Nehemiah 2:7-9 sits inside this longer paragraph.
7Moreover I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah; 8and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I will occupy.” The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me.
9Then I came to the governors beyond the River, and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me. 10When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly, because a man had come to seek the welfare of the children of Israel. 11So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days. 12I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I didn’t tell anyone what my God put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There wasn’t any animal with me, except the animal that I rode on. 13I went out by night by the valley gate, even toward the jackal’s well, then to the dung gate, and inspected the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and its gates were consumed with fire. 14Then I went on to the spring gate and to the king’s pool, but there was no place for the animal that was under me to pass. 15Then I went up in the night by the brook, and inspected the wall; and I turned back, and entered by the valley gate, and so returned. 16The rulers didn’t know where I went, or what I did. I had not as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest who did the work.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv7–8 Or, Euphrates.
Or, Euphrates.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv7–9 Neh 2:7 Moreover I said unto the king, If…
Neh 2:7 Moreover I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over till I come into Judah;
Ver. 7. Moreover I said unto the king] He taketh further boldness upon the former encouragement; so may we with Almighty God, the Sun of our righteousness, the Sea of our salvation. Conclude as she did, A company comes. God never left bating till Abraham left begging.
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Let letters be given me to the governors] Those nearest neighbours, but greatest enemies.
That they may convey me over] He committed himself to God, and yet petitions the king for a convoy. In all our enterprises God is so to be trusted as if we had used no means; and yet the means is so to be used as if we had no God to trust in.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv7–8 That they may safely conduct me through their several…
That they may safely conduct me through their several territories.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v9 We are here told,
We are here told,
I. Now Nehemiah was dismissed by the court he was sent from. The king appointed captains of the army and horsemen to go with him (Neh 2:9), both for his guard and to show that he was a man whom the king did delight to honour, that all the king's servants might respect him accordingly. Those whom the King of kings sends he thus protects, he thus dignifies with a host of angels to attend them.
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II. How he was received by the country he was sent to.
1. By the Jews and their friends at Jerusalem. We are told,
(1.) That while he concealed his errand they took little notice of him. He was at Jerusalem three days (Neh 2:11), and it does not appear that any of the great men of the city waited on him to congratulate him on his arrival, but he remained unknown. The king sent horsemen to attend him, but the Jews sent none to meet him; he had no beast with him, but that which he himself rode on, Neh 2:12. Wise men, and those who are worthy of double honour, yet covet not to come with observation, to make a show, or make a noise, no, not when they come with the greatest blessings. Those that shortly are to have the dominion in the morning the world now knows not, but they lie hid, Jo1 3:1.
(2.) That though they took little notice of him he took great notice of them and their state. He arose in the night, and viewed the ruins of the walls, probably by moon-light (Neh 2:13), that he might see what was to be done and in what method they must go about it, whether the old foundation would serve, and what there was of the old materials that would be of use. Note, [1.] Good work is likely to be well done when it is first well considered. [2.] It is the wisdom of those who are engaged in public business, as much as may be, to see with their own eyes, and not to proceed altogether upon the reports and representations of others, and yet to do this without noise, and if possible unobserved. [3.] Those that would build up the church's walls must first take notice of the ruins of those walls. Those that would know how to amend must enquire what is amiss, what needs reformation, and what may serve as it is.
(3.) That when he disclosed his design to the rulers and people they cheerfully concurred with him in it. He did not tell them, at first, what he came about (Neh 2:16), because he would not seem to do it for ostentation, and because, if he found it impracticable, he might retreat the more honourably. Upright humble men will not sound a trumpet before their alms or any other of their good offices. But when he had viewed and considered the thing, and probably felt the pulse of the rulers and people, he told them what God had put into his heart (Neh 2:12), even to build up the wall of Jerusalem, Neh 2:17. Observe, [1.] How fairly he proposed the undertaking to them: "You see the distress we are in, how we lie exposed to the enemies that are round about us, how justly they reproach us as foolish and despicable, how easily they may make a prey of us whenever they have a mind; come, therefore, and let us build up the wall." He did not undertake to do the work without them (it could not be the work of one man), nor did he charge or command imperiously, though he had the king's commission; but in a friendly brotherly way he exhorted and excited them to join with him in this work. To encourage them hereto, he speaks of the design, First, As that which owed it origin to the special grace of God. He takes not the praise of it to himself, as a good thought of his own, but acknowledges that God put it into his heart, and therefore they all ought to countenance it (whatever is of God must be promoted), and might hope to prosper in it, for what God puts men upon he will own them in. Secondly, As that which owed its progress hitherto to the special providence of God. He produced the king's commission, told them how readily it was granted and how forward the king was to favour his design, in which he saw the hand of his God good upon him. It would encourage both him and them to proceed in an undertaking which God had so remarkably smiled upon. Thus he proposed it to them; and, [2.] They presently came to a resolution, one and all, to concur with him: Let us rise up and build. They are ashamed that they have sat still so long without so much as attempting this needful work, and now resolve to rise up out of their slothfulness, to bestir themselves, and to stir up one another. "Let us rise up," that is, "let us do it with vigour, and diligence, and resolution, as those that are determined to go through with it." So they strengthened their hands, their own and one another's, for this good work. Note, First, Many a good work would find hands enough to be laid to it if there were but one good head to lead in it. They all saw the desolations of Jerusalem, yet none proposed the repair of them; but, when Nehemiah proposed it, they all consented to it. It is a pity that a good motion should be lost purely for want of one to move it and to break the ice in it. Secondly, By stirring up ourselves and one another to that which is good, we strengthen ourselves and one another for it; for the great reason why we are weak in our duty is because we are cold to it, indifferent and unresolved. Let us now see how Nehemiah was received,
2. By those that wished ill to the Jews. Those whom God and his Israel blessed they cursed. (1.) When he did but show his face it vexed them, Neh 2:10. Sanballat and Tobiah, two of the Samaritans, but by birth the former a Moabite, the latter an Ammonite, when they saw one come armed with a commission from the king to do service to Israel, were exceedingly grieved that all their little paltry arts to weaken Israel were thus baffled and frustrated by a fair, and noble, and generous project to strengthen them. Nothing is a greater vexation to the enemies of good people, who have misrepresented them to princes as turbulent, and factious, and not fit to live, than to see them stand right in the opinion of their rulers, their innocency cleared and their reproach rolled away, and that they are thought not only fit to live, but fit to be trusted. When they saw a man come in that manner, who professedly sought the welfare of the children of Israel, it vexed them to the heart. The wicked shall see it, and be grieved. (2.) When he began to act they set themselves to hinder him, but in vain, Neh 2:19, Neh 2:20. [1.] See here with what little reason the enemies attempted to discourage him. They represented the undertaking as a silly thing: They laughed us to scorn and despised us as foolish builders, that could not finish what we began. They represented the undertaking also as a wicked thing, no better than treason: Will you rebel against the king? Because this was the old invidious charge, though now they had a commission from the king and were taken under his protection, yet still they must be called rebels. [2.] See also with what good reason the Jews slighted these discouragements. They bore up themselves with this that they were the servants of the God of heaven, the only true and living God, that they were acting for him in what they did, and that therefore he would bear them out and prosper them, though the heathen raged, Psa 2:1. They considered also that the reason why these enemies did so malign them was because they had no right in Jerusalem, but envied them their right in it. Thus may the impotent menaces of the church's enemies be easily despised by the church's friends.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv7–9 Moreover, I said unto the king, let letters be…
Moreover, I said unto the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river,.... The river of Euphrates, on that side of it towards the land of Judea:
that they may convey me over till I come into Judah; furnish him with provisions, and a guard to protect him.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v8 King's forest - Of the forest of Lebanon, famous…
King's forest - Of the forest of Lebanon, famous for choice trees. Palace - Of the king's palace, which was adjoining to the house of God. Enter - That I shall build to dwell in while I am there.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On v8 Verse 8. Asaph the keeper of the king's forest]…
Verse 8. Asaph the keeper of the king's forest] הפרדס hapardes of the paradise of the king. This I believe is originally a Persian word; it frequently occurs in Arabic, [Arabic] ferdoos, and in Greek, παραδεισος, and in both signifies a pleasant garden, vineyard, pleasure garden, and what we call a paradise.
Above the hall of audience, in the imperial palace at Dehli, the following Persian couplet is inscribed:-
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[Persian]
[Persian]
"If there be a paradise on the face of the earth,
this is it, this is it, this is it."
Thus we find that the word is applied to denote splendid apartments, as well as fine gardens; in a word, any place of pleasure and delight. The king's forest mentioned in the text might have been the same to Artaxerxes, as the New Forest was to William the Conqueror, or Windsor Forest to the late amiable sovereign of the British people, GEORGE the THIRD.
And the king granted me, c.] This noble spirited man attributes every thing to God. He might have said, I had been long a faithful servant to the king and he was disposed, in reward of my fidelity, to grant my request; but he would not say so: "He granted my request, because the good hand of my God was upon me." God favoured me, and influenced the king's heart to do what I desired.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv7, 9 Neh 2:7-8. That they may convey me over till…
Neh 2:7-8. That they may convey me over till I come into Judah — May conduct me with safety through their several territories, and furnish me with necessaries on my journey. And a letter unto Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest — The forest of Lebanon, famous for choice trees. That he may give me timber for the gates — The gates of the temple. For though the temple itself was built, yet the several courts seem not to have been walled about, nor the gates made leading to the temple. Of the palace — The king’s palace, which adjoined to the house of God. And for the house that I shall enter into — He desired leave to build a convenient house for himself, and for those that should be future governors. According to the good hand of my God upon me — By the divine favour, which inclined the king to do what he desired; which he calls God’s good hand, because we extend favour with our hands.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On v8 The king’s forest - Rather, park. The word used…
The king’s forest - Rather, park. The word used פרדס pardês; compare παράδεισος paradeisos, found only here, in Ecc 2:5, and in Son 4:13), is of Persian, or at any rate of Aryan origin. The Persians signified by pariyadeza a walled enclosure, ornamented with trees, either planted or of natural growth, and containing numerous wild animals. The “paradise” here mentioned must have been in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, and may have corresponded to the earlier “gardens of Solomon.”
The palace - Rather, “the fortress.” The word in the original has the double meaning of “palace” and “fortress,” the fact being that in ancient times palaces were always fortified. “The fortress which pertained to the house (temple)” is first spoken of here. Under the Romans it was called “Antonia.”
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv7–8 Over; give me a guard, (Haydock) or accompany me…
Over; give me a guard, (Haydock) or accompany me to Jerusalem. (Menochius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv7–8 letters be given me to the governors beyond the…
letters be given me to the governors beyond the river--The Persian empire at this time was of vast extent, reaching from the Indus to the Mediterranean. The Euphrates was considered as naturally dividing it into two parts, eastern and western (see on Ezr 5:3).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv7–9 7. Let letters be given me — This was…
7. Let letters be given me — This was a wise precaution on the part of Nehemiah, for the governors beyond the river were generally hostile to the Jews. Comp. Ezra 4, 5.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv7–9 7. letters] see note on Ezr_4:8.
7. letters] see note on Ezr_4:8.
the governors beyond the river] The ‘Pekhahs’ of the province on the west bank of the Euphrates (Ezr_8:36). A reference to Ezr_4:7-10; Ezr_4:17 shows the importance of securing the recognition of these provincial governors.
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convey me over … into Judah] R.V. let me pass through … unto Judah. Letters of safe conduct through their territory. The governors would not be asked to assist the journey, but to secure that Nehemiah should not be hindered or molested on the way.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv7–9 (7) To the governors beyond the river.—Between the Euphrates…
(7) To the governors beyond the river.—Between the Euphrates and Susa protection was not needed.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv7–9 Let letters be given me to the governors beyond…
Let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river. It is not quite clear why no letters were needed to the governors between Susa and the Euphrates. Perhaps, while travelling was safe, at any rate with an escort, in the more central provinces, beyond the river it became unsafe. (see Ezr_8:31)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv7–9 If it please the king, let letters be given…
Neh_2:7
If it please the king, let letters be given me.
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Religious prudence
I. That prudent forethought is essential to success in spiritual as in secular enterprises (Psa_112:5; Pro_11:29; Pro_12:23; Pro_14:15; Luk_14:28).
II. That prudent forethought is not opposed, but helpful, to spiritual faith.
1. It furnishes a rational basis for expecting success.
2. It acts upon the supposition that mental powers were given to be employed in the service of God.
3. It takes no step without seeking Divine guidance and approval. (Homiletic Commentary.)
Common sense in religious work
When we go about the Lords work, we must not leave our wits behind us, or forget the principles of business and the rules of daily life. Neither should we ignore difficulties or suppose that they will disappear before some miracle-working power. Although depending solely on the Lord, we need not denude ourselves of judgment and common sense. (W. P. Lockhart.)
Prayer and common sense
So I stood and prayed unto the God of heaven--then I asked the king to give me letters. This is the true model of prayer to pray to the King of kings and then to accept the ordinary appointments of life; to invoke Omnipotence, and then to use your senses. Have you been praying? Did you sit in your chair and pray that you might be able at the end of the week to make both ends meet, and then fall asleep until the time came, and wake up to find that both ends did not meet? That was not prayer at all. I will pray God to help me to pay every debt I owe, to overcome every difficulty in my way. Now, having said my prayer, let me go out and do it. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v9 NEHEMIAHS journey up to Jerusalem differed in many respects…
THE MIDNIGHT RIDE
Neh_2:9-20
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NEHEMIAHS journey up to Jerusalem differed in many respects from Ezras great expedition, with a host of emigrants, rich stores, and all the accompaniments of a large caravan. Burdened with none of these encumbrances, the newly appointed governor would be able to travel in comparative ease. Yet while Ezra was "ashamed" to ask for a military escort to protect his defenceless multitude and the treasures which were only too likely to attract the vulture eyes of roving hordes of Bedouin, because, as he tells us, he feared such a request might be taken as a sign of distrust in his God, Nehemiah accepted a troop of cavalry without any hesitation. This difference, however, does not reflect any discredit on the faith of the younger man.
In the first place, his claims on the king were greater than those of Ezra, who would have had to petition for the help of soldiers if he had wanted it, whereas Nehemiah received his bodyguard as a matter of course. Ezra had been a private subject previous to his appointment, and though he had subsequently been endowed with large authority of an indefinite character, that authority was confined to the execution of the Jewish law; it had nothing to do with the general concerns of the Persian government in Syria or Palestine. But Nehemiah came straight from the court, where he had been a favourite servant of the king, and he was now made the official governor of Jerusalem. It was only in accordance with custom that he should have an escort assigned him when he went to take possession of his district. Then, probably to save time, Nehemiah would travel by the perilous desert route through Tadmor, and thus cover the whole journey in about two months-a route which Ezras heavy caravan may have avoided. When he reached Syria the fierce animosity which had been excited by Ezras domestic reformation-and which therefore had been broken out after Ezras expedition-would make it highly dangerous for a Jew who was going to aid the hated citizens of Jerusalem to travel through the mixed population.
Nevertheless, after allowing their full weight to these considerations, may we not still detect an interesting trait of the younger mans character in Nehemiahs ready acceptance of the guard with which Ezra had deliberately dispensed? In the eyes of the world the idealist Ezra must have figured as a most unpractical person. But Nehemiah, a courtier by trade, was evidently well accustomed to "affairs." Naturally a cautious man, he was always anxious in his preparations, though no one could blame him for lack of decision or promptness at the moment of action. Now the striking thing about his character in this relation-that which lifts it entirely above the level of purely secular prudence-is the fact that he closely associated his careful habits with. his faith in Providence. He would have regarded the rashness which excuses itself on the plea of faith as culpable presumption. His religion was all the more real and thorough because it did not confine itself to unearthly experiences, or refuse to acknowledge the Divine in any event that was not visibly miraculous. No man was ever more impressed with the great truth that God was with him. It was this truth, deeply rooted in his heart, that gave him the joy which became the strength, the very inspiration of his life. He was sure that his commonest secular concerns were moulded by the hand of his God. Therefore to his mind the detachment of Persian cavalry was as truly assigned to him by God as if it had been a troop of angels sent straight from the hosts of heaven.
The highly dangerous nature of his undertaking and the necessity for exercising the utmost caution were apparent to Nehemiah as soon as he approached Jerusalem. Watchful enemies at once showed themselves annoyed "that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel." {Neh_2:10} It was not any direct injury to themselves, it was the prospect of some favour to the hated Jews that grieved these people, though doubtless their jealousy was in part provoked by dread lest Jerusalem should regain the position of pre-eminence in Palestine which had been enjoyed during her depression by the rival city of Samaria. Under these circumstances Nehemiah followed the tactics which he had doubtless learnt during his life among the treacherous intrigues of an Oriental court. He did not at first reveal his plans. He spent three days quietly in Jerusalem. Then he took his famous ride round the ruins of the city walls. This was as secret as King Alfreds exploration of the camp of the Danes. Without breathing a word of his intention to the Jews, and taking only a horse or an ass to ride on himself and a small body of trusty attendants on foot, Nehemiah set out on his tour in the dead of night. No doubt the primary purpose of this secrecy was that no suspicion of his design should reach the enemies of the Jews. Had these men suspected it they would have been beforehand with their plans for frustrating it; spies and traitors would have been in the field before Nehemiah was prepared to receive them; emissaries of the enemy would have perverted the minds even of loyal citizens. It would be difficult enough under any circumstances to rouse the dispirited people to undertake a work of great toil and danger. If they were divided in counsel from the first it would be hopeless. Moreover, in order to persuade the Jews to fortify their city, Nehemiah must be prepared with a clear and definite proposal. He must be able to show them that he understands exactly in what condition their ruined fortifications are lying. For his personal satisfaction, too, he must see the ruins with his own eyes. Ever since the travellers from Jerusalem who met him at Susa had shocked him with their evil tidings, a vision of the broken walls and charred gates had been before his imagination. Now he would really see the very ruins themselves, and ascertain whether all was as bad as it had been represented.
The uncertainty which still surrounds much of the topography of Jerusalem, owing to its very foundations having been turned over by the ploughshare of the invader, while some of its sacred sites have been buried under huge mounds of rubbish, renders it impossible to trace Nehemiahs night ride in all its details. If we are to accept the latest theory, according to which the gorge hitherto regarded as the Tyropaeon is really the ancient Valley of Hinnom, some other sites will need considerable readjustment. The "Gate of the Valley" seems to be one near the head of the Valley of Hinnom; we know nothing of the "Dragon Well": the "Dung Port" would be a gateway through which the city offal was flung out to the fires in the Valley of Hinnom; the "Kings Pool" is very likely that afterwards known as the "Pool of Siloam." The main direction of Nehemiahs tour of inspection is fairly definite to us. He started at the western exit from the city and passed down to the left, to where the Valley of Hinnom joins the Valley of the Kidron; ascending this valley, he found the masses of stones and heaps of rubbish in such confusion that he was compelled to leave the animal he had been riding hitherto and to clamber over the ruins on foot. Reaching the northeastern corner of the valley of the Kidron, he would turn round by the northern side of the city, where most of the gates had been situated, because there the city, which was difficult of access to the south and the east on account of the encircling ravines, could be easily approached.
And what did he gain by his journey? He gained knowledge. The reformation that is planned by the student at his desk, without any reference to the actual state of affairs, will be, at best, a Utopian dream. But if the dreamer is also a man of resources and opportunities, his impracticable schemes may issue in incalculable mischief. "Nothing is more terrible," says Goethe, "than active ignorance." We can smile at a knight-errant Don Quixote; but a Don Quixote in power would be as dangerous as a Nero. Most schemes of socialism, though they spring from the brains of amiable enthusiasts, break up like empty bubbles on the first contact with the real world. It is especially necessary, too, to know the worst. Optimism is very cheering in idea, but when it is indulged in to the neglect of truth, with an impatient disregard for the shady side of life, it simply leads its devotees into a fools paradise. The highest idealist must have something of the realist in him if he would ever have his ideas transformed into facts.
Further, it is to be noted that Nehemiah would gather his information for himself; he could not be content with hearsay evidence. Here again he reveals the practical man. It is not that he distrusts the honesty of any agents he might employ, nor merely that he is aware of the deplorable inaccuracy of observers generally and the inability of nearly all people to give an un-coloured account of what they have seen, but he knows that there is an impression to be obtained by personal observation which the most correct description cannot approach. No map or book will give a man a right idea of a place that he has never visited. If this is true of the external world, much more is it the case with those spiritual realities which the eye hath not seen, and which therefore it has not entered into the heart of man to conceive.. Wordsworth frequently refers to his sensations of surprise and disappointment passing over into a new delight when he first beheld scenes long ago described to him in verse or legend. He finds "Yarrow visited" very unlike "Yarrow unvisited." One commonplace distinction we must all have noticed under similar circumstances-viz., that the imagination is never rich and varied enough to supply us with the complications of the realty. Before we have looked at it our idea of the landscape is too simple, and an invariable impression produced by the actual sight of it is to make us feel how much more elaborate it is. Indeed a personal investigation of most phenomena reveals an amount of complication previously unexpected. Where the investigation is, like Nehemiahs, concerned with an evil we propose to attack, the result is that we begin to see that the remedy cannot be so simple as we imagined before we knew all the facts.
But the chief effect of Nehemiahs night ride would be to impress him with an overwhelming sense of the desolation of Jerusalem. We may know much by report, but we feel most keenly that of which we have had personal experience. Thus the news of a gigantic cataclysm in China does not affect us with a hundredth part of the emotion that is excited in us by a simple street accident seen from our own windows. The man whose heart will be moved enough for him to sacrifice himself seriously in relieving misery is he who will first "visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction." {Jam_1:27} Then the proof that the impression is deep and real, and not a mere idle sentiment, will be seen in the fact that it prompts action. Nehemiah was moved to tears by the report of the ruinous condition of Jerusalem, which reached him in the far-off palace beyond the Euphrates. What the scene meant to him as he slowly picked his way among the huge masses of masonry is seen by his conduct immediately afterwards. It must have stirred him profoundly. The silence of the sleeping city, broken now and again by the dismal howls of packs of dogs scouring the streets, or perhaps by the half-human shrieks of jackals on the deserted hills in the outlying country; the dreary solitude of the interminable heaps of ruins, the mystery of strange objects half-descried in the distance by starlight, or, at best, by moonlight, the mournful discovery, on nearer view, of huge building stones tumbled over and strewn about on mountainous heaps of dust and rubbish, the gloom, the desolation, the terror, -all this was enough to make the heart of a patriot faint with despair. Was it possible to remedy such huge calamities?
Nehemiah does not despair. He has no time to grieve. We hear no more of his weeping and lamentation and fasting. Now he is spurred on to decisive action.
Fortified by the knowledge he has acquired in his adventurous night ride, and urged by the melancholy sights he has witnessed, Nehemiah loses no time in bringing his plans before the oligarchy of nobles who held the rule in Jerusalem previous to his coming, as well as the rest of the Jews. Though he is now the officially appointed governor, he cannot arrange matters with a high hand. He must enlist the sympathy and encourage the faith, both of the leaders and of the people generally.
The following points in his speech to the Jews may be noticed. First, he calls attention to the desolate condition of Jerusalem. {Neh_2:17-18} This is a fact well known. "Ye see the evil case that we are in," he says, "how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire." The danger was that apathy would succeed to despair, for it is possible for people to become accustomed to the most miserable condition. The reformer must infuse a "Divine discontent ," and the preliminary step is to get the evil plight well recognised and heartily disliked. In the second place, Nehemiah exhorts the nobles and people to join him in building the walls.
So now he clearly reveals his plan. The charm in his utterance here is in the use of the first person plural, not the first person singular- he cannot do the work alone, nor does he wish to, not the second person-though he is the authoritative governor, he does not enjoin on others a task the toil and responsibility of which he will not share himself. In the genuine use of this pronoun "we" there lies the secret of all effective exhortation. Next Nehemiah proceeds to adduce reasons for his appeal. He calls out the sense of patriotic pride in the remark, "that we be no more a reproach ," and he goes further, for the Jews are the people of God, and for them to fail is for reproach to be cast on the name of God Himself. Here is the great religious motive for not permitting the city of God to lie in ruins, as it is today the supreme motive for keeping all taint of dishonour from the Church of Christ.
But direct encouragements are needed. A sense of shame may rouse us from our lethargy, and yet in the end it will be depressing if it does not give place to the inspiration of a new hope. Now Nehemiah has two fresh grounds of encouragement. He first names that which he esteems highest - the presence and help of God in his work. "I told them," he says, "of the hand of my God which was good upon me." How could he despair, even at the spectacle of the ruined walls and gateways, with the consciousness of this great and wonderful truth glowing in his heart? Not that he was a mystic weaving fantastic dreams out of the filmy substance of his own vague feelings. It is true he felt impelled by the strong urging of his patriotism, and he knew that God was in that holy passion. Yet his was an objective mind and he recognised the hand of God chiefly in external events-in the Providence that opens doors and indicates paths, that levels mountains of difficulty and fills up impassable chasms, that even bends the wills of great kings to do its bidding. This action of Providence he had himself witnessed; his very presence at Jerusalem was a token of it. He, once a household slave in the jealous seclusion of an Oriental palace, was now the governor of Jerusalem, appointed to his post for the express purpose of restoring the miserable city to strength and safety. In all this Nehemiah felt the hand of God upon him. Then it was a gracious and merciful Providence that had led him. Therefore he could not but own further that the hand of God was "good." He perceived Gods work, and that work was to him most wonderfully full of lovingkindness. Here indeed was the greatest of all encouragements to proceed. It was well that Nehemiah had the devout insight to perceive it; a less spiritually minded man might have received the marvellous favour without ever discovering the hand from which it came. Following the example of the miserable, worldly Jacob, some of us wake up in our Bethel to exclaim with surprise, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not." {Gen_28:16} But even that is better than to slumber on in dull indifference, too dead to recognise the Presence that guides and blesses every footstep, provoking the melancholy lamentation: "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his masters crib, but Israel doth not know, My people doth not consider." {Isa_1:3}
Lastly, Nehemiah not only perceived the hand of God and took courage from his assurance of the fact, he made this glorious fact known to the nobles of Jerusalem in order to rouse their enthusiasm. He had the simplicity of earnestness, the openness of one who forgets self in advocating a great cause. Is not reticence in religion too often a consequence of the habit of turning ones thoughts inward? Such a habit will vanish at the touch of a serious purpose. The man who is in dead earnest has no time to be self-conscious, he does not indulge in sickly reflections on the effect of what he says on other peoples opinions about himself, he will not care what they think about him so long as he moves them to do the thing it is laid on his soul to urge upon them. But it is difficult to escape from the selfish subjectivity of modern religion, and recover the grand naturalness of the saints alike of Old and of New Testament times.
After this revelation of the Divine Presence, Nehemiahs second ground of encouragement is of minor interest, it can be but one link in the chain of providential leading. Yet for a man who had not reached his lofty point of view, it would have filled the whole horizon. The king had given permission to the Jews to rebuild the walls, and he had allowed Nehemiah to visit Jerusalem for the very purpose of carrying out the work. This king, Artaxerxes, whose firman had stopped the earlier attempt and even sanctioned the devastating raid of the enemies of the Jews, was now proving himself the friend and champion of Jerusalem! Here was cheering news!
It is not surprising that such a powerful appeal as this of Nehemiahs was successful. It was like the magic horn that awoke the inmates of the enchanted castle. The spell was broken. The long, listless torpor of the Jews gave place to hope and energy, and the people braced themselves to commence the work. These Jews who had been so lethargic hitherto were now the very men to undertake it. Nehemiah brought no new laborers, but he brought what was better, the one essential requisite for every great enterprise-an inspiration. He brought what the world most needs in every age. We wait for better men to arise and undertake the tasks that seem to be too great for our strength; we cry for a new race of God-sent heroes to accomplish the Herculean labours before which we faint and fail. But we might ourselves become the better men; nay, assuredly we should become Gods heroes, if we would, but open our hearts to receive the Spirit by the breath of which the weakest are made strong and the most indolent are fired with a Divine energy. Today, as in the time of Nehemiah, the one supreme need is inspiration.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v9 Nehemiah Arrives at Jerusalem
Nehemiah Arrives at Jerusalem
v. 9. Then I came to the governors beyond the river, and gave them the king’s letters. Now, the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me, not only on account of his rank as cupbearer of the king, but also as deputy governor of Judea, which he was on this trip.
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v. 10. When Sanballat the Horonite, apparently a Moabite, and Tobiah, the servant, the Ammonite, a freedman raised to some official dignity, assistant to the former, who seems to have been governor of Samaria, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel, who were just then in a bad way, a fact which gave the Samaritans the upper hand.
v. 11. So I came to Jerusalem and was there three days, resting and casting up in his mind just bow he might undertake the work of reconstruction, for there was need of it everywhere.
v. 12. And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me, just a few trusted attendants; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem, both the general plans and the special action that he had determined upon during the three days of his visit; neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon. The survey of the ruined walls was to be made in all secrecy, lest the enemies, who had relatives in the city, might find out about it.
v. 13. And I went out by night by the Gate of the Valley, most likely that of Hinnom toward the southeast, even before the Dragon Well, a fountain or pool on the opposite side of the valley, and to the Dung Port, the gate where the rubbish of the city was cast out and burned, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, lying in ruins, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire.
v. 14. Then I went on to the Gate of the Fountain, in front of the pool of Siloam, where the ancient wall turned northward from its southeastern corner, and to the King’s Pool, Siloam itself; but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass, heaps of broken stones and rubbish everywhere were so high that his mule could not pick a path.
v. 15. Then went I up in the night by the brook, he was obliged to go down along the Kidron, and viewed the wall, that on the eastern side, and turned back, and entered by the Gate of the Valley, where he had set forth, now probably the Jaffa Gate, and so returned.
v. 16. And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did, he kept this survey a strict secret; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work, neither the executive officers of the province nor the church officials, nor any others engaged in the public service had been informed of the purpose of his visit.
v. 17. Then said I unto them, in a meeting called for that purpose, in which Nehemiah produced his credentials and addressed them in an inspiring manner, Ye see the distress that we are in, the evil that had befallen them, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire; come and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach, objects of scorn and derision on the part of the enemies.
v. 18. Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me, how the Lord had so obviously prospered him in his undertaking up to this time, as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me. And they, inspired by his energy, said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work, being filled with vigor and energy, with every vestige of drooping spirits removed.
v. 19. But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah, the servant,, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian heard it, they laughed us to scorn and despised us, with bitter taunts and scoffing ridicule, and said, What is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the king? This was a mean insinuation, for the Jews had no intention of throwing off the yoke of the Persians.
v. 20. Then answered I them and said unto them, The God of heaven, He will prosper us; therefore we, His servants, will arise and build; but ye have no portion nor right nor memorial in Jerusalem. They had cut themselves off from the true worship of Jehovah and therefore had nothing in common with the true worshipers. The activity of the Church often is made the object of rude jesting on the part of its enemies. But the only proper stand is that of an uncompromising aloofness in favor of the truth.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv7, 9 may letters be given to me
may letters be given to me
This may be stated in active form. AT: "may you give letters to me" (See: Active or Passive)
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the Province Beyond the River
This is the name of the province that was west of the Euphrates River. It was across the river from the city of Susa.
Asaph
This is the name of a man. (See: How to Translate Names)
the good hand of God was on me
God's "good hand" represents his "favor." AT: "God's favor was upon me" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
king
epistle
govern
kingdom of Judah
gate
temple
house
life
good
hand
God
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv8–9 2:8 Temple fortress might refer to the Tower of…
2:8 Temple fortress might refer to the Tower of Hananel or the Tower of the Hundred. • the gracious hand of God was on me: Nehemiah knew that the king granted these requests because God was sovereignly guiding the king to do so.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.