry a weapon.
    
18. Even the workers who were rebuilding the wall strapped on a sword. The worker who was to blow the signal trumpet stayed with me.
    
19. I told the people and their officials and leaders, "Our work is so spread out, that we are a long way from one another.
    
20. If you hear the sound of the trumpet, come quickly and gather around me. Our God will help us fight."
    
21. Every day from dawn to dark, half of the workers rebuilt the walls, while the rest stood guard with their spears.
    
22. I asked the men in charge and their workers to stay inside Jerusalem and stand guard at night. So they guarded the city at night and worked during the day.
    
23. I even slept in my work clothes at night; my children, the workers, and the guards slept in theirs as well. And we always kept our weapons close by.
    

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    Rebellion against God and failure to trust Him had led the Israelites into exile in Babylon. Now their efforts to rebuild their lives must also include learning to trust God. Learning to trust God involves situations that are bigger than we are. Situations in which only God can bring a solution. This is what Israel was encountering in these accounts of Nehemiah. God had prepared Nehemiah to lead Israel to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem and help to accomplish His plan for them to rebuild their lives in the land He gave them, but if they were to learn trust this plan must include difficulties through which they would see God's deliverance.
    
    Under Nehemiah's leadership the Israelites were making amazing progress in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. Just when hope for success seems a reality, difficulties appear to dampen that hope. In this case it was Sanballat and his cronies who showed up to ridicule the Israelites in their efforts to rebuild the walls and even pose the threat of military force to halt their efforts. These enemies of the Jews said of them, "They won't know or see anything until we're among them and can kill them and stop the work." (4:11)
    
    But Nehemiah kept reminding the Israelites of the source of their strength, "Our God will fight for us!" (4:20) The task and the opposition seemed too great to overcome, but it was not their strength but God's that would carry them through if they gave it to Him. Nehemiah prayed before the people for God's help and then he gave them a plan. First, they stationed a guard day and night. Those who lived outside Jerusalem no longer went home at night but slept within the walls. People were stationed behind the lowest sections of the wall to hinder the enemy from sneeking into the city and infiltrating their ranks. During the day half the people were on guard while half continued to work. Even those working carried a weapon in one hand or strapped to a belt. Nehemiah had a trumpeter follow him wherever he went to sound an alarm if a threat arose, summoning everyone to oppose the threat.
    
    So it is in our walk with God. We keep our eyes on Him for guidance. We stay alert for threats to our walk with Him. And we put in action the plan God gives us to overcome the obstacles and to keep up our walk with Him.