Nehemiah 2 Study Notes

2:1-3 It is not clear why Nehemiah waited nearly four months (the year was 445 BC) to bring his request to King Artaxerxes (see note at 1:1 for the month of Nisan). It is possible that the king spent the winter in Babylon rather than in Susa. Ancient records attest to this happening occasionally. It is also possible that Nehemiah waited for the (Hb) tukta, a Persian feast in which the king would often grant the requests of his supplicants. Nehemiah’s explanation for his sadness was carefully expressed. He did not mention Jerusalem by name, since it may have carried negative connotations from the past (Ezr 4:12), but he referred to it as the city where my ancestors are buried. The Persian rulers went to great expense building tombs for their ancestors. Nehemiah’s concern for the condition of his ancestors’ tombs would certainly strike a sympathetic chord with the Persian king.

2:4 This would have been a very short prayer, but it showed Nehemiah’s belief that God was sovereign over the will of the king.

2:5 Nehemiah’s request to rebuild Jerusalem was bold in light of the king’s earlier decision (Ezr 4:12-16) to stop all construction on the project.

2:6 The word queen here is a rare term (Hb shagel) that occurs only here and in Ps 45:9. Both ancient and modern commentators suggest that this term identified this woman as a concubine or a sexual favorite of the king. This is suggested because the term derives from a verb (Hb shagal) that often indicates illicit sexual activity.

2:7-8 Nehemiah needed not only time away from Artaxerxes’s court, but also official royal documents for the governors . . . west of the Euphrates River (lit “Beyond the River”) who were opposed to any building in Jerusalem (v. 10). His request for timber for the gates of the temple’s fortress probably refers to a military structure north of the temple that provided protection for the temple and its worshipers, and probably included the two towers mentioned in 3:1.

2:9 Some have criticized Nehemiah for accepting military protection, which Ezra refused (Ezr 8:22-23). Nehemiah’s decision did not reflect a lack of faith on his part, but rather his trust that this was part of God’s provision for him.

2:10 This verse introduces opposition as a recurring theme throughout the book and mentions two of Nehemiah’s three primary opponents. Sanballat, whose name is Babylonian (sin-uballat, “the god Sin has given life”), may have descended from a family displaced by the Assyrians and resettled in the region of Samaria (2Kg 17:24-33). He may have worshiped Yahweh, since his children Shelemiah and Delaiah both have names compounded with the divine name. Sanballat likely was serving already as governor of Samaria, the hill country region north of Judah (Hb Yehud). The description of Sanballat as the Horonite probably refers to his origin from either Upper or Lower Beth-horon northwest of Jerusalem (Jos 18:13). Some scholars contend that Tobiah was a high official working for Sanballat and that his description as the Ammonite reflects his ancestry. Others maintain that Tobiah was from a Jewish family living east of the Jordan River in the Ammonite region and that Tobiah was the governor of this province. Clearly both Sanballat and Tobiah were committed to thwarting Nehemiah’s plans.

2:11 Ezra also rested three days when he arrived in Jerusalem (Ezr 8:32).

2:12 Nehemiah probably limited the number of men and animals during his night-time reconnaissance of Jerusalem to avoid detection by those who were sympathetic to Sanballat and Tobiah.

2:13-15 Nehemiah’s description of his inspection of the city in this passage, along with the more detailed account of rebuilding in chap. 3, provides the best written information for reconstructing the dimensions of Jerusalem in the fifth century BC. One school of thought argues that the walls rebuilt by Nehemiah included only the City of David and the temple area. Another maintains that the rebuilt walls followed the eighth-century walls, including the southwestern hill area that was within the walls of preexilic Jerusalem. Furthermore, some archaeologists maintain that Nehemiah abandoned the eastern wall because of the extensive rubble and built a new, more defensible wall on the crest of the hill. Others insist that he rebuilt the remains of the preexilic wall further down the slope. Nehemiah’s inspection tour began on the western side of Jerusalem and proceeded counter-clockwise around the city.

2:13 Nehemiah and his men headed south from the Valley Gate toward the Serpent’s Well (Hb ‘en hattannin), which could be translated as “Dragon’s Well” or as “Serpent’s/Dragon’s Eye.” Nehemiah continued south to the Dung Gate at the lower tip of the city. This gate led to the Valley of Hinnom where garbage was dumped and burned. The term Gehenna is derived from the Hebrew term ge-hinnom (Valley of Hinnom).

2:14 Nehemiah followed the ruins of the wall north to the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool (probably the same place as the “Pool of Shelah” mentioned in 3:15). With the ruined walls on his left and the steep Kidron Valley on his right, his way was blocked and he dismounted. Archaeological investigations have shown that preexilic Jerusalem extended down this slope (called the Millo) toward the Kidron Valley. This area of rubble, still visible today, is 15 feet thick in some places.

2:16 While some assume the officials here (Hb segen) were Persian officials, it probably refers to the various leaders mentioned among the Jews, priests, nobles, and officials.

2:17 The word disgrace (Hb cherpah), often translated “shame” or “reproach,” is the same word used to describe the state of the people in Jerusalem when Nehemiah’s brother and his friends gave their report (1:3). The present sad state of the city was a “disgrace” to the city, its people, and above all, its God.

2:18 The gracious hand of God is also referred to in v. 8; Ezr 7:9; 8:18,22,31 (text note).

2:19 Nehemiah’s third primary opponent appears in this verse: Geshem the Arab. Arabs are mentioned in the Bible from the ninth century BC on, sometimes aiding the Israelites, as at the battle of Qarqar in 853 BC, and sometimes attacking them, as in the time of King Jehoram of Judah (2Ch 21:16). During Nehemiah’s time the Arabs were led by Geshem, whose vast domain stretched from the Negev south of Judah all the way to Lower Egypt. Together with Sanballat and Tobiah, he mocked Nehemiah and his followers, even accusing them of sedition against their Persian overlord.

2:20 Nehemiah did not try to refute his enemy’s claims, but he stated his trust in the God of the heavens. The meaning of the phrase historic claim is not certain in this context. The Hebrew term it is based on (zikkaron) normally means “remembrance.” It is used to describe the Passover as a spiritual memorial for the people of Israel (Ex 12:14). This may mean that Nehemiah’s enemies not only had no legal right to the land, but also no right to participate in the worship of the community.