Nehemiah 13:1-31
13:1 Fledgling kingdom that it was, they read from the Book of Moses to familiarize themselves with God's commandments and instructions. While reading, they learned of the importance of keeping separate from peoples and institutions that harm rather than heal, hurt rather than help. In Deuteronomy 23:3-4, Ammonites and Moabites were restricted from Israel because of their refusal to help during Israel's time of need in the wilderness.
13:2 The Ammonites and Moabites were given the opportunity to be a haven to a people struggling to survive but rejected it. In reading the book of Moses, they learned what we learn: we may not have the support of anyone around us, but we always have God's support; and He is all we need. God was able to turn their desperation into deliverance; He turned the curses cast against them (Numbers 22-24) into blessings.
Our relationship with God is so powerful. He goes before us; He exists in our periphery; He is behind and around us, he transforms our plights into provision, chaos into order, and fear into peace.
13:3 They read and obeyed. They trusted His counsel over anything, anyone else. We should be willing and even eager to rearrange our life according to God's law and will. We should be grateful that He provides the instruction that delivers us from harm.
13:4-9 Nehemiah entered Jerusalem and discovered corruption. He began an complete spiritual overhaul. Nehemiah cleaned up the evil work of the men before him, namely Eliashib and Tobiah, and restored the house of God. Be someone so connected with God's work that you constantly work to restore His kingdom. It grieved Nehemiah that the kingdom was out of order.
13:10-13 Nehemiah placed faithful men into positions within the temple. He fought to restore what other men had forsaken. This was a spiritual battle; Nehemiah contended not with men but with a principality, Ephesians 6:12. Had the temple not been restored, the people of Israel's spirituality would have quickly fallen into disrepair.
13:14 Like most humble souls, Nehemiah likely thought more of his short-comings than he did his successes. He prayed to God, asking Him to remember the good that he had done. It can sometimes feel as though the bad outweighs the good but God is a champion for our successes. He is a proud parent; He remembers and appreciates our well-intentioned efforts.
13:15-16 Nehemiah restored the Sabbath. God commanded that a day be set aside for spiritual rest and reflection. In our own hectic generation, it is easy to understand why God and His prophets would stress the importance of consistently scheduled rest. From within a busy lifestyle, it becomes more difficult to spend restful, quality time with God. The chaos is a detriment to the health of our spirit. When our spirit is undernourished, the rest of our mind and body suffers.
13:17-18 Everything Nehemiah did for Jerusalem was a courageous effort. He had to fight for spiritual restoration. He had to know the commandments of God well enough to recognize when they were absent from society. Israel badly needed to remain connected with God; their former wayward lifestyle was proof of that.
13:19-20 Nehemiah commanded the gates within the walls around Jerusalem be shut during the entire Sabbath. He posted guards to ensure that they remained closed. With the gates shut, people were forced to cease working and procuring money to focus on other, more important things like God and family.
13:21-22 The merchants were so desperate to make money that they slept outside of the walls. Nehemiah rather aggressively warned them not to do so again. From the beginning, Nehemiah wanted desperately for the people to return sincerely back to God. He wanted them follow the commandments of God out of trust and respect rather than reluctance.
At a certain point in our relationship with God, as it deepens, we understand His "No's" to be blessings. We know that if He tells us to stop or to slow down, it is for our well-being. We begin to have deep gratitude for His every commandment.
Again Nehemiah asked God to remember Him for what he did right. From within the turmoil, Nehemiah needed to be aggressive. Most of the progressive change that he made could happen if He contended with others for change. It is not that God wants us to fight, but He does want us to divide right from wrong, Luke 12:51. The cleaving process is often a messy task, and from within it, Nehemiah asked God to remember that his heart meant well.
13:23-27 The people married outside of their faith; this was especially dangerous because they married pagans and idol worshipers that led them astray. Nehemiah used the example of Solomon, who was the wisest man on earth but still not invulnerable to temptation or corruption. God wants us to choose to join our lives with people who had righteous values, for what and who we bring into our lives is going to determine the quality of our lives.
A marriage is a union. You cannot unite righteousness with unrighteousness, justice with injustice, slavery to sin with freedom in God. Nehemiah was so angry. It was illogical to him that they would so openly disregard God's prudent commandment.
13:28-29 Nehemiah was disturbed by people who defiled the priesthood and the covenant. When our emotion wells up like fire, we must do as Nehemiah did, he asked God to take care of the people/situation that was causing him so much anger and grief. One of our greatest blessings as children of God is to have the supplemental support of our Father in our weak and deficient moments. Sometimes there is nothing we can do, but always there is something He can.
13:30-31 Nehemiah cleansed the temple of pagan and idol worship. He cleansed and organized not just the temple but all of Jerusalem and the wall around it. Nehemiah is known for the wall but the greatest work He did was the reconstruction of the faith of God's people.
