When shadows began to fall on the city gates of Jerusalem just before the Sabbath, I gave orders that the city gates be closed and not opened until after the Sabbath. I posted some of my men at the gates, so that no goods could enter during the Sabbath day. 

Once or twice the merchants and those who sell all kinds of goods camped outside Jerusalem, but I warned them, “Why are you camping in front of the wall? If you do it again, I’ll use force against you.”

After that they did not come again on the Sabbath. 

Then I instructed the Levites to purify themselves and guard the city gates in order to keep the Sabbath day holy.

Remember me for this also, my God, and look on me with compassion according to the abundance of your faithful love.

Nehemiah 13:19-22

Why, hello! It has been almost three years since I’ve posted regularly on the book of Nehemiah. And so much has happened in our little family. If you’re curious: first, we went on an adventure, posting about that a bit on here, and making a lifetime of memories in only a few months. Then we returned and God gave us a sweet home right across the street from our oldest’s new high school, and just down the road from our youngest’s new middle school.

We settled back into full-time jobs (dang bills), with Dan as a Reading Specialist and Jamie entering the Pre-K world again. Our boys began thriving, picking right back up with previous friendships at school and youth group, and making new, delightful ones.

We also settled into a home whose bones were good but required lots of updating and work. So we, but mostly Dan, began tackling those updates one at a time. Plus we’ve been on mission trips, family travels, track meets, swim competitions, band concerts, multiple holiday celebrations, and a career change for my man. And now we’re beginning our oldest’s final semester of high school. Whoa baby.

But I’m so glad to be back here in this space. Systematically working through God’s Word is a delight to me. However, I do believe we oughtta do a little catching up. So, here goes:

Back in August of 2022, we had our then-final installment of Nehemiah: seeing the city wall dedicated and temple responsibilities covered. Then we spent approximately 7 months entering into the book of Malachi, seeing how the task was both a burden and a song for the prophet.

Malachi began between chapters 12 and 13 of Nehemiah while…

“all this was going on, I [Nehemiah] was not in Jerusalem, 

for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had returned to the king.” 

(Nehemiah 13:6)

Needless to say, there was something to that “all this” that was “going on.” Malachi was given a burden of speaking to the returned exiles because they almost immediately went back to their old practices. The corruption of the priesthood, the pitiful sacrifices the people were offering to Covenant Yahweh, and the withholding of the tithe, robbing the Most High, were among the things addressed.

Then our final time to journey through the book of Nehemiah, after completing Malachi, was March 2023. We saw Nehemiah had once again returned to Jerusalem to find the people not following God’s laws. He began to institute a series of reforms, starting with Elisashib the priest giving Tobiah, a known enemy to the work and people of God, a large room in Temple where they had previously put items for the work of the Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and priests. He threw out Tobiah and all his possessions, purified the room, and returned to it its rightful contents.

Next he made sure the Levites received their rightful allotment, returning back to Temple those who had gone to work in the fields for food. Then all the people brought back the tithe – a tenth of all the grain, new wine, and fresh oil into the store houses, and Nehemiah appointed trustworthy treasurers to ensure the allotment was handed out to the workers.

Unfortunately, there was still more work to do for our governor, as the people of God were directly dishonoring the Sabbath by treading the winepress, bringing in wares, accepting imports from other nations, and selling food. And this after Nehemiah had set guards at each gate. These guards’ jobs were to wait until the sun was fully up before opening the gates, then closing them before the sun had set. And I can only imagine, as the people were learning the ways to honor Yahweh after a generation of exile, these gates were not open for trade on the Sabbath. So somewhere in there, things had changed. Compromise had set in.

Today we pick back up with Nehemiah enforcing the same thing.

“I gave orders that the gates be closed, and not opened until after the Sabbath.”

Closed is sagar -shut, close, confined, imprison, quarantine, pure, repair, shut in; to shut up; figuratively, to surrender -give over. Opened is pathach – appear, break forth, draw out, let go free, engrave, loose self, to open wide [literally or figuratively]; specifically, to loosen, plough, carve – break forth, draw [out], let go free, engrave, loose self, ungird, unstop, have vent.

Such vivid descriptions, no? And of simple words like open and closed, but they pack a punch.

The gates were the very thing keeping the rest of the world – enemies as well as friends – out from the people of God during times in which it was inappropriate to be around (for example, nighttime). And they were only to be opened after giving the Most High an entire day in which to rest in His love and provision.

I’m not sure I would go here – taking a verse on the physical gates to a place like relationships and emotions – had I not just had a weekend in which I gave full vent to some of my own. I was struck by quarantine and shut up versus the let go free, draw out, unstop, have vent. Mostly because after I exhibited a reaction which was totally out of proportion to a situation in our house, it was close to bedtime. And, rather than stew in anger or feel flooded with deep guilt, I felt the Spirit’s presence drawing out my heart. Helping me feel what was behind the outburst, pointing to the things that had built up until they all came rushing out at once.

Then, praise Jesus, my husband also helped draw out the next day when we sat down to talk about it. After our discussion, complete with a few tears and apologies on both sides, I not only better understood what was happening in my heart, but he did as well. It brought us to a tender place and a commitment from me to talk through things as they come instead of avoid – or get snippy in the moment.

What does this have to do with city gates? Probably not much, except I like that the only time this setting loose and going free applied to those gates was after the Sabbath. After every person in the community was forced to stop work, cease buying and selling, not even bake or cook or clean. Just rest. Seems like an opportune time to open back up the gates and reenter the rest of the world: when you’ve been physically, hourly reminded Who is the Creator and Sustainer of all things. Nothing like a little perspective, eh?

I’m very surprised to say, my outburst fortunately came after spending the past couple of weeks in prayer with some verses Jesus pointed out to me about bitterness. The fact that He and I had been talking through it made the outburst more surprising to me since I thought I’d dealt with it first in His lap. But all it did was point out there were things I needed to deal with with Dan that I had been avoiding. Nothing like a bit of feeling out of control to humble you. But, fortunately, it was after I, too, had been resting in His love and provision and Truth about it.

How about you? Any places things need to be quarantined and dealt with before God in your life? Maybe things you’d like to just have stayed shut? Shut up? Or a person with whom you need to open up about such things? Allow them to draw out so you can break free?

“And I posted some of my servants at the gates so that no burdens would be brought in on the day of the Sabbath…”

Here posted is amad – take one’s stand, and burdens (massa‘ again – load, oracle, prophecy).

I like that this is the same word used to describe Malachi’s prophecy – this burden and song He was called to deliver. Yes, of course, here it conveys the physical load these merchants brought, but I appreciate how the Hebrew word combines such vast applications of what a load can be.

And, how fitting to think of wares and good and items to buy and trade as a heavy burden. I’ve personally been a bit hyper-focused on using some Christmas gift cards lately, scouring deals and cart combos online to best make use of the dollar amount. I don’t necessarily think that’s wrong, but how much time has it taken me away from people in front of me?

How about you? Any convictions on how there is very, very little you actually need? How much you could give away without a second thought, never missing it? Most of my scrolling does little but feed my desire for more. You too?

“And a time or two, merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares lodged outside Jerusalem…”

Here lodged is luwn – abide all night, dwell, endure, grudge, to be obstinate, to complain, be left, lie all night, to murmur, remain, tarry all night. Sellers is makar – sell, destruction, make; to sell, literally [as merchandise, a daughter in marriage, into slavery], or figuratively to surrender.

Pretty intense synonyms. So interesting that lodging would also imply being obstinate and complaining. Like, as in, “I am lodged in this situation because of my grudge. I’m dwelling here, all night if I have to, complaining about it.” I hate that that sounds familiar to my heart.

But check out the seller synonyms. Destruction, literally selling or surrendering an item or person. Obviously, God is not against selling things. So many people then and now made honorable livings doing just that. But it definitely has with it a danger toward that which is destructive. After all, the bottom line is about money. Selling is about making a profit. And, if what I sense in my own heart is any indicator, it doesn’t take long for that to turn to greed.

“And I warned them and said, ‘Why do you spend the night around the wall? If you do so again I will use force against you…”

Warned is uwd – admonish, repeat, do again, to protest, testify (as by reiteration); intensively, to encompass, restore, charge, earnestly, lift up, rob, solemnly, stand upright, give warning, call to witness.

So interesting all the references to doing the thing more than once (repeat, again, reiterate). In our situation, this was definitely not the first time our governor had to admonish the people or the peoples around.

And, getting into the juiciest part, use force against you is more closely translated, “put hands on you.” The main word is shalach – to send; driving them away, escorted away, remove, throw, thrust, urgently send, cast away, forsake; give (up), push away.

And hand is our familiar yad.

First of all, I gotta say how struck I am reading these definitions that the only thing God sends, escorts away from those who belong to Him is our sin. He will never, ever cast off, remove, forsake, or push us away. Oh my goodness, thank you Jesus.

Secondly, this is absolutely our governor ensuring these sellers and their burdens stop enticing the people of Jerusalem on a day that breaks the law of God. What do we need to do in our lives to follow suit?

“After that, they did not come again on the Sabbath.”

I’ll bet.

“And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves and guard the gates to sanctify the Sabbath day…”

Cleanse themselves is tahher – to be bright; to be pure, cleanse, purge, purify. Guard is shamar – bodyguard. And sanctify is qadash – to be set apart, keep or make holy, manifest holiness, sanctify, dedicate; and it is the denominative verb of qodesh – to be set apart, sacred.

Nehemiah didn’t want just any watchmen at the gate. This job was for those God had instituted to protect Temple and His work. What better way than to purify themselves to bodyguard the gate so the Sabbath would be kept holy?

“Remember me my God concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of your mercy.”

Spare me is chus – to pity, look on with compassion, concern, properly, to cover, spare; same as chum – dark brown or black; From an unused root meaning to be warm, i.e. (by implication) sunburnt. And me is al – hover over me. Nehemiah wants God’s compassion to cover, hover over, and spare him. And there’s just something about the root of that word implying sunburnt that gives me pause. Like a stick snatched from the fire, like being saved from the incendiary flame of our own selves.

In “according to the greatness,” greatness is rob – abundance, immense, length, magnitude, multitude, numerous, plentiful, excellent, greatly huge, be increased. And mercy in “of your mercy” is the famous hesed or checed – favor, goodness, kindness, loving-kindness; from chacad – Beauty, good deed.

Ah, yes. Immense, plentiful, deep magnitude of His hesed. This is to what Nehemiah is appealing. Resting in the answer for God’s compassion to hover over him being a resounding yes because of the infinite height, depth, length, and breadth of His incomprehensible love.

Good decision, Nehemiah.