Nehemiah 13

112:46 2Chr 29:30

Nehemiah’s Various Reforms

1 On that same day, as the Book of Moses was being read to the people, the passage was found that said no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be permitted to enter the assembly of God.* 2For they had not provided the Israelites with food and water in the wilderness. Instead, they hired Balaam to curse them, though our God turned the curse into a blessing. 3When this passage of the Law was read, all those of foreign descent were immediately excluded from the assembly. 4Before this had happened, Eliashib the priest, who had been appointed as supervisor of the storerooms of the Temple of our God and who was also a relative of Tobiah, 5had converted a large storage room and placed it at Tobiah’s disposal. The room had previously been used for storing the grain offerings, the frankincense, various articles for the Temple, and the tithes of grain, new wine, and olive oil (which were prescribed for the Levites, the singers, and the gatekeepers), as well as the offerings for the priests. 6I was not in Jerusalem at that time, for I had returned to King Artaxerxes of Babylon in the thirty-second year of his reign,* though I later asked his permission to return. 7When I arrived back in Jerusalem, I learned about Eliashib’s evil deed in providing Tobiah with a room in the courtyards of the Temple of God. 8I became very upset and threw all of Tobiah’s belongings out of the room. 9Then I demanded that the rooms be purified, and I brought back the articles for God’s Temple, the grain offerings, and the frankincense. 10} also discovered that the Levites had not been given their prescribed portions of food, so they and the singers who were to conduct the worship services had all returned to work their fields. 111 immediately confronted the leaders and demanded, 11Why has the Temple of God been neglected?” Then I called all the Levites back again and restored them to their proper duties. 12And once more all the people of Judah began bringing their tithes of grain, new wine, and olive oil to the Temple storerooms. 13I assigned supervisors for the storerooms: Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah, one of the Levites. And J appointed Hanan son of Zaccur and grandson of Mattaniah as their assistant. These men had an excellent reputation, and it was their job to make honest distributions to their fellow Levites. “4Remember this good deed, O my God, and do not forget all that I have faithfully done for the Temple of my God and its services. 18In those days I saw men of Judah treading out their winepresses on the Sabbath. They were also bringing in grain, loading it on donkeys, and bringing their wine, grapes, figs, and all sorts of produce to Jerusalem to sell on the Sabbath. So I rebuked them for selling their produce on that day. ©Some men from Tyre, who lived in Jerusalem, were bringing in fish and all kinds of merchandise. They were selling it on the Sabbath to the people of Judah— and in Jerusalem at that! 17So I confronted the nobles of Judah. “Why are you profaning the Sabbath in this evil way?” Iasked. 18“ Wasn't it just this sort of thing that your ancestors did that caused our God to bring all this trouble upon us and our city? Now you are bringing even more wrath upon Israel by permitting the Sabbath to be desecrated in this way!” 18Then I commanded that the gates of Jerusalem should be shut as darkness fell every Friday evening,* not to be opened until the Sabbath ended. I sent some of my own servants to guard the gates so that no merchandise could be brought in on the Sabbath day. 20The merchants and tradesmen with a variety of wares camped outside Jerusalem once or twice. 21But I spoke sharply to them and said, “What are you doing out here, camping around the wall? If you do this again, I will arrest you!” And that was the last time they came on the Sabbath. 2? Then I commanded the Levites to purify themselves and to guard the gates in order to preserve the holiness of the Sabbath. Remember this good deed also, O my God! Have compassion on me according to your great and unfailing love. 23About the same time I realized that some of the men of Judah had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. 24Furthermore, half their children spoke the language of Ashdod or of some other people and could not speak the language of Judah at all. 25So ] confronted them and called down curses on them. I beat some of them and pulled out their hair. I made them swear in the name of God that they would not let their children intermarry with the pagan people of the land. 26“ Wasn't this exactly what led King Solomon of Israel into sin?” I demanded. “There was no king from any nation who could compare to him, and God loved him and made him king over all Israel. But even he was led into sin by his foreign wives. 27How could you even think of committing this sinful deed and acting unfaithfully toward God by marrying foreign women?” 28One of the sons of Joiada son of Eliashib the high priest had married a daughter of Sanballat the Horonite, so I banished him from my presence. 29Remember them, O my God, for they have defiled the priesthood and the solemn vows of the priests and Levites.

30So I purged out everything foreign and assigned tasks to the priests and Levites, makingcertain that each knew his work. 3! also made sure that the supply of wood for the altar andthe first portions of the harvest were brought at the proper times.Remember this in my favor, O my God.13:31 “Remember this in my favor” means “look favorably uponme for all that I have done.”43:31 Nehemiah’s life story provides many principles of effec-tive leadership that are still valid today: (1) Have a clear purposeand keep evaluating it in light of God's will. Nothing preventedNehemiah from staying on track. (2) Be straightforward andhonest. Everyone knew exactly what Nehemiah needed, and hespoke the truth even when it made his goal harder to achieve.(3) Live above reproach. The accusations against Nehemiah wereempty and false. (4) Be a person of constant prayer, derivingpower and wisdom from your contact with God. EverythingNehemiah did glorified God.Leadership appears glamorous at times, but it is often lonely,thankless, and filled with pressures to compromise values andstandards. Nehemiah was able to accomplish a huge task againstincredible odds because he learned that there is no success with-out risk of failure, no reward without hard work, no opportunitywithout criticism, and no true leadership without trust in God.This book is about rebuilding the wail of a great city, but it is alsoabout spiritual renewal, rebuilding a people's dependence on God.When we take our eyes off God, our lives begin to crumble.