The walls of the city had lain in ruins since 586 B.C. At that time Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, breached them, entered Jerusalem, burned the temple, carried most of the remaining Jews off to Babylon, and knocked the walls down. Consequently the few Jews who remained could not defend themselves (2 Kings 25:1-11). The returned exiles had attempted to rebuild the walls in or shortly after 458 B.C., but that project failed because of local opposition (Ezra 4:12, 23).
The returned exiles had received permission to return to their land and to reestablish their unique national institutions as much as possible. Therefore they needed to rebuild the city walls to defend themselves against anyone who might want to interfere with and to interrupt their way of life.
Nehemiah was the royal cup-bearer (Greek: oinochoos) at the palace of Shushan. The king, Artaxerxes I (Artaxerxes Longimanus), appears to have been on good terms with his attendant, as evidenced by the extended leave of absence granted him for the restoration of Jerusalem.[2]
Primarily by means of his brother Hanani, (Nehemiah 1:2; 2:3) Nehemiah heard of the mournful and desolate condition of Jerusalem, and was filled with sadness of heart. For many days he fasted and mourned and prayed for the place of his fathers' sepulchres. At length the king observed his sadness of countenance and asked the reason of it. Nehemiah explained this to the king, and obtained his permission to go up to Jerusalem and there to act as tirshatha, or governor of Judea.[3]
Nehemiah's reaction to this bad news was admirable. He made it a subject of serious
prolonged prayer (vv. 4, 11; 2:1). Nehemiah prayed for four months about conditions in Jerusalem before he spoke to Artaxerxes about them (cf. 1:1; 2:1).
Nehemiah 2:17 AMP
Then I said to them, You see the bad situation we are in--how Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates are burned with fire. Come, let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer be a disgrace.
2:18 AMP
Then I told them of the hand of my God which was upon me for good, and also the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, Let us rise up and build! So they strengthened their hands for the good work.
Donald Campbell identified 21 principles of effective leadership that Nehemiah
demonstrated in chapter 2.
"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
BUILDING TIME
Nehemiah 3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest and the other priests started to rebuild at the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and set up its doors, building the wall as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and the Tower of Hananel.
Sheep need feeding not evangelizing. 3 Stages of ministry. Sheep feed best when they know the shepherd is near. They need protection from attacks by wild animals, and from unhealthy influences of wandering sheep. Like sheep people must be protected from false ministries. Sheep also need a personal touch from the shepherd. John 10:3-4 states, “He calleth his own sheep by name”. A shepherd should be a counselor.
3The Fish Gate was built by the sons of Hassenaah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.
Ministry to the unsaved. Only after the people of God are strong and mature that souls can be brought into the kingdom properly. Jesus told his disciples they were going to be fishers of men (Matt. 4:19) God’s sheep can only bear healthy lambs as they are healthy and well-tended. The shepherd does not bear lambs. He only tends and guides the lambs that the sheep naturally bear.
6The Old City Gate[a] was repaired by Joiada son of Paseah and Meshullam son of Besodeiah. They laid the beams, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.
Restoration of foundational doctrines. This gate speaks to us of the foundational priciples of the Church found in Hebrews 6:1-3 So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. 2 You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding.
Acts 2:41 AMP
Therefore those who accepted and welcomed his message were baptized, and there were added that day about 3,000 souls.
The Believers Form a Community
42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper[a]), and to prayer.
These foundational principles are the old truths, as deposited by Jesus Christ and the apostles in the early Church, that never change from generation to generation. After souls (the fish gate) are brought into the kingdom, they must be established on a Christian foundation (the old gate). Proverbs 22:28 states, “Remove not the ancient landmark which thy fathers have set”. New truths will never directly contradict these old truths.
Nehemiah 3:13:
13 The Valley Gate was repaired by the people from Zanoah, led by Hanun. They set up its doors and installed its bolts and bars. They also repaired the 1,500 feet[d] of wall to the Dung Gate.
The Ministry of Compassion. The valley gate can speak to us of the experience of meeting another’s needs. Hanun means to bend or stoop in kindness to help another. After firmly established in the Christian life (the old gate) we should begin to reach out to others in need. Gal. 6:1 When a brother is taken in a fault, you who are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of meekness. Restoring a fallen person must be done by someone who has experienced grace from God in that area. A baby cannot help an older man to walk.
People go through different kinds of valleys. Some are spiritual, mental or emotional. Others are marital, domestic, or financial.
One of the valleys through which God takes all Christians is the valley of death (death to the old flesh).
Another valley is the valley of decision. Joel 3:14:
14 Thousands upon thousands are waiting in the valley of decision.
There the day of the Lord will soon arrive.
Here people must make a decision to follow Christ in every area of their lives.
Isaiah 40:4-5:
4 Fill in the valleys,
and level the mountains and hills.
Straighten the curves,
and smooth out the rough places.
5 Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken!”[a]
Nehemiah 3:14: The ministry of cleansing
14 The Dung Gate was repaired by Malkijah son of Recab, the leader of the Beth-hakkerem district. He rebuilt it, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars.
The purpose of the Dung Gate was to provided the people of the city a means of disposing of their waste and garbage. Getting rid of the bad to prepare the way for the Holy Spirit. Cleansing us even today.
Nehemiah 3:15: The ministry of Refreshing
15 15 The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallum[e] son of Col-hozeh, the leader of the Mizpah district. He rebuilt it, roofed it, set up its doors, and installed its bolts and bars. Then he repaired the wall of the pool of Siloam[f] near the king’s garden, and he rebuilt the wall as far as the stairs that descend from the City of David.
This speaks to us in the ministry of the Holy Spirit in spiritual refreshing and restoration. After people come through the dung gate and throw out all of the garbage from their lives, they must come through the fountain gate where the Word and Spirit can change them. More specifically when a perosn puts off one bad habit, he must put on a new ang good spiritual habit to take its place in his life.
