# Nehemiah 6

Nehemiah is a cup-bearer for Persian King Artaxerxes, and when he hears about the state of the wall of Jerusalem, he prays and asks the King if he can go and re-build it. The King lets him go and gives him resources for rebuilding the wall (including an armed escort).

He faces opposition from the people who were living around Jerusalem.

Zechariah said that the New Jerusalem would be a city without walls:

<span class="text Zech-2-3" id="bkmrk-%22and-there-was-the-a-0">"And there *was* the angel who talked with me, going out; and another angel was coming out to meet him, </span><span class="text Zech-2-4" id="bkmrk-who-said-to-him%2C-%E2%80%9Cru">who said to him, “Run, speak to this young man, saying: ‘Jerusalem shall be inhabited *as* towns without walls, because of the multitude of men and livestock in it. </span><span class="text Zech-2-5" id="bkmrk-for-i%2C%E2%80%99-says-the%C2%A0lor">For I,’ says the <span class="small-caps divine-name">Lord</span>, ‘will be a wall of fire all around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.’ ” (Zechariah 2:3-5)</span>

- <span class="text Zech-2-5">The enemies of Nahemiah (Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem, etc.) start plotting to take Nehemiah out</span>
- <span class="text Zech-2-5">They sent him the message four times to meet with them but he rejected them each time: "Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?" - it is a time for work, not a time for discussion or debate.</span>
- <span class="text Zech-2-5">Then they threaten him - with a letter to the king with lies on it. But he does not back down, putting his trust in God</span>
- <span class="text Zech-2-5">Then they accuse him of cowardice and try to get him to hide in the Temple - but he does not back down. He knows the tricks of the enemy</span>
- <span class="text Zech-2-5">They spread rumors about him</span>
- The wall was completed in record time (52 days) and all perceived it to be the work of God

<span class="text Zech-2-5">1 - Who is the enemy of this story?</span>

- <span class="text Zech-2-5">It is Satan. And Satan has many tricks up his sleeve, but they are very predictable</span>
- <span class="text Zech-2-5">In the last chapters, we saw that he started with ridicule, t</span><span class="text Zech-2-5">hen threats, t</span><span class="text Zech-2-5">hen he tries to attack from the inside. </span><span class="text Zech-2-5">But nothing could stop the work of Nehemiah. </span>
- Then he starts to go for Nehemiah himself in this chapter - with a plot to kill him, with threats to go to the king, with accusations of cowardice, with rumors that he sinned to try and ruin his reputation, etc.
- Nehemiah recognized the attacks of the devil and was always one step ahead.
- Even after the wall was complete, the enemies (like Tobiah) never ceased their opposition, even though they perceived that the work was done by God
- Satan does not delight in seeing God's will accomplished.

2 - A time for work, and a time for debate

- Not all debate is fruitful. We have to have wisdom for when should we enter into debate with someone.
- Some are interested in debating or discussing so they can win; others want to debate to get a fuller understanding. It's fruitless to debate with someone who has no interest in the TRUTH