The Pulpit Commentary — Nehemiah — Section 68

Yers. 1-16.-.The temptatwns of earMSt moral life and service. I. THE WAY IN WHICH THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF EARNEST MORAL LIFE AND SERVICE ARE MADE KNOWN TO 'lncK~m MEN. "Now it came to pa~s, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein" (ver. 1). Christian life and service will make them- selves known-1. Naturally. The finished walls must be seen. 2. Influentiu.lly. The rising walls affect other peoples ; Christian life reveals itself in the more.I influence it v.'":ields. 3. Rumour. The enemies of the good soon hear of the wu.ll that has been built. 4. Vigilance. The wicked watcl1 the activities of the good. The service of the good man must be thorough ; there must be no " breach " left m it, though oftentime it is incomplete; its "doors" are not set upon the gates (ver. 1). Piety, truth, earnest toil cannot be hid. II. THE WAY IN WHICH EARNEST MORAL LIFE AND SEBVICE ARE SURE TO BE TEMPTED DY WICKED MEN. '.file temptations to which Nehemiah was exposed were-1. Subtle. '' Come, let us meet together" (ver. 2). 2. Persistent. " Yet they sent unto me four times " (ver. 4). 3. Intimidating. " The fifth time with an open letter in his hand" (,·er. 5). 4. Calumniatory. "That thou and the Jews think to rebel;" "That thou mayest be their king" (ver. 6). 5. Allied. A faithless prophet lends himself to the cause of the enemy (vers. 10-13). III. THE WAY IN WHICH EARNEST MORAL LIFE AND SERVICE MUST MEET TEMPTATION, 1. With discernment. "But they thought to do me mischief" (ver. 2). 2. With industry. "I am doing a great work" (ver. 3). 3. With determination. "And I answered them after the same manner" (ver. 4). 4. With exposure. "But thou feignest them out of thine own heart." 5. With prayer. "Now therefore, 0 God, strengthen my hands" (ver. 9). 6. With courage. "Should such a man as I flee? " 'ver. 11). JV. THE WAY IN WHICH EARNEST MORAL LIFE AND SERVICE COMPLETE THEIR TASK "OTWITHSTANDING SEVERE TRIAL. "So the wall was finished" (ver. 15). 1. The end of the task. " So the wall was finished." 2. The time of the task. " In fifty and two days." 3. The effect of the task. " Were very much cast down in their own eyes." 4. The praise of the task. That it was completed under such difficult circumstances.-E. Vers. 10-19.-Trial and vu:tory. Defeated again, the enemy has recourse to other schemes. It would be interesting to know what were the expectations with which Nehemiah set out from Susa to enter upon the work before him. If we could tell what was then in his mind, we should probably find there anticipations very un- like indeed to his actual experie;ces. Probably, if he could have foreseen his difficulties, he might have shrunk from the task. Happily we do not foresee the perplexities of Christian toil ; seen as by a prophetic glance, they would overwhelm us ; but coming upon us one by one, they can be met bravely, and conquered success- fully. We look now at- I. THE TRIAL OF FAITH IN THE WORK OF Goo. 1. Their former plots failing, another yet more subtle is tried. Sanballat and Tobiah induce a prophet, Shemaiah lver. 10), and a prophetess, Noa.diah (ver. 14), to urge Nehemiah to take re_fuge fro'!! ussassination in the temple; to hide himself unlawfully, lest he should be smitten at his post of duty; in fact, "to be afraid, and sin," and thus give occasion for "an ~vii report, that they might reproach" him (ver. 13). The insidiousness of the temptation may be gathered from the words of indignation in which Nehemia~ invokes the Divine reprobation on the guilty tempters (ver. 14). But, 2. Nehemiah is yet further tried. His own people are keeping up a correspondence with the enemy._ Nobles of Judah are writing to and hearing from Tobiah (ver. 17). A dangerous alliance led to intimacy to perversion, to conspiracy (ver. 18). These men who should have been tlie first ~nd the strongest to help are those who come to hinder; praising the ~an who was doing his utmost to overturn and ruin everything (ver. 19), and c_arrymg back to the tnewy the words of the governor (ver. 19). When we are dowg our OB. VI, 1-19,] THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. 71