Context of the Passage:

In Nehemiah 5, Nehemiah faced internal challenges, while in Nehemiah 6 he faced external ones.  The intensity of the conflict rose when the job was near completion. In what appears to be a last ditch effort to thwart Nehemiah’s efforts, Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem join forces to oppose him.

Outline of the Passage

• 1-4 – The Challenge of Diversion
• 5-9 – The Challenge of False Accusation
• 10-14 – The Challenge of False Religion
• 15-16 – The Challenge of the Wall completed
• 17-19 – Lingering Challenges

Exegesis of the Passage

NOTE: the attacks Nehemiah faced to this point:

Mockery (2:19); Ridicule (4:1-3); Confusion (4:7-12); Distraction (6:2-4); False Accusation (6:5-9); Fear (6:10); Intimidation (6:19)

Here, he faced the challenge of Ono

• Nehemiah responded to the challenge of Ono by saying, “O No!”

Nehemiah responded to the challenge with two questions:

• Why should the work stop while I go to you?
  • I am doing a great work!
  • I don’t have time to be distracted
• Should a man such as I flee?

6:1 – Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem (and our other enemies) heard …

• It’s not clear who the “other enemies” were.  But, it’s not uncommon when forces begin to form against God’s plans, other enemies are enticed to join
• The Niphal form of שָׁמַע (heard)could suggest the sense that they were informed
  • Cf. 6:17-19

6:1 – Not a breach

• Despite how quickly the work was accomplished, it was not sloppily done

6:1 – The doors were not yet hung

• The last step in the completion of the walls were the gates and doors
• Nehemiah noted that the attacks started just as they were about to finish

6:2 – “Come let us meet”

• No agenda is given.  Perhaps they wanted to appear cordial.  But, Nehemiah rightfully was suspicious of their motives.  He knew that they meant him harm.
  • The Hebrew word here means, “bad.”
  • It’s the same word Nehemiah used in 2:17 to describe the conditions of the city when he arrived => Bad!
• His enemies wanted to lure him away from the work

6:3 – I sent messengers to them

• Nehemiah refused to go down.  Instead he sent messengers
• His message:
  • I am doing a great work – Nehemiah understood the significance of his work
  • Why should the work stop while I come to you – the interruption is too great

6:4 – Four times

• The enemies tried the same tactic three more times
• They did not want to take “No” for an answer.  But, it was the only answer they were going to get!

6:5-9 – A new strategy

• This attack was in the form of a false accusation
• “There is a rumor.”  It’s interesting how many false accusations begin with anonymous charges.  Nehemiah identified the rumor for what it was and exposed the source of it and their intention behind it.
• The rumor was a charge of sedition.  They accused Nehemiah of rebellion against the king and wanted to become king himself.
  • They even had specifics – “You have appointed prophets to proclaim concerning you in Jerusalem, ‘He is king.’”
• Vs. 7 – Ultimately, this was the same strategy – “Let’s meet.”
  • Lit. “Let’s consult together.”
  • They pretend to want to work together for a solution
• You are inventing them
  • The Heb here means, “to devise.”
  • The word only occurs in the Bible here and in 1 Kings 12:33

6:10 – A third strategy

• Flee to the Temple for protection
• It sounds religious
  • The Temple suggests religious purpose
  • In 1 Kings 2:28, Joab fled to the Tabernacle from Solomon (grabbing the horns of the altar) in hopes that it would protect him.

• Close the doors – lock ourselves in
  • At best this was an effort to scare Nehemiah into hiding
  • At worst, it was a ploy to try to trap him in a locked Temple with no escape.

6:10 – Let’s Meet at the Temple

• Same word as used in 6:2
• Nehemiah emphatically declined (6:11)
• Nehemiah went to the house of Shemaiah
  • NKJV says that Shemaiah was a “secret informer” (Heb. “atsur”)
  • NASB renders this word, “confined at home.”
    • The word carries the idea of being restrained or detained
    • It is unclear why Shemaiah was detained.  Perhaps that is the reason Nehemiah went to him (because he was confined at home).
    • Shemaiah proposes that they meet at the Temple, which suggests that his confinement was not imposed on him and he could voluntarily leave.
• For possible identification of Delaiah, see 1 Chron. 24:18.

6:11 – Such a man as I

• Nehemiah refused to be a coward
• He recognized the significance of his position and how showing cowardice as a leader would impact the people.
• “I will not”
  • The appropriate response to temptation is emphatic denial

6:12 – I perceived

• This word carries the idea of recognizing through examination (Cf. Gen. 27:33; 37:33; 42:7-8)
• “Surely” (Heb. “behold”)
• Nehemiah perceived three things about Shemaiah:
  • God did not send him
  • His message was spoken to hurt him
  • That Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him
    • He was a false prophet hired by Sanballat and Tobiah

6:13 – That I might sin

• Nehemiah recognized that this was not only a challenge to distract him from the work, but an opportunity for them to cause him to “sin.”  That way they would have an actual charge against him.

6:14 – As was his custom, Nehemiah turned this over to the Lord

• He also prays for the Lord’s judgment on the false prophets

6:15 – The wall was completed … in 52 days

• The remarkable feat was accomplished in an amazingly brief time
• See Neh. 2:1 – It was six months between the time Nehemiah presented his petition to the king, traveled to Jerusalem, rallied the people, and completed the wall.

6:16 – Even their enemies knew this was an act of God

• They could not deny that God had done this
• “They were very disheartened”
  • Lit. “Their eyes fell greatly.”

6:17-19 – Nehemiah had some informants in his camp

• They were informing Tobiah of what Nehemiah said
• They were exchanging letters with Tobiah and also trying to persuade Nehemiah to think positively about Tobiah
• The people had a pact with Tobiah
  • Lit. they were bound (Heb. “ba’al” – “lord; owner”) by an oath

Sermon on the Passage

1. GOD HAS A BIG TASK FOR YOU!
   •  You Don’t Have Time to be Distracted (2-4)
   •  You Can’t Afford to be Discouraged (4-9)
   •  You’re Going to have to be Discerning (10-14)
2.  GOD IS BIGGER THAN YOUR TASK!
   •  Look at what they did
   •  Look How They Did it
   •  Look Who Got the Credit

Application:

1. All of us have a great work to which God has called us.  We cannot afford to get distracted. Your labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Cor. 15:58)
2. Your enemy is relentless and may employ many different strategies to distract or defeat you.
3. Our hope is in God and our help is from God.