It starts off with Nehemiah prayer. Many Jews had returned from the Babylonian captivity. They were rebuilding Jerusalem. But Nehemiah was burdened by the fact that the city walls were still in shambles. Though still living away from Jerusalem, he communicated with those who were living there. He fasted, mourned and prayed for the rebuilding of the walls of his beloved city. In Nehemiah’s prayer to God he confessed that he knew Israel’s sins were the cause of his nation being scattered among the heathen. Nehemiah knew God’s promises to Moses that they would be blessed if they followed God, but punished if they strayed from him. Nehemiah did not deny that God’s punishment was necessary. However, he called upon the mercy of
When Solomon completed the construction of the First Temple in Jerusalem, the city solidified its position as the center of Israel’s religious, political and economic world. The Temple housed the ark of the covenant, which was associated with the physical presence of God, and it was placed in close proximity to the palace of Jerusalem’s richest king to date, King Solomon. Through the establishment of the temple, Jerusalem experienced a powerful sense of spirituality, protection by their God and national independence. When it was destroyed in 586 BCE, many Jerusalemites felt that, like the presence of God, their meaning in life had diminished. The Temple would be rebuilt, razed to the ground and built up again several more times after this.
After their exile, around fifty-thousand Jews returned to Jerusalem which was now called Judaea. The leader of Judea, the Persian King Cyrus, allowed the Jews to return and to build another place of worship (Fisher 251). The second temple was built in 515 BCE and according to the text Living Religions, became “the central symbol to a scattered Jewish nation” (Fisher). The temple became a place where the Torah was formed and where the religion prospered. However, Jewish prosperity was not going to last. After four centuries of Roman rule, that was domineering and dreadful, a group of Jews decided to rebel against their oppressors. This led to Jews being slaughtered by the Romans and to the second Temple being destroyed. All that is left of the Temple are foundation stones which are referred to as the Western Wall. The temple has never been rebuilt and the Western Wall has become a place for prayer and remembrance for Jews all over the world. Jewish people look at the Western Wall as a representation of the hardships and oppression that their religion and people have endured. According to the article, Mystical Secret of the Western Wall:
The Book of Nehemiah is narrative that continues the history of the Israelites after they return from exile. Nehemiah prays to God about Jerusalem and God’s promises. Nehemiah is sent from Babylon to Jerusalem where he inspects Jerusalem’s walls. Different sections were rebuilt by different groups of people. Through prayer, they were able to complete the rebuilding even when there was opposition. Nehemiah helped the poor by summoning the priests to make the nobles and officials take an oath to follow God’s law. A genealogical record is listed of the exiles who returned. Ezra read The Book of the Law to the Israelites. The Israelites prayed to God and confessed their sins and signed the Law of God. The Levites were brought to
"Send me to the city where my fathers are buried so I can rebuild it,” Nehemiah replies. (Nehemiah 1: 5)
Raising up his voice to God, Nehemiah, explained their displeasure with this ridicule to God. He asked the Lord to turn this back around on them, to lay plunder upon them, and to not allow their sins to be forgiven due to their mockery rousing God’s anger against them.
The struggle and obstacles that Jewish people had to endure, made their sense of community and religion even stronger. One of the largest struggles the Jew’s faced was the enslavement. They were enslaved in Egypt. Moses rescued them after his forty-five-year punishment in the Sinai Desert. He was given by God himself, the 10 commandments he was to share with them and free them from slavery. If Moses, was never enslaved, the God of Abraham would have never been able to give him the Ten Commandments, which are the laws that are basic to Jewish life. Another obstacle that the Jew’s had to overcome, was the destruction of Judah by the Neo-Babylonian Empire. It was one of the worst things to happen to the Jewish community. The city of Jerusalem
The Israelites have been granted permission by King Cyrus of Persia to return home to Judah for the restoration of their homeland. This was a devastating time for the people of Judah because of the destruction by invading armies. Several people and leaders died because of these invading armies and now it was time to rebuild Jerusalem. The Israelites were coming out of captivity and they were exposed to pagan gods and rituals. Many of them did not have a relationship with God and now the temple needed to be rebuilt. The general prophetic message was to encourage the Israelites and empowered them to take the limits off God because nothing is impossible for him. Zechariah noticed the natural things were being done concerning building the
Nehemiah is the 16th Book of the Old Testament. The key to the Old Testament is the covenant,
When Nehemiah heard that the wall of Jerusalem was broken down and the gates were burned by fire (Neh 1:3), he wept. Now it’s our turn. Stand in the midst of your city. See the rooftops and the church steeples; even in the larger cities see the skyscrapers. These are the walls of our cities. The church steeples are our town towers. Look closely. Ask for spiritual eyes. What do we see? There is death and destruction all around. There is sadness, loss and emptiness. The walls of our own cities have fallen just like Jerusalem. The city guards have deserted their posts. Our gates have also been burned – burned by the fire of hell. Satan has infiltrated our cities, causing pain, heartache and disaster. Too long we’ve turned a blind eye. Tell me
The main purpose of this book is to demonstrate God’s mercy and grace to mankind. The people of Nineveh were wicked and deserved God’s anger. However, God was patient and tolerant with them. Jonah, a reluctant prophet, had initially run away when he received God’s call to send a repentance message to the individuals living in Nineveh.
“I will sow her for Myself in the land. I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion, And I will say to those who were not My people, You are My people! And they will say, You are my God” (Hosea 2:23 NASB). this great prophetic message from The Lord takes an account of the Gentiles non-Jews as His children,
Nehemiah the Israelite leader displays numerous traits of a Servant Leader in the biblical book, Nehemiah. Nehemiah sets out on a quest to rebuild the city of Jerusalem and the wall that surrounds his beloved home. During this time, he encounters many obstacles and will overcome all roadblocks put in front of him. This paper will provide an analysis of two significant events, building the wall around Jerusalem and organizing Jerusalem’s people to rebuild the city.
The city of Jerusalem is vitally important to many of the historical records found in both Old and New Testaments of the Bible. From Genesis (14:18) to Revelation (21:10), the Bible is filled with allusions and events related to this city. One simply cannot read the Bible without reading about Jerusalem! For this reason, it is of great benefit to further study this wonderfully significant place.
Although, the Lord had delivered the nation of Israel on several occasions, they had gotten careless and sinful again; therefore,
|awareness of all the nations around his homeland. Judah and Jerusalem were the focal points of his prophecies, but he saw God's will for |