When you hear of divorce, death, destruction, disease.....how do you react? Sometimes terrible news comes as a shock to us at first, but when the news settles in our hearts and minds, what is our first action? Our heart should break for such things, first and foremost....these things entered the world right along with sin. Sure, there are times when we "have to be tough" and fight the battle around us for a time. Eventually, though we put our heavy swords down....and run to Daddy, after all the warrior is still a child. Nehemiah received heart-breaking news.....
It's interesting to me that the name Nehemiah means, "The LORD has compassion." When Nehemiah asked his brother, Hanani, about the Israelites who had been released from captivity and returned to Jerusalem, he received a grave report. His people were living in despair and among destruction in the ruins of their once great city, and his heart broke for the circumstance. It is here that Nehemiah reminds me of our man Ezra when he heard of the intermarrying issues with the priests, they both took their overwhelming grief to the Lord in prayer and fasting on behalf of their people. Nehemiah pleads with God, based on His lovingkindness and asks for His mercy. He confesses the sins of the people (lumping himself right in there with them) and agrees with the justice of the God they serve. What a leader!
It's evident to me that the work continues even after the victory is won. I thought the specific order for the city gates to remain closed until later in the day (rather than opening at sunrise) must have been because of the constant threat of enemy attack. This is also evidenced by the order for guards to be placed along the walls and in front of individual homes. Everyone had a job to do while they were rebuilding the walls, and even when it was done there was also work to be done in protecting the walls. There's a sermon in that, ladies!!! How often do we achieve our goal and just quit working? I'm not just talking about weight-loss either, hahahaaa! We become complacent and forget that the work continues, losing the precious ground we have worked so hard to gain.
It's remarkable to me how the people of God are asked over and again to record their names and genealogy. He has a promise to keep, you know! Apparently there were some issues with the priests being accounted for more than once in this story. And, there were also issues of people claiming Israelite priesthood heritage, but their claims were un-founded and could not be proven. How sad. God went to great lengths to record the birth-lines of Christ, and at first glance it seems monotonous and boring but I think we can all say we have learned from the "boring" verses, too. They are just as God-breathed as our favorites.
It's neat to me how the book of Nehemiah begins with the Hanani report, and the rebuilding of the walls in Jerusalem, and we find in this chapter that Hanani is asked to rule within those very walls which were rebuilt. Things in life tend to come full circle, don't they?
Press on.
