Artaxerxes Grants Nehemiah Permission To Return To Jerusalem To Rebuild The Walls (Nehemiah 2:1-20) Background: As cupbearer to the he king, Nehemiah would have been well aware of the decree Artaxerxes had issued a year earlier (445 B.C.) that put a stop to the Jews rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. You may recall from our study of the historical parenthesis in Ezra chapter 4, that the enemies of the Jews persuaded Rehum, the Persian commander in Samaria, to write a letter to King Artaxerxes informing him that the Jews who had been allowed to return to Jerusalem were rebuilding the rebellious and evil city, and finishing the walls and repairing the foundations (Ezra 4:12). Rehum warned Artaxerxes that if the city was rebuilt and the walls were finished, the Jews would not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and it would damage the revenue of the kings of Persia (Ezra 4:13). In other words, the Jews success in rebuilding Jerusalem would lead to tax evasion, and a Jewish take-over of the entire province west of the Euphrates River. Artaxerxes ordered a search of the Persian historical records, and discovered that the Jews might impose a threat against him should the city be rebuilt. As a result, the king issued an order to stop the work on the walls, until he issued a decree permitting the work to continue (Ezra 4:21). God graciously moved on Artaxerxes heart to merely delay the work, until He moved upon His servant Nehemiah s heart to ask the king for permission to return and rebuild the city. Artaxerxes only ordered that the work on the walls be halted, but the Samaritan authorities went in haste to Jerusalem and broke down the walls and set fire to the gates (Ezra 4:23). An understanding of this background provides insight into Nehemiah s deep remorse over the news he received from his brother Hanani concerning the great distress the remnant in Jerusalem were in because the walls were broken down and its gates had been burned with fire. An un-walled city in Nehemiah s day was an indefensible city. Nehemiah committed himself to fasting and praying, specifically, that God would grant him compassion in asking King Artaxerxes to reverse his policy and allow the Jews to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Chapter 2 opens with Nehemiah s request to return and rebuild the city of his fathers, and King Artaxerxes granting permission for his return (2:1-8); followed by the report of his arrival in Jerusalem and secret inspection of the walls (2:9-20). I. Nehemiah s Request And King Artaxerxes Decree (2:1-8)
2 1 And it came about in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, that wine was before him, and I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. 2 So the king said to me, Why is your face sad though you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart. Then I was very much afraid. 3 And I said to the king, Let the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire? 4 Then the king said to me, What would you request? So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 And I said to the king, If it please the king, and if your servant has found favor before you, send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers tombs, that I may rebuild it. 6 Then the king said to me, the queen sitting beside him, How long will your journey be, and when will you return? So it pleased the king to send me, and I gave him a definite time. 7 And I said to the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me for the governors of the provinces beyond the River, that they may allow me to pass through until I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress which is by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house to which I will go. And the king granted them to me because the good hand of my God was on me. Four months had passed since Nehemiah began crying out to God in prayer concerning the broken down walls of Jerusalem (1:3). Nehemiah knew that humanly speaking only one man could provide for him to help his Jewish brethren in Jerusalem the king he served. Artaxerxes had issued the decree to stop the building process, and only he could reverse his earlier order. He also knew that the LORD God of heaven was the only one who could move King Artaxerxes to grant him permission to return to the city of his fathers, that he might rebuild it. As Nehemiah went about his duties of serving wine to the king, he displayed a sad countenance, which the king noticed immediately. The king asked Nehemiah in v. 2 Why is your face sad though you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart. Nehemiah was very much afraid, and for good reason. It was not permissible for a servant to display a sad countenance in the king s presence. The king s servants were expected to keep their feelings hidden and to display a cheerful, happy countenance before him at all times. Nehemiah responds to the king in v. 3 with an affirmation of his loyalty, Let the king live forever. He then proceeds to share his concerns for the welfare
3 of the city of his forefathers, Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my fathers tombs, lies desolate and its gates have been consumed by fire? Nehemiah didn t mention Jerusalem by name, perhaps to arouse the king s sympathy by first mentioning the desecration of his ancestral tombs. The king responds in v. 4 What would you request? This was the moment Nehemiah had been praying for God to arrange for the past four months. He shoots up a silent prayer to the God of heaven, no doubt asking for His wisdom and grace as he addressed his request to the king, v. 5 And I said to the king, If it please the king, and if your servant has found favor before you, send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers tombs, that I may rebuild it. Artaxerxes response, v. 6 Then the king said to me, the queen sitting beside him, How long will your journey be, and when will you return? The king s question implied that he was going to grant Nehemiah s request. The mention of the queen sitting beside him may be a reference to Esther, who God had sovereignly arranged to assume the office as queen. Esther may have had a hand in persuading the king to support Nehemiah s mission. Besides seeking God s help in prayer, Nehemiah had certainly utilized all the human resources available, including his intellectual capabilities, his past experiences, his accumulated wisdom, his role and position in life, and other professional builders and architects who served the king in the Persian court. All of these resources had aided Nehemiah in formulating a detailed plan. He was able to provide King Artaxerxes with a specific time frame, based on all of his prior planning. 6b So it pleased the king to send me, and I gave him a definite time. Nehemiah, having planned his trip from Persia to Jerusalem, and knowing he would face opposition from many enemies, requested letters from the king granting him safe passage, v. 7 7 And I said to the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me for the governors of the provinces beyond the River, that they may allow me to pass through until I come to Judah. To back up his official document permitting safe passage, King Artaxerxes supplied an armed escort of Persian officers and horsemen (v. 9b).
4 Nehemiah also requested a letter to Asaph v. 8, the keeper of the king s forest, that he might supply timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress, for the wall of the city, and for the house to which I will go. And the king granted them to me because the good hand of my God was on me. Nehemiah needed timbers for rebuilding the fortress, a reference to the citadel or fortress that housed the temple guards. It was located just north of the temple. He also needed timbers to make the beams for the gates to the city. Nehemiah, like Ezra before him, attributes his success to the good hand of God resting upon him. He believed Proverbs 21:1 The king s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes. And Ezra reminds us in 1 Chronicles 29:14 Everything comes from You, And we have given You only what comes from Your hand. Nehemiah next records his Arrival and Inspection of Jerusalem s Wall (2:9-20) II. Nehemiah s Arrival, And Inspection Of Jerusalem s Wall (2:9-20) A. His arrival in Jerusalem (vv. 9-11) 9 Then I came to the governors of the provinces beyond the River and gave them the king s letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen. Nehemiah leaves out any details about his journey from the capital in Susa to Jerusalem. Assuming he took the shortest route possible, the trip would still have taken him about 2 months. He simply states that he came straight to the governors of the provinces beyond the River and gave them the king s official letters. His arrival would have been quite impressive, seeing as how he was accompanied by a Persian military escort comprised of commanders and horsemen. Nehemiah s presentation of the king s official letters to the governors of the provinces beyond the River was met with hostility and anger, v. 10 And when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about it, it was very displeasing to them that someone had come to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel.
5 These two individuals, Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite are the chief political opponents of Nehemiah. Although Sanballat is not called governor, he may have held that position over Samaria (cf. 4:2). Tobiah means Yahweh is good. Tobiah is believed to have been the governor of Ammon, located in Transjordan to the east of Judah. Scholars speculate that Tobiah descended from an aristocratic family that owned estates in Gilead and was influential in Transjordan and in Jerusalem even as early as the eighth century B.C. Nehemiah s official status as King Artaxerxes newly appointed governor of Judah (5:14) helps to explain, as we shall see, why his enemies resorted to bluff and intimidation instead of employing military force against him. An outward attack against the king s emissary would have resulted in the certain and swift deaths of the perpetrators. In any event, Sanballat and Tobiah were very displeased that someone had come to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel. Following his arrival in Jerusalem, Nehemiah rested three days (v. 11) before he went out in the middle of the night to secretly inspect the damaged walls (2:12-16). B. His secret inspection of the walls (vv. 12-16) 12 And I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God was putting into my mind to do for Jerusalem and there was no animal with me except the animal on which I was riding. 13 So I went out at night by the Valley Gate in the direction of the Dragon s Well and on to the Refuse Gate, inspecting the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down and its gates which were consumed by fire. 14 Then I passed on to the Fountain Gate and the King s Pool, but there was no place for my mount to pass. 15 So I went up at night by the ravine and inspected the wall. Then I entered the Valley Gate again and returned. 16 And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; nor had I as yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the rest who did the work. Nehemiah recounts how he secretly went out at night, no doubt by moonlight, to inspect the condition of the broken-down walls firsthand. He didn t confide in anyone what God had put into his heart to accomplish. I take this
6 to refer to the leaders and priests, for he says he took a few men along with him, men he knew he could trust. He began his nighttime inspection from the Valley Gate in the southwest wall east of the Dragon s Well. He proceeded south to the Refuse Gate. The Refuse or Dung Gate was located on the southern extremity of the city of David and led to the rubbish dump or the place of burning in the Hinnom Valley. As he moved along Nehemiah inspected and took note of the wall, which was broken down, as well as, its gates which had been consumed by fire. He proceeded on to the east to the Fountain Gate located northeast of the Dung Gate on the eastern wall. He next came to the King s Pool believed to be the Pool of Siloam. The rubble and debris was so extensive at this location Nehemiah was forced to proceed on up the valley (probably the Kidron Valley east of the city) on foot. Kathryn Kenyon s excavations of this location between 1961 and 1967 supports Nehemiah s account. Kenyon writes: The accumulation of tumbled stones uncovered by our Trench excavations is a vivid sample of the ruinous state of the eastern side of Jerusalem that hindered Nehemiah s donkey (Jerusalem, pp. 69-71, 77). Nehemiah then retraced his steps from the eastern slope of the temple mount, and reentered Jerusalem at his starting place, the Valley Gate. Nehemiah concludes, v. 16, The officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; nor had I as yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the rest who did the work. C. His announcement of his plans to rebuild the wall (vv. 17-21) Following his secretive night-time inspection of the walls and gates of Jerusalem, and after he had time to formulate a plan for the rebuilding of the walls, Nehemiah assembled the Jews, the priests, the nobles, and the officials and issued a challenge to them to join him in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. 1. The challenge issued (v. 17) Then I said to them, You see the bad situation we are in, that Jerusalem is desolate and its gates burned by fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem that we may no longer be a reproach.
7 Nehemiah challenged the Jews, the priests, the nobles, and the officials to join him in rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem so that they would no longer be a reproach, disgrace to the name of God. The LORD God of heaven chose Jerusalem to serve as His dwelling place. The Psalmist states in Psalm 48:2 Jerusalem is the city of the great King, and the joy of the whole earth. Israel was to reflect God s glory to the nations, but instead they rebelled against God and served the Canaanite gods Baal and Asherah. As He had repeatedly forewarned, the LORD destroyed Israel and drove them into captivity. It was imperative that the returned remnant secure the city in preparation for the coming of God s Son, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Following his challenge to the Jewish leadership and nobles, Nehemiah recounted his personal testimony of how God s gracious hand had been favorably disposed towards him (v. 18), in moving King Artaxerxes to grant him permission to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city walls and gates. 2. The commitment of the people (v. 18) Then they said, Let us arise and build. So they put their hands to the good work. 3. The confrontation with Sanballat and Tobiah 2:19-20 19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the Ammonite 1 official, and Geshem the Arab heard it, they mocked us and despised us and said, What is this thing you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king? 20 So I answered them and said to them, The God of heaven will give us success; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no portion, right, or memorial in Jerusalem. As soon as Nehemiah s enemies, Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab heard what he was planning to do, they began a campaign of mockery and intimidation against him. They insinuated that he was violating King Artaxerxes earlier decree that stopped the work on the walls. They also refused to acknowledge his authority as Artaxerxes newly appointed governor of Judea.
8 Conclusion: Nehemiah responded to his attackers not by providing King Artaxerxes letters, but by exalting the God of heaven, who would give them success in the rebuilding of the walls of His holy city Jerusalem. 20 Therefore we His servants, the Jews whom you despise, will arise and build, but you have no portion, right, or memorial in Jerusalem. With these three words, portion, right, or memorial, Nehemiah was renouncing any claim past, present, or future these enemies of Israel claimed. His great confidence and dependence on God for success inspired the leaders and the people to put their hands to the good work. Perhaps the most encouraging lesson derived from Nehemiah s story is that God does indeed answer prayer. With God, even the seemingly impossible becomes possible. I learned this biblical principle that God does indeed answer prayer, back in 1994 while building 4 tuna boats for a Mexican man in Savona, Italy. I was hired to serve as the project engineer. I monitored the construction of each ship, and once a tuna boat was finished, a process of construction that took about a year and a half, it would then undergo rigorous sea trials. When the ship was deemed safe and seaworthy, I would take delivery for the owner. The owner would then send me a Mexican captain and crew to assist me in sailing the boat back to Mexico. After completing the first tuna boat, I hit an obstacle that only God could remedy. The Bank of Mexican refused to advance the large payment that was due for the successful completion of the first vessel. To make matters worse, they refused to advance any more money to pay the promissory notes that were coming due on each of the other three vessels. The Italian shipbuilders were furious, as were their bankers, who had been advancing money on unpaid Mexican promissory notes. There seemed to be no way forward. My only recourse was to pray, which I did all the time anyway. I prayed, Oh God, please move upon the Mexican banker s hearts. Move them to fulfill their financial commitments to these Italian shipbuilders. After several months of prayer, with no hope of the Mexican bankers paying what they owed to the Italians, God moved miraculously and the money came in. I should mention we are talking about a total of $65,000.000 dollars U.S. for this total project. By the grace of God, we overcame one obstacle after another, and by 1990 all four tuna boats were finished and fishing in Mexico.
9 Applying Today s Message: Before moving forward in any endeavor we need to implement several principles gleaned from Nehemiah s life: 1. If you sense God is directing you to do something, take time to pray and seek God concerning the matter. 2. Consult God s Word regularly. He often confirms His will through His Word. 3. You need to patiently wait for God s timing, and not move forward in your own strength. 4. You need to investigate the matter thoroughly, and consult other godly leaders for advice. 5. Wait for God to give you the green light to proceed.