Nehemiah 3
Sunday Morning Bible Study
Building the walls
For a city to grow and thrive in the ancient world there was a need for protection.
Whether it was from thieves or an invading army, the chief method of protection was by building walls around your city.
King Cyrus made a decree in 538 BC for the Jews to return to their
homeland, and by 535 BC a group of 50,000 Jews had returned. They began by starting to rebuild the Temple Jerusalem
that the neighboring nations did a
great deal of mischief to the Jews, while in the daytime they overran the
country and pillaged it, and in the night did them mischief, insomuch that not
a few were led away captive out of the country, and out of Jerusalem itself,
and that the roads were in the daytime found full of dead men.[1]
It would be up to a man named Nehemiah (“Yahweh comforts”) to organize the
people and in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem
There’s a series of commercials on television by Wachovia Securities called “Uncommon Wisdom”. In the ad, they show something like a person riding a bicycle and then ask, “What can we learn from handlebars …?” Then the narrator goes on to apply some principles about riding a bike to living your life.
I’d like to ask the question, “What can we learn from building walls?”
:1 Then Eliashib the high priest …builded the sheep gate
the sheep gate – (gate #1). This was on the northern wall of the
city, close to the Temple Temple
We’re going to get a description of how the wall will be built by starting
at the north end of the wall and going counter-clockwise around the city.
There will be ten gates:
Sheep (vs. 1); Fish (vs. 3); Old (vs. 6); Valley (vs. 13); Dung (vs. 14); Fountain (vs. 15); Water (vs. 26); Horse (vs. 28); East (vs. 29); Miphkad (vs. 31)
:2 And next unto him builded the men of Jericho
Jericho Jerusalem Jericho
:3 But the fish gate did the sons of Hassenaah build
the fish gate – (gate #2) located on the northern part of the wall,
to the west of the Sheep Gate. This may have been where the people from Tyre
:5 Tekoites …
Tekoites – T@qow‘iy –
“trumpet blast”. An inhabitant of the city of Tekoa
:6 Moreover the old gate
the old gate – (gate #3) located on the northwest corner of the city. See wall map ; old – yashan – old, store, storage. The gate was also called the “Jeshana Gate”
:7 Gibeon … Mizpah …
Gibeon – Gib‘own
– “hill city”. See map
Mizpah – Mitspah – “watchtower”. See map
:8 …the goldsmiths…the apothecaries, and they fortified Jerusalem
Some of the tradesmen helped build:
goldsmiths – tsaraph – to smelt, refine, test; smelter, refiner, goldsmith (participle)
apothecaries – raqqach – ointment-maker, perfumer
broad wall – the western wall. This was the longest section of wall.
See wall map
:10 Jedaiah …even over against his house
This guy built the part of the wall that was next to his house.
:11 the tower of the furnaces.
furnaces – tannuwr –
furnace, oven, fire-pot, (portable) stove. Could be called the “tower of the
ovens”, probably located near “baker’s street” (Jer. 37:21)
:12 he and his daughters.
A “father-daughter” kind of thing
:13 The valley gate repaired Hanun, and the inhabitants of Zanoah
the valley gate – Did the people who built this gate, like, come from a cool place, for sure! (gate #4) See wall map
Zanoah – Zanowach – “cast off” See map
:14 But the dung gate repaired Malchiah the son of Rechab, the ruler of part of Bethhaccerem
the dung gate – (gate #5) This was in the southern part of the wall.
Trash and refuse were taken through this gate into the Valley
of Hinnom
Rechab – Rekab – “rider”
Bethhaccerem – Beyth hak-Kerem – “house of the vineyard”. See map
:15 But the gate of the fountain
the gate of the fountain – (gate #6) near the Pool of Siloam See wall map
:16 Bethzur…unto the house of the mighty.
Bethzur – Beyth Tsuwr – “house of the rock”. See map
of the mighty – gibbowr –
strong, mighty. This is the same word
used to describe David’s “mighty men”. (NLT) the House of the
Warriors.
:17 Hashabiah, the ruler of the half part of Keilah, in his part.
Keilah – Q@‘iylah – “fortress”. See map
:26 unto the place over against the water gate
the water gate – (gate #7) Somehow this makes me think of Richard Nixon getting impeached. See wall map
:28 From above the horse gate repaired the priests…
the horse gate – (gate #8) This was where a horse broke into the Democratic National headquarters … oops, wrong “gate”. See wall map
:29 …the keeper of the east gate.
the east gate – (gate #9) See wall map
:31 …unto the place of the Nethinims…against the gate Miphkad
the place of the Nethinims – if the sheep gate (vs. 3:1, 32) is next
to the Temple Temple
the gate Miphkad – Miphqad – “command”; (gate #10) See wall map
It is thought that Jesus came either through this gate or the eastern gate
on His triumphal entry (Mat. 21:10 )
Building Lessons
Lesson #1
Walls of self-control
As we look at these lessons on “walls”, I think one way of putting these lessons into our lives is to think of the walls as being a picture of “self-control”
(Prov 25:28 KJV) He that hath no rule over his own spirit is
like a city that is broken down, and without walls.
(Prov 25:28 NLT) A person
without self-control is as defenseless as a city with broken-down walls.
Charles H. Spurgeon said, “Learn to say no; it will be of more use to you than to be able to read Latin.”
In his book “Spiritual Leadership” (pg. 52), J. Oswald Sanders writes, “Before we can conquer the world, we must first conquer the self.”
Another wise person wrote, “Strength
is the ability to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare
hands--and then eat just one of the pieces.”
I find it fascinating that “self-control” is one of the “fruits” of the
Holy Spirit, one of the things that the Holy Spirit produces in our lives. I
find it fascinating that Nehemiah’s name just happens to mean “Yahweh
Comforts”, and that the Holy Spirit is called the “Comforter” (John 14:16 ).
Lesson #2
Even if you don’t think you need
walls, you do.
There will be another Jerusalem
It too will have walls that are high:
(
Its walls also have foundations (Much attention was paid to digging and laying a strong foundation for the walls so that the enemy couldn’t tunnel under them):
(
Its walls also have gates (but it will have twelve instead of ten; (see also Is. 54:11-12)
(
But why does the New Jerusalem need walls?
I’m not sure I have an answer to that question. After all, everything that is evil and
threatening will be in the Lake of Fire
Here’s my point: None of us are as perfect as the New Jerusalem will be. If the New Jerusalem needs walls, how much more do we need “walls”?
If you think you’ve gotten to the point in your life where you think that you are not tempted by much, I imagine you might be more vulnerable than you think.
Lesson #3
Building works better with humility
It appears that these “noble” men from Tekoa thought they were too good to
be doing manual labor (vs. 5). They
appear to have been singled out because they did not help.
Yet the high priest helped. Nehemiah helped. You saw lots of groups of “rulers” building as well.
Maybe these guys were just too lazy.
Building for others requires humility because it requires that we take our eyes off of our own problems and reach out to help someone else. It requires humility to let others help you.
Lesson #4
Build walls to protect your home
Jedaiah (vs. 10) built “even over against his house”. Azariah (vs. 23) built by his house. The priests did the same (vs. 28)
Quite a few of the people were building the part of the wall next to their own house. I would imagine that this would have resulted in some pretty heavy-duty walls near where these people lived.
Parents – be sure you are doing what you should to protect your family from the enemy. You can’t protect them from everything, but there are some things you can say “no” to.
One of the greatest things we can do for our kids is to help them learn self-discipline, learning to say “no” to their own selves. (Pro. 25:28)
(Prov 25:28 NLT) A person
without self-control is as defenseless as a city with broken-down walls.
Lesson #5
Building requires help from your
neighbors
Did you notice all the other cities that took part in rebuilding Jerusalem Jericho Gibeon , Mizpah, Bethhaccerem, Bethzur, and Keilah)
The people of Jerusalem
The people that came from these cities had to leave the comforts of home
for awhile in order to help out the people of Jerusalem
The people of Jerusalem
I think that sometimes self-control can be cultivated when I have people who will hold me accountable, people who will help.
Lesson #6
Take out the trash
Sometimes I wish there was a magic box that I could put all my junk into and it would instantly turn into treasures. Wouldn’t it be cool if you could put all your trash into a box and it would turn into pure gold?
Illustration
THE ELEVATOR
An Amish boy and his father were visiting a mall. They were amazed by
almost everything they saw, but especially by two shiny, silver walls that
could move apart and back together again. The boy asked his father, “What is
this, Father?” The father (never having seen an elevator) responded, “Son, I
have never seen anything like this in my life. I don’t know what it is!” While
the boy and his father were watching wide-eyed, as an old lady in a wheel chair
rolled up to the moving walls and pressed a button. The walls opened and the
lady rolled between them into a small room. The walls closed and the boy and
his father watched small circles of lights with numbers above the walls light
up. They continued to watch the circles light up in the reverse direction. The
walls opened up again and a beautiful 24-year-old woman stepped out. The father
said to his son, “Go get your mother!
There are no magic “gates” or “walls” when it comes to self-discipline.
Instead, there is a “dung gate” (vs. 14). The dung gate was where you took the trash out.
The dung gate was built by a very special man, Malchiah the son of Rechab. The Rechabites were an amazing people who were known for their obedience to their fathers and the Lord (Jer. 35). They had been promised to never lack descendants. Malchiah’s presence shows us that God keeps His promises.
I don’t think God wants us holding on to trash. I think He would prefer that we take it outside the city.
We need to turn from our sin. We need to confess our sin and ask for Jesus’ cleansing. We need to learn to take the “trash” out of our lives with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Lesson #7
Victory in walls
Though there had been a “house of warriors” (vs. 16), the people had come to find they still had a great need for walls.
They say that the best defense is a good offense. But it’s not a matter of either/or in the Christian life. We need defenses AND offenses.
I’ve seen guys who get excited about following the Lord. They learn a few Bible verses and off they go witnessing out in the streets.
But I’ve seen some of these same guys who are strong “offensively” be very weak defensively. And without “walls” around their lives, they are attacked by the enemy.
(1 Cor 9:24 -27
KJV) Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but
one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. {25} And every man that
striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a
corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. {26} I therefore so run, not as
uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: {27} But I keep under
my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have
preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
(1 Cor 9:24 -27 NLT) Remember that in a race everyone
runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that
you will win. {25} All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win
a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. {26} So I run
straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who
misses his punches. {27} I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to
do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself
might be disqualified.
castaway – adokimos – not standing the test, that which does not prove itself such as it ought; unfit for, unproved
What does it mean to be a “castaway”?
I don’t think that Paul is talking about losing his salvation.
I think he’s talking about losing his usefulness before the Lord. Usefulness grows as I learn to cultivate “self-control”, strong walls.
Lesson #8
Sacrifice
The High Priest’s example.
Eliashib – ‘Elyashiyb – “God restores”
Even though most of the priests built near their own houses, Eliashib let someone else build near his house. He built somewhere else.
Where did Eliashib build?
He built the “sheep gate” (Neh. 3:1)
It reminds us of sacrifice
The “sheep gate” was where the sheep were brought in to be
sacrificed in the
It reminds us of people.
God’s people are often called “sheep”. The high priest
built the gate for the “sheep” to get to the
It reminds us of Jesus.
(John 10:7-10 KJV) Then said Jesus unto them
again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. {8} All that
ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
{9} I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go
in and out, and find pasture. {10} The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and
to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they
might have it more abundantly.
Jesus is our Great High Priest (Heb.
