Click above to watch video.
OR
Click below to play audio and read along.
Hello, my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Today is July 3, and tomorrow is a very important day in world history. I wonder if you’ve ever visited “Independence Hall” in Philadelphia? Have you put yourself into the story of the American Revolution and what great courage was required of those 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence? Have you ever put your signature on an important document which left you feeling that you’d committed yourself to something that might require EVERYTHING from you?
In the past several days we’ve looked at two different but very powerful examples of this in Biblical history, do you remember? Mordecai and Queen Esther signed an edict, sent from Susa out across the entire Persian kingdom, under the authority of King Xerxes, giving all Jews the authority to defend themselves on the day which was to be their holocaust in 473bc… “Purim”! That story is found in the Bible book of Esther.
We’ve also looked at Ezra the scholar, priest and teacher, sent by King Artaxerxes from Babylon to Jerusalem, about 15 years later in 458bc. Ezra was sent with orders to bring moral and fair judicial leadership to Jerusalem. The first issue Ezra dealt with was that many Jews, including leaders, had broken God’s laws by marrying foreign women from neighboring, idol worshiping nations. A Covenant was written and applied to all those involved in this failed leadership situation. (Ezra 10:3)
Now today, let’s turn over one page in our Bibles to the story of Nehemiah. Oh, it’s a fascinating story and takes place only a few years later in the very same places in the world. Nehemiah 1:1 tells us this is an autobiographical book written by Nehemiah himself and his story begins in the late fall of the year 445bc, about 13 years after Ezra arrived in Jerusalem. Nehemiah identifies himself as “cupbearer to the king”. (Nehemiah 1:11) That is very significant.
It was a trusted role, and likely Nehemiah saw the king at least once and perhaps several times each day. Nehemiah’s job was to serve and protect King Artaxerxes, the most powerful and important man in the world, by assuring that anything that touched the king’s lips was safe and had been either tasted or approved by Nehemiah. Literally King Artaxerxes trusted Nehemiah with his life every day, several times a day!
Because of the trust the king had for his ‘cupbearer’, naturally once this person earned the king’s trust, they remained in that role a very long time for the king would not risk anyone else with his life, to oversee the king’s food or drink. For that reason, it’s very possible Nehemiah was in this ‘cupbearer’ role when Ezra met with King Artaxerxes 14 years before in 459bc, when Ezra received the king’s commission to go to Jerusalem and establish moral justice.
Ezra was from Babylon; Nehemiah worked in the king’s palace in Susa. Those cities were about 200 miles apart. But still, it’s very possible Ezra had travelled to Susa to receive his commission from King Artaxerxes and Ezra may, therefore, have met Nehemiah, especially if Ezra and King Artaxerxes had any food or beverage together.
Because of the full trust relationship Nehemiah and King Artaxerxes would have developed, and the frequency with which Nehemiah would have been in the king’s presences, it’s safe for us to assume Nehemiah would have felt very much at home in the palace and even the throne room of the king. Furthermore, Nehemiah would likely have overheard many conversations taking place in the royal palace that other people would never have heard. It appears to me it was one of those conversations which may have started Nehemiah’s remarkable story!
Nehemiah reports that his brother Hanani had come from Jerusalem with a fresh report of the condition of the city and its Jewish population. Remember Ezra had, by that time, been in Jerusalem about 13 years as King Artaxerxes’ emissary, overseer of all things in Jerusalem. We might even call Ezra the king assigned ‘mayor’ with significant authority over most all matters of Jerusalem life.
Nehemiah and his brother Hanani were Jewish men, obviously descendants of those who had been taken captive during one of King Nebuchadnezzar’s 3 invasions of Jerusalem before its destruction 140 years before in 586bc. (2 Chronicles 36) Their father’s name was Hakaliah. (Nehemiah 1:1) We have no reason to believe Nehemiah had ever been to Jerusalem, perhaps he had never been away from Susa, unless traveling with King Artaxerxes, for Nehemiah’s vital role of assuring the king’s food and drink were safe would have applied anywhere King Artaxerxes would be on any given day! Nehemiah never had a vacation or a day off! Think about that.
But while Nehemiah had likely never been to Jerusalem, he was fascinated by how Jerusalem was so significant in the long history of his people the Jews, thus Nehemiah sought a meeting with Hanani and those who had just returned from Jerusalem, in the fall of 445bc. Nehemiah describes that meeting as a ‘defining moment’ for the rest of Nehemiah’s life: “Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. They said to me ‘Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.’ (Nehemiah 1:2)
Nehemiah’s mind and heart were overwhelmed. About 90 years before King Cyrus had issued an edict that allowed any and all Jews living in exile to return to Judah and begin rebuilding their city and their temple. That edict applied to any Jew anywhere in the entire Persian kingdom. About 50,000 Jewish exiles had accepted that offer and were the first wave of exiles to return from Babylon to Judah and the ruins of their cities, especially Jerusalem in 538bc. What they found, of course, were the ruins of King Nebuchadnezzar’s total destruction of Jerusalem and demolition of the Temple of God which King Solomon had built centuries before! Over the next several decades, slowly, those courageous exiles began removing rubble and rebuilding their cities, one broken, burned stone at a time. (Ezra 1-5) About 20 years later, they had finally completed the Temple, and it was dedicated. (Ezra 6)
Hanani’s report may have been the first eye-witness report Nehemiah had heard since Ezra had gone 13 years before to bring moral and judicial leadership to partially rebuilt Jerusalem. Another large group of exiles had gone with Ezra and so I therefore assume the population of Jews in the province of Judah might be nearly 200,000 by the time of Hanani’s report to Nehemiah. But as we see in Hanani’s report, life had been difficult, and the rebuilding process of Jerusalem and other towns was very slow, laborious and discouraging. All around them the people rebuilding Judah could see piles of rubble of homes and businesses demolished 140 years before.
Oh, we need to pause right here for reflection, my friends. As you look around, do we see rubble from demolition of the past? I don’t necessarily mean physical rubble from demolished homes or cities, I mean emotional, relational and spiritual rubble. The scars in people’s lives which remind them and us of damaging events or relationship failure in the past. May I ask, could what Hanani said about the people of Judah be said of you or me or people we know: “Those who survived…are in great trouble and disgrace…” (Nehemiah 1:3)
May I give you some great news? Jesus is the Great Healer; the Great Repairer of broken lives; the Great HOPE giver and as we walk with Nehemiah through his story, we’re going to see God at work in ways HE would like to work today in our world, in your life and mine, and people we know. So, are you ready for a fresh touch from God? Is there someone you know who might benefit from being on this journey with us? Will you invite them? Here’s a great worship song to start the journey with Nehemiah and I’ll meet you back here tomorrow…
Today’s Scripture: Nehemiah 1:1-3.
Choose below to read or listen.
 |  |
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
Archived back issues of “Walking with Jesus” and other resources are available by clicking here to open our ‘home page’ (or go to HOME at upper right of this page).
Share with friends. Subscribe below for daily “Walking with Jesus”.