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Pastor Theresa Noschese

The Masters Hand Christian Fellowship

Love of God • Sermon • Submitted a year ago • Presented a year ago • 1:17:09

Nehemiah 1:1–4

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The Call of Nehemiah

I was in Shushan the Palace

Nehemiah 1:1 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 1:1 KJV 1900

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,

1 THE words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace,

In the Palace vs 1

Fourteen years after the return of Ezra to Jerusalem, Nehemiah led up a company (b.c. 444)

The commissions previously given to Zerubbabel and Ezra extending only to the repair of the temple and private dwellings, the walls and gates of the city had been allowed to remain a mass of shattered ruins, as they had been laid by the Chaldean siege.1

1 Jamieson, Robert, et al. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997, p. 294.

In the month Chisleu (9th month).

in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king.

I was in Shushan the palace1d

From the time of Cyrus it was the favorite winter residence of the Persian kings1

1 Jamieson, Robert, et al. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997, p. 294.

d Esth. 1:2, 5. & 2:3. 5, 8. & 3:15. & 4:16. & 8:14, 15. & 9:6, 11, 12, 15. Dan. 8:2. (Esth. 11:3. & 16:18). So Ezra 4:9.

e e See 1 Chr. 29:1.

1 The Holy Bible: King James Version. Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009, p. Ne 1:1.

I asked them concerning the Jews

that had escaped, … and Jerusalem Nehemiah 1:2 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 1:2 KJV 1900

2 That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.

I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, … and Jerusalem vs 2

They are in Great Affliction and Reproach

Nehemiah 1:3 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 1:3 KJV 1900

3 And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

vs 4 suggests this was a recent development

There had been opposition to the work of Ezra (see Ezr 4:9–16).

The CSB translation of the verbs here, has been broken down … have been burned, reinforces this understanding of the passage.1CSB

I sat down and wept

Nehemiah 1:4 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 1:4 KJV 1900

4 And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,

1:4 Nehemiah’s response was like that of his predecessor, Ezra (Ezr 9:3–5), who humbled himself before God11 Anderson, Carl R. “Nehemiah.” CSB Study Bible: Notes, edited by Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax, Holman Bible Publishers, 2017, p. 720.

for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed

Nehemiah responded to this bad news the same way Ezra did when he heard discouraging news (Ezra 9:3–5). His extended fasting, mourning, and praying displayed his deep feeling of distress and agony.11 Smith, Gary V. Ezra-Nehemiah & Esther. Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2010, p. 104.

Ezra’s Prayer

Ezra 9:3–15 (KJV 1900)

Ezra 9:3–15 KJV 1900

3 And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down astonied. 4 Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the transgression of those that had been carried away; and I sat astonied until the evening sacrifice. 5 And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness; and having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the Lord my God, 6 And said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens. 7 Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to confusion of face, as it is this day. 8 And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage. 9 For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem. 10 And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? for we have forsaken thy commandments, 11 Which thou hast commanded by thy servants the prophets, saying, The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleanness. 12 Now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their wealth for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever. 13 And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance as this; 14 Should we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity with the people of these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor escaping? 15 O Lord God of Israel, thou art righteous: for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before thee in our trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because of this.

Nehemiah prays

Nehemiah 1:5–6 (KJV 1900)

5 And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: 6 Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father’s house have sinned.

He had been living the life of luxury in the palace, yet now, is feeling the full weight of the loss his nation and people had suffered. They were no longer an independent nation.

Nehemiah 1:7–9 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 1:7–9 KJV 1900

7 We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses. 8 Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations: 9 But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.

7 We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.

8 Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations:

9 But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence,

and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.

He confesses the sin of his people.

Nehemiah 1:10–11 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 1:10–11 KJV 1900

10 Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. 11 O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king’s cupbearer.

These are still God’s people, and

He asks God for mercy.

Nehemiah Comes Before the King

I had not been beforetime sad in his presence Nehemiah 2:1 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:1 KJV 1900

1 And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.

This was 3 to 4 months, about 120 days.

Nehemiah's heart was broken over the situation of his people.

Why is your countenance sad Nehemiah 2:2 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:2 KJV 1900

2 Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid,

King live forever Nehemiah 2:3 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:3 KJV 1900

3 And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?

First, Nehemiah reaffirmed his respect and loyalty to the king with the customary greeting, “Long live the king” (cf. Dan 2:4).

He wanted to ease the king’s fear by communicating that he was still completely loyal to the king.1

Second, he knew that Persian rulers went to great expense building tombs for their ancestors so he added, the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste,

What is your request

Nehemiah 2:4 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:4 KJV 1900

4 Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven.

Nehemiah 2:5 (KJV 1900)

5 And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it.

Send Me

to Judah, unto the city of my fathers.

Nehemiah 2:6 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:6 KJV 1900

6 And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.

The setting in this verse has surprising characteristics—the queen was not usually invited to Persian banquets to eat with the king and his officials (Esth 1:3, 9). At some public events (Dan 5:2) women were invited. However, if she was not invited this may imply that the conversation in 2:6–8 took place some time later in a more private area

(Myers 1965:98). 11 Smith, Gary V. Ezra-Nehemiah & Esther. Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2010, p. 110.

How long will you be gone?

The king wanted a definite commitment of time from Nehemiah; he was not going to write a blank check or free Nehemiah completely from his royal responsibilities. Unfortunately, Nehemiah did not record his answer to the king’s question, so we do not know how long he suggested. No doubt he gave the king a reasonable estimate of how long it might take to build the walls and repair the gates of Jerusalem. It is unlikely that the king would have approved of a 12-year mission to Jerusalem (5:14 indicates that Nehemiah ended up staying that long), so Kidner (1979:81) suggests that Nehemiah likely gave a short period of time and then reported back to the king after the walls were completed (in less than a year). The king perhaps then renewed his stay as governor for additional years because he was doing so well.11 Smith, Gary V. Ezra-Nehemiah & Esther. Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2010, p. 110.

Nehemiah 2:7 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:7 KJV 1900

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;

Give Me Letters 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).11 Jamieson, Robert, et al. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997, p. 295.

Nehemiah 2:8 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:8 KJV 1900

8 And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.

And a Letter to the King’s Land Reserve

The location of this park or forest is unclear. Since Asaph is a Hebrew name, it may refer to a forest within Israel such as Solomon’s Garden at Etham, about six miles south of Jerusalem. It may also refer to a forest in Lebanon, a region famed for its magnificent cedar trees (see note on Isa 14:8). King Cyrus previously allowed for the importation of cedars from Lebanon to rebuild the temple (Ezra 3:7). However, the relative cost of importing the cedars from Lebanon—especially for the task of building city walls—makes this alternative unlikely.

the gates of Wooden gates allowed easy access into the city. Stone gates would have been much too heavy to open and close on a regular basis.

the walls of the city While most of the city wall was likely made of stone and brick, wood was needed for placement and support.

gave permission to me Artaxerxes may have allowed the return to ensure that Judah remained loyal to the Persians. The land of Judah presented a natural buffer against the many rebellions in the western portion of the empire, assuming it stayed loyal to the Persians. From a political standpoint, it was imperative that the Persians retain loyalties in the Judaean region. With someone as trusted as Nehemiah as the governor of the territory, the king could feel relatively secure that Judah would not join the occasional uprisings. Regardless of the Persian king’s reasoning, Nehemiah attributes his success to God.1

1 Barry, John D., et al. Faithlife Study Bible. Lexham Press, 2012, 2016, p. Ne 2:8.

Nehemiah 2:9 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:9 KJV 1900

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.

I Came to the Governors

The amount of time between the events of Neh 2:8 and 2:9 was long enough for Nehemiah to gather supplies and make the long journey from Susa to Jerusalem. Nehemiah probably arrived in Jerusalem in the late summer of 444 bc.1

1 Barry, John D., et al. Faithlife Study Bible. Lexham Press, 2012, 2016, p. Ne 2:9.

And He Sent Army Officers and Horsemen to Protect Me

Nehemiah’s acceptance of an armed government escort is not a sign of weak faith and should not be negatively compared to Ezra’s refusal to request military protection (Ezra 8:21–22). We have no record of Nehemiah requesting troops (it was probably standard procedure for a governor to have troops to enforce the king’s will—see Blenkinsopp 1988:216), but he accepted what the king sent while recognizing that all his success was based on God’s gracious and powerful direction of his life.1

Nehemiah’s Enemies are Seen

Nehemiah 2:10 (KJV 1900)

Nehemiah 2:10 KJV 1900

10 When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, heard of it, it grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel.

Once the surrounding officials heard the king’s orders, they were angry because this new leader coming to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem would give the city greater independence and security, which might reduce their power. This new status for Jerusalem would change the balance of political power in favor of the Jewish people.1

Finally, the appearance of opposition to what God was doing (2:9–10) should not be unexpected or always used as a tool to identify “closed doors.” Although opposition can be garbed in political undertones and involve a great deal of anger, God’s servants should not allow opposition to sidetrack them from doing what they know is the will of God. 1

The Road to Salvation

1. None is Righteous

As it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;

Romans 3:10–11 KJV 1900

10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

2. All Have Sinned

Romans 3:23 KJV 1900

23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

3. But God Shows His Love for us

Romans 5:8 KJV 1900

8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us.

4. Sin Came in Through One

Romans 5:12 KJV 1900

12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through

sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—

5. The Wages of Sin is Death

Romans 6:23 KJV 1900

23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ

Jesus our Lord.

6. If You Confess Your Mouth that Jesus is Lord

Romans 10:9–11 KJV 1900

9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your

heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart

one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”

7. Everyone who Calls on the Name of the Lord

Romans 10:13 KJV 1900

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans Road lays out the plan of salvation through a series of Bible verses

from the book of Romans. When arranged in order, these verses form an easy,

systematic way of explaining the message of salvation. There are many different

versions of Romans Road with slight variations in Scriptures, but the basic

message and method is the same. Many evangelical missionaries, evangelists

and lay people memorize and use Romans Road when sharing the good news.

This Path to Salvation Clearly Defines:

1 Who needs salvation

2. Why we need salvation.

3. How God provides salvation.

4. How we receive salvation.

And What is Salvation?

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