Introduction: Nehemiah had been in Jerusalem long enough for the people living there to begin rebuilding the city walls. Chapter 3 gives an account of the various groups who took part in this rebuilding effort. By now, the enemies of Judah had noticed and were not happy.
1 The Words of the Enemies
Text: Nehemiah 4:1-3, KJV: 1 But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews. 2 And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? 3 Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall.
This passage begins with the words of a few men who were mentioned already in chapter 2. Sanballat, a Horonite. The location is uncertain but Ellicott believed he was from Beth-horon in Ephraim (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/nehemiah/2.htm); Benson believed he was from Horonaim in Moab (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/benson/nehemiah/2.htm). Either way, he had no great desire to see the Jews coming back to Jerusalem (Nehemiah 2:10 and 4:1).
His “servant”, Tobiah, was an Ammonite which was problematic as well. The line of Judah’s kings can be traced back to Rehoboam, whose mother, Naamah, was an Ammonitess (1 Kings 14:31). Because of this marriage, that tribe’s DNA was blended, so to speak, into that of every future king of Judah including the Messiah, Jesus!
But even though these two were in power, and (distantly) related to the Jews, both of them were furious when Nehemiah led the Jews to rebuild the wall. Sanballat, especially, made some almost blustering charges—look at these:
First, he called the Jews “feeble” and wondered, “What are these feeble Jews trying to do?” As I recall, there weren’t too many people left behind in Jerusalem once Babylon had taken the city and force-marched the Jews to Babylon itself. Jeremiah chapters 39 and following describe some of the closing events of Judah’s history at the time. Even with one or two or more groups of Jews returning to Jerusalem, there didn’t seem to be many Jews in the vicinity at the time.
Notice, too, that Sanballat spoke “before the army of Samaria”. Something to keep in mind is that the Samaritans were basically a mixed race of Hebrews, left behind after the Assyrians captured the northern kingdom about 200 years before; and various other ethnic groups from various parts of the then-Assyrian empire. 2 Kings 17 gives a brief account of who had stayed in the north, plus the others who were transported there. One of the strangest evaluations of that entire situation is summed up in one sentence: “They feared the LORD and served their own gods.” I find it odd for one reason in particular—these pagan deities hadn’t helped them when the Assyrians came to town so why keep on worshiping deities who could not protect you?
But to return to “the army of Samaria”: was Sanballat considering military action?
After that, Sanballat asked another question, “Will they fortify themselves?” One obvious answer would be yes! After all, Jerusalem had been a walled city for hundreds of years before the Babylonians destroyed the gates and walls. Solomon might well have had a secured, fortified, city like Jerusalem in mind when he wrote in Proverbs 25:28, ‘He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls”. Besides that, even though Nehemiah had recorded that most if not all the Jews had weapons (Neh. 4:17-18), there didn’t seem to be an organized or standing army, not even a militia or “reserve” unit. I wonder what had happened to the swords, shields, and other weapons that had been constructed back in David’s time and were still in use many years later (2 Kings 11:10, e.g.)
It goes without saying that self-defense is one of the greatest abilities to receive, one of the hardest to maintain, and one which so many, too many, desire to take away. Just look at what’s happened time and again when “gun control” is more or less rigidly enforced against citizens but hardly if ever against criminals. Self-defense should be guaranteed, not optional, in my opinion.
Then he asked another question, “Will they sacrifice?” Part of this may seem to be a legitimate question, as there had been no Temple in 70 years or so. Without a temple, there didn’t seem to be any sacrifices, offerings, or anything else the Jews had done as they worshiped in the Temple. The books of Kings and Chronicles record several times when the Jews did worship, praise, and offer sacrifices. Depending on the chronology, either the Temple had not been built yet or Sanballat was making fun of the Temple which had been recently built.
The book of Ezra records some of the difficulties the returning Jews had in trying to build this second Temple. Government interference, varying emotions between the elders and the youngers, came into play too (see Ezra 3:10-13). Eventually, though, the Temple was finished and sacrifices were once again offered (Ezra 6:16 and following),
Sanballat’s next question is somewhat odd to me, “Will they make an end in a day?” If he meant, will the Jews finish the wall in one day, of course he was sadly mistaken. By this time, though, the walls were about halfway restored or rebuilt (see verse 6) and he may have been surprised by the speed and perhaps quality of the construction. If he meant something else, the text does not give any other indication.
And Sanballat’s last question was possibly an insult: “Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish which are burned?” Here he admits that the Babylonians (would anyone else do this) had burned even the stones—meaning, to me, complete and utter destruction. I don’t know much about geology except for sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks (one of the few things I remember from junior high earth science class). The effect of fire on various forms of rocks or stones—I have no idea.
Sanballat, though, must have been amazed to the point of insulting the Jews for using the very stones, if I read this correctly, that had protected Jerusalem before the Babylonian Captivity. After all, the stones were already there and it’s anybody’s guess where Judah could find comparable stones, let alone pay for materials and shipping! They used what they had, is seems!
As if that wasn’t enough, Tobiah chimed in with an insult of his own, “A fox could break down that wall that they built (paraphrased)!” To be sure, he may have seen some non-professional stone workers rebuilding the walls (take a look at chapter 3 for some of the trades and skills of those who volunteered to build the wall) and wondered if the wall would stand. Another thought is that he was simply agreeing with Sanballat’s opinion and wanted to be “on the same team”, as one might say/
No matter what the enemies had to say, Nehemiah knew he was doing the right thing. And part of doing the right thing is knowing just what to do—and when. Here, it was time for prayer and Nehemiah spoke the words of this third recorded prayer in verses 4 and 5.
2 The words of Nehemiah’s third prayer
Text, Nehemiah 4:4-6, KJV: 4 Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity: 5 And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders. 6 So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work.
Somehow word came to Nehemiah about what Sanballat and Tobiah had to say and, like Hezekiah of before (2 Kings 19:14-19), he prayed to the LORD.
Again, something to keep in mind is that Nehemiah lived during Old Testament days, in the lands of Persia and Israel, and, further, he was under the Law of Moses. Some have thought that this particular prayer seems harsh because he called out for vengeance against his enemies. This transcript of his prayer is just like looking over his shoulder, so to speak, and glimpsing what he wrote in his journal or blog or something. There really isn’t much different here than what is recorded in the Psalms, where the saints prayed for justice because of what the enemy intended to do to the believers, not just Israelites.
In a word, Nehemiah was under a different set of rules than Christians are today. His prayer, here, pleads to God , “our God”, the God of Israel, to hear how the Jews were despised. The words of Sanballat alone are proof of this. The rest of his brief prayer asks for God’s judgment and dare I say protection because Nehemiah knew exactly what the enemies wanted to do.
Admittedly there was more analysis of the words of the enemies than what Nehemiah had to say and that’s because of a few reasons. One, the enemy (not just Sanballat, Tobiah, and all of their followers) had uttered some very serious insults and, worse, had threatened or at least tried to intimidate the Jews from working on the wall. I find it a bit puzzling as to why those who seem to have plenty of protection deny that right and privilege to those who do not.
Nehemiah and the Jews were truly in a bad way, what with having rubble everywhere, broken down walls, burned gates, and I take this to mean they had little if any protection from much of any kind of enemy. When Nehemiah became aware of the enemy’s intentions, as mentioned, he prayed but didn’t stop. The Jews kept on working on the wall and raised it up half way!
Prayer, then as now, worked, but there was still a lot for Nehemiah and the Jews to do. There’s more to the story as we will see in this journey through Nehemiah’s memoirs.
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)
