Nehemiah responds to the plea of the poor by proposing that no interest be charged on borrowed money and that everything that has been taken on pledges be restored. Nehemiah has enemies of his own househod. Sound familiar? Our worst enemies are within the very organizations where we work. Sanballat and Geshem, Nehemiah’s familiar foes, try to lure him out of the city with evil intentions. However, he anticipates the danger and makes an excuse not to go. “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” Sanballat accuses Nehemiah of planning a rebellion against the king which Nehemiah denies. Does this sound like the typical barbs of a modern day political campaign? Finally Shemaiah, a priest or prophet, is hired by Tobiah and Sanballat to invite Nehemiah to find shelter within the temple to protect his life. However, he will not put his personal safety above that of his fellow Jews. Upon successful completion of the wall, Nehemiah decides to take a census. The narrative breaks off with a misplaced part of Ezra’s narrative. The people gather before the Water Gate to have the law read to them by Ezra. Is rebuilding the wall always going to be this difficult?
Nehemiah responds to the plea of the poor by proposing that no interest be charged on borrowed money and that everything that has been taken on pledges be restored. Nehemiah has enemies of his own househod. Sound familiar? Our worst enemies are within the very organizations where we work. Sanballat and Geshem, Nehemiah’s familiar foes, try to lure him out of the city with evil intentions. However, he anticipates the danger and makes an excuse not to go. “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?” Sanballat accuses Nehemiah of planning a rebellion against the king which Nehemiah denies. Does this sound like the typical barbs of a modern day political campaign? Finally Shemaiah, a priest or prophet, is hired by Tobiah and Sanballat to invite Nehemiah to find shelter within the temple to protect his life. However, he will not put his personal safety above that of his fellow Jews. Upon successful completion of the wall, Nehemiah decides to take a census. The narrative breaks off with a misplaced part of Ezra’s narrative. The people gather before the Water Gate to have the law read to them by Ezra. Is rebuilding the wall always going to be this difficult?
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