Nehemiah – Of Whom Shall I Be Afraid?
Nehemiah 2:10, 19, 20
About 500 years before Nehemiah’s writing, King David (1055-1015 BC) faced a number of enemies, both personally and nationally. In the midst of their attacks, he turned to God for help and guidance. His trust in the Lord gave him confidence to stand fast, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1, 2).
As we proceed in these studies, we will discover a thread in which Nehemiah and his fellow-workers were being harassed by a group of foes who continually opposed the work in Jerusalem. We will note the nature of the opponents’ assaults and how Nehemiah responded to them. In so doing, we may gain some valuable insights to help us deal with those enemies who attempt to distract and discourage us from restoring the walls and gates in our lives.
Whether in the 5th century before Christ or in this 21st century, whenever God’s will is being carried out, critics and adversaries will surely arise. The devil and his angels, along with anyone whom they may recruit, will vehemently oppose the people of God (see Matthew 24, Mark 13, etc.). They will use mockery, slander, deception, distraction, threats, etc. to hinder any works of goodness and godliness. As it was in days of Nehemiah, so will it be in our day.
Now, who were these people who so vigorously opposed Nehemiah? Three of them were clearly identified. At this time, they were residing in Samaria, bordering Judah on the north. However, neither of them was from either Samaria or Judah. It is likely that they were descendants of the many who settled in Samaria after the fall of the Northern Kingdom (Israel) in 721 B.C. The first-mentioned was Sanballat, a Moabite from Horonaim, a city just south of the Dead Sea. There may be some evidence that he was a military officer serving under King Artaxerxes of Persia (Nehemiah 4:2). He appears to be the leader of this resistance. Some sources indicate that he later became governor of Samaria.
Tobiah, the second of the three, was an Ammonite (vs. 4:2). He is sometime referred to as a servant and, at other times, as an official. Ammon was the country east of the Jordan River and just north of Moab. Both countries were adversaries of the people of Israel throughout their histories. When Moses delivered God’s Law to the people about to enter the Promised Land (about 1455-1450 B.C.), he sternly reminded them, “An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the congregation of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the congregation of the Lord forever” (Deuteronomy 23:3).
The Arab, Geshem, does not seem to draw as much attention, but is standing with the other two against Nehemiah and his work. While not clearly defined, Arabia in that day would have spanned the desert lands south and east of Moab and Ammon, from the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf. The point here is that these foes had no part in the life and history of the people of Israel. They had no respect for the covenant relationship between God and His people. Yet, they assumed the right to prevent those people from restoring their holy city and the Temple of their God.
Apparently, Nehemiah first became aware of these enemies as he was on his journey to Jerusalem. “When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard of it (the plan to rebuild the wall), they were deeply disturbed that a man had come to seek the well-being of the children of Israel” (vs. 2:10). Since he made no further comment there in his writing, we will assume that he kept this in his mind and waited for an opportune time to respond.
That time came quite soon. Following the positive response of the people to Nehemiah’s plan and inspiring presentation, they “set their hands to do this good work” (vs. 2:18). Overall, one could sense an atmosphere of hope and joy. However, those negative voices arose from the three enemies. “When (they) heard of it, they laughed us to scorn and despised us and said,” What is this thing you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?” “(vs. 19). Theyweretrying to make the work seem trivial and self-motivated. They were making fun of the workers for taking on such a task, belittling their ability or authority to engage in the effort.
We make a mental note here – enemies often begin their campaign with such ridicule, light-heartedly casting doubt on one’s thoughts that he can do such a thing. At the same time, they are attempting to get others to join them in this demoralizing effort. Their hope is that you will give up before you begin.
Well, Nehemiah was silent no longer. He answered them directly and clearly, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore, we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem” (vs. 20). As we noted earlier,these enemies were not Jews. They were not believers in the living God of Israel. They had no authority to question the people of God for doing what God had blessed them to do nor of their ability to do it. In a word, Nehemiah met the ridicule of the enemy with confidence in God!
With these things said, may I suggest that we prepare ourselves to be mindful of the foes that come against us. These may be people and organizations within our society (flesh and blood) or they may consist of spiritual forces as we mentioned earlier. Whoever and whatever denies the lordship of God and the authority of His Word and ridicules the efforts of His people must be considered our enemies. Those forces did not deter David nor Nehemiah and, by God’s grace, must not stop us.
“The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”
Fr. Andrew
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