Nehemiah 5:12

Nehemiah 5:12 says, Then said they, We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest. Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them, that they should do according to this promise.  After Nehemiah rebuked the nobles and rulers in Judah who had been charging their fellow Jews usury and otherwise mistreating them, they at least listened and said they would restore what they had taken from them and no longer continue the practice.  If we have been mistreating people, especially our fellow Christians, it is not enough to simply acknowledge that we know we have.  We need to do our best to restore what we have taken from them, even if we could justify it in the eyes of the world.  Nehemiah also called the priests to have them witness what the nobles and rulers promised.  We shouldn’t have to have someone witness our promises to do what we believe God would have us do, but sometimes other people may require it of us.

Verse thirteen adds, Also I shook my lap, and said, So God shake out every man from his house, and his labour, that performeth not this promise, even thus be he shaken out, and emptied. And all the congregation said, Amen, and praised the Lord. And the people did according to this promise.  In a symbolic gesture, it says that Nehemiah shook things out of his lap, I believe would be the accurate way to understand this and said that if any of those making this promise did not live up to it, that God should shake them out of their houses and leave with nothing.  God may not shake us materially if we fail to follow His commandments concerning our treatment of other people, but he may shake us spiritually, which is even worse. 

Verse fourteen continues, Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year even unto the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that is, twelve years, I and my brethren have not eaten the bread of the governor.  Nehemiah said in his own life he had taken nothing from others unfairly.  He had relied on his own abilities and did not expect others to support him.  This is not to say that I believe that those who are in full-time ministry shouldn’t be supported, but they shouldn’t expect their fellow Christians to suffer in order to help them maintain a richer lifestyle. 

Verse fifteen states, But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God.  Nehemiah said that governors who had come before him had taken bread and wine from the people as well as money, and that their servants had done likewise.  He said he didn’t do this because of his fear of God.  As I have often stated, I don’t believe that this means he was afraid of God, but that he recognized that God hated sin, and he didn’t want to give Him a reason to be upset with him.  As Christians we should never be afraid of God, but we also need to recognize that some of our actions may often make Him upset with us. 

Verse sixteen adds, Yea, also I continued in the work of this wall, neither bought we any land: and all my servants were gathered thither unto the work.  Nehemiah added that he also didn’t buy any land but that he and his servants just continued to work on the wall.  We need to do what God has called us to do, whether we benefit from it materially or not.  He could not be accused of helping to build the wall because doing so somehow benefitted him materially.  He wasn’t doing this to protect his own land, but he was doing it because God had called him to do it.  We should never make personal benefit or profit our reason to join in or not join in God’s work.   

Verse seventeen continues, Moreover there were at my table an hundred and fifty of the Jews and rulers, beside those that came unto us from among the heathen that are about us.  Nehemiah said he fed a hundred and fifty Jews and plus some non-Jews, who had come to help with the work. Matthew Henry says he did this from what he had gotten from the king of Persia and from his own estate, even though he could have required the people to help support him.  We may have the right to make a demand on someone, but if they are struggling just to survive, we probably shouldn’t. 

Verse eighteen says, Now that which was prepared for me daily was one ox and six choice sheep; also fowls were prepared for me, and once in ten days store of all sorts of wine: yet for all this required not I the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy upon this people.  Nehemiah said it took a lot to feed all these people every day, but he still didn’t require anything from his fellow believers.  Just because we may need a lot to do God’s work, we should never demand that those who are in need themselves support us in the work.  Instead, we should look to God in obedience to Him and rely on Him to meet our needs without burdening those who are in need themself. 

Verse nineteen adds, Think upon me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.  Nehemiah asked that God look on him as someone who had done good for all these people.  He didn’t ask God to materially reward him, but simply to look on him with good.  We don’t serve God for material reward but because we know that we are doing what He has called us to do.  Then, we should leave it up to Him to note what we are doing.      

 

Nehemiah 5:6

Nehemiah 5:6 says, And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words.  Nehemiah said he was very angry when he heard the people complaining, not at what they were saying, but at what was happening to them because of those in power.  If we have truly put our faith in God, we should not spend our time complaining about how bad things are, but should pray to God for help, and those in power in the church at least should listen to us, especially if our fellow believers are taking advantage of us.  Still, as long as we know that we have everlasting life with God, nothing else should cause us to complain, but we shouldn’t get mad at those who do but should pray that God will lead them to a better attitude toward how they treat the less fortunate. 

Verse seven adds, Then I consulted with myself, and I rebuked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them, Ye exact usury, every one of his brother. And I set a great assembly against them.  Nehemiah says he consulted himself and then rebuked the nobles and rulers, reminding them they were exacting usury from their brothers, which God’s law said they should not do.  It was good that Nehemiah didn’t immediately fly into a rage but took the time to consider the situation before acting, even if he was angry at what was happening.  He then called a great assembly against them.  I believe that we should consult God and not just ourselves if we see a problem that needs correcting, but we should first pray about it alone before just acting out of anger in front of everyone.  When God reveals to us what needs to be done, then we need to let the whole assembly of our fellow believers know what has been happening under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. 

Verse eight continues, And I said unto them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, which were sold unto the heathen; and will ye even sell your brethren? or shall they be sold unto us? Then held they their peace, and found nothing to answer.  Nehemiah then told them that they had redeemed their brothers who had been sold to the heathen, and then asked if they would now sell their own brothers into bondage.  We should never mistreat our fellow believers but need to remember that we like them have been redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. 

Verse nine states, Also I said, It is not good that ye do: ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies?  Nehemiah told the nobles and rulers that what they were doing was not what God would have them do, and that by doing it, they were bringing about the reproach of their enemies.  Our actions as Christians should never cause non-Christians to rebuke our attitude and actions.  We are called to be people who live by God’s word and not by the same attitude that guides the lost people of the world, and if our actions are no different than theirs, they are going to reproach us as hypocrites.  Also, we need to be careful that we as followers of Christ do not allow sin to take us into bondage once again. 

Verse ten adds. I likewise, and my brethren, and my servants, might exact of them money and corn: I pray you, let us leave off this usury.  Though Nehemiah said his servants and he could have demanded usuary from others, he didn't demand but asked that they leave of the usury. He asked they come to the decision to do so on their own.  God could demand that we serve Him, but He calls us to come to Him on our own, out of His love for us and our love for Him when we do. 

Verse eleven continues, Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them.  Nehemiah then told them that they needed to act that day to restore all that they had taken from their brothers.  If we know that we have wronged a fellow Christian, we must first ask God to forgive us, and then we need to take action immediately to correct the situation.  It is not enough to just acknowledge that we have done someone harm and ask God’s forgiveness and then do nothing to correct the situation.  

Nehemiah 5:1

 Nehemiah 5:1 says, And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews.  God’s chosen people, both the men and their wives, began to cry out against others of God’s chosen people.  I believe they were crying out against those rebuilding the wall and the resources it took to build it.  Whether that is true or not, Matthew Henry says they were suffering from a drought that God had brought upon them from their disobedience.  People are still griping about the resources spent on accomplishing God’s work today, claiming it could be better spent helping the poor.   Though we are to help the poor, we are also supposed to give to the church so that God’s overall work can be done, the primary task being to reach the lost.   

Verse two adds, For there were that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, are many: therefore we take up corn for them, that we may eat, and live.  The people who were complaining said they had many children, but also complained about how much it took to feed them.  If we have a lot of children, we should see it as a blessing and never complain about how much it costs to raise them, no matter how tough things in life may become.  

Verse three continues, Some also there were that said, We have mortgaged our lands, vineyards, and houses, that we might buy corn, because of the dearth.  Some of the people also complained about having to mortgage their houses to buy corn because of the drought, which had occurred because of their disobedience to God.  If things are going bad in our life as Christians today, we need to make sure that we have not turned away from the will of God. If we haven’t, even if things get bad, we still don’t need to complain but to just continue to put our faith in God. 

Verse four states, There were also that said, We have borrowed money for the king's tribute, and that upon our lands and vineyards.  The people also said that they had to borrow money to pay their tribute, or taxes.  We may complain about taxes today, but this is nothing new, and Jesus Christ told us we are to pay them, so we should not allow them to become a critical thing in our relationship to God. 

Verse five adds, Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children: and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought unto bondage already: neither is it in our power to redeem them; for other men have our lands and vineyards.  They also said that their sons and daughters were brought into bondage, and that they had no way to redeem them.  Until our children accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord, they will be in bondage to sin, and we cannot redeem them.  We can lead them to the one Who can though, Jesus Christ. This should be one of our priorities, but it shouldn’t keep us from supporting the work of God.