Notes And Next Steps Nehemiah 3 + Part 4 of the series "Nehemiah: Rise & Build" The Sheep Gate (3:1). If you have a year exactly equal to 364 days (the solar year used by the Book of Jubilees), then 52 days is exactly one-seventh of a year. COPYRIGHT 2023 BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY 5614 Connecticut Ave NW #343, Washington DC 20015-2604. Daniyel 9:25 says that the first seven shavuim begin min motsa davar in Daniyels own lifetime, whenever his supplications began (naturally, when the Temple was destroyed). Verse 24 gives the big picture overview of what takes place during the entire 70 weeks. In Part 1 prayer was discussed and in this article we have discussed preparation and . Ezra and Nehemiah, and the wall built during their time, have nothing to do with Daniel 9. Nehemiah 2:20 'The God of heaven will give us success. 24After him Binnui son of Henadad repaired another section, from the house of Azariah to the Angle and to the corner. 8Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples; 9but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are under the farthest skies, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place at which I have chosen to establish my name. 10They are your servants and your people, whom you redeemed by your great power and your strong hand. Without military escort, Ezra left Babylon 457 BC, with 5,000 Jews, priests and Levites bearing rich gifts and treasures. How long was the wall that Nehemiah rebuilt? Both I and my family have sinned. All that was left was to rebuild the city . They consecrated it and set up its doors; they consecrated it as far as the Tower of the Hundred and as far as the Tower of Hananel. May God bless your search for understanding. Then he acts in secret. Should you not walk in the fear of our God, to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies? YHWH was telling the people to shuwb or return and build His house that they were neglecting. Also, where do you get the following statement from? So this is how it works Foto Marburg has plenty of Abrahams, Davids, Jesuses (Jesi?) According to a story, Nehemiah, a high official in the Persian court of King Artaxerxes I at the capital city of Susa, was very troubled that there was no wall to protect his beloved city of Jerusalem, its walls and gates. He organized them into two groups of singers. 14Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, according to these things that they did, and also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who wanted to make me afraid. http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/80353228.jpg, [] study is all about destiny and reversal of destiny. 16After him Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of half the district of Beth-zur, repaired from a point opposite the graves of David, as far as the artificial pool and the house of the warriors. 15So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. Notice the common names are in the same order in both lists. It would mean they would have to admit the redactions. They are appropriate here again: Ezra 6:14 14 And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. As the Bible describes it, he was so driven to erect that barrier to protect the Jews from their enemies that he motivated a crew to work nonstop. Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem in 445 B.C. Israel became a nation 69 years ago!! Nehemiah's efforts to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem exhibited this important component of faith. Write "The people wanted to work!". Will they restore things? Each of them has a name and a biblical story. [] Nehemiah was a high official in the Persian court of King Artaxerxes I at the capital city of Susa, which lay 150 miles east of the Tigris River in what is now modern Iran. In it, Nehemiah describes his efforts to rebuild the city, even in the face of hostile neighbors. The 70th week does not start until the Anti Christ appears who make a covenant with many for one heptad (week) a 7 year period. He is even given letters from the king to ensure safe passage and to obtain timber from the kings forest for the gates and walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was cup-bearer to Artaxerxes. However, week of years is not the meaning of the word weeks used to specify the seven weeks and sixty-two weeks in verse 25. Ok kislev is November, and notice it says the 20th year of the king? Next to them Meshullam son of Berechiah son of Meshezabel made repairs. The burden-bearers carried their loads in such a way that each laboured on the work with one hand and with the other held a weapon. Joshua & Zerubbabel restarted construction but their enemies lodge a protest with Darius Hystaspes. He asked the king for permission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem & was sent from Susa the Persian capital as Governor in 445 BC. Ill stick with what the biblical text states, that the key time-location events are the decree of Caesar in 44 BCE and the building of the broad place and moat in 43 BCE.. As athletes engage with Scripture, they . 9Then I came to the governors of the province Beyond the River, and gave them the kings letters. Let us stop this taking of interest. Nehemiah and the people rebuilt 10 city gates. 11O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. So we have: 1. @ William You say that building the Temple is the de facto event in building Jerusalem, but I remind you that that is not what God said through the prophet Daniel in verse 25. 1Now when the wall had been built and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed, 2I gave my brother Hanani charge over Jerusalem, along with Hananiah the commander of the citadelfor he was a faithful man and feared God more than many. I am returned shuwb, the same word used in Daniel 9:25. 9So I said, The thing that you are doing is not good. 1st century BCE Jewish messianic expectants considered the prophecy so important that today over 2000 years later we have a Rabbinic chronology which leaves out over 120 year of Persian chronology. The third edition of the Biblical Archaeology Societys widely-acclaimed Ancient Israel: From Abraham to the Destruction of the Temple serves as an authoritative history of ancient Israel. 1Now there was a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their Jewish kin. Then they said, Let us start building! So they committed themselves to the common good. seventh] of one year, since work was not to be done on a sabbath. Despite of them we steadily kept on our building, and the result was that soon all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof - the whole continuous line of wall was completed to half the contemplated height. But afterwards, in applying the prophecy to Theudas, and Judas of Galilee, and at length to Bar Cochab, they seem to have shortened the reign of the Kingdom of Persia. (Chron. He gathered his people together, he equipped them, and he led them in rebuilding the city walls of Jerusalem. See http://www.prophecysociety.org for a fuller explanation than can be provided in this forum. In an individual life, then, the rebuilding of the walls would be a picture of re-establishing the strength of that life. David Rohls chronology works only if one disregards major portion of the Hebrew Scriptures. 7Next to them repairs were made by Melatiah the Gibeonite and Jadon the Meronothitethe men of Gibeon and of Mizpahwho were under the jurisdiction of the governor of the province Beyond the River. 7After thinking it over, I brought charges against the nobles and the officials; I said to them, You are all taking interest from your own people. And I called a great assembly to deal with them, 8and said to them, As far as we were able, we have bought back our Jewish kindred who had been sold to other nations; but now you are selling your own kin, who must then be bought back by us! They were silent, and could not find a word to say. These take place in the 2nd year of Darius. Families and professional groups take on the responsibility for repairing stretches of the wall, while gates are provided with attics, doors, bolts and bars, and towers are rebuilt. Here is a simple equation of the 1st part of that verse: I personally do not think Daniel 9 can be separated from the context of that time. I dont think the prophecy of Daniel 9 gets the attention it deserves in regards to the influence it has had on Biblical and secular chronology. Nehemiah understood the urgency of rebuilding the wall and because he was obedient to God, it was completed in 52 days (Nehemiah 6:15). Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbishand burnt ones at that? 3Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, That stone wall they are buildingany fox going up on it would break it down! 4Hear, O our God, for we are despised; turn their taunt back on their own heads, and give them over as plunder in a land of captivity. 15 And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction. Just shows to go you that, just because a guy pulls up his sleeves, and is the first one to jump in and work, it sometimes doesnt mean what it appears to mean. 16From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and body-armour; and the leaders posted themselves behind the whole house of Judah, 17who were building the wall. Now he could rebuild his beloved city of Jerusalem, its walls and gates. The Book of Nehemiah is usually read together with the Book of Ezra as one long book. How difficult would that be to hold a weapon and build the wall? 492BCE minus 490 years leaves us at the Birth of Christ at 2BCE!! External attacks on the Church and some of the repair-workers. The traditional Bible chronology based on Thieles harmonization of the Hebrew kings and the Rohl chronology that shortens the chronology of Egypt are incorrect. "'Jerusalem's wall has been broken down, and its gates have been burned down. These are just chronological events which take place after the first 7 sevens. Your theory is very interesting, but based on these statements alone, I cannot justify the 70 weeks referring to 70 years (or 70 Shavuot). 8 years of Archaeology Odyssey online, exploring the ancient roots of the Western world in a scholarly and entertaining way, The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land. The only animal I took was the animal I rode. He enlisted the help of the people to quickly repair the breaches in the wall. 11Malchijah son of Harim and Hasshub son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and the Tower of the Ovens. Nehemiah served as the kings cupbearer (Nehemiah 1:11), which evidently put him in a position to speak to the king. But Nehemiah avoids their traps, ignores their threats, and refuses to hide when threatened by assassination. The wall was at last completed52 days (a week shy of two months) after the reconstruction under Nehemiah commenced (verse 15). 1 The words of () Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. Here is how I understand it. Ok Nissan is April and in the 20th year of the king. He wanted them to know what standards he and they would live by. Being a representative of the king to rebuild jerusalem was such a great feat that he would not have time for a family either. etc., but apparently no available stock photo of a work from the Middle Ages whose artist actually recorded that his intention was to depict Nehemiah. Anyways, so ppl pin point the building of the walls by Nehemiah being in the 20th year of this king which is Darius the great who was married to queen Esther. Ezra soon noticed that contrary to the Jewish law, even Jews of high standing and the priests, had intermarried with pagan, non-Hebrew women. The answer is that Nehemiah did not build on top of the ridge but repaired Hezekiah's mid-slope wall. My interpretation fits both Scripture and history. Very good study. Nehemiah built a spiritual wall for their covenant with God relationship presence help in time of trouble. As governor, Nehemiah says that he didnt take advantage of food and land allotments that were allowed him due to his office, because there was already such a great burden on the people of his province (Nehemiah 5:1419). ' When I heard these things, I sat down and wept" (Nehemiah 1:3-4). Thanks for the insight! According to Haggai 1, YHWH then spoke to Haggai and asked him why the people were building their own houses when the Temple was not completed. Neamiah returned to king Darius when he finished building the walls. Nehemiah 4-6. Truth of the matter is we will NEVER know all the facts and truths in this life..only the next. The people of the prince to come were in fact those who destroyed the temple under Titus in 70 A.D. This Bible History Daily feature was originally published in August 2012. Not only did he trust God to bless his efforts, he physically did his part to complete the project. 16 Therefore thus saith YHWH; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith YHWH of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem. The words of Ezra 6 lays it all out in chronological order. This cycle is hinted at in 52 days of 52 weeks to complete the 360 degree cycle of the soul. (Neh. Nothing else would qualify. 7You have also set up prophets to proclaim in Jerusalem concerning you, There is a king in Judah! And now it will be reported to the king according to these words. In my opinion the underlying text does not say anything about restoring Jerusalem to a messiah. The text clearly states it will be 7 sevens from the command unto the Messiah. No self respecting Jewish zealot would have based it upon a command given by men. Give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man! Chapter 6 says this, 6:15So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. Within 52 days the walls were rebuilt and the gates restored in spite of intense internal and external opposition! He read the Book of Moses and wanted to make sure the people stayed faithful to God's ways. It was God's work and He protected His people and they completed the wall in 52 days. And thus the wall was built again "even in troublesome times," just as had been foretold in Daniel 9:25. He also urged them to set up guards to defend against the constant threat of those who opposed their efforts, including the armies of Samaria, the Ammonites and the Ashdodites. In 100 years people had been trying to rebuild these walls and they couldn't get it done. This theme actually comes from the book of Nehemiah (2:20), which describes how God led the people Israel in the task of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. The word restore is shuwb- its primary meaning is to return or turn back. Why did they have to build with one hand and have a weapon in the other hand? YHWHs decree in the 2nd year of Darius Hystaspes (through Haggai & Zechariah) to restart contruction of the temple which had stopped sometime earlier. Required fields are marked *. 13I went out by night by the Valley Gate past the Dragons Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that had been broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire. I really like all of the points youve made. I cannot say whether or not I agree or disagree with comments posted by previous contributors, but I thank you all of increasing my knowledge of the many ways in which we can view the bible. In the eighth chapter of Daniel, the phrase evening-morning(s) was used to indicate Passovers. If you are talking about Daniel 8:14, I do not see anything about Pesach. 10When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard this, it displeased them greatly that someone had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel. Thus, the time periods being designated in verse 25 are seven Pentecosts and sixty-two Pentecosts. This decree or command by YHWH (in the 12th month, 2nd year of Darius) followed a similar decree given to Haggai just a few months earlier(Hag.1). 10Moreover, I and my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. They will be captured by many false competing Churches and charlatan Prophets around us. 32And between the upper room of the corner and the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and the merchants made repairs. Nehemiah encountered hostility from the (non-Jewish) local officials in neighbouring districts, but in the space of 52 days the Jews under his direction succeeded in rebuilding Jerusalem's walls. Along comes Bible History Daily, rents the picture, crops it to show just the face and upper portion of the body. Ezra 7:13-28. Most significant were its cracks, which [], [] I was having one of those days. When Daniel received the vision, the 70 years of the captivity period spoken of in Jeremiah 25 were just drawing to a close. Only this time the Christian chronologists have removed the contextual necessity of association between the command given by YHWH and the 2nd year of Darius even- Artaxerxes. 21So we laboured at the work, and half of them held the spears from break of dawn until the stars came out. It will represent the belief that He is alive, listening and able to respond. By this time, exiles who were taken at the time of the Babylonian conquest had already been allowed to return to their homeland, and the ones that did had already rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem. Nehemiah 12 states Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam(Shallum), Talmon and Akkub all lived in the days of Joiakim, Nehemiah and Ezra. Ezra insisted upon the dismissal of these wives. There was no other mention of him, until after the rebuilding of the city walls. But thats not when he built the walls, its only when he inspected it for 3 days!! See how ppl dont continue reading to see that the wall was continued in the 32nd year?! Nehemiah prayed and fasted to God for four months before petitioning the King to return to his home and reinforce Jerusalem's city walls. Though the temple has been rebuilt, the city walls were as they had been for the last 130 years, with the result that the inhabitants of Jerusalem had no way of defending themselves against their enemies (see Nehemiah 4:11). One of the most astonishing facts about Nehemiah is that he finished the walls in just 52 days. It took Nehemiah 52 days to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Will they sacrifice? Dorothy Resig Willette is the former Managing Editor of Biblical Archaeology Review. By this time, exiles who were taken at the time of the Babylonian conquest had already been allowed to return to their homeland, and the ones that did had already rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem. The All-Access membership pass is the way to get to know the Bible through biblical archaeology. Nowhere, absolutely nowhere, current or in historical records of the past almost one thousand years, is there any reference to Nehemiah! We can learn about the society where the ancient Israelites, and later Jesus and the Apostles, lived through the modern discoveries that provide us clues. From the coming forth means the times were set at the finish. 4Next to them Meremoth son of Uriah son of Hakkoz made repairs. I looked up the complete article from your website. You too offer an interesting interpretation. 13 But go your way till the end. After them Azariah son of Maaseiah son of Ananiah made repairs beside his own house. 3So I sent messengers to them, saying, I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. 17Then I said to them, You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burnt. Nehemiah rebuilt the wall to protect the people from the enemies. You don't have to rebuild a wall to do the will of God. 16The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing; I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest that were to do the work. 25Palal son of Uzai repaired opposite the Angle and the tower projecting from the upper house of the king at the court of the guard. And next to them Zaccur son of Imri built. When to fight? I have seen some [arguing for Artaxerxes I] say that his genealogy leaves out some generations, but it doesnt really make sense that there should be a gap of 128 years right between his last ancestor in his genealogy and himself/his first dateable appearance. Could we take 52 days to accomplish something similar? Key Notes: The wall was done in 52 days. Israel is Gods earthly time clock. As noted earlier a variation on this tradition has been carried on by Christians today in their association of Artaxerxes with the Persian Longimanus. They played trumpets, cymbals, and harps and sang to Jehovah. The decree signified by Daniel 9 that starts the 70 weeks is the decree issued by Julius Caesar in 44 BCE, that says: Gaius Caesar, consul the fifth time [in 44 BCE], hath decreed, That the Jews shall possess Jerusalem, and may encompass that city with walls; and that Hyrcanus, the son of Alexander, the high priest and ethnarch of the Jews, retain it in the manner he himself pleases; and that the Jews be allowed to deduct out of their tribute, every second year the land is let [in the Sabbatic period], a corus of that tribute; and that the tribute they pay be not let to farm, nor that they pay always the same tribute. Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 14.10.5 (Whiston translation). I wonder if there might be some significance to the notion that it took 52 days to complete. God bless. If you sort through the rather scarce historical references of Messianic expectancy in the 1st century BCE you will find like Newton and Davidson that a huge portion of the Persian era was eclipsed. FREE ebook: Israel: An Archaeological Journey. 3I said to the king, May the king live for ever! 23After them Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs opposite their house. Nehemiah Prays for His People. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me. 7We have offended you deeply, failing to keep the commandments, the statutes, and the ordinances that you commanded your servant Moses. None of the Persian-era decrees fit the text of Daniel 9.

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