CHAPTER 5 – THE RICH GET RICHER…
I think the first time I became aware of the idea of powerful people oppressing the poor was the animated Disney film Robin Hood.
If there was a song that captured the state of things in Nehemiah 5, it would be the one sung by Alan-A-Dale voiced by the legendary Roger Miller, Not In Nottingham.
In that scene, the townspeople have nearly all been taxed into jail while Prince John (voiced fabulously by Sir Peter Ustinov) sits in his castle surrounded by stacks of money.
In Jerusalem and little Judea, there isn’t exactly a huge tax base, so the per capita burden was rather high to keep the government officials and their staff members well-funded. And since they were the ones with money, the working poor had to go to them to essentially borrow back their own money (with interest!) when hard times hit. And hard times had hit.
The upper crust had even foreclosed on their farms and fields.
There are three texts in the Law that forbid charging interest on loans to fellow-Israelites: Ex. 22:25, Deut. 23:19-20, and Leviticus 25:35-38 is quite clear:
“If one of your fellow Israelites falls into poverty and cannot support himself, support him as you would a foreigner or a temporary resident and allow him to live with you. Do not charge interest or make a profit at his expense. Instead, show your fear of God by letting him live with you as your relative. Remember, do not charge interest on money you lend him or make a profit on food you sell him. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.”
Leviticus 25:35-38 NLT
Nehemiah finds out that this command is being blatantly ignored. He calls a public meeting and confronts the guilty ones. He demands they not only provide interest-free loans, but they must also give back every bit of foreclosed property. And he even makes them swear before the Lord that they will do it, and they do.
Nehemiah was governor for 12 years and even though he had come into an environment where taking advantage of the people and living well while they suffered was normalized, he did not adjust to that toxic culture. He changed it.
The NLT translates the last line of Nehemiah 5:15 as “But because I feared God, I did not act that way.”
It takes strong principles to go into a company or a workplace or government and not only refuse to join in with the culture, but actually confront and change it.
That’s called being a thermostat and not a thermometer.
A thermometer only tells what the temperature is. A thermostat does something about it.
CHAPTER 6 – MORE THREATS
“So Sanballat and Geshem sent a message asking me to meet them at one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But I realized they were plotting to harm me, so I replied by sending this message to them: “I am engaged in a great work, so I can’t come. Why should I stop working to come and meet with you?””
Nehemiah 6:2-3 NLT
🤓 I wouldn’t recommend meeting anyone at a place called Oh no.
😐 So even back in Bible times people avoided things they didn’t want to do with messages like “Sorry I can’t make it. I just have too much going on right now.”?
Apparently.
But they kept pestering Nehemiah. After 4 declined “invitations,” Nehemiah gets this threatening note from Sanballat:
“There is a rumor among the surrounding nations, and Geshem tells me it is true, that you and the Jews are planning to rebel and that is why you are building the wall. According to his reports, you plan to be their king. He also reports that you have appointed prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim about you, ‘Look! There is a king in Judah!’ “You can be very sure that this report will get back to the king, so I suggest that you come and talk it over with me.””
Nehemiah 6:6-7 NLT
This, boys and girls, is what is called “Blackmail.”
If you give Sanballat a slight Italian accent that last line sounds rather Mafia Boss-like.
Sanballat the Don: “It would be a shame if Artexerxes were to find out about this little rebellion you’re plotting. He might just have to send an army to destroy the city. Again. Of course, I can make that little rumor go away for a price.”
Nehemiah: “Oh yeah? I’m the guy Artexerxes trusted with his life. But go ahead and try your little scheme and see what happens.”
Nehemiah calls his bluff so Sanballat tries another tactic: hire someone to falsely foretell an assassination.
“Later I went to visit Shemaiah son of Delaiah and grandson of Mehetabel, who was confined to his home. He said, “Let us meet together inside the Temple of God and bolt the doors shut. Your enemies are coming to kill you tonight.””
Nehemiah 6:10 NLT
😧 Wait… that’s not the Mahetabel from Ezra’s wagon train is it?! Please say it isn’t!
🤓 There’s no way Mahetabel is old enough to be a grandparent yet. Right?
You guys, I already told you, the Mahetabel in Ezra’s wagon train was made up. Pretend. Artistic License. This is not her. This Mahetabel is a man.
😧 Whaaaat?
🤓 No way!
🤨 Who names their son Mahetabel?
Johnny Cash’s dad?
🤔 What?
🤓 I don’t get it.
He named his son Sue.
😐 Still got nothin.
Nevermind. You’re too young.
The point is, Shemaiah, (the paid operative) is trying to get Nehemiah to go hide in the temple. As in, inside in the holy place. But because Nehemiah wasn’t a priest, this would’ve been forbidden.
Y’all, unless you are Abraham or the Apostle Peter, the LORD is not going to tell you to do something that violates His clear commands. I’ve known of people who believed that God was telling them to abandon their spouse to run off with another person’s spouse.
We do not need a voice from Sinai to determine that is NOT God. The LORD is not telling people to sin or sending “prophets” to tell people that sin is ok.
“And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away.”
James 1:13-14 NLT
Nehemiah knew this and so was able to discern that this whole “premonition” about assassins coming to murder him in the night was nothing but another plot by Sanballat and Tobiah.
If Nehemiah HAD fallen for it and went and locked himself in the temple…
- He would eventually have to come out.
- The priests would’ve been furious. He would’ve lost all of the support of the priests and Levites.
- His cowardice would’ve been bandied about and discredited him as a leader. He would’ve been forced to leave.
And then we get this…
“Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, according to these things that they did, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who wanted to make me afraid.”
Nehemiah 6:14 ESV
That’s it. Just this tiny hint is all we get. Apparently there was several of these false prophets, and a woman in particular – Noadiah – who were trying to intimidate Nehemiah.
Today, I don’t know if it’s false prophetesses or the pessimistic voices in our own heads that make us afraid to tackle big challenges for God.
They built over a MILE of wall in 52 days.
That’s incredible!
Even if you had a crew of experienced stone masons, 52 days is an impressive feat for building a mile (or slightly more) of wall ranging from 16-40 feet high. They did it with a volunteer labor force.
🤨 And no cement trucks.
🤓 Or power tools.
No one would’ve said that was possible. That’s why children of God should push back on what is deemed “possible.”
There is a saying often cited as a Chinese Proverb which actually originated in America in the early 1900s. I think it’s fitting:
“The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it.”
If God is calling you to do something for Him, you may kindly ignore the nay-sayers.
To The Reader 