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From Nehemiah’s notebook: The great return.

From Nehemiah’s notebook: The great return. Nehemiah (and Ezra), are the last historical narratives of Israel in the Hebrew Bible(OT) Nehemiah in the first tense. Assyrian exiles under Tighlath Pileser III (745-727) The 10 tribes of Israel 721 (start) Total exiled: 27.290

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From Nehemiah’s notebook: The great return.

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  1. From Nehemiah’s notebook:The great return. • Nehemiah (and Ezra), are the last historical narratives of • Israel in the Hebrew Bible(OT) Nehemiah in the first tense. • Assyrian exiles under TighlathPileser III (745-727) • The 10 tribes of Israel 721 (start) Total exiled: 27.290 • Samaria becomes the center of the Assyrian empire • 135 years later: • Babylonian exiles under Nebuchadnezzar: (605-562) • Judah, Jerusalem 586. Total 4600.

  2. Jeremiah 52 (Babylonian exile) • 28 This is the number of the people Nebuchadnezzar carried into exile: in the seventh year, 3,023 Jews; • 29 in Nebuchadnezzar’s eighteenth year, 832 people from Jerusalem; • 30 in his twenty-third year, 745 Jews taken into exile • Total: 4600 No great numbers (male adults?) • Many left for Egypt, taking Jeremiah along (Jeremiah 43.6)

  3. The return from exile: starts 1.5 Century later! • 538 Cyrus II the Great. Persian empire • Edict of Cyrus: first Human rights charter: 537 • Remnant of about 50,000 Jews return from Babylon • 520 Zerubbabel rebuilds the Temple (Darius) • 515 Completion of the 2nd Temple (Ezra 6.13) • 445 Nehemiah appointed governor of Judea by Artaxerxes, return from Babylon – rebuilds city walls • (70 years later after the completion of the Temple)

  4. Nehemiah receives news from Judah • 12Hanani, 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. •  13 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.”

  5. The prayer of Nehemiah • 14 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. • 15 I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. • 110…I was cupbearer to the king. (Joseph, Genesis 40) • 22 so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.” • Prayers with risks (Daniel 6, the open window prayer)

  6. The king’s extraordinary response: • 24 The king said to me, “What is it you want?” … • Then I prayed to the God of heaven, • 5 and I answered the king… • He prays before he talks, but then…talks with confidence! • 25“If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.”

  7. 27 “If it pleases the king, may I have letters… So I went to the governors of Trans-Euphrates and gave, them the king’s letters. The king had also sent army officers and cavalry with me. • God’s work can be very profane and down to earth. • St. Benedict: “Ora et Labora” (Pray and work) • When and how do we pray? • Who is the God we pray to?

  8. Nehemiah’s confidence in God’s faithfulness • 9. 7 …But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them... • Exodus 34:6 Mount Sinai – God’s character revealed • 6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, • Pleading on Gods faithfulness!

  9. Rebuilding the wall • 217 Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” • 18I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. •    They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.

  10. Sanballat &Co • 210 When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites. • Also: Geshem the Arab, the people of Ashdod and others: • Mocking, ridicule, anger, scheming, false prophets…etc. • No good work is done without opposition! • Philippians 1:6 He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

  11. Prayer again! • 49 But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat. (same principle) • 415 When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to our own work. • Take courage! •  Acts 23 11 The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.”

  12. Nehemiah fights povertyandcorruption • 5 1 Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their fellow Jews. • 5 6 When I heard their outcry and these charges, I was very angry. • 5 7 … I told them, “You are charging your own people interest!” So I called together a large meeting to deal with them …

  13. 5 11 Give back to them immediately their fields, vineyards, olive groves and houses, and also the interest you are charging • 12 “We will give it back,” they said. “And we will not demand anything more from them. We will do as you say.” • “And they all lived happily afterwards…?” • Read chapter 13!

  14. Building the wall • 69 They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.” But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.” • 15 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. (Josephus:4 years more to perfect it) • 16 When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.

  15. Remember me • 5 19 Nehemiah prays: Remember me with favor, my God, for all I have done for these people. • 1314Remember me for this, my God, and do not blot out what I have so faithfully done for the house of my God and its services. • Samson, Job, The Psalmist and Jeremiah pray this as well. • Luke 23 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you • come into your kingdom.” • “My heart Christ’s Home” “Remember us Lord…”

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