Nehemiah and the walls of Jerusalem

         

Nehemiah and the walls of Jerusalem

Greetings, friend!

The next person to come to the exiles are Nehemiah.

Nehemiah was the cupbearer of Artaxerxes and a descendant from Judah. After some bad news from Jerusalem, before appearing before Artaxerxes. Artaxerxes saw that he was not himself and asked if he might be able to help him. Nehemiah explained the situation in Judah and asked if he could could go back to his home city to rebuild it. Artaxerxes granted his request and offered him all the help he could get: he was appointed governor of Jerusalem, given safe-conduct as well as free material AND military support! His enemies did not liked that...

After arrival, he inspected the walls at night (so that he would not be seen by the enemies) BEFORE consulting with the priests and inhabitants. They started building the wall after Nehemiah expelled the foreign idolaters, his enemies, from Jerusalem.

Nehemiah split the work on the wall into sections and each section had priests and inhabitants building and protecting the wall. His enemies kept on ridiculing the workers. To protect the walls from being broken down again, Nehemiah posted guards from the people day and night and the builders was working with a sword in one hand and half of the men on a section were guarding while the other half were building. The military men that came with were posted behind all of these to protect their backs. He also made sure each section got a trumpet to summon help if they are attacked. The workers also slept next to the wall to guard it during the night.

He also settle a dispute about food and taxes. He even gave up his right as governor to get an allowance from the people to live in luxury. He fed his 150 officials out of his own funds.

After most of the walls were rebuilt and before the entrance doors we hung, the enemies conspired to kill Nehemiah, but the Creator exposed their plans and they could not complete their plans. It happened several times and each time their plans were defeated. After this the entrance doors were hung and the wall completed. The wall was completed in 52 days.

Nehemiah then appointed official gatekeepers and wall guards from the people of Jerusalem.

Early in the seventh month of the twentieth year of Artaxerxes at the start of the festival of Sukkot, Ezra read the law to the people in front of the Water Gate as there were not enough space to assemble all the inhabitants of Judah and Benjamin inside the temple. The people wept as they realized their sins, but was told to stop and celebrate as it was a sacred and holy day. They were also told how to observe the festival. On the eighth day they renewed the covenant with the Creator. Nehemiah appointed priests to oversee the collection and distribution of the tithes for the first time since the exile.

Nehemiah also restored the Sabbath as several inhabitants was working and trading on the Sabbath.

Some of the people was still in exile. One of them was a woman called Esther. More about that tomorrow.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:
Are you doing what the Creator wants you to do? Or are you deviating from His orders, even if it just slightly? Are you serving other gods? (There is a message about idolatry among my messages...) Are you rebellious and opposing the work of the Creator?

Forgiveness and a new life is waiting for you!

You would know what to do... GO AND DO IT NOW!









Metusalah and Elias
Messengers of the Creator



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