Chapter 23

Chapter 231,476 wordsPublic domain

THE GOOD DAYS OF NEHEMIAH

About seventy years after the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem a committee of Jews went to Persia to seek aid for their distressed country from their more prosperous kinsfolk. In the Persian capital, Susa, they found a man named Nehemiah, who was cup-bearer and personal adviser to the king of Persia. He was a man of good sense, of kindly sympathy, and of great ability--just the man to help them. They told him how the walls of the city of their fathers had never been rebuilt in all these years since the Babylonians had captured it, and how the poor people suffered from robbers and oppressors, who took advantage of their helplessness.

NEHEMIAH'S GREAT ADVENTURE

All this was news to the young man. They did not have newspapers and magazines in those days, and people in one part of the world knew little about what was going on in other parts, even those near by. The stories told by his brother Jews made Nehemiah sad, and his sadness showed in his face even when he came before the king. This was dangerous, for a part of his duty was to keep the king in a cheerful humor. But his Majesty was not angry, but asked him "Why are you so sad?" Nehemiah answered by telling him the story of his native land and its pitiable condition; and then and there with a prayer in his heart he asked the king to give him a leave of absence, and to permit him to go to Jerusalem and help the people there to rebuild the walls.

+-------------------------------------------------------------------+ | [Illustration: REMAINS OF WALLS OF THE CANAANITE CITY, MEGIDDO] | | | | [Illustration: PART OF CITY WALL AND GATE, SAMARIA] | | | | Cuts on this page used by permission of the Palestine Exploration | | Fund. | +-------------------------------------------------------------------+

=Why walls were greatly needed.=--All cities in those days were surrounded by walls. These were necessary, because no government had yet been strong enough to rid the country of the bands of robbers who made their dens in almost every cave or lonely valley. Not only the road between Jerusalem and Jericho, of which Jesus tells, but on almost all roads one was in danger of falling among thieves. In the deserts on the edge of Palestine whole tribes lived by robbery, and were large enough and well enough organized to defeat good-sized armies. Hence no city was safe unless it was well fortified.

Nehemiah's request was granted by the king of Persia. So, with letters to the governors of the provinces through which he was to pass, the young leader set out, perhaps on camel-back, to Jerusalem. After looking about and seeing for himself the condition of the city, and the work which needed to be done, he called the people together and proposed that they rebuild the walls. His energy carried the day. They answered, "Let us rise up and build."

THE WALLS REBUILT

The task which Nehemiah had undertaken was a difficult one. Jerusalem is situated on a ridge, with deep valleys on all sides except the north. The walls did not need to be high where there were cliffs or steep slopes falling away into the valley. But along the entire north side, and in many other places also, they had to be at least thirty feet high, and fifteen or twenty feet thick at the base. The stones and bricks for this were buried in the rubbish where the old walls had been battered down. They had to be dug up and dragged into their places, stone by stone. Most of the work had to be done by hand, although they perhaps used asses with basket-paniers for carrying lime and sand. They may have constructed small cranes for lifting the heaviest stones, but they had very little machinery.

=Difficulties overcome.=--For a time the work went merrily forward. But soon their rapid progress became known and those who had prospered because of their weakness became jealous. There was a certain Sanballat, governor of Samaria, who wanted to keep Jerusalem helpless so that Samaria might always be the chief city in the land. They were willing that the poor people of Jerusalem should go on suffering from the attacks of cruel bandits if only they themselves could keep on growing richer. He and others did all in their power to stop the work. They organized a force of men and planned to attack and kill the builders. But Nehemiah had his workers carry their swords as they worked, and arranged for signals at which all should rush to the help of any part of the wall which might be attacked. He also kept the people working at top speed from early morning every day "until the stars appeared," and cheered them on when they were tired and discouraged.

Their enemies tried all kinds of tricks; they threatened to report to the king of Persia that Nehemiah was organizing a rebellion; they plotted to seize Nehemiah himself. But the man was too clever for them. The walls kept steadily going up and up. The gates were set in place and locked; and at last, fifty-two days, or just a little more than seven weeks after the first stone was laid on the old foundations, the work was done.

Once more they could lie down in peace behind protecting walls, and not tremble at the thought that fierce robbers might swoop down upon them before the morning light to plunder, burn, and murder. Once more they could begin to live their lives in peace and plan for the future. Traders could bring their goods into the city without fear of losing everything. Men could buy and sell and prosper.

NEHEMIAH'S REFORMS

But security from outward foes is not enough to bring happiness to a people. Even before the walls were finished some of the poor people among the Jews came to Nehemiah with a bitter complaint against their rich neighbors. "We are starving," they said. Others said: "We have mortgaged our fields in order to borrow money that we may buy food for our children. And now because we cannot pay these men take our fields from us, and even sell our sons and daughters into slavery." It was the old story of greed and oppression. Those who were stronger and more fortunate used their advantage to oppress their brothers and extort from them all that they could pay. So a few men were able to live in luxury, even in those troubled days, while the great majority suffered in poverty and misery and despair.

=The great massmeeting.=--In that little country of Judæa it was possible to gather into an assembly, perhaps in the open space in front of the temple, men from almost every country village and city street. Such an assembly Nehemiah called and laid before it the complaints he had received. He told the rich nobles to their faces: "You exact usury, every one, of his brother. The thing you do is not good.... I pray you leave off this usury." The nobles had nothing to say. Every one knew that what Nehemiah said was true. Then he went on: "Restore to them their fields, their vineyards, their olive-yards, and their houses, also the grain, the new wine, and the oil that you exact from them." Then said they, "We will restore them."

And Nehemiah made them take oath to carry out their promise. "Also I shook out my lap," Nehemiah writes in his memoirs, "and said, So God shake out every man from his house, and from his labor, 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."

=The beginnings of a just and happy nation.=--Nehemiah could not stay long in Jerusalem. But he was able to make another visit a few years later. And for a time at least his ideas were carried out. During this time there was happiness among the people. They all had something to eat and clothes to wear. All fathers and mothers had a little time to play with their children after the close of work each day. All who could read had a little time to study the rolls of the prophets and the law of Jehovah. And all were brothers. More than ever before the old dreams, handed down from Abraham, had begun to come true.

STUDY TOPICS

1. Look up the story of Nehemiah in the Bible dictionary.

2. Read Nehemiah 1-2, or 5. 1-6, 16.

3. On the right side of the line, below, write what in your judgment corresponds to the men and conditions of Nehemiah's time.