'Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against
them day and night, because of them. 10. And Judah said, The strength
of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so
that we are not able to build the wall. 11. And our adversaries said,
They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among
them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. 12. And it came to
pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us
ten times, From all places whence ye shall return unto us they will be
upon you. 13. Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and
on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with
their swords, their spears, and their bows. 14. And I looked and rose
up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of
the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is
great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your
daughters, your wives, and your houses. 15. And it came to pass, when
our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their
counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the wall, every one
unto his work. 16. And it came to pass from that time forth, that the
half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them
held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons;
and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. 17. They which
builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that
laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with
the other hand held a weapon. 18. For the builders, every one had his
sword girded by his side, and so builded. And he that sounded the
trumpet was by me. 19. And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers,
and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are
separated upon the wall, one far from another. 20. In what place
therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us:
our God shall fight for us. 21. So we laboured in the work: and half
of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars
appeared.'--Neh. iv. 9-21.
Common hatred has a wonderful power of uniting former foes.
Samaritans, wild Arabs of the desert, Ammonites, and inhabitants of
Ashdod in the Philistine plain would have been brought together for no
noble work, but mischief and malice fused them for a time into one.
God's work is attacked from all sides. Herod and Pilate can shake
hands over their joint antagonism.
This passage paints vividly the discouragements which are apt to dog
all good work, and the courage which refuses to be discouraged, and
conquers by bold persistence. The first verse (v. 9) may stand as a
summary of the whole, though it refers to the preceding, not to the
following, verses. The true way to meet opposition is twofold--prayer
and prudent watchfulness. 'Pray to God, and keep your powder dry,' is
not a bad compendium of the duty of a Christian soldier. The union of
appeal to God with the full use of common sense, watchfulness, and
prudence, would dissipate many hindrances to successful service.
I. In verses 10-12 Nehemiah tells, in his simple way, of the
difficulties from three several quarters which threatened to stop his
work. He had trouble from the workmen, from the enemies, and from the
mass of Jews not resident in Jerusalem. The enthusiasm of the builders
had cooled, and the magnitude of their task began to frighten them.
Verse 6 tells us that the wall was completed 'unto the half of it';
that is, to one-half the height, and half-way through is just the
critical time in all protracted work. The fervour of beginning has
passed; the animation from seeing the end at hand has not sprung up.
There is a dreary stretch in the centre, where it takes much faith and
self-command to plod on unfainting. Half-way to Australia from England
is the region of sickening calms. It is easier to work in the fresh
morning or in the cool evening than at midday. So in every great
movement there are short-winded people who sit down and pant very
soon, and their prudence croaks out undeniable facts. No doubt
strength does become exhausted; no doubt there is 'much rubbish'
(literally 'dust'). What then? The conclusion drawn is not so
unquestionable as the premises. 'We cannot build the wall' Why not?
Have you not built half of it? And was not the first half more
embarrassed by rubbish than the second will be?
It is a great piece of Christian duty to recognise difficulties, and
not be cowed by them. The true inference from the facts would have
been, 'so that we must put all our strength into the work, and trust
in our God to help us.' We may not be responsible for discouragements
suggesting themselves, but we are responsible for letting them become
dissuasives. Our one question should be, Has God appointed the work?
If so, it has to be done, however little our strength, and however
mountainous the accumulations of rubbish.
The second part in the trio was taken by the enemies--Sanballat and
Tobiah and the rest. They laid their plans for a sudden swoop down on
Jerusalem, and calculated that, if they could surprise the builders at
their work, they would have no weapons to show fight with, and so
would be easily despatched. Killing the builders was but a means; the
desired end is significantly put last (v. 11), as being the stopping
of the abhorred work. But killing the workmen does not cause the work
to cease when it is God's work, as the history of the Church in all
ages shows. Conspirators should hold their tongues. It was not a
hopeful way of beginning an attack, of which the essence was secrecy
and suddenness, to talk about it. 'A bird of the air carries the
matter.'
The third voice is that of the Jews in other parts of the land, and
especially those living on the borders of Samaria, next door to
Sanballat. Verse 12 is probably best taken as in the Revised Version,
which makes 'Ye must return to us' the imperative and often-repeated
summons from these to the contingents from their respective places of
abode, who had gone up to Jerusalem to help in building. Alarms of
invasion made the scattered villagers wish to have all their men
capable of bearing arms back again to defend their own homes. It was a
most natural demand, but in this case, as so often, audacity is truest
prudence; and in all high causes there come times when men have to
trust their homes and dear ones to God's protection. The necessity is
heartrending, and we may well pray that we may not be exposed to it;
but if it clearly arises, a devout man can have no doubt of his duty.
How many American citizens had to face it in the great Civil War! And
how character is ennobled by even so severe a sacrifice!
II. The calm heroism of Nehemiah and his wise action in the emergency
are told in verses 13-15. He made a demonstration in force, which at
once showed that the scheme of a surprise was blown to pieces. It is
difficult to make out the exact localities in which he planted his
men. 'The lower places behind the wall' probably means the points at
which the new fortifications were lowest, which would be the most
exposed to assault; and the 'higher places' (Auth. Ver.), or 'open
places' (Rev. Ver.), describes the same places from another point of
view. They afforded room for posting troops because they were without
buildings. At any rate, the walls were manned, and the enemy would
have to deal, not with unarmed labourers, but with prepared soldiers.
The work was stopped, and trowel and spade exchanged for sword and
spear. 'And I looked,' says Nehemiah. His careful eye travelled over
the lines, and, seeing all in order, he cheered the little army with
ringing words. He had prayed (Neh. i. 5) to 'the great and terrible
God,' and now he bids his men remember Him, and thence draw strength
and courage. The only real antagonist of fear is faith. If we can
grasp God, we shall not dread Sanballat and his crew. Unless we do,
the world is full of dangers which it is not folly to fear.
Note, too, that the people are animated for the fight by reminding
them of the dear ones whose lives and honour hung on the issue.
Nothing is said about fighting for God and His Temple and city, but
the motives adduced are not less sacred. Family love is God's best of
earthly gifts, and, though it is sometimes duty to 'forget thine own
people, and thy father's house,' as we have just seen, nothing short
of these highest obligations can supersede the sweet one of straining
every nerve for the well-being of dear ones in the hallowed circle of
home.
So the plan of a sudden rush came to nothing. It does not appear that
the enemy was in sight; but the news of the demonstration soon reached
them, and was effectual. Prompt preparation against possible dangers
is often the means of turning them aside. Watchfulness is
indispensable to vigour of Christian character and efficiency of work.
Suspicion is hateful and weakening; but a man who tries to serve God
in such a world as this had need to be like the living creatures in
the Revelation, having 'eyes all over.' 'Blessed is the man that [in
that sense] feareth always.'
The upshot of the alarm is very beautifully told: 'We returned all of
us to the wall, every one unto his work.' No time was wasted in
jubilation. The work was the main thing, and the moment the
interruption was ended, back to it they all went. It is a fine
illustration of persistent discharge of duty, and of that most
valuable quality, the ability and inclination to keep up the main
purpose of a life continuous through interruptions, like a stream of
sweet water running through a bog.
III. The remainder of the passage tells us of the standing
arrangements made in consequence of the alarm (vs. 16-21). First we
hear what Nehemiah did with his own special 'servants,' whether these
were slaves who had accompanied him from Shushan (as Stanley
supposes), or his body-guard as a Persian official. He divided them
into two parts--one to work, one to watch. But he did not carry out
this plan with the mass of the people, probably because it would have
too largely diminished the number of builders. So he armed them all.
The labourers who carried stones, mortar, and the like, could do their
work after a fashion with one hand, and so they had a weapon in the
other. If they worked in pairs, that would be all the easier. The
actual builders needed both hands, and so they had swords stuck in
their girdles. No doubt such arrangements hindered progress, but they
were necessary. The lesson often drawn from them is no doubt true,
that God's workers must be prepared for warfare as well as building.
There have been epochs in which that necessity was realised in a very
sad manner; and the Church on earth will always have to be the Church
militant. But it is well to remember that building is the end, and
fighting is but the means. The trowel, not the sword, is the natural
instrument. Controversy is second best--a necessity, no doubt, but an
unwelcome one, and only permissible as a subsidiary help to doing the
true work, rearing the walls of the city of God.
'He that soundeth the trumpet was by me.' The gallant leader was
everywhere, animating by his presence. He meant to be in the thick of
the fight, if it should come. And so he kept the trumpeter by his
side, and gave orders that when he sounded all should hurry to the
place; for there the enemy would be, and Nehemiah would be where they
were. 'The work is great and large, and we are separated ... one far
from another.' How naturally the words lend themselves to the old
lesson so often drawn from them! God's servants are widely parted, by
distance, by time, and, alas! by less justifiable causes. Unless they
draw together they will be overwhelmed, taken in detail, and crushed.
They must rally to help each other against the common foe.
Thank God! the longing for manifest Christian unity is deeper to-day
than ever it was. But much remains to be done before it is adequately
fulfilled in the recognition of the common bond of brotherhood, which
binds us all in one family, if we have one Father. English and
American Christians are bound to seek the tightening of the bonds
between them and to set themselves against politicians who may seek to
keep apart those who both in the flesh and in the spirit are brothers.
All Christians have one great Captain; and He will be in the forefront
of every battle. His clear trumpet-call should gather all His servants
to His side.
The closing verse tells again how Nehemiah's immediate dependants
divided work and watching, and adds to the picture the continuousness
of their toil from the first grey of morning till darkness showed the
stars and ended another day of toil. Happy they who thus 'from morn
till noon, from noon till dewy eve,' labour in the work of the Lord!
For them, every new morning will dawn with new strength, and every
evening be calm with the consciousness of 'something attempted,
something done.'