Nehemiah 1

CHAPTER 1THEME: Nehemiah’s prayer for the remnant at JerusalemGod’s chosen people were called to witness against idolatry, but too often they themselves succumbed and became idolaters. God sent them to Babylon, the fountainhead of idolatry, to take the “gold cure.” They returned repudiating idolatry. Their restoration was incomplete, however. They were not free from this time on until the time of the Roman Empire. The New Testament opened with them under the rule of Rome. Three men played important roles in the rebuilding of Jerusalem. There was Zerubbabel, the prince, who represented the political side. Then there was Ezra, the priest, and finally Nehemiah, the layman. The king, the priest, and the prophet actually failed to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem and cleanse the temple, so God raised up Nehemiah, whom we designate a layman. Frankly, it is an unfortunate distinction today to talk about the clergy and the layman. One is half of the other. We need both. I started out in the ministry wearing a Prince Albert coat, a winged collar, and a derby hat. One of my friends told me that when I stood behind the pulpit on Sunday morning in my white collar and white shirt, I looked like a mule looking over a whitewashed fence! Then one day, as a young preacher, the realization came to me that I was no different from the men sitting in the pews. I took off all of that garb and wore what the other men were wearing. I was playing golf one day with some friends. One of the men invited a friend who was an officer in a church. He apparently did not know I was coming. When he saw me, he said, “Oh, my, Dr. McGee is here. Now we are going to have to watch our language.” Well, do you know what I did? I called his hand in a hurry. I said, “Now listen, brother. I am no different than you are. If you want to cuss, you cuss. But let us understand one thing: whether I am here or not, God hears your language. It does not make any difference whether I hear what you say, or not.” There is a false distinction being made today between the clergy and the laity. It is equally important that both of them be in fellowship with God. It was a layman, though, who rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem and cleansed the temple. I believe that even in this day God can and will raise up a layman to do a great work and put His work on a sure foundation. And it needs rebuilding today. Candidly, I am looking to God to raise up a young man who will not be a product of our seminaries. I have no objection to seminary graduates, but from time to time God raises up men who do not have that backgroundmen like Dwight L. Moody, Billy Sunday, and Billy Graham. We need men like Nehemiah. Nehemiah believed in watching and working. He also believed in working and praying. Watch and pray, or work and pray, are the words that characterize this man. He had a good government job in Persia. He was cupbearer to the king. He was a good, moral, honest man. He could have remained in Persia, but if he had, he would not have been in the record of God. We would never have heard of him. I want you to notice some of the things that mark out this man as we get acquainted with him. Let me introduce you to Nehemiah, the loyal layman.

Nehemiah 1:1

NEHEMIAH’S CONCERN FOR THE REMNANT AT JERUSALEMThe first seven chapters of this book deal with the rebuilding of the walls. The rest of the book deals with revival and reform. The first chapter begins with Nehemiah’s prayer. When Nehemiah speaks of “Jews that had escaped,” he is referring to those Jews who had returned to the land. Nehemiah could have returned to the land, but for some reason he did not. He took a job instead. I am not going to criticize him because God uses men like this, and He used Nehemiah. Notice that this man with an important position had a concern for God’s work. He was deeply concerned about God’s cause. One day while he was busy going back and forth in the palace, he saw one of his brethren who had just arrived from Jerusalem, who was probably bringing with him a message to the palace. Nehemiah stopped him and asked, “How are things going in the land?” This is the word he received:

Nehemiah 1:3

That is not a very pretty picture. What a pitiful spectacle was God’s cause and His people! The Jews were in disrepute because they had failed, and God could not afford to let that happen. Unfortunately, we cannot afford to let it happen today either. Nehemiah became extremely concerned about this report, and there are several things he could have said in reply. He could have said, “It’s too bad, brethren. Sorry to hear it. I’ll put you on my prayer list. God bless you.” There are other pious platitudes and Christian cliches he could have given, but he probably did not know about them. The important thing is that Nehemiah was concerned.

Nehemiah 1:4

NEHEMIAH’S PRAYERThere are several things I would like to call to your attention in this particular verse. Nehemiah was not indifferent to the sad plight of the people, and neither was he a carping critic. He could have said, “The people should have done this, or they should have done that.” Nehemiah was concerned. Looking back at the Book of Ezra, do you remember his reaction to the condition of the people? He was a priest and he, too, was concerned. Now here is a layman who is concerned. Today the cause of Christ is in jeopardy. I wonder if those who criticize and pretend to be interested are really concerned. If the thing you are criticizing doesn’t break your heart, stop it! There is too much talk and not enough tears. You are not God’s messenger if the message doesn’t cause you personal anguish. While I think that Ezra was an older man, I believe Nehemiah was a younger man. Ezra was probably a little boy at the time of the Captivity, but it is my opinion that Nehemiah had been born in captivity; as had many others. This is the reason, when we were studying Ezra, that I did not criticize these people for remaining in Babylon. Although they were out of the will of God, there were some very godly people who did not return to the land. The apostle Paul tells us in Rom_14:4, “Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth …” You and I have no right to judge these people. Always we ought to be careful in judging other believers when we do not know all of the circumstances. He “sat down and wept"Nehemiah was on state business, but that did not keep him from sitting down and weeping. Notice that he “mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed.” This was the resource and the recourse of these men. That is what Ezra did, and now also Nehemiah weeps and prays. Once again I must call your attention to the expression “God of heaven.” This expression occurs in the Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Daniel. It is a designation of God which is peculiar to these three books. After the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of Jerusalem, God could no longer be identified with the temple as the One who dwelt between the cherubim. The glory had departed. “Ichabod” was written over the escutcheon of Israel. The Lord God had returned to heaven. For this reason in the postcaptivity books He is “the LORD God of heaven.” He did not appear again until one time in Bethlehem when the angel said, “Glory to God in the highest” (Luk_2:14).

Christ had come to earth veiled in human flesh. Someday He is coming again. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself said, “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Mat_24:30). I don’t know what that sign is, but I rather suspect it is the Shekinah glory of God coming back. However, in Nehemiah’s day He is God of heaven, and Nehemiah addresses Him in this way. This is a great prayer, and there will be another in chapter 9.

Nehemiah 1:5

Let’s pause here just a moment and consider the word terrible. It is a word that has been greatly misunderstood and abused. Really and truly, preachers should not be called Reverend because it means “terrible.” Well, perhaps I am wrong; maybe some of us should be called “The Terrible Mr. So-and-So.” Seriously, Reverend is a word that should only be applied to God. Someone has expressed it this way: “Call me Mister, call me friend, A loving ear to all I lend, But do not my soul with anguish rend, PLEASE stop calling me Reverend.” Author unknown Reverend was a title given to ministers in the old days when they were held in high regard in the community. That is no longer true, of course. In fact, it is not even true in the church today. There are some people who claim their church is different, but in most churches there is a small group who try to crucify the preacher. However, in the old days when a preacher was called Reverend, it was a term of respect, although it was a misnomer. Today I can almost always detect an unsaved man by the way he addresses me.

Years ago, when I used to go to a dry cleaning establishment, the young fellow who operated it always called me “Reverend.” From the time I walked into his establishment until the time I walked out, he used that term at least twenty times. He really wore it out. He was an unsaved man. He paid little attention to what I was saying when I witnessed to him, but he liked to use the title of Reverend. God is the reverend God, the One who incites terror. But He is also the God “who keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love and observe his commandments.” He is a God of judgment, but He is also a gracious God.

Nehemiah 1:6

Notice Nehemiah’s wording in this prayer. Does he say, “I come to confess the sins which they have sinned?” No. He confessed the sins “which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father’s house have sinned.” Now this man nails it down: “I am a sinner. My father’s house has sinned. The nation has sinned.” How many times do we hear that kind of a confession of sin in our churches? In his prayer Nehemiah made a confession: the failure of the Jews was because of sin. Nehemiah said, “Both I and my father’s house have sinned.” This man was no self-righteous Pharisaic onlooker.

Nehemiah 1:7

We can see from this verse that Nehemiah believed God’s Word. He rested in it. And he knew God’s Word. He was concerned because God’s commandments were ignored.

Nehemiah 1:8

Nehemiah not only believed God’s Word, he also believed in the return of the Jews to Jerusalem. There are a lot of preachers who do not believe that today, which may be the reason God sometimes has to use laymen. God’s truth cannot always penetrate those of us who are preachers, but He can sometimes reach a layman.

Nehemiah 1:9

Nehemiah said to the Lord, “You said that You would scatter us if we disobeyed You, and we have disobeyed. You also said that if we turned and came back to You, that even though we be ‘cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven,’ You would bring us back to the land.” Nehemiah believed that the Jews would return to the land. He counted on it and that is why he prayed this way.

Nehemiah 1:10

Nehemiah is willing and wants to be used of God. But he is not running ahead of God; he prays about it. He says, “If You want to use me, I am making myself available.” When Nehemiah spoke about the king in his prayer, he called him “this man.” We will see him going to ask the king if he may return to the land. Nehemiah does not want to run ahead of God, and so he goes to Him first in prayer.