The Notes to Nehemiah
A Selection by Michael Riley
Nehemiah 1 - Selected Verses
"The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the capital" (1:1).
1:1 The words of Nehemiah. In Hebrew the phrase "The words of Nehemiah" can be translated "The acts of Nehemiah." Nehemiah was a "man of action" as much as he was a man of words. Without question words are important in the life of faith but faith is essentially a life of action. Believing in God is not a mental exercise but a life committed to following his will.
"that Hanani, one of my brethren, came with certain men out of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that survived, who had escaped exile, and concerning Jerusalem" (1:2).
1:2 I asked them about the Jews. Nehemiah took the initiative by asking about the welfare of the Jews living in Jerusalem. For lesser people, the situation in Judah would have been someone else's problem but for Nehemiah, even in a distant land, the condition of those who had "survived" was a cause of intense concern.
1:4 Fasting. See Spiritual Disciplines Index.
"And I said, 'O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments; let thy ear be attentive, and thy eyes open, to hear the prayer of thy servant which I now pray before thee day and night for the people of Israel thy servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against thee. Yea, I and my father's house have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the ordinances which thou didst command thy servant Moses. Remember the word which thou didst command thy servant Moses, saying, "If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples; but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your dispersed be under the farthest skies, I will gather them thence and bring them to the place which I have chosen, to make my name dwell there." They are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power and by thy strong hand. O Lord, let thy ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants who delight to fear thy name; and give success to thy servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.' Now I was cupbearer to the king." (1:5-11).
1:5-11 the great and awesome God who keeps covenant. Nehemiah's prayer reflects a thorough knowledge of Scripture. Almost every phrase in the prayer was derived from the sacred text (see Deut 7:9, 21; 10:17; 1 Kings 8:52; Ps 130:2; Deut 34:5; 4:27; 30:1-4; 9:29). The prayer reflects Nehemiah's saturation with Scripture. The text was so firmly embedded in his memory that the words of Scripture had become the thoughts of Nehemiah. In the prayer life of Jesus, as well as the Church, the Bible has often served as a resource for addressing God. The prayer contrasts the faithfulness of God with the unfaithfulness of Israel. It was not necessary for Nehemiah to remind God of his obligations to Israel, but the prayer serves to alert Nehemiah and Israel that God was the brooding Father waiting for his children to return to him that he might once again enter into relationship with them.
RESPONDING
1:4-11 Prayer As Michael Riley points out in the notes, almost every phrase in Nehemiah's eloquent prayer was derived from other parts of Scripture, which Nehemiah had internalized after much study. Nehemiah repeated this prayer "day and night." Try copying out this prayer, studying it, and praying it for a week. See if its words become a part of you.
1:4-11 Prayer. See Spiritual Disciplines Index.
RESPONDING
1:6-7 Confession Nehemiah's confession is so general that it reads like an admission that we always have and always will sin. Recognizing this can lead to despair and an inability to let go of past sins for which we have already repented. Søren Kierkegaard wrote this prayer, "Hold not our sins up against us but hold us up against our sins so that the thought of You when it wakens in our soul ... should not remind us of what we have committed but of what You did forgive, not of how we went astray but of how You did save us." The next time you feel haunted by a past sin, pray Kierkegaard's prayer and think of it not just as a failing but as a reminder of God's saving grace.