Note: The blue parentheses below are my additions.
1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month Chislev (Nov-Dec) in the twentieth year (of Persian King Artaxerxes - 445-444 B.C.), while I was in Susa the (winter) capitol (of Persia),
2 that Hanani, one of my brothers, and some men from Judah came; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped and had survived the captivity, and about Jerusalem.
3 They said to me, "The remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its gates are burned with fire."
4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.
Some general background - read on - this is exciting stuff!
The 10 Northern Tribes (Israel) were taken into captivity by Assyria in 722 B.C. Babylon became the big dog by defeating Assyria. Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, took the 2 Southern Tribes (Judah) into captivity in 3 waves from 605 B.C. through 586 B.C. It was in 586 B.C. that Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed as the last of the 3 waves was taken away. Babylon fell to the Medes and Persians in 539 B.C.
Now, watch the amazing things our Almighty God did!
In 538 B.C. God stirred King Cyrus' (the Median King) spirit to issue a decree that basically said God had appointed Cyrus to build Him a house in Jerusalem which is in Judah. So, Cyrus allowed the Jew, who wished to return to Judah to build the Temple. Zerubbabel led the group back to Jerusalem where the Temple foundation was rebuilt. However, the enemies of the Jews agitated and the work on the Temple itself ceased in 534 B.C. In 520 B.C. the Persian King Darius I (a couple of kings after Cyrus) checked past decrees and issued his own decree that work should proceed. Amazingly, Darius also decreed that the "neighbors" were to leave the Jews alone as they built the Temple. And, even more amazing, Darius decreed that the cost of building this Temple to the Jewish God Yahweh was to come from the Persian royal treasury. Just points out how amazing God is that he can stir a pagan king's heart! So, the Temple was completed in 516 B.C.
Now, back to Nehemiah - jump ahead to 445-444 B.C.
When Nehemiah hears that the Jews had not rebuilt the walls around Jerusalem and the state of Jerusalem was dismal, he was heartbroken. The walls protected the city and if they were broken down, there was no protection.
Nehemiah had a key role in the court of Artaxerxes - he was the king's cup bearer which meant he tasted everything before the king ate or drank it. That meant if the food or drink was poisoned, bye bye Nehemiah. Actually, the cup bearer also had a bigger function. He was very close to the king and had a lot of responsibilities.
Nehemiah was so heartbroken over the state of Jerusalem that he wanted to go there and help fix things. So, what did he do? Did he run out on the King and hit the road for Jerusalem? Heck no! Nehemiah was a wonderful strategist, planner and leader. And, he trusted completely in God. He prayed for FOUR months before he requested that the king would allow him to go help Jerusalem. And, God was completely faithful to Nehemiah through the whole thing. Artaxerxes allowed Nehemiah to travel to Jerusalem and sent him with soldiers to keep him safe and letters so he could pass safely through the territories and obtain lumber for the city gates.
So, Nehemiah headed to Jerusalem where he consistently involved God in all his plans and, despite many attempts by the "enemies" to thwart the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem, Nehemiah beautifully led the Jews as they worked on the city wall despite the opposition.
Needless to say, the wall was completed - actually, it was completed in 52 days! Wow! Here is a drawing of the wall area that needed rebuilding. Remember - 52 days!
OK, I guess that's enough to either excite you to read the book of Nehemiah (and perhaps Ezra and Haggai as well since they expand on the "background" I included). I have to say I really really adore Nehemiah. What a great leader and lover of God.
In Dr. Donald L. Constable's "Notes on Nehemiah" 2010 Edition he quotes Donald Campbell (Donald K. Campbell, Nehemiah: Man in Charge, p. 23.) as he lists the 21 principles of effective leadership that Nehemiah demonstrated in chapter 2. I am including them here because, if you are in management or as a non-manager you have to get a group of people to work on a project together, these are excellent principles to exhibit.
"He established a reasonable and attainable goal
He had a sense of mission
He was willing to get involved
He rearranged his priorities in order to accomplish his goal
He patiently waited for God's timing
He showed respect to his superior
He prayed at crucial times
He made his request with tact and graciousness
He was well prepared and thought of his needs in advance
He went through proper channels
He took time (three days) to rest, pray, and plan
He investigated the situation firsthand
He informed others only after he knew the size of the problem
He identified himself as one with the people
He set before them a reasonable and attainable goal
He assured them God was in the project
He displayed self-confidence in facing obstacles
He displayed God's confidence in facing obstacles
He did not argue with opponents
He was not discouraged by opposition
He courageously used the authority of his position."
All you who know more about this than I - if I got any of this really wrong, feel free to correct me. :-)
Blessings,
Mary
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