Nehemiah Determines to Rebuild The Wall

Nehemiah 2:9–20
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Even though Nehemiah took the shortest route possible, the journey to Jerusalem would have taken at least two months. The king appointed captains and horsemen to go with him, both for his protection and to show that he was a man who had the king’s stamp of approval (v. 9). As soon as Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem he began to face opposition (v. 10). Two of his strongest opponents were Sanballet and Tobiah. Sanballet was governor of Samaria and Tobiah was probably governor of Transjordan, which was under Persian rule. They immediately began to plan how they could stop Nehemiah from achieving his goal. A rebuilt Jerusalem would be a threat to the authority of the Samaritan officials who had been in charge of the land since Judah’s exile.

However, Nehemiah’s determination to rebuild the wall was not dampened. He knew that God had brought him to this moment in Israel’s history and he was about to tackle a project that others, for almost 100 years before him, had been unable to complete. Nehemiah demonstrated an excellent approach to problem solving. He first of all took three days; presumably to think and pray (v 11).  Then he made a careful survey of the walls to see what problems he might face. He kept his mission a secret as he surveyed the walls by moonlight to prevent his enemies from being alerted to his plans (vv 12-16). Also, a premature announcement could have caused rivalry among the Jews as to the best way to proceed.

After developing a workable plan to rebuild the walls he shared his vision with enthusiasm and challenged the Jerusalem leaders to rebuild the wall (vv 17-18). Immediately Sanballet and Tobiah labeled this project as rebellion against the king (v. 19). But Nehemiah was ready for their attack and stated that the God of heaven would help them succeed (v. 20).

Application

When I attempt to do a work for God, I can expect some will oppose me. Knowing God is behind me, as He was with Nehemiah, I just need to plan to move ahead in the face of opposition.