Nehemiah 11:13

Nehemiah 11:13 says, And his brethren, chief of the fathers, two hundred forty and two: and Amashai the son of Azareel, the son of Ahasai, the son of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer, This verse and the next several is a listing of the people who were to live in Jerusalem.  There were another two-hundred forty-two in this group.  Matthew Henry points out that there seemed to have been plenty of workers.  Jesus told His disciples that the fields were white to harvest but that the workers were few.  That is why it was so important to spread the gospel, so not only could those who believed be saved, but they could then reach out to others with the gospel.  This is still true today. 

Verse fourteen adds, And their brethren, mighty men of valour, an hundred twenty and eight: and their overseer was Zabdiel, the son of one of the great men.  In this group, there were one-hundred twenty-eight, who were said to be mighty men of valor.  As followers of Christ today, we need to be courageous in our faith.  We cannot let fear stop us from doing what God has called us to do. 

Verse fifteen continues, Also of the Levites: Shemaiah the son of Hashub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Bunni;  We now have a listing of Levites.  

Verse sixteen states, And Shabbethai and Jozabad, of the chief of the Levites, had the oversight of the outward business of the house of God. 

Verse seventeen adds, And Mattaniah the son of Micha, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, was the principal to begin the thanksgiving in prayer: and Bakbukiah the second among his brethren, and Abda the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun. 

Verse eighteen continues, All the Levites in the holy city were two hundred fourscore and four.  There were a total of two-hundred eighty-four Levites in Jerusalem.  It was their duty to do the work that needed doing in the temple. Today, God calls those needed to do His work in the church and we as Christians need to pray that we will know what He has called us to do, and then we need to do it to the best of our ability under the guidance and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. 

Verse nineteen says, Moreover the porters, Akkub, Talmon, and their brethren that kept the gates, were an hundred seventy and two.  The porters in the temple are listed next, and there were one-hundred and seventy-two of them, and they also served in keeping order in the temple. 

Verse twenty adds, And the residue of Israel, of the priests, and the Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, every one in his inheritance.  The rest of the priests and Levites were in the rest of Judah where they served God, since not all the people were in Jerusalem.  We need to not only be working in the church in one particular area of the world, but we need to be spreading the gospel throughout the world by going where God calls us. 

Verse twenty-one continues, But the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel: and Ziha and Gispa were over the Nethinims. There was an exception to those serving throughout Judah listed here, and these were the descendants of Gideon who served on the wall in Jerusalem to do the servile work of the temple, according to Matthew Henry. 

Verse twenty-two states, The overseer also of the Levites at Jerusalem was Uzzi the son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micha. Of the sons of Asaph, the singers were over the business of the house of God.  There was an overseer of the Levites as well as the singers who were said to be over the business of the house of God.  They did more than just sing, and we may be called to more than one role in the church today.  I personally believe we should all sing praises to God when we gather to worship, but that is not all we should do. 

Verse twenty-three adds, For it was the king's commandment concerning them, that a certain portion should be for the singers, due for every day.  We are also told that a certain portion should be given to the singers to sustain them by the king’s commandment above the offerings of the people.  Matthew Henry says he did this because he had an affinity for the singers.  People may still give gifts designated for a particular person or purpose today, but I believe as a general rule we should just bring our tithes and offerings to God and not put specifications on how they should be used.  I know we sometimes have donations to building funds and such, but I am not sure this is what God expects us to do.  Of course, that is just my opinion. 

Verse twenty-four continues, And Pethahiah the son of Meshezabeel, of the children of Zerah the son of Judah, was at the king's hand in all matters concerning the people.  There was also someone appointed to be at the king’s hand in all matters concerning the people of Israel.  He was to help settle disputes according to Matthew Henry.  We really don’t have someone specific to represent us before the government today, but we do need to try to live at peace with those in power as long as it doesn’t compromise our faith to do so.