Rebuilding Broken Lives
Nehemiah 2:1-8
Page 404 in Pew Bibles
Nehemiah 2:1-8
1. During the month of Nisan in the
twentieth year of King Artaxerxes,
when wine was set before him, I took
the wine and gave it to the king. I had
never been sad in his presence,
2. so the king said to me, "Why are you
sad, when you aren't sick? This is
nothing but sadness of heart." I was
overwhelmed with fear
3. and replied to the king, "May the king
live forever! Why should I not be sad
when the city where my ancestors are
buried lies in ruins and its gates have
been destroyed by fire?"
4. Then the king asked me, "What is your
request?" So I prayed to the God of
heaven
5. and answered the king, "If it pleases
the king, and if your servant has found
favor with you, send me to Judah
and to the city where my ancestors are
buried, so that I may rebuild it."
6. The king, with the queen seated
beside him, asked me, "How long will
your journey take, and when will you
return?" So I gave him a definite time,
and it pleased the king to send me.
7. I also said to the king: "If it pleases the
king, let me have letters written to the
governors of the region west of the
Euphrates River, so that they will grant
me safe passage until I reach Judah.
8. And let me have a letter written to
Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, so
that he will give me timber to rebuild
the gates of the temple's fortress, the
city wall, and the home where I will
live." The king granted my requests, for
I was graciously strengthened by my
God.
Rebuilding Broken Lives
Nehemiah 2:1-8
Quick History
>
• Babylonian Exile, 70 years: in punishment
for sins of Judah.
• Jeremiah had predicted a 70-year exile
(Jeremiah 25)
• Temple was destroyed in 586 BC and was
rebuilt in 516 BC.
• The people were carried into exile in
several waves and Jews returned to
Jerusalem in several waves.
• A wave of Jews returned home with Ezra in
457 BC
• Nehemiah comes to rebuild walls: 444 BC
Nehemiah
• Was the key agent for rebuilding
walls of Jerusalem
• Was one of the key leaders in
rebuilding the spiritual life of the
people.
• Gives us a pattern for rebuilding
our personal lives and helping
others in rebuilding theirs’.
.>
Six Steps to
Getting Started
1. Preparation
• Prayer
.>
– 1:4 “When I heard these words, I sat down
and wept. I mourned for a number of days,
fasting and praying before the God of
heaven.”
– 1:1 “During the month of Chislev
[November-December] in the twentieth
year”
– 2:1 “During the month of Nisan [MarchApril; thus, 4 months] in the twentieth year
of King Artaxerxes”
1. Preparation
• Planning
– Vs. 6 The king… asked me, "How
long will your journey take, and when
will you return?" So I gave him a
definite time…
– When the opportunity came,
Nehemiah was prepared
>
1. Preparation
●
.>
Planning
– Vs. 7 I also said to the king: "If it pleases
the king, let me have letters written to the
governors of the region west of the
Euphrates River, so that they will grant
me safe passage until I reach Judah.
– VS. 8 And let me have a letter written to
Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, so that
he will give me timber to rebuild the gates
of the temple's fortress, the city wall, and
the home where I will live."
2. Authorization
• God opens doors
• Proverbs 21:1: “A king’s heart is a water
channel in the Lord’s hand: He directs it
wherever He chooses.”
• Vs. 6 “The king, with the queen seated
beside him, asked me…”
>
2. Authorization
• The King Said
– Vs. 1-2 “I had never been sad in his
presence, so the king said to me, ‘Why
are you sad, when you aren't sick? This
is nothing but sadness of heart.’ I was
overwhelmed with fear…”
• The King Asked
– Vs. 4 “Then the king asked me, ‘What
is your request?’”
>
2. Authorization
• The King Asked
– Vs. 6 “The king, with the queen seated
beside him, asked me, ‘How long will
your journey take, and when will you
return?’”
• The King Granted
– Vs. 8 “The king granted my requests,
for I was graciously strengthened by my
God.”
.>
3. Examination
HL >
• Vs. 12-13 “I got up at night and took a
few men with me. I didn't tell anyone
what my God had laid on my heart to do
for Jerusalem. The only animal I took
was the one I was riding. I went out at
night through the Valley Gate toward
the Serpent's Well and the Dung Gate,
and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem
that had been broken down and its
gates that had been destroyed by fire.”
3. Examination
.>
• Vs. 12-13 “I got up at night and took a
few men with me. I didn't tell anyone
what my God had laid on my heart to do
for Jerusalem. The only animal I took
was the one I was riding. I went out at
night through the Valley Gate toward
the Serpent's Well and the Dung Gate,
and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem
that had been broken down and its
gates that had been destroyed by fire.”
Medical term for probing a wound to
see the extent of damage
4. Recommendation
•
Appropriate Persuasion
1. Give an Honest Appraisal
–
Vs. 17 “So I said to them, ‘You see
the trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in
ruins and its gates have been burned
down.’”
2. Envision the Results
–
>
Vs. 17 “’Come, let's rebuild
Jerusalem's wall, so that we will no
longer be a disgrace.’”
4. Recommendation
●
Appropriate Persuasion
3. Testify of God’s Involvement
–
Vs. 18 “I told them how the gracious
hand of my God had been on me, and
what the king had said to me.”
4. Invite Them to Join You in Action
–
>
Vs. 17 “Come, let's rebuild
Jerusalem's wall”
4. Recommendation
●
Appropriate Persuasion
5. Give them space to determine their
own response
–
–
.>
Vs. 18 “They said, ‘Let's start
rebuilding,’ and they were encouraged
to do this good work.”
KJV: “And they said, ‘Let us rise up
and build. So they strengthened their
hands for this good work.’”
Nehemiah 2:9-20
9. I went to the governors of the region
west of the Euphrates and gave them
the king's letters. The king had also
sent officers of the infantry and cavalry
with me.
10. When Sanballat the Horonite and
Tobiah the Ammonite official heard that
someone had come to seek the wellbeing of the Israelites, they were
greatly displeased.
11. After I arrived in Jerusalem and had
been there three days,
12. I got up at night and took a few men
with me. I didn't tell anyone what my
God had laid on my heart to do for
Jerusalem. The only animal I took was
the one I was riding.
13. I went out at night through the Valley
Gate toward the Serpent's Well and
the Dung Gate, and I inspected the
walls of Jerusalem that had been
broken down and its gates that had
been destroyed by fire.
14. I went on to the Fountain Gate and
the King's Pool, but farther down it
became too narrow for my animal to go
through.
15. So I went up at night by way of the
valley and inspected the wall. Then
heading back, I entered through the
Valley Gate and returned.
16. The officials did not know where I
had gone or what I was doing, for I had
not yet told the Jews, priests, nobles,
officials, or the rest of those who would
be doing the work.
17. So I said to them, "You see the
trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in
ruins and its gates have been burned
down. Come, let's rebuild Jerusalem's
wall, so that we will no longer be a
disgrace."
18. I told them how the gracious hand of
my God had been on me, and what the
king had said to me. They said, "Let's
start rebuilding," and they were
encouraged to do this good work.
19. When Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah
the Ammonite official, and Geshem the
Arab heard about this, they mocked
and despised us, and said, "What is
this you're doing? Are you rebelling
against the king?"
20. I gave them this reply, "The God of
heaven is the One who will grant us
success. We, His servants, will start
building, but you have no share, right,
or historic claim in Jerusalem."
5. Confrontation
• Vs. 10 “When Sanballat the Horonite
and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard
that someone had come to seek the
well-being of the Israelites, they were
greatly displeased.”
>
• Sanballat: Akkadian name: “ Sin has given life”
Sin=Moon god, not our word for doing wrong.
His sons had Jewish names. Sanballat was
governor of Samaria
• Tobiah: had a Jewish name, was governor of
the Ammonites (present Jordan)
5. Confrontation
• Geshem the Arab: He may well have been
in charge of a powerful north Arabian
confederacy that controlled vast areas from
northeastern Egypt to northern Arabia and
southern Palestine. He may have been
opposed to Nehemiah’s independent domain
out of fear that it would interfere with his own
lucrative trade in myrrh and frankincense.
>
5. Confrontation
• Vs. 10 “When Sanballat the Horonite
and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard
that someone had come to seek the
well-being of the Israelites, they were
greatly displeased.”
• Notice the depth of their animosity.
• Genesis 3:15 “I will put hostility
between you and the woman, and
between your seed and her seed.”
>
5. Confrontation
>
• Vs. 19 “When Sanballat the Horonite,
Tobiah the Ammonite official, and
Geshem the Arab heard about this,
they mocked and despised us, and
said, ‘What is this you're doing? Are
you rebelling against the king?’”
• Notice their mockery
• Nehemiah had urged the people to
rebuild so we will “no longer be a
disgrace, a mockery, something to be
derided”.
5. Confrontation
.>
• Vs. 19 “When Sanballat the Horonite,
Tobiah the Ammonite official, and
Geshem the Arab heard about this,
they mocked and despised us, and
said, ‘What is this you're doing? Are
you rebelling against the king?’”
• Notice their accusations & implications
• In verse 18 they heard about the
authorization Nehemiah had from King
Artexerxes himself, with the letters to &
military escort to prove it. They’re lying!
5. Confrontation
• A Christian that says he is one who is
– completely fearless,
– continually cheerful,
– and constantly in trouble!
.>
6. Determination
• Vs. 20 “I gave them this reply, ‘The God
of heaven is the One who will grant us
success. We, His servants, will start
building, but you have no share, right, or
historic claim in Jerusalem.’”
• A Clear Distinction
– “We His servants” / “You have no share,
right or historic claim”
• A Definite Focus of Trust
..
– “The God of Heaven… will grant us
success”
Rebuilding Broken Lives